#where you can collect stuff but it’s completely optional even if you get cool unlockables

[no1ryomafan]

My beloved bf gifted me mario wonder for my bday and while this isn’t my first mario game bc I had the one on the ds-just sucked at it lol-im having a blast going through it since I always like playing other plaformers then my usual even if I’m always comfy with Mega Man. However, playing this along with other platformers made me realize mega man misses a common aspect in most platformers: collectibles tied to progression/general items to pick up in stages that aren’t upgrades.

Mega Man does have its fair share of items to pick up but almost always it’s a health or power upgrade. The general structure of Mega Man is less of jumping on enemies like others and more so being strong enough you can take down your enemies with your weapons, the usual challenge comes from fighting bosses without their weakness or tight platforming segments. Not to mention, the entire appeal of Mega Man’s structure is you can do bosses in any order, so having stuff like collecting a object for progression just to access the next stage or area would ruin that freedom. (Also in terms of if mega man would collect coins or rings or gems I’m not sure if that would fit either given he’s a robot… What would a robot collect unless it’s like stated it’s apart of his energy source or something? Or maybe screws? Even though that’s the currency in classic for just buying stuff)

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing since it gives mega man it’s own unique appeal and some people may not like other platformers compared to it-even if I say the challenge universally sticks so others are worth checking out, especially when in other games it’s waaaay easier to die despite how brutal mega man is with lives and Insta kill stuff-but it’s something I noticed when playing Mario and other platformers so I’m definitely gonna be rotating this for awhile.

[souichioneshots]

Souichi x Reader 【Gloves】

Started the date one shot collection thingy

Here is the first addition to the collection

Thought of and wrote it in an hour, so I apologize if it feels OOC or boring or whatever

I especially apologize for any misspells

But other than that, please enjoy!!

The summer heat of Fukazawa could really be killer sometimes. People would line up for hours to buy shaved ice, and the public pools would be filled to the brim with people from all over town. It was days as hot as today that Souichi wished he could just make everything freeze over. But, then again, it was thanks to days like these that Souichi could experience a different kind of fun.

A small bell chimed as you opened the large heavy-looking door, allowing Souichi to walk into the building first. As you walked up to the ticket counter, an elderly lady greeted you.

“2 for public skating, please.” You said in a voice loud enough for her to hear. “That’ll be 4,000 yen.”

Just before Souichi could take out his wallet to pay for his half, you waved your hand at him and insisted that he didn’t need to pay. “You can pay for the hot chocolate instead.” You assured him with a smile.

After receiving your tickets, the door to the area buzzed loudly, finally allowing the two of you to enter the ice skating arena.

Souichi let out a small hum as cold air engulfed him. It was like you two had stepped into a completely different part of the world.

The inside area was separated into 3 sections. The food court, the private rink, and the public rink. The food court was empty, except for a couple of kids playing on some old-styled claw-machine games set up on the side. The private rink was extremely well lit and filled with a couple of pro-looking skaters twirling and jumping around in the air. As for the public rink…

“Looks like we got here at a good time!” You said in an excited voice. Even though it was the weekend, there were barely any people. What sounded like pop music played at a moderate volume, and the lights had been dimmed quite a bit. Souichi wasn’t exactly expecting to be alone with you on the ice, but he was sure there would be way more people than there were now. A feeling of nervousness arose within him as he realized that he couldn’t use the excuse of there being too many people to explain why he wouldn’t be able to skate so smoothly.

Turning the corner, you made your way to the skate-rental area. ]

“Shoe size?” The staff member asked looking at Souichi. “２✖cm.” “And you miss?” “２✖ and a half, please.”

After receiving your skates, you made your way to the benches that were set up nearby.

Souichi kicked off his shoes and placed his feet inside the hard-plastic skates. The shoes let out a loud clicking sound as he adjusted their tightness. When you both finished, you wobble-walked to the lockers nearby and put your stuff inside. Wrapping the key-band around his wrist, Souichi made his way to the ice with you.

“Gloves?” A large man standing near the only visible entrance put his foot out and blocked you both from walking any further.

After stating that you had none, he explained that it was arena policy to wear them while skating. Pointing you to the nearest gift shop, he asked you both to buy a pair and then come back.

You let out a sigh of annoyance as you walked back to the locker area. Unlocking the locker, Souichi got some money from his locker. “We should have just sliced his leg off.” Kicking your foot in the air, you spoke. “I bet we could have done it if we kick hard enough. Hehehe.” Souichi laughed through his nose. He loved when you made dark jokes like that.

Walking into the skate gift shop, his eyes scanned the area, ignoring the dozens of sparkly outfits that hung from the ceiling. When he found the glove section, he carefully walked towards it and searched for a color and design that he might like. However, there weren’t many options for him to choose from. It was either sparkly pink, neon green, or 2000 yen professional gloves. Shifting through the different gloves, he finally found a pair of his liking all the way in the back. Carefully taking it off the rack, he slipped one glove over his hand to make sure it was the right size.

“Oh~ Those are nice.” You said, admiring the grey glove on Souichi’s hand. “But how about these? They’d really make you stand out on the ice.” You said with a smile as you held out a pair of neon green gloves for Souichi to wear. “No way. Those are disgusting.” Souichi immediately responded. “Ah…Yeah. Haha. True…Mmm...” You said, trying to make what you had previously said seem like a joke.

It wasn’t until Souichi finished paying for the cheap gloves that he realized what you had been trying to do. Walking back towards the rink, he watched you put the neon gloves on your own hands. You rubbed your thumb over them, an expression of embarrassment plastered across your face.

Before Souichi could say anything, you looked up at him with a new smile. “Ready to skate?” Souichi nodded his head as he rushed to put his own gloves on. He’ll fix this little problem later…

The man who guarded the entrance to the rink gave you both a smile as you waved your hands in the air, showing off your new gloves.

Putting his foot on the ice, Souichi immediately held onto the barrier of the rink. This was nothing like roller-skating. The ice was way too slick, and the blades under his feet wouldn’t stop sliding to the slides. Souichi bit down on the nails in his mouth as he struggled to keep his balance.

“Everything okay?” You asked as you casually glided next to him. “Yeah. Just uhh… Familiarizing myself with the rink.” He said, leaning against the barrier. “Hmm~” You hummed as you stopped and stood close next to the raven-haired boy.

Feeling nervous by the sudden change in atmosphere, Souichi pushed off and tried to skate forward. He kept one hand on the barrier as you two skated side by side. He was slow. He could tell by the way you would skate slightly further than him and then slow down to be by his side again, that he was holding you back.

He wanted to tell you to go skate freely. That he wouldn’t mind just watching you skate from afar. God knows that would have been easier for him. But, you had other plans.

Suddenly, you stopped, forcing Souichi grip onto the barrier tightly to stop as well.

Turning to look at him, you put your neon gloved hand out for him to grab. Souichi looked up at you with nervous eyes, unsure what you were planning. Taking a deep breath, he let go of the barrier and took your hand.

Souichi let out a sound of surprise as you pulled him towards you, your other hand reaching to take his free one into yours. His eyes moved from the floor, to you, to the moving surroundings as you skated backward, tugging him along the entire time. He never knew you could skate backward.

When you finally stopped, he realized where you were.

“The middle of the rink…” He whispered to himself, getting a small laugh out of you. It was much more spacious than the sidelines, and the ice beneath his skates felt somewhat different. Smoother and untouched by other blades. Although it was cool, it was also quite terrifying at the same time. The middle of the rink was known to be territory only experienced skaters and staff members could use. Yet, there you two were.

“What would you do if I just left you here?” You said with a wicked laugh. “Eh?” Souichi looked up at you with shocked eyes. You wouldn’t. “I mean, it’s not like you can chase after me. Perhaps you can crawl after me though~” You teased, letting your grip on his hand go weak. “Don’t even think about it.” Souichi said in a stern voice, tightening his grip around your hands.

You smiled at the raven-haired boy’s panicked expression. “I’m just kidding. I won’t let you go.” You extended your arms and started to skate backward again, pulling Souichi towards you. You laughed as the pale boy took actual footsteps on the ice.

“Careful!” A staff member who had been skating exclaimed as he glided right behind you. Souichi let out a small yelp as you suddenly stopped.

“You okay?” You asked, helping Souichi regain his balance. Souichi shook his head yes, looking down at his wobbly feet once before looking back at you.

His cheeks burned red as he realized how close he was to you. The grip he had on your hands tightened.

“Can…” He whispered, making you lean a bit more forward to hear him better. “Can we trade gloves?…” Your cheeks burned red at his sudden utterance. “I thought you didn’t like these gloves?” You asked with a nervous laugh. Souichi didn’t respond. He did think it was an ugly color, but it was the color you had chosen for him.

Slightly pulling him closer, you guided Souichi’s hands to hold onto your shoulders. “How about we trade one glove?” You suggested, taking the glove off your dominant hand. When you finished, you put your hands on his shoulders, allowing him to do the same. Souichi smiled as he looked down at his now mismatched gloves.

Holding tightly onto each other’s hands again, you started to skate. Souichi listened with a smile as you gave him advice on how he could skate a bit better. But ultimately, he just wanted to keep holding onto you, even if it meant making a fool of himself.

Finally making it to the other end of the rink, you slowed your pace down and guided Souichi to take ahold of the barrier.

Souichi leaned on one arm as he tried to keep his balance.

“So…Do you want to get some hot chocolate now?” You asked.

Looking down at his free hand, Souichi saw that you two had yet to let go of one another completely.

Pushing himself off the barrier once more, he quickly moved to grab your other hand. “How about we skate in the middle one more time first?”

[ajbwasntwriting]

Daughter!Reader x Negan, Reader x Daryl: Chapter 4. Bow Boy

First | Previous | Next

After way too many chapters the reader will now meet our favorite archer. 

I’ll only post more chapters if previous chapters get a good reaction so if you enjoy this please heart it, reblog it, and/or reply to it. Interaction inspires.

 if you wish to be added to the tag list please dm me. All chapters can be found under the tag AJ’s Negan’s Daughter AU

In the weeks that followed you had become adept at moving through the dead. You had set up a little place closer in the city for yourself, complete with a crappy veggie garden on the roof of an apartment complex for yourself. Only Tomatoes, Onions, and Lettuce seemed to grow up there but it was better than nothing. You had built up a steady collection of books, turning one of the abandoned apartments into a library. You treated the zombie books as if they were comedy. ‘If only they knew’ you’d think looking at your wardrobe which consisted of some comfortable pieces to lounge around your hideout in and a bucket of cloths stewing in guts for when you went out. It proved beneficial to leave the home smelling freshly dead.

You were trying to build up a collection of canned food, meant to get you through the winter, but it wasn’t enough and with your last crop failing you knew it was back to foraging for at least the next three months. You had an old calendar broken up and spread across your floor. If you could fit seven cans on each page then you’d be fine...but seven cans was all you had, not including the dog food. The only good thing is that food was the only thing you had a hard time coming up with.

You were wandering through the streets again in your walker gear, your bag empty, aside from some old seed mix you took from the pet store. The snow had begun to fall making being discrete more difficult as the dead would often get stuck or fall over, which wasn’t an option for you. ‘Maybe when it gets heavy I can wear my normal clothes.’ you thought.

It was no use, the sun was setting, and traveling deeper into town would prove a fruitless effort if you got caught by the dead. You backtracked to a bank. The doors were broken and bloodied and ripped sleeping bags lined the ground, but what you came here for was the boards on the windows. You ripped some filling from a sleeping bag, shoving it into your ruck-sack, and moved to the windows.

You got the first board down but the click of a gun stopped your movements. “Turn around. Slowly” a man with a southern accent spoke. You did as he said, turning around with your hands raised. To say you were surprised would be an understatement. Before you stood Rick Grimes, along with a man with a crossbow and a woman with dark hair pulled into a tight pony, pointing a familiar rifle at you.

“Hey...Rick was it?” you nodded to the woman “Glad to see you got some use out of that rifle.” It took a moment for it to dawn on Rick who you were, at which he couldn’t contain his chuckle at your overly friendly attitude.

“I didn’t recognise you with all that filth on your face, then again I never got your name.”

“I have reasons to prefer it that way,” you smiled at him.

“Look, can you leave those blanks? We need to camp here for the night.” He asked, not putting his gun down, but you didn’t judge.

“I need the wood,”

“Let’s just kill her” the man spoke up, stepping closer then visually wincing. You looked him over quickly and noticed his leg was bleeding badly.

“Your hurt,” you spoke, locking eyes with the man. After a glance over the rest of them, it seemed they had been through a war. Maybe that’s why they decided to stay “I can help with that if you let me. I have a safe house not too far from here.” you said, nodding to the man behind Rick. “In return you guys just gotta help me carry up some planks to make a fire.”

“No” the woman behind Rick spoke.

“Yes,” Rick interjected. He turned to his group, his back to you which seemed to make them trail their weapons on your head. You took a step back for their sake. “If she says she can patch Daryl up then she can.”

“Why do you trust her?” the woman asked, not taking her eyes or aim off of you for a second.

“It’s a long story,” he whispered “But we’re cold and exposed out here. So I say we take her up on the offer.”

“Can I go back to getting my wood now?” you interrupted them. “It’s getting late and it’s hard to navigate in the dark”

“Yeah,” Rick said, turning back to you. You turned and started pulling the planks off the windows, now with Rick’s help. The other two took a moment to join you too, pulling a couple planks off the wall. Between yourself and Rick you had a few days worth of wood, while the woman was busy helping the second man who was limping. You lead them down to an old red-brick building, leading them to the entrance to the basement.

“It’s ten flours up,” you said, unlocking the gate and motioning the group to go down. “You’ll sleep like babies after.” Once inside the planks were offloaded onto you to carry the second man up the floors. Once on your floor, you dropped the planks onto the ground, finding an oil-lamp in the moonlight and turning it on. The group looked even more exhausted now. You held out the lamp to Rick and nodded to the door to your left. “My bed’s in there. Get him laid out. I’ll be on the roof.” he took the lamp from you. You grabbed two planks and walked past them “Don’t take my food there’s not enough” you called as you passed them.

You opened up the roof, finding what was left of your garden, some plastic boxes collecting snow, and a fire pit you had jerry-rigged out of a sheet of metal, an old lamp, and a punch of wire hangers twirled to suspend a pot that had filled with snow. You grabbed the hatchet you had found from it’s space by the door and got the filling from your bag and started a fire using a lighter. As it burned you went back to the entrance way to the roof, where you kept the bucket of guts for your walker gear and a small cupboard with clean clothes in it and some pieces of cloth. By the time you had peeled off the layers, the snow had turned to water. You poured some out into a neighbouring pot full of snow, cooling it.

As you were washing the gunk off your skin and out of your hair you heard the door open. It was the woman. “I’m so sorry” she yelped, closing the door.

“What is it?” you yelled just before she closed it again.

“We were wondering what was taking you” she answered. “You didn’t mention you were bathing.” you wiped the blood from your arms, your skin reacting to the sudden heat and cold.

“There’s a pot on the stove in my kitchen. Can you bring it up?” you called. She replied positively before fully closing the door. By the time she came back you were fully clean and redressed in some red pants, a black shirt, a yellow hoodie, and a pair of slip-on shoes you’d designated as your house shoes. She held the pot from behind the door, you walked over and opened the door, finding her with her eyes closed. “I’m dressed,” you said, taking the pot. You got some snow from the bins and emptied the last of the water into the new pot. You picked it up.

“I’m Tara, by the way” she spoke up as you walked back towards her.

“I didn’t ask” you replied, walking past her “close the door” you were down one flight of stairs with her behind you when you stopped short, looking over your shoulder. “Sorry, it’s just...safer to not exchange names.” Tara nodded at you

“No, I get it.” she smiled at you meekly. The two of you continued down the stairs. “How do you know Rick?”

“I tried to kill him,” you said plainly, pushing your door open to see Rick and the other man, now sitting on the couch. “I thought I told you the bed.” You said, putting the pot of hot water on the coffee table. “Where’s the wound?”

“His calf,” Rick replied, watching you walk into the kitchen. You threw open one of the presses and to the shock of the other three, it was over flowing with medical supplies. You grabbed a familiar first-aid kid, a bottle of antibiotics, some bandage, and gauze.

“Great. Take off your pants.” You unintentionally slammed the doors closed “Or just roll up the leg of your jeans. Either way, I need a look at it.” The man bent over and rolled up the jean leg.

“Where did you find all that stuff?” Rick asked. You picked up the man’s leg and placed it on the coffee table, shoving the pant leg up.

“Around” you replied as you cleaned the matted blood from the wound. It was a rather deep cut and it didn’t look good. “You’re gonna need stitches, and I’m gonna have to open it up more.”

“The hell you mean open it up more!” The man shouted

“To make sure it’s clean, numb-nuts. How’d you get this?”

“We jumped out of an office window” Tara spoke up. “Daryl got caught on the fire escape.” Now that made you laugh. That fragile-looking man, that baby-faced girl, and this rough-looking redneck is the one that gets hurt.

“Old steal.” you signed dramatically “I gotta clean it properly.” you spoke, opening the first aid kit to show it full of medical tools. Mainly single-use tweezers and scissors. You took some scissors and cut up some gauze, “It’s gonna hurt. Need a towel to bite on?” you asked, using a pair of tweezers to pick up the gaze and soak it in the steaming water.

“Fuck you” Daryl cursed. You positioned your free hand over the wound, pushing it open slightly, causing him to wince.

“As you wish” you cut back before focusing on cleaning the wound. He took it like a champ and you had him bandaged in no time. You dumped the water out the window when you were done. You laughed to yourself as it hit a walker and he grumbled up at you. You didn’t pay attention to their conversation until they pulled you into it.

“How many walkers have you killed?” Rick called over to you. You closed the window and walked back into the sitting room of the apartment,

“Why?”

“Please just answer the question,” Rick spoke quietly. You leaned against a hall and took a deep breath

“I don’t know... a lot”

“How many people have you killed?” he asked. You thought on it a moment and remembered the lady you sent a walker on back at Sanctuary

“One”

“Why?”

“She tried to kill me first”

The three of them looked amongst themselves as if reading each other’s minds. “We have a place-”

“No” you stopped Rick, knowing what was coming next. “I am not going to your camp, and you're not staying here. Tomorrow morning you will leave, and I will stay,” you spoke firmly

“It’s not a camp,” Tara spoke up from where she was sitting on the couch next to Daryl. “It’s a community. We have walls.”

“I’m not going” you spoke slowly, making sure every word was heard. You pushed off the wall and walked past the living area towards your bedroom. “Next door is my library. There’s another bed and a couch. Just don’t take my shit.” you closed the door and locked it for good measure. ‘They’ll take my supplies’ you thought as you crawled into bed, pulling the blankets as closely around you as possible, ‘but they won’t take me’.

The following morning you woke to see your patient out cold on your couch, with his friends on the floor covered in the blankets from the library. It was still dark out, as expected in the winter season, but you still wanted them gone. You walked past him to your door, remembering you’d left your bag on the roof. Everything up there was still in its place too.

Back in your apartment, you prepared a wonderful breakfast; half a can of soup, and some seed mix in a bowl. It tasted like crap but you knew it would fill you for the next while. “Thought you said there was no food” Daryl piped up from the couch. You turned your back to him.

“Not enough for more people” you retorted, slurping down your cold soupy-seedy mix.

“How long have you been out here?” He asked.

“Some time” you said through gulps

“Where were you before this?”

“Someplace else” you snapped, scraping the last of the mix into your mouth. Silence fell for a moment.

“Why did you help us?” he asked. You looked down into the old metal sink as if it had the answers. You used to do the same with the neck of a vodka bottle at sanctuary. They never had the answers. ‘Old soldiers don’t forget their training?’ you thought

“I don’t know” is what you said.

The other two woke not long after. Rick looked at your cabinet than at you before approaching you. Before he could speak you opened it up and pulled out two changes of bandages. “For Daryl,” you said, “Now get out.”

Three days later you were coming back to your home from another run, finding some clothes and chocolate powder but no food. With the seeds, you could stretch your rations to another week but it was still tight. That was when you saw a small pile of cans in front of your door. Eight in total. Soups, peas, beans, apple sauce. Among the cans, you found a small note. ‘From Alexandria’ it read. You thought of the ramifications that might have to your security and how that they’ll probably pay a price for not having enough food for your father this week, then one of the tins read /FAVOURITE SOUP/ and your stomach won over, demanding you to start a fire this minute and warm that can of delicious right up!

You were grateful for the first time. Alarmed the second time. Tired of it by the third time. They would come every week with cans and tins of food. When you expected the next delivery ‘from Alexandra’ you stayed home, sitting on the floor watching the door. The sun had been up a while and you were certain they weren’t coming when you heard heavy steps, followed by the sound of tin knocking off each other. You opened the door quickly, startling the delivery man in the process.

“Howdy, Bow Boy” you spoke to Daryl who had the bow pointed at your face. “What’re you doing?” Daryl slid his crossbow back into place.

“ugh...Feeding ya?” he said, a little embarrassed about getting caught. “I figured you’d be out, scavenging.”

“I usually am but some homeless-looking guy keeps bringing me food” you smiled sarcastically.

“Well he sounds like a gentleman,” he said, picking up the cans and offering one to you.

“Why are you doing this?” you asked, closing your eyes in annoyance.

“You need it,” he spoke plainly. You pushed your door open and motioned for him to follow.

“Put the cans on the coffee table” you said, going to your medical supplies and pulling some things out and placing them on the counter. “I am not taking any more charity. We are going to trade.” He looked over what you were pulling out.

“Are you sure?” he asked. You nodded sternly.

“You ain’t leaving me short, so I ain’t gonna leave you short. That’s the terms.” you held out your hand to him. “Deal?”

You parted with a lot of medical supplies, some soaps, two blankets, and a box of cutlery. You would have given him more but he couldn’t fit any more in his bag. You’d just have to find him better stuff next time.

Riding into the Sanctuary on his bike, Daryl was greeted by some saviours. He emptied his bag, claiming to have found the pieces. Everyone was overjoyed at the supplies and the fresh blankets went to Rodney and his new-born. Heading back to his quarters he was approached by Lauren. “Daryl! Daryl, it happened again. Some asshole robbed some of our cans”

~ Tag List ~

@softsebastian​

[maskeraith]

big eldar scrolls on line post about what i thought about it

may have some spoilers for the morrowind storyline and sidequests idk also I am inevitably gonna compare it to ffxiv a lot as it’s the only other mmorpg I’ve played good luck

Writing this after finishing writing the rest wow this got too long there is a tldr though haha

so the first thing I will say is that eso’s overworld exploration and sidequesting blows ffxiv away completely, there is so much to do and fun to be had in eso simply by exploring around! the enemies feel cool to fight, there are delves and solo dungeons to just stumble across with quests in there, skill points just lying around if you look hard enough, gathering spots that you can just gather from without having to be a specific profession or something, WORLD bosses that you need a group to battle just OUT there it’s really cool! Ffxiv does have some really beautiful environments but in terms of actual stuff to do, there’s literally just fates and they’re pretty shit to be honest, and i guess the sightseeing log??

and sidequests! all my time in the game was spent in the morrowind area (vvardenfall I think? my eso lore is zero watch out) and every sidequest I did had a really engaging storyline. They do mostly amount to fetch quests and slay monster quests in terms of gameplay with some puzzle moments sometimes, but the storylines were captivating enough to justify most of what you had to do. compared to ffxiv which is BLOATED with boring fetch quests with uninteresting storylines eso has it figured out. the characters you meet and their dialogue is great and sometimes you can even make choices which affect the final outcome of the quest which is always fun (your character having the personality of a brick aside). I actually think I enjoyed certain sidequests more than the main story of morrowind they’re that involved

Also there are world events but I didn’t really get into them, there was like a huge tornado which spawned some enemies that give you massive exp, but my horsey was too slow and I only got there at the tail end because they’re great for farming so every player in the world goes there and kills them instantly they seem cool though

in terms of lore, I’m not someone who is super interested in the lore of the elder scrolls universe but I found myself learning a whole lot of very crazy stuff from the friends I was playing with who DO know all about it, and I will say that if the lore of the elder scrolls universe interests you in any way you’ll love this game! so I learned that there are Eras in this universe, and eso takes place in the second era I believe. The other main series games all take place in the third or fourth I think, so eso is able to like set the groundwork for those games and explain the history behind stuff going on in all the main games, which I think is a really good idea, perfect for fans of the lore and stuff. Like I remember the funny talking dog from skyrim and he’s like the primary antagonist of the morrowind main story like woah

The combat is where I think the game started to fall off for me, again with the ffxiv comparison but it just wasn’t reaching levels nearly as interesting as the combat in that game for me.

Firstly, there’s no tab targetting (unless there’s a setting in the menu somewhere i missed?) you actually aim all your attacks, single target, aoe, whatever. for me this made it harder to be able to gain a situational awareness, and I have to keep my camera aimed at the boss and I’m not able to move it around to see if there was anything else going on. I do see how aiming your attacks could actually make the game more appealing to some people, though, as it does give a sense that you are more actively participating in the battle and not just standing there pressing buttons, but for me this sort of thing doesn’t make any difference

The second thing was the amount of abilities you have at any one time - you have 10 abilities and 2 ultimates slotted at any one time. Five and one ult are active at a time, and you have to swap weapons (it’s as easy as the press of a button) to switch to your second bar with the other 5 and 1 ult. This does make the game a lot more accessible I think, but it also means the stuff you get to do is just gonna be a lot more straightforward and spammy compared to the interesting and involved rotations you get in ffxiv. as a tank, I set myself up to put three dots and a debuff on the enemy and then spam my one damaging attack, until I had to reapply the stuff again, and that was basically it. I had some tank cooldowns too like a shield, heal, a grab and so on. I did look up the Most Complicated Rotation to see how hard it could get, which seemed to be stamina nightblade, and even that has “Ability x11″ or something in its rotation

Simple rotations would be fine for me if the bosses themselves were more difficult or complicated to compensate, but honestly nothing was any more difficult or involved than ffxiv. On youtube I’ve watched like 5 dungeons and a trial on the hardest Veteran difficulty, and the dungeons don’t look like anything more than what you would get in other mmos. The trials looks like really great content honestly, but there’s no party finder for them as far as I know so you have to manually gather 11 other people which is never something I enjoy trying to do in multiplayer games lol

i also didn’t super appreciate that the game wanted to like hide a bunch of info from me by default? like a few hours in I complained that it was impossible to know when my dots and self buffs ran out because all I had was like little particle effects on the enemy/myself to go off, and my friends were like “oh yeah you need to turn on these tooltips in the options” like huh?? I need to know this stuff come on

There is some really cool stuff in the combat though! Every player has like a basic bash attack, which can interrupt certain attacks, and then a basic heavy attack, which can knock down staggered enemies (they get staggered if you interrupt them) so there is more to do than just your abilities.

One thing I will mention though, is that I think a huge part of the combat is resource management - you spend stamina/mana on your abilities and if you’re not careful it’s easy to run out. As a tank, blocking takes up stamina, and sometimes I would not manage it correctly and run out and be unable to use my anything for a bit. You get it back by doing heavy attacks (contrary to every game ever) and other like passives unique to whatever build you might have going on. A lot of the game’s difficulty in harder content might come from this, but I didn’t get that deep into any of that sort of thing

I think the way you pick your abilities is really cool - you level up a whole bunch of different skill trees at a time, and you can slot any ability from any tree at any time (other than weapon skills specifically, you must be weilding that weapon) into your 10 slots. Your class has three unique trees, then there’s like a tree for every weapon type, for mage and fighter’s guild, this weird guild called the undaunted, werewolf and vampire, probably more I forgot about. All of them have 5 skills that you unlock as you level that tree, and all of those skills can be morphed into one of two “strong” versions of that skill once you level that specific skill. So there is a huge amount of player choice in how you build your character! I remember getting loads of advice from my friends but also just thinking to myself “but this skill though...” (i am so sorry). There are loads of passives too but they’re kind of lame and you just sort of put your excess skill points in them to make yourself passively stronger. I am sure there are Optimal builds, but playing casually you can literally just do anything

I do think levelling them can sometimes be a pain though because like, if you want the fifth ability in Skill Tree 1 but you don’t really use any of the first four, well actually you do have to start using a bunch of those skills you don’t want because you gain more exp for that skill tree the more of its skills you use, sort of a minor thing I guess

Finally I will talk about how I really do not like the execution of the loot system... So you get armour sets in this game and if you wear 5 of them you get a very significant passive, like whenever you crit you summon a big ghoul to shoot acid, or all of your aoe abilities also taunt. I think this is a super cool idea in theory, and it allows for even further personal customisation of the kind of character you want to play. However..

So the max level is 50, but the real max level is like 180 or something because at 50, you continue to level up but each level just gives you a point to put into these big huge bonus passive skill trees which continue to increase your stats up to the 180th point or something like that. In eso, though, you can go anywhere and do anything and all the enemies are scaled to you. But, it’s actually that you are scaled to the enemies - while below level 50, you get an invisible buff that makes you as strong as a level 50 character. This means that every level you gain, you actually get slightly weaker, if you’re not updating your armour.

Armour drops at whatever level you are, up to the cap of 180 where you are the strongest you can be. So ultimately what this means is every piece of armour you get up until you reach the level cap will quickly become obsolete. Every time I collected 5 pieces of a set and got a cool passive, all I could think was “this will be fun for about 4 levels” because I knew I’d need to swap it all out for stronger stuff. Essentially I felt locked out of seriously farming for the gear sets I wanted until I reached Max Max level, which made everything I collected seem pretty pointless to me.

Also, always being as strong as a level 50 character did kind of make it feel like I wasn’t really levelling up at all? It’s why I broke my rule of “I will get to level 50 before stopping” because I actually was level 50 all along, I got all the abilities from my skill trees that I wanted and ran a bunch of dungeons with them and I was in the 30s, but there were no other skills I could really see myself swapping out so I was essentially “max level”, as far as I was concerned.

so yeah tl;dr these are my two main opinions:

This game is an awesome time running around and exploring the environment, doing quests and running dungeons! If you’re a fan of the elder scrolls world and lore it is absolutely a must play!

Customising your character’s skills and armour sets is a lot of fun, but I do think it comes at the expense of not having a really finely tuned, coherant combat style, it feels a lot like I’m Just Hitting All The Buttons.

The end lol

[zerochanges]

2020 Favorite Video Games

I don’t know if I am an outlier or if this is the same for everyone else but I really did not play a lot of games this year. 2020 was a very harsh year for all of us, especially for me for some personal reasons. So to get to the chase, I am just gonna say it left me not doing much in what little free time I did have, and I didn’t play much either. Usually I try to keep my lists for ‘favorite of the year’ to only titles released that year but since I played so little this year, screw it. I am gonna include any game I played this year regardless of release date.

Collection of SaGa

By far a flawed rerelease. It’s bare bones: there are no advance features you would usually expect out of these kinds of emulated rereleases like save states, fast forward, or rewind, and there was no real effort made to touch up almost 30 year old localizations that had to meet Nintendo of America’s then harsh standards. This really is just 3 roms slapped into a nice looking interface with an option to increase the game speed (which by the way you better use, the characters walk very slow in these old games). 

I am bit harsh here, but only because I thought the Romancing SaGa remasters and the upcoming SaGa Frontier remaster all looked like they got a great budget and a lot of love while this is just another Collection of Mana situation (moreso specifically talking about Seiken Densetsu 1/Final Fantasy Adventure/Adventures of Mana part of that collection). I would have loved to see Square Enix do a bit more for these older games. Or at least include the remakes. Seiken Densetsu 1 had two great remakes, both unused in Collection of Mana, and all three of these original SaGa titles have remakes that have never seen the light of day outside of Japan. How great would it have been to get the Wonderswan remake of SaGa 1, as well as the Nintendo DS remakes of Saga 2 and SaGa 3? 

But my gripes aside, these games are still fun as they ever were. Replaying SaGa 1 specifically during the holiday season really helped calm me down and made me feel at ease. It’s easy to forget but even in their Gameboy roots there are a lot of funky and weird experimental choices being made in these games. They aren’t your run-of-the-mil dragon quest (or considering the gameboy, maybe pokemon would be more apt) clones. 

Raging Loop

Perhaps my favorite game of the year, Raging Loop is one of the best visual novels I have ever played hands down. The level of creativity and splitting story paths that went into it is simply mind blowing. The basic premise is both a wonderful throwback to the old days of Chunsoft sound novels while still modern and somewhat reminiscent of both Higurashi and Danganronpa. Essentially you play as Haruaki, a poor slub that got lost in the mountains with no clue where to go until you stumble upon an old rural village with a strange history and even stranger superstitions. Before you know it there has been a murder and the Feast is now afoot.

The less said about Raging Loop the better, although I do want to say a lot about it one day if I ever can write a proper review of it. This is a gripping game that will take hold of you once you get into it though and never let go. I actually 100%-ed this and I very rarely do that. I got every ending, every bonus hidden ending, played the entire game twice to hear all the hidden details it purposely hides on your first play through, played all the bonus epilogue chapters, unlocked all the hidden voice actor interviews, collected all the art work, etc, etc. I was just obsessed with this game, it’s that damn good! And the main character is maybe the best troll in all of video games, god bless Haruaki. 

Root Double

From Takumi Nakazawa, long time contributor to Kotaro Uchikoshi’s work comes a game any fan of Zero Escape or Uchikoshi in general will probably enjoy. Root Double, like its name suggests is a visual novel with two different routes, hence Root Double. The first route stars Watase Kasasagi, the leader of an elite rescue team in the midst of their greatest crisis yet that could lead to nuclear devastation as they try to evacuate a nuclear research facility that has gone awry. 

The other route stars Natsuhiko Tenkawa, an everyday high schooler whose peaceful life is thrown into turmoil when he stumbles upon a terrorist plot to destroy the nuclear facility in the city and his attempts to stop them. Together the two separate plots weave into one and creates a really crazy ride. Part Chernobyl, part science fiction, any fan of the genre will easily enjoy it. And hey it’s kind of relevant to include on this list too since it just got a Switch port this year (I played it on steam though).  

Snack World

I was shocked upon starting Snack World as it is instantly incredibly charming, witty, and downright hilarious at times yet I heard almost zero people talk about it. EVER. This game is Dragon Quest levels of quirky though, and the localization is incredible. The game has such an oddball sense of humor that works really well with its presentation right down to the anime opening video that sings about the most bizarre things. Instead of the usual pump up song about the cool adventure ahead we get stuff like wanting to go out to a restaurant and eat pork chops. 

The self aware/fourth wall breaking humor is just enough to be really funny, but doesn't overstay its welcome and always makes it work right in the context of the dialogue. And finally, just everything; with the menus, the name of side quests and missions, and the character dialogue -- are all just so witty and full of quirky humor. This is one hell of a charming and funny game and addictive to boot.

Trials of Mana

Trials of Mana has gone from one of those legendary unlocalized games, to one of the first major breakthroughs in fan translation, to finally getting an official English release complete with a fully 3D remake. In a lot of ways from a western perspective this game has had an incredible journey. As for this remake itself, I really found myself having tons of fun with it. I loved the graphics, and the voice acting while a bit on the cheaper side almost kind of adds to the charm since both the graphics and acting really give it an old PS2 vibe. I know that is probably just more me being weird but yeah, I had to say it. 

I really hope Square Enix sticks to this style of remake more often, instead of just doing Final Fantasy VII Remakes that break the bank and involve extensive tweaking to both plot and game play. I’ll take smaller budget projects that play more like the original game any day personally. I wouldn’t mind if they also deliver a brand new Mana game all together in this engine either. 

Utawarerumono Trilogy

This year saw the release of the first entry in the series, Utawarerumono: Prelude to the Fallen--and thus finally after three years since the sequels Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception and Utawarerumono: Mask of Truth came out in 2017 the trilogy is now complete in English. I ended up binging through Prelude to the Fallen very fast shortly after it came out and immediately jumped on to the sequels. Perhaps the best part of 2020 was that I finally played all three of these fantastic games, and did so back-to-back-to-back. Playing the first Utawarerumono was an experience I will never forget, it was like visiting old friends again that I haven’t seen in ages, by and large thanks to the fact that I saw the anime adaption of the game when I was much younger, nearly a decade ago. Back then I would have never of dreamed that I would get to play the actual game and get the real experience. 

And it only got better from here, as all three games are such wonderful experiences from start to finish. The stories are all so deep, and by the time you get to the third entry, Mask of Truth, it’s crazy to see how they all connected over so many years and weaved together into a plot much bigger than they ever were. What carries it beyond all that though has to be the fun and addicting strategy role playing game aspect, which while a bit on the easy side, is still so much fun and helps make the game feel better paced since you get to play the conquests your characters go on and not just read about all the battles they fight. Beyond that the games are packed full of awesome characters, and I know I’ll never forget the amazing leads in all of them. Hakuowlo, Haku, and Oshtor will all go down as some of the greats to me. 

Ys: Memories of Celceta

Ys: Memories of Celceta is a full 3D remake of Ys IV, a rather infamous game in Falcom’s Ys series. Not to get bogged down too much into the history of Falcom but by this point they were facing a lot of hardship and had to outsource this entry to other developers, and thus passed it on to two particular developers they had a business relationship with, creating two unique versions of Ys IV. Tonkin House who had worked on Super Famicom port of Ys III with Falcom ended up creating their own YS IV entry, Mask of the Sun for the very same system, where Hudson soft who had produced the much beloved Ys Books I & II remakes for the Turbografix (PC Engine) CD add-on created their own Ys IV entry Dawn of Ys for that console. Both games followed guidelines and ideas outlined from Falcom themselves but both radically diverged from each other and turned into completely different games. 

Falcom finally putting an end to this debate on which version of Ys IV you should play have gone and created their own definitive Ys IV in 2012 for the Playstation Vita. I played the 2020 remastered version of this remake on my PS4. I even bought this on the Vita when it first came out but I am horrible and only horde games, never play them. So it was a lot of fun to finally play this. 

Memories of Celceta is probably one of the best starting points for anyone looking to get into Ys, especially if you only want to stay with the 3D titles as out of all the 3D entries this explains the most about the world and series protagonist Adol Christian. Beyond that it’s just another fantastic entry in a wonderful series that has a few good twists hidden behind it, especially for long time fans of the series. 

Random Video Game Console Stuff

Xbox Has Blue Dragon: I actually got an Xbox One this year for free from my brother. Because of that I started to play Blue Dragon again and there’s a lot I would love to say about this game. I don’t know if I am fully committed to replaying it all the way through however but I find myself putting in a couple hours every few days and enjoying myself again. Does anyone else remember Blue Dragon? I feel like it really missed its audience and had it come out nowadays and probably for the Switch it would have really resonated with the Dragon Quest fandom a lot more instead of being thrown out to die on Xbox and constantly compared to Final Fantasy VII and the like which it had nothing at all similar with. 

The Turbografx 16 Mini: This was probably one of the best mini consoles that have come out and I feel like thanks to the whole 2020 pandemic thing it was largely forgotten about. That’s a shame, it has a wonderful variety of great games, especially if you count the Japanese ones (god I wish I could play the Japanese version of Snatcher included), and a wonderful interface with fantastic music. One of these days I would really like to be able to play around with the console more seriously than I have already. 

Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon Never Existed: So Nintendo localized the first ever Fire Emblem game on Nintendo Switch which is awesome to see them touching Famicom games again--I haven’t seen Nintendo of America rerelease old Famicom titles since Mysterious Murasame Castle on the 3DS, but their trailer hilariously made it seem like this is the first time ever they released Fire Emblem when in fact they had already localized the remake Shadow Dragon on the Nintendo DS nearly 10 or 11 years ago. I and many other fans I talked to all found this really hilarious, probably solely because of how much they kept repeating the fact that this is the first time you will ever be able to experience Marth’s story.

All that aside though I have to say the collector edition for this newly localized Famicom game is probably the most gorgeous retro reproduction I have seen in a long time, and I really spent many many hours just staring at the all clear glass mock cartridge. I have found myself really obsessing over retro reproductions during 2020, and obtained quite a few this year. I really hope this trend continues to go on in 2021 as recreating classic console packaging and cartridges is a lot of fun. 

[crowmero]

MCL UL final review

2020 was the year I took the resolution to make peace with MCL and the last thing I wanted to do before taking a break from the game was finishing UL season. I also wanted to follow tetrakys example just to make it more meaningful for me.

For starters I want to thank my boyfriend because he just got super interested to know more about all the games I enjoy or used to and just encouragement to keep playing if I feel like having a hour for myself to enjoy something because he knew how I was super busy and worn out with work at the time. I think he deserves credit on this because he was there supporting me in all this process and was the truly person who would hear me talk and rant about the game and hype with me at a time I didn’t have anyone to hear me because everything was complicated and some of my friends who played the game were also trying to come to terms in their own private way. It was wonderful to have someone cheering me in a positive way, to enjoy the things I wanted to have fun with without regrets. Thank you my dear!.

I feel like 2020 and 2021 have a impact in my general relationship with otome games, between some of my favorites games ending and me slowly drifting away from them. I feel like I’m not the same person that I used to be and that things have changed too, but I don’t feel bad about it. I wish eventually I could go back to many of the games that I used to enjoy but I wonder if in the future there would be another game that would make me hype so much and I that I would devote and dedicate as much of myself as I used to.

Also a lot happened since 2018 and how much hurted for all what happened with MCL. I was tired of feeling bad about it so I felt like I have to come to terms with it. I have carried a lot of weight for other things in my life but never for a game. Is the first time that something like this didn’t worked as a way to cope but more as a way to hurt us. I do wonder a lot of things but are things that probably will never know. The only thing that could have made perfect my way out from the game if that we weren't in the middle of covid and trapped at home.

All that said, let's start talking about every topic on the list below:

LIs and routes

Non-LI characters

Favourite episode

Favourite scene

Favorite Outfit and/or Favourite illustration

Conclusions

LIs and routes

Priya

Priya was my main LI and the one I was more excited about when UL launched before knowing the true about who she was replacing. I’ve get to date her and fulfilled that fantasy. This was the season were we got to know her better, apart from knowing that she was not that good with art (and working on it) and that she loved to write fiction in her free time. I loved that she got more context to her motivations on becoming a lawyer and her family past life on india. 

I think for me, the flirting was subtle but it was enough to understand, or maybe was because I was into her since many others just viewed her as a good friend. But that was also actually cool for me, it was cool to have at ally, specially with the assault situation at the start of the game. She was fierce and protective and smart and caring. 

But also I felt like the game keep pushing her aside or putting her in the back burner. Several times I was quite annoyed for the little time we get to spend with her (I mean, yes this was a general issue with all the LI’s since all five have to make an appearance in the short span of the episode) and the game will cheat on me when we have a good moment at her side making her run away because he needs to do/to be somewhere else. 

I think since the season focused too much on Nath, Priya was one of the characters that got neglected and the sad part is that we actually had time in the last episodes that could had be filled with more trivia, more learning about her. We also didn’t get to meet her parents or family and get to know more about her past than what was said.

Hyun

Hyun is a character I didn’t expect to like on the long run but ended appreciating a lot. He become my second favorite after Priya. I think was the character that got me more confort looking at his illustrations. I wish I knew him better and I think he deserved more, it makes me feel bad that people look down on him as a character. 

He is really nice! I really have a change of heart with him. I get that the game will push him onto us, but he is not bad at all. He is really thoughtful and worries about Candy and has cute details with her. Also my boyfriend is like him *shot*. I don't really get the hate on him, I think is just because he is the most normal of the love interest, thus why people find him boring or plain (because he is not a rockstar, not a bad guy, not our teacher). 

So he is like "the safe guy" you choice in real life because he is not full of BS and drama, he is just normal and tame, and some people just want that, but I get that doesn't work as a fantasy for some people. He is the guy who is prepared for everything and is there for you if you need him. Still impressed to where Hyun finds the strength to organize a party after all the stress with the thesis and cook for a whole army.

Castiel

I have really few thoughts for Castiel since my Candy and him don’t liked each other much in high school and the few moments I came to feel ok with him was because he was Lysandre’s best friend (My Candy’s LI). He  really changed, he become more calm and collected and overall mature while he softened his original nature. It was a surprise he was not the first to start a fight but Nathaniel. I think I was lucky to spend time with him since he was more busy with his own life and personal business.

There were really sweet moments from him like when he give us his old MP3  while we are in the infirmary, and some more chill like when we are waiting for the oral presentation at the end of the season and we share some company. We also find that he tries something with Candy if we’re not dating him, so that was unexpected and thrilling, it was a surprise he have this feelings for Candy or he wondered for her all this time. On the bad side, he tried to patronize Candy sometimes or just butt in Candy’s business with unrequested help and I’m glad Candy called him out on that.

Rayan

I don't find him creepy, I was actually interested in him because I'm almost his age and I find also interest in more older characters like him. Also I reflected that I can relate to him in some personal stuff (My thing wasn't as tragic, but I can understand him). Sadly I think his personality type is not for me and that's why I was kinda disappointed. What I was thinking that could have worked better with him is that instead of making him feel interest for our character since the start, for me would be more natural that our character makes the first move instead. So in that way, people who wanted to go for him from the start could unlock this path and players who don't want that, just carry on without worrying about him. I understand that people could change his mind over the course of the game and choosing his path from the start could be extreme, but also the option in episode 8 was not better. I don't think that an option like the one I suggest is that crazy. Overall, I don't think he was creepy, he just feel odd for me, and everything happening with him in a romantic way just didn't make sense if you're not into him, even the drama is pointless. Also It's weird because I don't feel he is the creepy type at all, he was just victim of the writers who forced everyones to be in love with Candy from the start instead of just building a relationship more naturally. But yeah, they needed to move the story quickly, no time to bother that much.

Nathaniel

While revisiting my past notes about him, I more come to the conclusion that I really hated him and his guts in this season. It was worse because this whole season focus on him and how much he changed as a person. I was forced to deal with him and... I saw that as a waste of my time and AP.

I think Candy was really reasonable with him (I clearly remember how Candy would confront him and he just will go on circles and nonsense to try to avoid giving answers while acting like a poor lost soul). I also had to put with his nasty behavior and babysitting him when things got worse like when he was stabbed. Like at some point I couldn’t care less but the game would keep shoving him on my face.

I’m surprised myself of having a heavy negative opinion about him. The sad thing is that despite my Candy being dragged in his whereabouts, being dragged for other characters like Amber (because Candy is the salt of the earth) to look for him and all the things, at the end Nath manages to disentangle himself all alone without our help or presence needed, and I understand how disappointing that was.

Like I feel sorry for the poor souls who loved Nathaniel in HS just to have a alien put on his skin and be someone completely different. I know this change also helped to bring attention to new players who love this kind of characters or he acted as a replacement for the old players in the crowd who needed to fill the gap that the old deleted characters left.

Non-LI characters

Chani was my favorite and I think was the favorite for many on this season. She became one of Candy’s BF and she also is caring, smart and supporting. I loved her own whole aesthetic and vibe, I wish I could have such a good and interesting friend like her. The episodes I enjoyed the most involved her (included all the weird trio wet dream haha) and she actually make me feel better and reassured in general while confronting all the bad arcs and misfortunes of the season. She also gift to us a pretty amulet and was one of the few extra items we got for free like in the HS times.

Yeleen was a character than for starters I really wanted to get to know better and become friends with. It makes me sad all the hate she received and also I got myself some angry person calling me out for liking her (that was awkward buddy). But i loved her developed and how she changed as a person. The bad side is that I wished we could develop a more intimate relationship with her, but I’m happy with the good influence that was Candy for her and she take the bull by the horns at the end of the season. Her farewell letter was really touching.

A side character I liked from the beginning was Morgan because he was pretty handsome and I wish we knew more about him since he was also good vibes but got eclipseted when he becomes Alexy’s boyfriend. I still remember when we though he was Kentin in the trailer.

I don’t really have positive opinions for the rest of the cast or I just really don’t care much. The other character that got a bit of redemption in my eyes was Rosa. It was hard to be friends with her because how much she changed as a person but also how much her new self contradicted with her past self. It was worse because she was there supporting and cheering my relationship with Lysander since she was dating his brother Leigh in HS but in UL was pushing me to look somewhere else. It was also weird for me to be hanging of with Leigh but not Lysander when we weren’t that close to Leigh in the past. I still believe that what happened to Rosa (the drama!) It was done so that we felt pity and sympathy for her. The thing that probably make me feel better about her was when she organized that date at the beach for my Candy and Priya, it was sweet, it was the moment when I really felt guilty about how I feel about her.

We should talk about Amber and how much of a failed and inexistent redemption arc was that? Adding that when we got on the topic of cyberbullying she got to be on the spotlight but we couldn’t talk about what happened in HS. Also she was dragged my Candy around for the sake of Nathaniel and she also give us a big scare when she faints in that bathroom stall...

Favourite episode

For some reason, Episode 11 got good grades from my part as chillest long trip (I HAVE TO TRUST MY OWN SELF ON THIS) but of course Episode 16 was second best because the sex dates (If only we didn’t have to deal with Nath at the start of the episode...)

Episode 11 really got me thinking in a lot of things and make me remember some good memories. Chani was incredible in this episode, she really cares a lot about Candy. I wish a moment to chill right now the same way Candy and Chani go out to eat sushi and to the snake room, I miss doing this kind of things before Covid hit my country and everyone. In the same way, Chani has some very wise words to offer, things right now are so crazy and been stuck at home is just making everything just worse, taking care of you mental health is difficult, social media doesn't help either (Rosa did the smart call there deleting her social media) and fandom spaces right now are not doing that well.

In general, I enjoyed how chill was everything for Candy and how she focused more on herself than the rest of the world. Like I wish she focused more on herself that in trying to save the world. All with Castiel was a trip from start to finish. All the description of the new video got me thinking in whatever video from MTV from the 2000's! I'm also surprised with how smooth he was in the scene in the apartment, was not difficult to me to imagine all the situation, and for a moment I wanted, really wanted to go his way, but since Priya is waiting for me and because I didn't expect of my HS mate to be soo into Candy, I stopped and leave. Was a interesting develope. It also got me thinking how some old classmates would think very different of me right now that from the child I was 15 years ago.

An well, we got to the Priya's moment, and... I really don't get why all that jealousy with Tara haha, my Candy is not like that at all, BUT I really wished more time with her (I know, the drama), but this episode really got us the perfect ending we didn't get in the past episode, just my Candy chilling, hugging and kissing her beloved.

When I played episode 16 at first was with Priya and later did a replay with Hyun and honestly, Hyun date was bananas! I wish I could do all the dates to see how they play because all look cool on their own way. I didn't expect my Candy to be this horny for Priya (?).

After the traumatic events in the start of the episode, we get to chill with Chani because she is such a good friend and she also craft us an amulet to protect us from all the terrible things that happen   Everything gets better in our date with Priya. We celebrate that she would be able to do her bar exam and we spend the day chilling on the park chatting, but Candy falls asleep in the middle lol. Priya invite us to spend the night since her roomie left for vacation. Our Candy reveals she still owns her HS underwear (?) so she proceeds to buy new one (I know underwear is expensive but five years is a lot, those things have holes already). We cross paths with Hyun and is hilarious, he was so embarrassed lol. Back in our date, time to get really nervous. I'm loving that all this characters are now into horror (Thanks Chino!) and Priya propose to watch " The haunting of Hill House". Anyway, it was hilarious how everything played because Candy rEaLly WanT It! but at the end, Priya falls asleep and Candy is too self conscious of Priya sleeping half naked next to her that she couldn't close her eyes all night long. Then morning arrives and everything gets really hot and yeah, I didn't expect that Candy was that thirsty omg. Coolest ending.

--

Hyun date was bananas! I have to say it again because was so fun and cute all along: the fact that Candy surprised Hyun in the Cosy Bear since he have to work that day, that he is up to solve conflict with actual talking when we got a cheating scare, that he is a good person to helps people, even novices in online games. Yeah we also learned his weird thing for shoes that don’t reflect in his actual fashion lol. AND THE DATE! It was so hilarious that they were about to watch the wrong version of Toy Story! POOR HYUN! This dude was fucking prepared for the day, he brought everything in that magic bag, the ending was hot and satisfying, he really surprised me.

Favourite scene

NATHANIEL SHOWS IN THE MIDDLE OF CANDY’S STUDY SESSION WITH EVERYONE THERE AND PRIYA IS ABOUT TO KILL HIM BECAUSE MY CANDY CONFIDED ON HER AND NATH IS COMPLETELY CLUELESS ABOUT IT AAAAH YEAAAAW!

This was the indiscutible winner because despite there was great moments to talk about, this was the only that really make me feel actual excitement for this game (IS WEIRD I KNOW!).

Favorite Outfit and/or Favourite illustration 

Illustrations

This priya Illu is one of my favorite among the rest.

This one was when I noticed Hyun’s great body.

This is illu with Priya is also very sweet too.

I felt really touched with this illu with Hyun.

Candy’s expression is so funny.

This was one of the cutes too and really funny<3

Honorable mention

I think this was one of the most controversial Illus we got and hot too.

OUTFITS

Ep 5 & 6 (and I forgot to add Ep 4!) but a big part of this season clothes were incredible.

Ep 11 & 12

Ep 15 & 20

Honorable mention

Ep 9 party!

Conclusions

Was I angry and disappointed when I started UL?

Yes

Have I made peace with it?

Yes, that’s what I wanted to achieve doing this. I also feel like there is not much I can do or think at this point, I’m kind of resigned.

Did this stop me from enjoying UL?

The “angry and disappointed” part sure played into my original run and perception of the game. I think that this was the case for many others since the wounds were open fresh at that time. But it really took me until the middle and end of the third season (!) to change my perspective (aka like 2-3 years later). I would said that after all that time what bothered me the most that was stopping my enjoyment of the game was how long it takes to play it for free and how that limits you from the whole game experience.

Would I have enjoyed it more if BV hadn’t done us so dirty?

Of course! I ended enjoying the change of tone. I do think many players were precisely looking forward to see our favorite characters in a different phase of their lives. When the company lied to us is when everything burned. I think is a matter of opinion at this point: if Lys, Armin and Kentin stayed, I wonder how people would have taken this whole season since there was a lot of negative critic and people saying that it was for the best that the old boys weren’t there because they probably would have ended totally changed like Nathaniel. They also could have ended in the back burner like the new LI’s and that also wouldn’t be fair. But I’m not sure how much of that negative critic is fueled by resentment or is biased by nostalgia since many didn’t bothered to play and just took what others were telling them without making their own opinion. For me was important to make my own opinion.

This season had their ups and downs, was hard to navigate with all the imposed changes, it was baffling to see how all the characters changed for good or bad, the dialogue options we got where I couldn’t relate at times especially at the begin, the thoughts on reflecting in all the very good things we got that also make me think I wished Lysander was around for all that.

I definitely don’t like the idea of replacing Lysander with Priya, both characters were unique in their own way and both deserved love and respect. Now that the first generation of My Candy Love ended it’s weird to be in this position were everyone is throwing a party around you in slow motion and feeling you don’t belong there because you weren’t lucky enough when picking your LI.

I was thinking on coming around at some point to play LL in the future (who knows) despite right now I don’t think I can make myself to do that and because I have the feeling that I will got more of what I got from UL. UL ending was fitting for me as a “what if...” My Candy got a different path in life where Lysander is not around and having the extra of looking forward to a happy bright future. I still sincerely wish that I could have had more than what we got.

[llazyneiph]

its been a busy fuckin week for this mod my ladz!!! i thought i would just give an end of week run down how everything is going, everything added so far and my to do list! also discord!!! and patreon!!! but i’ll talk abt that after this!! a general run down if u dnt know what this wip mod is:

The Royalty Mod gives your sims the opportunity to being the reigning Monarch of your game. They have the chance to become a Beloved Ruler or a Despised Tyrant (and will be treated as such!) They will be completely in control of a custom tax system, will the be benevolent and keep the taxes low or be greedy and fill their coffers with their subject’s simoleans? Be careful though, your actions will affect your citizens and their views of you! Your Monarch will be the most important piece of the puzzle, as they will be able to give titles to family and friends... or even a random street vendor. Having your Monarch bestow titles such as Crown Royals, Royal Partners, Servants, Court Wizards and more, keeps you out of CAS and IN your game! No more stopping and starting your gameplay!

A general overview of everything included so far:

Monarch: - A custom Heir system: Your Monarch can choose anyone bestowed with the title of Crown Royal or Royal Partner to become the next in line to the throne! And if they decide they made a mistake, the Heir can be disowned :((( sad lyfe As soon as the Monarch passes away, the Heir will automatically claim the throne! - If your Monarch dies before they get a chance to name an heir, then any Crown Royal or Royal Partner can vie for the throne. Whoever the people choose (gets to reputation level 6 - very good) first, will become the next Monarch! - Teens and up can become the Monarch, (lookin at u edward the 6th) - Custom tax system! Raise taxes to get more money instantly and in your weekly tax collection, but incur the ire of your subjects! Lower taxes and you will lose money and earn less each week but your subjects will love you! - Your Monarch will draw a crowd wherever they go! Even with no fame points they’ll attract a mass of adoring onlookers. (But no paparazzi for my historical players) - Make world-wide decrees - Listen to your subjects pressing concerns by telling your Trusted Advisor that you will hold a hearing, get that gud gud karma!! - Make anyone a Crown Royal! - Make the land celebrate your own birthday with a new Monarch’s Birthday tradition, with custom goals to be met! - Don’t walk like the rest of these peasants, make sure to enable your royal stride to royally stand out from the crowd. Not enough? Enable your regal glow to really drive home that you’re better than everyone else! - Royal greetings! - Allow your subjects to commence Sunday trading on a lot with the Market lot trait! Townies will come and man the stalls every sunday 9-3 and the royal family can peruse and purchase to their hearts content! -probably more that im forgetting!!!

Heirs, Crown Royals & Royal Partners: - Titles are bestowed by the monarch, crown royals & heirs can be titled at birth and Royal Partners can be titled after marriage! - Both can be named as Heir, and both can vie for the throne if the Monarch dies unexpectedly! - Your Monarch can make anyone a Crown Royal, so if you gameplayed that your Monarch adopted a poor orphan kid, then they can have a shot at the throne too! - All have multiple different social and skill modifiers, so they can make new friends fast and be better at everything than them! - Also all have their own socials - ALSO all can be completely banished from the royal family - u can defo marry into the royal family if u wanted, and make ur peasant family the next gen of royals ;))) - loads more but im so tired

Trusted Advisor: - Your Monarch will choose their trusted advisor! they advice! u on stuff! so choose wisely! - everything about taxes, beginning situations, domestic affair (and planning to add LOADS more) goes thru ur advisor, just like it does in real life and by real life i mean i think i just made that up - way more 2 come bros

- brand spankin new custom animations!!!!!!!!!!

Planned to Add (p much the same as last post): - unlockable interactions based on skills such as charisma - bad monarch reputation and tyrant trait to have the possibility of triggering a revolt??? - Custom situations to trigger weekly events such as royal hearings, banquets ect. - custom situations to trigger a bunch of npc servants (big maybe) - Mass Excitement over royal babies - Mass Mourning over passed over Monarchs - Mass Excitement over new Monarch - Options for crown royals to steal the throne - Sentence to death - Way more custom socials - looking into craftables - Perhaps more of a focus on the working class - more magicky type interactions for court wizards - just like. so much more. but its 1:30am and my brain has stopped working

ok now i wrote this out it rlly doesn’t look like a lot but i have so many gatdamn plans for shit i still gotta add. plus i will probably end up making hair and a few clothes and objects too. also omg guys im totally gonna make one of those fancy fuckin trailers for youtube :))))))))))) also was i on fiverr lookin at voice actors to narrate it...? maybe bitch

anyway i said i would talk abt patreon so here it is!!!

first things first, let me just say that no, i absolutely do not think i am entitled to a single cent of anyone’s money!!! I would/will still put 110% into this mod and my future mods because I absolutely love doing this. At the moment I’m currently working on this mod about 8-10 hours a day, 5 days a week (animations bruh), which is kinda insane. but I want this to be everything everyone’s wanted from EA for years.

I made a Patreon for those who would like to support me. If you do decide to become a Patron I am endlessly thankful for that, not just the monetary value of it but the fact that you believe in me enough to do that.

Every cent of any pledge goes towards my saving fund for my course next year, which for those of who don’t know, I’m currently a first year Game Design student!!! In complete clarity, I’m looking at a $15,000 loan atm, so literally anything helps if u do decide to pledge!

Tiers start at $1 and all tiers have access to a private patrons channel in my discord! u can go read what u get with the tiers over on my page! I’ve offered as much as I can, but since im super not down with exclusives, pls let me know if u think there’s anythin more i can offer u guys!!!

Tier 2 does include a one week early access to my content. I feel like this is the most I’m comfortable offering, and I will always stick to or under EA’s rules when it comes to Patreon.

Tier 2 also offers first picks for Beta Testing, but depending on how many (if any) tier 2 patrons I get, it may work on a rotational system as I still want to include people from tumblr in the beta testing. I don’t want anyone who can’t afford patreon to feel left out, so I would still offer some beta testing spots here and it’ll be first come first served like normal! i don’t want it to feel like i’m gatekeeping my cc. i hope this is okay with you guys! For those who aren’t in a place where they can become a patron, but still want to stay included in everything related to this mod, I now have a Discord Server that anyone can join! speaking of >>>>

we have a discord ladzzzz!!!!!!!!!

If u wanna stay up to date on everything I’m doing regarding the mod, or u have a question or suggestion, or there's something wrong with one of my mods that u need fixed, or tbh if u just wanna hang out with some cool dudeeees n chill n chat n have a jolly time then com join the discord!!!!!!!!

i’m going to be posting updates and screenshots of the mod process much more frequently there (probs like a few times a day tbh lmao) and it’s much easier to get a hold of me there if u have any suggestions.

and tbh we just gonna have a chill time and i want a metric fuckton of memes and gifs. if that doesn’t sway u, we have a whole channel dedicated to only pics of guy fieri. u will be banned if u post anything else there. u were warned.

ok god im so sorry this is literally 10 years long but i just had a lOT to say but like, mods goin good lads. i just want to make something that gives the game more play ability and keeps u in game and out of CAS. its excitin stuff. thanks for listenin.

                              PATREON | DISCORD SEVER

                    see all royalty mod updates on my tumblr here

also im v sorry if u join the discord like right after this is posted bc i am most definately fuckin asleeeeeeep

[casualgamesandmedia]

Mystic Messenger

I’ll admit it freely — I love me some dating simulation games. That being said, there’s more to this mobile game than dating and Mystic Messenger takes things to the next level with the mobile format!

The STATS: Completed: Incomplete (indefinitely) Game Console: Mobile Single-Player: Yes! Story: All story all the time bby Gameplay: Visual Novel Customisation: Name only Multiple-endings: Several Romanceable: ALL THE TIME Time: Long (About a week per ending) Difficulty: Simple Fun: Yes!*

Okay, okay, okay...this is a weird one, but SUPER VALID. First things first, the term ‘visual novel’ probably says it all — this is a story heavy game. A novel worth of story, if you will. You may even say, it is all story and no game. I would disagree, but that’s because I have a loose definition of ‘play’ where ‘choose your own adventure’ constitutes as playing. I’ve completed several of the routes, but I cannot say that I’ve played everyone — this is a time-consuming game after all.

So, the story here lies all in the format. You play a young woman who downloads a phone app that’s supposed to allow your to date cute boys, but it turns out that it is actually a private messaging app for a small group (of friends?). Confusion ensues, and you decide where to go from there! Generally, the story for each route revolves around how you become involved in helping the group with party planning (you’re replacing one of their absent friends) and also how you become closer (romantically. Usually. If you do it right.) with the man or woman of your choosing!

The gameplay is simple enough. You’re playing on a phone, so you play like you’re on a phone. You send and receive chat messages. You collect photos. You send and receive emails. You send and receive calls. (LITERALLY. YOU GET ACTUAL VOICE CALLS FROM THESE CHARACTERS). Here’s the rough part, but also the interesting part: you play in real time. Like...if you’re messaging in the morning, they ask if you’ve had breakfast yet. If you’re messaging before bed, they wish you goodnight. If you try to call them during work hours, they tell you they’re busy at work and can’t talk long. It’s almost eerily immersive. Annoyingly immersive. It takes seven actual, literal, days of the week in order to complete a route. Wowza

Now, as cool as this is...after playing three or so routes...the repetition can get to ya. You see, each person has a route, and those routes are very different from each other. HOWEVER, in order to get to those unique route options, you spend the first few days doing the same setup, just with different answers. It can be tedious if you plan to play routes back-to-back. In the end, I didn’t complete two routes. Partially because of this downside, and partially because I wrecked my game when I traveled through a timezone (because my clock jumped forward by several hours, I lost that day interaction and I couldn’t get it back — it was very frustrating, considering how many days worth of time I’d put into a game. Hot tip! Don’t do that).

There are also BAD ENDINGS. Those can be fun in their own way, but I was definitely not willing to invest (again) seven, actual, LITERAL, days just to see the bad ending. But I’ve read about them. They sound pretty horrifying. Yeah. Horrifying. This game can go to some dark places. It’s not all cutesie kissy love time in this game! (As much as I love cutesie kissy love time) So, look forward to that.

If anything, I still reccomend it for at least a couple of routes. It’s nicer than a lot of mobile games in that it has a real in-game reason as to why you have to wait to play the next day (they’re sleeping!) rather than that ‘you ran out of energy, come back in 24 hrs!’ bs. 

Miscellaneous stuff!

Zen is my favorite route. (He’s a sweet, sweet boy)

I didn’t complete Jaehee or 707’s route, nor any unlockable routes that would have come after that.

I am very tempted to download an play again, RIGHT NOW.

———–

Hey, I’m just a humble fan of playing games! No in-depth analysis here! Just a couple recs from a pal who likes to have fun!

If you want any more recs, you can find my ever growing list here!

[proto-sims]

Meet The Townfolk (2/5) - Brookdale BACC

It’s time to introduce the current residents of Brookdale! My new story lead BACC! The following posts are taken from a local journalist and photographer, originally for a tourist leaflet in hopes of promoting the town to people on the mainland. Including a small interview with each resident!

Link to PART ONE

From The Journal of Fredrick Nicholson (2018) - The town’s roads are surprisingly well made, making use of predetermined cycle and bus lanes (which are the main transport options here) it was a short way to the farming district, just off the southern end of the town. As I rode up, i noticed the increasing number of fields and trees, it seemed farming was even bigger than fishing in this town.

The farmhouse was modern in design, at least from the outside, the stone walls rustic and traditional in view but with a presentable polish to them.

I approached the gate as a young and rather small woman was tending to her several orchids.

“Excuse me! I’m here for the interview!”

She slowly pulls out both of her earbuds and casually turns around to meet my eye

“Oh God! I completely forgot! Come in come in!”

She frantically abandons her gardening tools on the grass, cursing as she knocks over a small bucket of compost with her robust cowboy boots, as she scurries over to unlock the iron gate to her home.

“Yeah, wow. I’m so clumsy just ignore that mess please!”

She seems to be walking frantically around me very specifically, maybe disallowing me to see the cluttered objects around her garden, which it seems she didn't remember to prepare

I pop her a question as she opens her door

“So how did you get this place?”

“Oh yeah the farmhouse! Its great right?! Sea views, all this field, its honestly everything i could ask for. I did some conservation work down in Twinbrook, they’re wanting to expand the swamp into some tourist thing so I made sure the plants were thriving and that things were stable enough to build more tourist things and also make sure that, you know, mother nature didn't just gobble everything up!” She laughs

She sits down her sofa.

“So what do you think you could contribute here? What could entice someone?” i ask her, intrigued 

“Food! Making food, cooking food, and farming food, i have always been a natural cook you know? I can see it now, seaside views, lovely veg based meals! Affordable stuff though, not like... super gourmet”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah! Hopefully one day we get some sort of fisher...person and then i could expand my range”

“But the produce, how will you sell it?”

She almost leaps out of her chair in a gasp of embarrasment

“Oh yeah i forgot to tell you! the farmshop, its not open all year but as soon as i harvest enough produce i normally pack it up and sell it, its a bit more expensive than the average groceries but a lot more exclusive and i also deliver so folks don’t have to make trips all the time, like if their old...or pregnant...or just don’t wanna go!”

“Yeah that’s cool, so did Kennedy tell you about ph-”

She interrupts

“Photos yeah! I was waiting for this”

She leads me outside to where the first new harvest of the town is slowly starting to grow 

“In front of these please, they’re my babies”

I chuckle and she playfully poses in front of them

Click

As i collect my things to leave she approaches me

“I hope i wasn't too crazy there, I just love what I do and i just get so excited”

I give her a reassuring wink

“Its ok, anything to add?”

“Yes! Honestly if you want some more traction from possible people here it would be best to take a photo of the farmhouse, the views from the field are lovely, they're just behind us, it can be a little muddy though”

I nod and close the gate behind me trudging around the back of her house and into the field, taking a picture before she’s able to get back inside.

[sometipsygnostalgic]

tipsy reviews: breath of the wild

So last month, early november, I went and got myself a Nintendo Switch. And for my new console I bought 3 games: MarioKart Deluxe, Super Mario: Odyssey, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

What I used it for mostly during this time period was.... Mariokart. It’s a fun and addictive little game while the two openworld games required a lot of effort with no linear path, so I wasn’t looking forward to a lot of busywork.

To my pleasant surprise, when I finally sat down to complete Odyssey, I discovered that the game was filled with many little secrets. It would reward you for experimenting, for putting objects in funny places, and solving its puzzles. The addictive gameplay helped me steamroll through the game to its logical conclusion, and then beyond.

Breath of the Wild, fortunately, follows a similar path. Gone are the many hours of tutorials, talking swords, and narrow Hyrule paths. Now we find the world not only open, where you’re free to move in any direction  and climb any mountain, but filled with many secrets and challenges to spend your days working through!  It’s not fair to say that Breath of the Wild is without its challenges though; the open-world formula starts out with many, and though Zelda subverts the issues plagueing more well-known users like Assassin’s Creed, it does fall into some unique pitfalls. 

In this post I will discuss the different areas of this game - story, gameplay, puzzle elements - and see how they compare.

Environment: I felt like it was most important to talk about this aspect first, because the world of Hyrule is so significant to the potential and failures of every other part of the game. Everything to do with story, puzzles, difficulty, it’s all related to the open world, what’s in it, and how you navigate.   Breath of the Wild kinda looks like a barren, empty game when you look at its open world face-value. There’s very few cities, most of the place is ruins littered with some enemy camps and lots of caves. Not a lot of history at all! It reminds me of the empty Hyrule Fields in Ocarina of Time. And there are no sprawling dungeons like in its predecessors. The closest to this is the shrines, short mini-dungeons which were created by the Sheikah predecessors to help the Hero destroy Ganon.  But what Breath of the Wild does RIGHT is utilize this seemingly empty open world to its full advantage. It’s filled with a variety of animals and critters to use for cooking, challenging opponents who you can loot, korok seeds which you need to solve a riddle to collect (but which are far less irritating than riddler trophies), hidden treasure for you to discover... And perhaps the most immersive tactic is how we are able to take damage from the environment - you can freeze to death on a mountain, or dehydrate in the desert, or roast in the Goron mine. All of this, combined with the many, MANY shrines and seeds and their corresponding puzzles, makes this world feel... alive. Like people and animals actually live here.   And the most adrenaline-bursting part of all is entering a Divine Beast for the first time and realising you can manipulate the environment using the map. THIS is what makes a great adventure game. Now, it’s still a fair departure from the classic dungeon crawlers or the previous three entries, but I think Breath of the Wild pulled off its world very impressively. Much more fun to explore than London or North America. It is only for an issue I’ll discuss later on that I have to rank it as low as 8/10. 

Story: BotW does make an interesting departure once again from before, though in some ways I feel this had lost potential. The story is COMPLETELY optional - as soon as you leave the great plateau, you can fight Ganon and call it a day. But if you choose to dig deeper into the memories of Link, you’ll discover that you were ALREADY the Chosen Hero, sealed deep into the Resurrection Shrine by instruction of Zelda. You were identified early because of your upbringing as the son of a Royal Knight, and that’s about it for Link’s known pre-mastersword history. It’s unknown what adventures you went on before. Now you and four Champions were chosen to prepare to fight Ganon. The backstory between you and Zelda is.... mixed, kind of depressing actually; she resented you for a long time because you were so good at your job as the Hero of the Sword while she was deeply insecure over her inability to activate her powers and how her father kept putting pressure on her to constantly pray when she just wanted to become a huge nerd, helping out in other ways.  It ends with Ganon unleashing its power across Hyrule, the Champions being killed and trapped in the Divine Beasts they were going to use against him, and Link nearly dying protecting Zelda who  saves him last second with an awesome Light that Burns the Sky.   After watching 25-ish cutscenes, I... was quite disappointed, because they kept rehashing stuff I already knew; Zelda was insecure over her lack of power, she disliked Link but grew to respect him, and the other Champions are.... well, Mipha’s the only one who has any real history with Link. Revali sees him as a rival, Urubosa looks after Zelda, and Daruk is very hardy and enthusiastic. It’s really cool meeting these characters in the Divine Beasts but you don’t learn much more, and I heard the Champion’s Ballad DLC is the same...  Ganon himself isn’t a chilling villain like before, moreso an intimidating threat. He’s not nearly as scary as the Twilight Beasts or any named Ocarina of Time boss, and he takes very little skill to defeat, even compared to some of his Blights (Thunderblight Ganon took me multiple attempts with its fast hard-hitting moves). In fact I think I’d be able to sweep him easily without saving any Champions. The worst part of all though has to be how it just CUTS YOU OFF.  You complete the game? Yeah, that’s kind of it. There isn’t a “post-game”, it just lets you load your past save. That’s what pisses me off the most. I wanted to speak to Zelda about all those memories I found! Oh yeah the game is also sneaky and won’t load the secret ending cutscene if you didn’t report to Impa and recover the hidden memory after unlocking the Hyrule Tower memory, so good luck doing what I did and getting that one last just before the final boss.  All in all, 5 out of 10. It did its job, but was nothing special whatsoever, lots of wasted potential.  

Gameplay: When you first start playing Breath o the Wild it is extremely punishing. Your weapons  are shit, your damage is shit, you WILL get oneshot many times. But when you pump more hours into it, you gain lots of momentum; since there are so many areas of gameplay, so many ways to approach a certain situation, it becomes inevitable that you’ll figure out a good solution to any fight.  This is a double-edged blade; while it’s lots of fun to kill enemies inventively, the difficulty curb at the BEGINNING of the game is so steep that you’ll find it becoming stupidly easy later on, when you’re more overpowered and you’ve mastered the enemy attack patterns. Sure, they may turn black or silver and do hella damage, but what’s a god to a player who knows how to exploit their AI?  And you’ll be swimming in so many powerful weapons that you’ll abandon them all after a certain point, cos there’s nothing worse to trade out.   The biggest victims of the difficulty scaling have to be the Ganon bosses, all of them, which DO NOT gain health or difficulty at any point. It’s like fighting Champion Wallace’s level 40 watertypes with a level 70 rayquaza, which is what I did in my Emerald playthrough...  This means that the greatest elements of Breath of the Wild’s gameplay are those moments where your tools aren’t quite enough, where you have to prepare and plan. Maybe there’s too many moblins to take on at once? Maybe you’re playing the Island Trial and you have no decent weapons? Maybe you’re trying to complete the Zora divine beast quest and you come face-to-face with the Lynel on the summit? Maybe there’s multiple Guardians aiming at your direction and you have no Ancient Arrows? In all these situations I’ve had to be inventive, sneak around and attack on the sly, or avoid combat altogether.  But what’s even more reliable is the puzzles. You’re not handheld, you’re not told how to do anything outside of the very basic controls - every single puzzle you solve is completely your own accomplishment, your own skills, and sometimes it’s not set out clearly at all so you have to be creative. Nobody TOLD you to put that one rock in the gap between all the others, but you did it, and now you have a rock! And nobody TOLD you how to make a recipe that heals all your hearts and gives you 3 to spare, but your experimentation crafted a recipe.   THIS, in my opinion, is what makes a definitive gaming experience - respect for the player. 9 out of 10 too many royal swords.

Music - No videogame review is complete without an OST ranking. Now.... BotW tried to play a certain role with its music, having it in the background colouring your experiences rather than defining them. This is quite appreciated because it would have been distracting to have booming enemy music for an opponent I knock out in 2 seconds (cough OOT cough). However, outside of its main theme, Breath of the Wild lacks almost all the signature Zelda tracks that have been defining for the series. I’d say that the absence of this booming music makes it.... not feel much like a Zelda at all. It better reflects the open and partially destroyed world, at the expense of recogition. That’s not to say it’s without gems though.. there are very few things more chilling than the music that plays in ganon-possessed guardian containing the tormented soul of your dead zora girlfriend. 7 out of 10, servicable and decent. 

Conclusion - Breath of the Wild is a smashing game, which deserves the praise it gets, not because it’s an open world Zelda but because it REDEFINES the possibilities of an open world game. Instead of littering itself with countless copy-paste fortresses, it offers puzzles and challenges that show respect for the player’s adaptability, encouraging you to explore all the different options its mechanics offer. Instead of making you choke through an insufferable and possibly frustrating campaign to unlock new areas, it gives you the options and tools to go anywhere you like as long as you prepare. It says much when even this game’s biggest weaknesses can be played for strengths. And oh man, what a solid introduction to the Nintendo Switch generation. 

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: 8 out of 10. 

[sentinelkelly]

This Week at Bungie - 01/11/18

Bungie released a yuuuge list of future updates that the Destiny Community is dying to complain about and threaten to stop playing.

Before we get to the juicy stuff, just know that the Faction Rally returns next week, January 16th until the 23rd, followed by Dead Orbit/New Monarchy’s Victory Week (I hope I’m wrong). Also expect Hotfix 1.1.1.3 to be deployed on Tuesday, January 16 2018, to fully remove Curse of Osiris requirements from Seasonal Content. It should last from 8am - 12pm PDT.

Here are the new ornaments you can earn:

Here are the Faction Rally weapons where one of which will be sold by the winning Faction:

NOW THE JUICY STUFF!

Game Director Christopher Barrett delivered the goods he promised on Twitter before the New Year. But first, he dropped some knowledge:

I’m glad he included this info-graphic because nowadays if a non-Destiny player asks a Destiny player about the game, most likely they are going to be given a false narrative that Bungie has a gun to your head, forcing you to buying Eververse items when in reality it’s solely up to you if you wanna actually play the game and the Eververse stuff for free or buy some Silver on your own terms. But that’s not all about Eververse:

Eververse

We recognize that the scales are tipped too far towards Tess at the moment, and Eververse was never intended to be a substitute for end game content and rewards. So, we’ll be making three changes for upcoming Seasons:

> We’re shifting the balance of new content in favor of activity rewards over Bright Engrams. This includes adding Ghosts, Sparrows, and ships (to date found only in Bright Engrams) to achievement reward pools.

> We'll provide a gameplay path to earn Bright Engrams and all contained rewards (including Event Engrams).

> We’ll give players more direct purchase options and make adjustments to Bright Engrams to allow players to get the items they want more often.

THANK YOU! Eververse was perfect in Destiny 1 (holy shit... can’t wait for the comments accusing me of working for Bungie, like that’s supposed to be an insult) because before Age of Triumph, it was direct purchase as opposed to the Overwatch-style RNG-based loot boxes that you have to pray to the heavens or sacrifice a virgin to Satan to not get the same, ugly Ghost Shell as you did from the last Illuminated Engrams.

We’ve begun implementing these changes for the Crimson Days event beginning February 13 (with even more changes on the way in Season 3): 

> Completing Nightfall, Raid, and Crimson Days milestones during Crimson Days will reward you an exclusive Legendary Emote, Weapon Skin, and Exotic Sparrow, respectively.

> Players will earn double engrams at level-up: one Crimson Engram and one Illuminated Engram for the duration of the event.

>Crimson Engrams can also drop from completing the Crimson Days match and from completing the Crimson Days milestone on each character.

>Each Crimson Engram is very strongly weighted to new rewards when decrypted until all new event items have been obtained.

WEW LADS!

XP Rates

We are still investigating changes to XP earn rates. Our goal with any updates to XP are transparency and consistent XP gain regardless of your preferred activity. Right now, it’s too slow in general and lopsided towards grinding specific activities (which is not a fun grind) and we want to fix that without making those activities low value to players who aren’t grinding them (fairness is cool). Our first attempt turned out to be unworkably buggy so we’re having to investigate other angles. We will continue to update you as we move forward.

This is still a thing? Well shit...

Christopher Barrett goes on to discuss the 2018 roadmap (I’m just gonna copy and paste and discuss at the end):

January 30 Update

Masterwork Armor

We are expanding the Masterwork system to include armor. 

Masterwork Armor provides increased damage reduction while using your Super. 

You can reroll the armor stat type on Masterwork Armor, and similar to Masterwork weapons, you can upgrade a piece of armor to Masterwork by spending Masterwork Cores and Legendary Shards.

Raid Reward Rework

We are updating Raid rewards to make them more unique and interesting. They will now feature mods with Raid-specific perks, and we are adjusting the rewards to ensure a Raid item drops from each major encounter. The Raid vendor will also directly sell Leviathan and Eater of Worlds armor and weapons for purchase with Raid tokens and Legendary Shards.

We are also adding a new Ghost with Raid-specific perks that has a chance to drop from the Leviathan and Eater of Worlds final encounters. We intend to return to creating more Raid and other activity-unique rewards in the future.

February Update

Strike Scoring + High Score Tracking

Strike Scoring is coming to Nightfall and replacing the current time limit mechanic. The scoring is similar to the Destiny 1 system but with adjustments to emphasize competitive execution of Strike objectives and support for player selectable score modifiers. In February, Nightfall High Scores will be exposed in-game via new emblems and will unlock rewards. We also have plans for Clan and Community High Scores in the works.

Mods 2.0

Work is underway on a full rework of armor and weapon mods. This will focus on reducing redundant mods, more unique theming, and greatly increasing their impact on your power. We are aiming for a February release, but the scope of the rework could push parts or all of it out to early spring. We will be evaluating how Mods play into the Bright Engram economy as a result, because we’re sensitive to pay-to-win outcomes.

Quickplay Improvements

We are adjusting game mode rules to increase the pace of gameplay and power ammo acquisition in Quickplay.

PC Tower Chat

We are adding text chat to the Tower for the PC version of the game.

Exotic Repetition Reduction

This will prevent players from receiving the same Exotic twice in a row. You may still receive duplicates, just not consecutively.

Fireteam Members on Destination Map

You will finally be able to see the other members of your fireteam on the destination map. No more having to ask your fireteam where they went when they fast travel to another landing zone.

Spring 2018

We’re taking the time we need in development of Expansion 2 that will allow us to react to player feedback from Curse of Osiris. In the coming months, we’ll talk to you more about what you can expect to find in Destiny 2’s next story. The team is eager to show you what they’ve been working on.

Independent of Expansion 2, the team will deliver a number of new features that will be released before or during Season 3. Every player of Destiny 2 will receive new content in the following categories…

Crucible

We want to give players new reasons to play, more variety, and balance improvements. Spring will bring a number of exciting and long awaited features to the Crucible.

Crucible Rank

Beginning with Season 3 we will introduce Seasonal Crucible Ranks. There will be two different ranks for players to pursue:

Valor – A progression rank that goes up as you complete matches. Winning helps you move up faster, but there are no loss penalties.

Glory – A progression rank that goes up when you win and down when you lose. Performance is how you move up here.

Private Matches 

Private Matches are coming to all players of Destiny 2. Players will be able to invite their friends to play on the map and mode of their choosing.

6v6 Playlist

We’re bringing 6v6 PvP to Destiny 2 in addition to the current 4v4 game modes.

Mayhem Event

Mayhem will return as a limited-time event during Season 3 and going forward.

Additional Fixes

We are making some changes to make quitting less common and behind-the-scenes security improvements to help improve the overall Crucible experience.

Additional Highlights

Weapon and Ability Balance Pass

Sandbox adjustments based on player feedback and data from the live game. The Sandbox team will share specific changes as we lead up to Season 3.

Exotic Weapon and Armor Balance Pass

Exotic weapons and armor are receiving a comprehensive design pass to ensure they stand out from the rest of the gear and offer new, exciting, powerful ways to play.

Seasonal Reputation

Specific vendors will now display a Seasonal ranking. Earning reputation will unlock unique Seasonal rewards and will reset each Season.

Improved Iron Banner and Faction Rallies

In addition to the changes that you will see when Iron Banner and Faction Rallies return this month, we will continue iterating on these to make them unique, exciting experiences that you all look forward to.

Playlist Repetition Reduction

This feature solves the problem of experiencing the same playlist entry multiple times in consecutive or frequent succession for both Crucible and Strikes.

End Game Player Pursuits

We agree with your feedback on the imbalance between Achievement and Bright Engram rewards, and we will be making adjustments to shift more rewards into specific endgame pursuits instead of generic XP grinding for Bright Engrams. We are excited to share the details as soon as we have them worked out.

Multi-Emote

When multi-emote launches, you will be able to choose which emote you have equipped to each of your four emote slots.

Vault space

We are targeting an additional 50 slots to player vaults. We don’t believe just adding more space is a complete solution and are actively working on other changes to reduce load on your vault space.

We are adding an Exotic accessory tab to Vault collections so you will no longer need to spend Vault space on Exotic Ships, Sparrows, and Ghosts.

PC Clan Chat

In addition to the Tower chat that is targeted for February, we are adding clan chat to the PC version of the game.

Heroic Strike Changes

We’ll be introducing modifiers to add more gameplay variety to the experience.

Fall 2018 (or sooner)

We are working on a lot more that we're not quite ready to discuss. Expect more on this small sample of items in the future:

Item Collections and Records

Weapon Slot and Archetype Improvements

Additional Crucible Playlists (e.g. Rumble)

Better Clan Rewards

Masterwork Exotics

Pinnacle Weapon and Gear Improvements

Trials of the Nine improvements

Shaders and dismantling

The Future of Guided Games

Address Solo Vs Fireteam matching

My take: These are the changes that I personally was waiting for. A lot of these things were in Destiny 1 that should’ve never left while others are quality improvements the Community have actually been asking for. The vault space thing has me paranoid, but we’ll see.

Will all this be enough to bring my clan back? Will all this be enough to bring back the player base that actually followed through with their threat to stop playing? I surely hope so.

[jabarilcwj505-blog]

Titanium Backup Apk Not Found: Do You Really Required It? This Will Help You Choose!

Which video game is much better, PUBG or Call of Obligation?

These checklists place today's most preferred video game throughout every category and also platform. Supercell's 2 Clash titles aren't completely different to Mobile Strike as well as Game of War and also they all share the very same winning formula, yet Clash of Clans defeated them to the strike by a good number of years. The truth that the gameplay is normally lauded as an excellent game which the programmers have actually gone on top of updates has actually aided maintain it near the leading ever since. Probably unsurprisingly, Facebook tops the listing of the most-downloaded apps of the decade.

Each button in mechanics additionally changes the graphics to better fit that part of the game. Both games also offer equipment controller assistance, no in-app acquisitions, no ads, and a lot of story to play via.

Finest dating applications of 2020

Challenge games concentrate on understandable, yet tough to grasp auto mechanics and require you to utilize reasoning and also rapid reasoning in order to triumph. They are very simple on your fingers, so unlike shooters as well as competing games, all you require to do in problem video games is faucet or swipe every once in a while. Easy in, simple out, that is the nature of collectible card video games. You pay for premium decks and also quicker unlocks, but that is an option that you can pick not to take and also just grind your means to the top till you get a master tier deck.

Is TikTok the most downloaded app?

Supported Controllers As of launch, only official DUALSHOCK®4 PlayStation® 4 and official Xbox One controllers can be used to play Call of Duty: Mobile. All versions of official PS4 controllers except first generation controllers are supported.

Quick Resume and Much More Brand-new Attributes on Xbox Series X.

The author, Playdigious, likewise has Cultist Simulator, ALRIGHT Golf, Teslagrad, as well as a number of various other above average (and also premium) mobile games. NBA 2K Mobile (iphone just for now-- coming quickly to Android) allows you build your dream team and bet the best in 5-on-5 video games, obstacles and also real-time events. To be clear, you won't be picking from NBA groups, yet constructing your team with existing NBA gamers.

In this one, you look the Waldegrave Mansion for an elusive artifact after a designer unexpectedly goes missing. You'll search in a weird doll house, the attic room and much more that simply may give you the cools. The mobile style is ideal for digitizing card games, and also if you're looking for the best collectible card game experience, you can not go past Hearthstone, generated with all the gloss and also radiate Blizzard can round up. What's particularly excellent concerning this simple dual-stick survival shooter is that a game hardly ever lasts greater than 10 mins.

What is the best mobile game in the world?

PUBG mobile, Clash of Clans, Minecraft, Clash Royale, Fortnite, Pokémon Go, Candy Crush and Arena of Valor are some of the most popular mobile games right now.

In A Similar Way, Apex Legends likewise goes on updating its content to maintain the video game relevant. Even PUBG MOBILE chooses even more regular updates to hang on to its number one position.

Many MOBAs go and also come, yet Vainglory continues to be the most effective on mobile. There is additionally a beta readily available that can make use of the Vulkan API, although it's not rather steady yet. Minecraft is a preferred video game around the world for individuals of any ages. For those who have never ever played, Minecraft places you in a large globe where you mine things, build stuff, attack crooks, and also do basically whatever you desire. There is a survival mode where you must extract your very own resources and food in addition to a creative setting that gives you limitless whatever.

All mobile Games.

For the complete checklist of attributes, you must begin playing the game. Compared to PUBG Mobile, Garena Free Fire has fewer recoils. It's not that Garena Free Fire has no recoil, yet the guns have actually been well enhanced and also the recoils have actually been adjusted to give the most effective video gaming experience. Similar To PUBG Mobile for Android, Garena Free Fire also has some astonishing attributes.

The game is massively popular amongst Android players as well as its been on the trending area of the Google Play Shop for a while. Subway Surfers was one of the most downloaded and install application video game of the years, driven by its solid adoption in India which represented over 15% of its all-time downloads (iphone & Google Play combined). Success originated from many different areas as each of one of the most downloaded games originated from a different business. Legendary Games revealed a 20% live player reduction in contrast to July 2018. Since every game after a long time starts to take hits here and there.

Which is the No 1 game in the world in mobile?

PUBG has a larger world and more players than Free Fire. It also requires more time and patience to win. It also has a substantial collection of vehicles, unlike Free Fire. But to give credit where it's due, Free Fire has smoother gameplay and actually feels like a game.

Is the Call of Duty mobile game a duplicate of PUBG mobile video game?

There are likewise products to accumulate that can be traded in for different customization options. https://titaniumtv.vip They are easy, but effective and the dark, slope shades add an excellent environment for the game. It's totally free to play and also download with some restricted ads. There are in-app acquisitions, however they are all for modification stuff so it's totally optional and also it doesn't affect video game play.

However the game is stylish in a spooky, monochromatic, minimalist means evocative creepy kids and also old movies's publications. It's this design that has actually made one of the games among the most precious indie titles launched over the last few years. The spiritual sequel, Within is readily available on the Xbox One. Like the other video games in the series, Old Sins hit that brilliant, evasive spot between satisfying as well as psychologically tough.

[keegames]

Sonic Forces Review: Chains of Future Past

Ah, Sonic Forces. To many, it’s the OTHER Sonic game to come out this year. A few previous articles have mentioned my history with the series, and I promised a review of this game, so without further ado, here goes.

Sonic Forces is an odd little game, in that it seems it was made to please all types of Sonic fans. The core of the gameplay of both Modern Sonic and your custom character (more on that later) is the tried-and-true racing-platfomer-hybrid first used in 3D Sonic by Sonic Unleashed and then adapted into Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations. However, it also features levels starring Classic Sonic similarly to Generations, and it has a few levels based on Genesis Sonic zones (though with more changes to their aesthetics than Generations; more on that later). It also features an attempt at a more serious (some would say “edgy”) story, similar to that of the Sonic Adventure games, and a create-a-character feature sure to appeal to the series’s more imaginative fans. The premise of the main plot is even similar to the SatAM show and the early Archie comics. Unfortunately, it would be a lie to say that all these discrete elements come together strongly. Still, despite its flaws, there’s a lot of fun to be had in Sonic Forces. Hopefully this lengthy write-up gives you a better idea of the game’s pros and cons.

Gameplay

Sonic Forces features four gameplay styles that the player is shuffled between across its various stages (30 main stages/boss fights, plus 13 or 14 short secret levels that are entirely 2D platform challenges based on singular level gimmicks). Unlike other Sonic games that feature multiple gameplay styles, however, three of the four styles control relatively similarly with a single core mechanic differentiating them (or, in the case of “tag team,” not differentiating them).

Let’s start with Modern Sonic. Modern Sonic, in terms of abilities, is most similar to his Colors incarnation, featuring a double jump and a boost that is only filled by either collecting Wisp Capsules or destroying enemies. His levels swap between 3D and 2D smoothly. Unlike Colors, he can perform the Quick Step (a short shift to the left or the right) at any point with the shoulder buttons, though like Colors, a few context-sensitive sections have him do this with a push of the joystick to the left or right as well. He also has the stomp and slide moves. Strangely, his drift ability is completely absent, which you may miss in a few parts of Metropolitan Highway, but generally won’t worry about otherwise. Like the previous games of this style, Sonic takes turns kind of wider than you’d expect from most 3D platformer characters, but it’s managing his momentum and movement in that way that makes this style unique and interesting. Set aside the assumptions put in place by Super Mario 64 and Crash Bandicoot, and you’ll be well on your way to mastering the game and blazing across the land.

Now, the custom character. You can choose your character’s gender, animal species, a few different head styles, eyes (shape and color), colors, voice, and victory pose. These options are relatively basic, which fits because Sonic characters don’t have much body variety anyway. Each species also has a special ability, but these are generally minor (wolf attracts nearby rings, rabbit has longer invincibility when hit, bird has a small double jump, etc.) You can still make some goofy looking faces with the right eyes, but the real meat of the customization is in clothing. Doing just about anything in the game will unlock more and more clothing pieces, from shirts to pants to jackets to capes to hats to glasses to shoes to kneepads to monocles to masks and more. There’s tons of this stuff and you can make some ridiculous creations. It’s actually one of the most fun things in the game.

The custom character’s basic controls are basically identical to Modern Sonic, though they lack a double jump unless you make a bird. Notably, however, they lack the boost, meaning that, though you still get moving at good speeds, you won’t quite be running over everything in your path. The custom character’s main form of attack outside of homing attacks is your equipped Wispon (Wisp weapon). Each of these serves two purposes: a regular attack that you can do at any time, and a special ability that you can perform when you pick up the corresponding Wisp. There are a variety of attacks and abilities, but they’re not all created equal by a long shot. For example, the Burst Wispon gives you a flamethrower that you can hold to torch enemies in front of you. This is one of the best ones due to not affecting your movement; you can run and jump freely while spraying fire, so you don’t lose momentum. Comparatively, the Lightning Wispon is an electric whip that forces you to either stop or move forward awkwardly while swinging (though its arc is pretty wide), and the Cube Wispon forces you to stop completely and attack twice to actually destroy enemies since its first swing traps them in cubes. (Destroying cubed enemies gives you extra rings, though, so at least it can get you more points than other Wispons.) Generally, you’ll find yourself annoyed by Wispons that stop your movement. One notable Wispon is the Drill, which gives you a powerful, super-fast charging attack that you keep your momentum from afterwards. It’s perfect for speedrunning.

The Wispon abilities that are activated from the item also vary. Burst lets you do a series of jumps until its meter runs out, Lightning allows you to dash along trails of rings and enemies, Drill grinds you across the ground and up walls, Asteroid makes you invincible for a period of time, etc. Some of these are good for finding alternate paths and hidden Red Rings throughout levels, while others are mostly utilities for making your life easier. Custom character levels are usually similar in layout and feel to Modern Sonic ones, apart from the changes made to make Wispons relevant.

Classic Sonic is the third character, and easily the worst. His levels are fully 2D, and on a basic level, he works like he would in Mania, right down to him having his Drop Dash. However, he just feels WRONG. Jump momentum is screwy, momentum when not rolling doesn’t work right, and he just generally feels like a brick with Sonic’s moves. Even without Sonic Mania’s release this year, he’d seem kind of off; with it, he’s just embarrassing. That said, his levels are designed competently apart from his final level, Iron Fortress, which is a giant pain in the ass, thanks to a forced autoscrolling section full of death pits. Classic Sonic is absolutely the worst part of Forces, and hopefully SEGA decides to re-hire the Mania team to appeal to Sonic nostalgia rather than trying and failing to make this sloppy gameplay style work. (Forces was in development before Mania, so it was likely too late to cut him out by time Mania started, so I give a slight pass in that sense.)

The fourth type of stage isn’t technically a new character; rather, it is Tag Team stages, where you control both Modern Sonic and your custom character at the same time. Controlling two characters at once is done very simply, as you are essentially controlling one character with both sets of abilities. There are the least of these stages compared to other characters. One notable thing about them is that there are very few 2D sections, with only one that lasts more than a few seconds. They also feature a “Double Boost” mechanic, where at certain pre-determined points you’re asked to mash a button, and after a few seconds, Sonic and your custom character rocket forward for a certain amount of time, running over enemies and gathering rings. It’s basically just a scripted sequence where you can rack up points, but it’s amusing to see your own creation as Sonic’s new best friend as the game’s cheesy vocal theme plays and you run over tons of enemies.

Notably, the game no longer has lives; you are instead awarded a bigger score bonus at the end of levels for dying less. Since previous 3D Sonic games already hurt your ranks for dying mid-level, having to spend lives to restart at checkpoints or retry levels would be a waste anyway. I’m not one to say that lives should be completely eliminated from games (and in fact I think Sonic Mania was better for having them, despite some complaints I’ve heard), but in this case they wouldn’t add to the experience in any meaningful way.

Level Design

Though level design is technically part of gameplay, it’s important enough in Sonic especially to need its own section. Since Modern Sonic, custom character, and Tag Team levels mostly hit the same design beats, I can talk about their design relatively interchangeably.

With pre-release footage, people were worried that levels were too short and too linear, with little to no shortcuts or things to do beyond blasting forward for a little bit. I can confirm, however, that the levels showcased pre-release are generally some of the least interesting, for whatever reason. Many of the levels have cool shortcuts and paths taken through either well timed jumps, sidesteps, homing attacks, or Wispon ability usage. Like previous Sonic games in this style, there’s more platforming in 2D than 3D, but generally rocketing your way through these levels, optimizing your performance, and finding the paths to take to collect all the Red Rings (there are five hidden in each level) is a lot of fun, with a single consistent caveat.

Many of the levels in Sonic Forces feel too short. This is less of a criticism of the actual time spent in each level, and more of a criticism of their pacing. Each level, consistently, feels sort of like two thirds of a level; each one seems like it should have a third section that brings together all the mechanics and layout techniques the level introduced and fully bring them to their conclusion. Instead, each time you get to where you think you’re about to reach that, the level ends instead. The thing that makes this especially sad is that what’s there tends to be a LOT of fun. You’ll be ripping through cool, interesting landscapes and you’ll wish you could do it more than you end up doing. As much fun as I ended up having with this game, I couldn’t help but feel a little short-changed from time to time.

Classic Sonic’s level design generally feels like a simplification of design you’d find in Sonic the Hedgehog 2; there’s nothing super special about it but it’s not bad either, apart from the aforementioned Iron Fortress. You’ll be more bothered by his actual control than with the levels.

The game also has its share of boss fights for each character, which range from “inoffensive” to “moderately fun,” though they’re never the best part of the game. The custom character probably has the best time with them, because using the Wispons to attack is more fun than homing attacking repeatedly, and some of them you can really speed up the fights with the right abilities. Unlike some other 3D Sonic games, they never really get frustrating, so I guess that’s a plus.

Graphics

Sonic Forces looks pretty nice. It varies by level, however. Forces’s take on Green Hill wasn’t quite as nice as Generations’s; it used more simple geometric shapes and less interesting foliage. Some of the other levels are much nicer looking, such as the Mystic Forest, Death Egg, Metropolis, and Empire Fortress stages. Many of the levels also have tons of action in the backgrounds, including giant robots, bombing runs, and in the case of the Empire Fortress stages, an all-out war. The lighting looks pretty nice, and the game runs at a rock-solid 60 frames per second on the PS4 version that I played. It won’t necessarily wow you, but it’s a game that looks pretty good.

Sound and Music

The game’s voice acting is cartoony and goofy, like you’d expect from a game about talking animals. Most of the levels have dialogue during them that advances the plot and describes action. There is an option to turn off all the in-level dialogue, which is useful when you’re replaying stages.

The music is pretty good, though not quite the series’s best. Each character has their own musical style in their levels. Modern Sonic generally has a mixture of guitars and synths in his levels. The compositions are cool, fast-paced, and sometimes kind of dramatic, but the lead synth in a lot of them isn’t quite idea. I still like a lot of the music, but I can understand it bothering you. The custom character has music characterized mostly by synths, other electronic instruments, and vocals. The lyrics are kinda cheesy, with the songs being about destiny, winning the fight, and other goofy things. You might find yourself singing along if you don’t take yourself seriously. Classic Sonic music actually uses Sega Genesis-styled instruments, though strangely enough it doesn’t sound like the kind you’d hear in a Genesis Sonic game. I can’t quite place the game I would hear these sounds in, though. A few are catchy and fun, but the others are pretty forgettable. Tag team stages have music similar to the custom character’s stages, but without lyrics (with the exception of one stage that reprises the game’s main hard rock vocal theme). They’re generally pretty forgettable.

Story

I can’t tell if Sonic Forces is taking itself seriously or if it’s being tongue-in-cheek about the series’s previous brushes with serious storytelling, but either way it’s pretty hilarious. Hearing goofy cartoon animals talk about the seriousness of war never stops being funny, whether intentionally or not. The story is always cheesy, going from an overly edgy cheesiness at the beginning to a more wholesome cheesiness near the end, where speeches about the power of friendship walk right out of your favorite anime into the dialogue. One notable bit of contrast is that, even in the serious parts of the story early on, Sonic himself is never particularly serious. He’s always chattering away and making wisecracks, which actually ends up being very entertaining due to everything else around him. If you only let yourself enjoy things that are legitimately good, you’ll probably be irritated, but anyone who can let themselves go and laugh at a B-movie atmosphere will have a lot of fun watching the cutscenes.

Replay Value

The game’s main story clocks in at only 4-ish hours over its 30 main stages/boss fights, but it doesn’t seem like it should really be any longer. It’s not particularly difficult to beat, either. There’s a good amount of replay value: like previous 3D Sonic games, you’re ranked on your score at the end of levels, so getting S ranks on every stage is one way to get a good amount of time from the game. Each stage also has five Red Rings to find, giving you a reason to revisit levels and find all the different paths. Once you’ve collected all the Red Rings in a stage, a set of Number Rings will appear, which have to be collected in order from 5 to 1 descending. And once you’ve collected all of those, a set of Silver Moon Rings will appear in a level, which must all be collected in a short period of time. Red Rings are the only of these collectibles that unlock extra levels; the others are purely for satisfaction, avatar items, and Trophies/Achievements. The extra levels aren’t particularly meaty; they’re purely 2D platforming challenges with either Modern Sonic or the custom character that are focused around singular gimmicks that don’t appear in the rest of the game. They’re fun enough, I guess, but they don’t really take advantage of what makes this kind of Sonic game special. Finally, the game has leaderboards for level times, though unsurprisingly they seem to be hacked to hell and back on the PC version. Since getting the best times in levels takes a lot of clever optimization, it can be a lot of fun to do your absolute best. If you’re not driven to better yourself, though, then Sonic Forces loses a lot of appeal, as a single playthrough will be over pretty quickly.

Conclusion

At its best, Sonic Forces is a fast-paced, fun action platformer where you’ll be blazing through cool environments and feeling the flow as you nail all your homing attacks, boosts, Wispon moves, quick steps, and slides. At its worst, you’ll be wondering why Sonic Team bothered to bring back Classic Sonic at all. Sonic Forces also doesn’t have much to offer in the way of exploration, nor is its main story all that long, so if you don’t like optimizing your performance then you’ll find yourself uninterested pretty quickly. Still, if you like the feeling of nailing every movement, Sonic Forces is a lot of fun, even if the levels feel like they should be a bit more fleshed out. If you already dislike the boost gameplay from Unleashed, Colors, and Generations, Forces won’t change your mind. If you enjoyed those games, or if you just have an open mind, most of this game can be a solid piece of entertainment. Plus, there’s a special joy that comes from dressing your cartoon animal up in completely ridiculous outfits. As a budget title (launching at $40), there’s a good amount of fun to be had in Sonic Forces, despite its issues. Hopefully Sonic Team takes the right lessons from this game and sticks to the fast-paced boost gameplay they’ve been building on and look to the future while leaving the imitations and celebrations of the series’s early days to the fine folks who made Sonic Mania.

Buy if:

you already like “Boost Sonic”

you enjoy optimizing your performance in short, action-packed challenges

you can stomach a couple of irritating bits

you enjoy chuckling at goofy, cheesy writing

Avoid if:

you’re looking for a solid Classic Sonic experience

you prefer longer games or exploration in your platformers

you’re not used to adjusting to controls that feel different from the genre standard

cheesy things irritate you

[tumblunni]

Also I randomly had another game idea LOL Except it really sucks that I’ll probably never make this one cos its also one thats really hard to talk about. Like an actual plot with a twist and then I don’t think it’d be very fun if you already knew the twist :( But then like I’M PROBABLY NOT GONNA FINISH IT so I WANNA TELL U THE TWIST AAAA

So yeah lets have some super vague talking about it! The basic idea is that it’s an adventure/puzzle sort of thing where you walk around a house. Or, at least, that’s what the protagonist thinks? It’s more sort of a... soul house?? Symbolic place where different rooms are different slices of broken memory. Like it’d be an evolving environment full of a whole bunch of Kinda Surreal puzzles where you touch certain objects and get teleported into memories and stuff. You’d be unwravelling the protagonist’s amnesia and traumas to reveal the true nature of the whole situation. And revealing the truth of certain flashbacks would change things in the ‘house’ and allow you to progress to unlock more flashbacks, and sometimes you might even be able to revisit old flashbacks and redo them right with the help of knowledge gained from another flashback. An example I was thinking of is that you start off walking out of your room from your house, and then outside the door is a corridor from a hospital. Which would probably be a stealth section running from shadowy doctors? You can go back and solve some other memories in order to make that door go to the right place instead, or you can be brave and actually confront that hospital memory.  And then maybe when you revisit it later all the shadow doctors would look like normal people and you could actually talk to them and figure out what really happened. Or another more random lil idea is that you get a hint at where you actually are in the real world, because stepping on a random tile at some point in the dream makes you take damage. You’re remembering the floor plan of your old house but its the first hint that you might not actually be there, and this is an abstract dream representation. Cos srsly who put this new staircase here?? (but it all works out good cos you fall into another area with more memory items)

Also I was thinking maybe speech minigames? Like, your character has a very active and slightly snarky inner monologue, but they don’t seem to be able to talk to anyone in these flashbacks for some reason. At first you wouldn’t even be able to unscramble their speech, and it’d kinda be like the Al-Behd ciphers in final fantasy 10? More reason to revisit the same memories and experience all new kinds of puzzles! But then the idea I had for handling the player speaking back was kinda like the anagram battles in danganronpa? But you’d be trying to catch whole words to spell a sentence, and you’d have to collect those words from experiencing other memories. You’d see text boxes flying around with snippets of dialogue other characters said, and you have to figure out which ones contain the words you need right now. rebuild your language comprehension through puzzle power!! I feel like it could be a great way of getting inside your character’s perspective, yknow? You feel the frustration of being able to only rewatch stuff that’s happened and not affect it in any way. And you feel the triumph when you finally unlock all the dialogue keys to be able to reach that memory’s conclusion! I think probably not all of them would sway the story greatly, tho there would indeed be maybe three or four endings. But also i think I’d throw in some miscellaneous choices along the way just to make it feel like you’re not completely railroaded. There’s still only one true ending, one bad ending and one neutral ending, but you can decide miscellaneous details about your character’s personality and reaction to everything. Even if its just stuff like “yeah I love football!” or “my sister loves football but I hate it” or “I’m neutral on the subject but I like when we go to football matches cos I get to spend time with dad”. And I think it could be cool if the soul room areas could have minor changes cos of this? Like a different poster of your favourite celebrity in your room, or a bunch of collectavbles to find throughout the memories that would get added to your shelf. A get well soon card signed by everyone at the hospital if you took the time to talk to all of them before progressing the plot.

and MANNNN it sucks that i can’t say goddamn anything about that plot lol i’ll just say that it isn’t gonna be ‘you’re in a coma at the hospital’ cos i feel like that’d be the most predictable option, lol and the genre of this story might not be what it seems~?

[therighteousdingo]

Game Review: Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories (PS1)

So, as of the last few weeks, I’ve been going back and buying all the old PlayStation games that I grew up with and rebuilding the collection I used to have as a child, while I build a new collection of vintage games in the process. One of the bigger games that stands out on this list, is Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories. My best friend Kaire and I were huge fans of Yu-Gi-Oh growing up and this game was kind of the proving grounds for us. We burned hours grinding through duels to get the strongest cards, plowing through the campaign in certain ways so we can unlock certain sequences and even messing around with different monsters just so we can see them in action during the animated fighting scenario that you can activate when attacking during a duel. No matter what, in the end, it was all about the cards. Starting off with little to nothing and moving up to get our hands on the likes of Blue Eyes White Dragon, Meteor Black Dragon and even the Gate Guardian. But lets get this thing on the road.

The basic facts:

There’s really not too many to place here besides the super basic stuff like the release dates and some small trivial facts.

Released in 2002 in North America but released in 1999 in Japan, a relatively large gap.

The game was released in a dual-CD packaging yet only came with the one game disc. A reason for this is unknown, but I always used it to store a page with fusions written on it to remember them when I first purchased the game and was getting used to the fuse mechanics that I’ll go over later on in this review.

This one isn’t 100% fact, but I have realized over the years that the game is only vaguely based on the anime and manga of the show.

The gameplay:

Now here’s where things get interesting, so I’m gonna be covering the controls, mechanics and the other miscellaneous stuff that’s attributed to the game. To start off with a big one, the Fusion Mechanic. Now as I stated earlier, the game is only loosely based on the anime and whatnot so the basic stuff about Yu-Gi-Oh that we all may remember, is just tossed in the air, for instance, sacrifices; there aren’t any. If you have a 3000/2500 Blue Eyes White Dragon in your hand, you can just throw that monstrous sucker straight from your hand to the field much to your opponent’s avail. Now, to balance this system, they added this mechanic where you can fuse the creatures in your hand, rather half-assed, and create an even stronger monster. For example, a weak dragon, mixed with a thunder creature creates Thunder Dragon but if you add another thunder creature or another dragon, you wind up with Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon which is 2800ATK (I don’t really remember the defense, 2300 maybe?) and is pretty much your key advantage right off the bat once you start the game. Now the thing with fusing is, although some stuff is incredibly easy to fuse and come up with, some stuff just completely throws you for a loop for no reason, wasting the cards you were attempting in the fusion (oh yeah that’s a thing, if you’re unsuccessful with a fusion, the cards are just tossed away), which can be frustrating but isn’t that bad of a complaint since there’s a Free Duel option that allows you to freely duel, win or lose, against whoever you’ve played in the campaign allowing for trial and error which is definitely whats needed in order to master the fusion system. With this being in place, they start you off staggeringly weak but chock full of cards that give simple, quick fusions, so at least the game comfortably sets you into the system to quickly allow for you to learn it. 

The campaign is utterly straightforward. There’s the option to choose alternate dialogues sometimes, but these are rendered essentially useless considering the story unfolds in the same manner regardless of what option you chose. There’s even a moment very early on in the game where you’re set against Heishin, the primary antagonist of the game, but the game literally cannot progress unless he beats you. Granted, his deck is freakishly strong, to the point where his base cards are the fusion of fusions, if that makes sense, but if you luck out and manage to beat him (Kaire did this once but it was kind of on a fluke, nonetheless we freaked out considering we were about 10) the game doesn’t progress and Heishin gives a stock dialogue along the lines of “Agh! This can’t be! Again!” and you’re shoved right back into a duel with him and the game won’t move unless he beats you. I’d quickly like to point out that yes, every instance that’s life and death or will decide the fate of the world, is decided over a duel, but I digress. Eventually you get to play as the “modern” Yugi, playing against the antagonists from the show in a random tournament. Facing Rex Raptor, Bandit Keith, Mai Valentine, and even Pegasus, you wind up back in the past as the Pharaoh’s son facing Heishin and his cronies. You have to wander around and face mages in separate temples, each one correlating with a different type and deck (Meadow, Forest, Desert, Mountain, etc.) forcing you to be versatile in your deck building skills. Each mage has different, powerful cards that they can give up when dueled in the free duel option. All of this boils down to a duel against Heishin and then eventually his higherup, Nitemare, the game’s final boss. Its dueling, dueling, dueling. Not much more.

The Looks / Music:

The normal sequences of the game, in which you pick dialogue and such, are incredibly basic, to get the job done, The bottom half of the screen gives dialogue while the top half gives you a torso shot of the character speaking. This does have the potential to kill intense moments that they attempt to get across such as Simon Muran, your caretaker in the game, telling you that the High Mage Heishin has just killed your parents and that hes taking over the entire region and oh yeah, we’re about to have to hide in this millennium puzzle for about a thousand years, yay. It just doesn’t give tension whatsoever. The music continues as ever with the scene, which is normally just regular, tribal style music that bops, and they don’t have any staunch facial movements, leaving you reading it with a slight, boorish take back. So, the story is incredibly difficult to get into on a personal or emotional level like so many other games have done just before, but that doesn’t necessarily kill the vibe of the game; its a boat load of dueling, man. There’s an option for battle sequences while you’re in the middle of the duel, which is useless in the long run, but is a cool addition to both present the power of the PlayStation and see the different monsters in the game use their different attacks. It feels good to see your Red Eyes Black Dragon blast your friend’s Baby Dragon into oblivion, now that I think about it. That’s really the only instance in which the looks are truly presented and beyond that, its basic dueling (is that getting too old to keep saying?).

Now the music, oh man, the music. Its pretty fantastic. There’s a few instances where the only mood enhancer for the entire scene is the music, its almost overpoweringly “soundtrack”. To listen to them by themselves isn’t as enjoyable as the Sonic soundtrack, for example, but its fitting for the game. The dueling music is moving and bouncy and goes with the fluidity of the dueling nicely. There’s even a cool sound that goes with the fusions of cards while they fuse and swirl. A good portion of the soundtrack for the game is entirely electronic sounding, and some even bearing a resemblance to European house music, which blows my mind; its freakin’ Yu-Gi-Oh.

The Cons:

What in the hell is up with the Guardian Stars system? Anyone whose played the game will most likely side with me when I say that this system is a wonderful idea and addition to the game but is confusingly laid out and sometimes mind numbing to decipher. The system is pretty much a temporary powerup system that plays out while dueling, giving the monster in the appropriate standing a +500 boost to AT and DF. So, for instance, fire is weak against water, right? Well is Mars weak against Neptune? Because that’s how the types and guardian stars are presented. Monsters have a choice of 2 guardian stars, which are all named after Roman gods, and some are easy to decipher; Flame Swordsman is Mars and I can’t remember the other, but that means that Mars is obviously resembling fire. This takes a whiiiiiiiiiiiile to get the hang of. Nothing is more frustrating than randomly losing an entire duel when a one-on-one goes against you because the computer knew the Guardian Star advantage and you didn’t. They could’ve simply put the type names in the system and named is something else to ease the confusion of system buts that’s retrospective. 

The other big one that I can point out is the grinding. When defeating somebody, the game gives you a card depending on a load of variables from the person you defeated, to the way you defeated them, and sometimes, how many times you’ve defeated them consecutively. When you defeat them using a lot of stronger monsters, or simply over power them, you get a POW win, which is essentially a “power” win. There’s other ways to win like TEC which is “technical”, and is difficult to do, but sometimes necessary in order to get certain cards from duelists, you have to win in other instances like, winning by your opponent drawing their entire deck. This can wind up in you dueling a certain duelist for hours just to get one card. I’ve dueled “Jono 2nd” over 60 times (W51-L9) and still haven’t received his ONE power card: Red Eyes Black Dragon. However, I’ve dueled the Meadow Mage just under 40 times and have received 3 out of his 5 stronger cards. That’s 2 duelists and roughly 4 hours later and have only progressed around 20% of the game, so you better hunker down.

This game was a pretty damn good choice when I was deciding to get the games of my past and rebuild my collection. I’ve burned more than 10 hours and will easily burn through more. But to look at is as a game altogether in comparison to other games and not with my childhood bias, 

6.5 / 10

[wildflowerhowell]

I Found, chapter 3

Dan Howell and Phil Lester hate each other, and everyone at the Ida Gatley school of dance knows it. So what happens when the two are paired together to choreograph and perform a duet at England’s most renowned contemporary dance competition?

word count (in total): 22,139

chapters: 12

genre: fluff and angst

tw: alcohol mention

read on ao3

all chapters

It was 8:48 pm and Dan was driving alone down a neighbourhood street. He was on his way to a party (“Dan!” His friend Sarah had exclaimed when she heard that he didn’t have dance for once, “You’re telling me that you’re free on a Friday night? Oh my god you have to come to my friend’s house party!”), but he made sure to drive slowly. He wanted to be able to think without having his thoughts interrupted by a song blasting over the speakers in a studio.

As he passed rows of houses that were strung together like charms on a necklace, Dan let the previous night’s events replay in his head.

~

Dan wasn’t sure why he had felt so surprised when Ida announced that he would be competing at Grasp with Phil. He’d seen it coming from a mile away, but he tried convincing himself that he’d go to the competition with someone else so much that he almost started to believe himself.

Ida had told the two boys to see her after class. Not wanting to spend any more time with Phil than he already had to, Dan groaned. When he looked over at the other boy, Phil was just staring at his feet.

After class was over and all of the dancers were sweaty and had acquired at least three new bruises to add to their constantly-growing collection, Dan and Phil made their way to the benches. Once the last person had left the room (“See you guys next week!”, “See you, Alex.”), Ida made her way over to the two boys. “You can sit closer than that, you know,” Ida reminded them after noticing the ten feet separating the dancers. Dan looked over at the other competitor with pursed lips but neither of them moved. Ida sighed.

“So. I chose both of you to compete at Grasp because your performance in this class is outstanding. However, your behavior towards each other isn’t. I know that you might not be friends, and that’s fine, but I want you to know that I truly believe that you two can work together to create a dance that-”

“What? Did you just say you want us to create a dance? As in you aren’t gonna choreograph it for us?” Dan sputtered, shocked.

“Well… yes. I think that for your dance to be one that you feel completely comfortable performing, you need to collaborate and choreograph it yourselves.”

“But we love your style of dance!” Both Ida and Phil raised an eyebrow at the word ‘we’, “If we perform one of your dances, we’re sure to win.”

“Dan, I’ve seen your choreography. It’s amazing. And I’ve also seen Phil’s, which is equally as incredible. Please. Create a dance together. Just this once.” Even though she was asking for the two boys to cooperate, her tone of voice hinted that she knew she wasn’t losing this battle and the boys had no choice.

Phil remained silent, but Dan still had more questions. “So we have to do… everything together? Like song and costume choice?” Ida nodded.

“Unless you really don’t want to work together. I can always choose someone el-”

“No.” Phil finally spoke, “Dan c’mon. We have to do this.” Phil was annoyed. Angry? Maybe not (Dan wasn’t sure why, because he sure was.) But it was obvious that Phil thought Dan was acting immature, selfish. The younger boy sighed in defeat.

“Fine.”

~

Dan only had a vague idea of where he was going, but when he came across a tall brick house with loud music exploding from every wall, he knew he was in the right place. He parked his car a few houses away and walked up to where the party was being held. He was about to knock on the front door, but then he realized that this was a party and he could walk right in. God, you need to get out more. He walked inside to see clusters of people that were drinking and dancing and talking. He ventured further into the rooms of the house in search of Sarah but it took a while to spot her as there were tons of people milling about.

“Sarah, hey!”

“Dan!” The redhead leaned in to give Dan a hug, “It’s so good to see you.”

“You saw me just the other day.”

“Yeah, but I haven’t seen you at a party until today.”

“Whatever,” Dan chuckled, “What are you up to?”

“Uh… partying? God, you really don’t know how to do anything other than dance, do you?”

“Hey! I do other stuff! I just…spend most of my time dancing…”

Dan watched as a grin unfolded on Sarah’s face. When she told him to go socialize with people other than her, he cautiously obliged. He slowly made his way to the kitchen to get a drink and maybe run into someone who’d want to talk to him. When he got to the white tiled room with black cabinets and marble countertops, he immediately walked over to the sink, which was filled with various drinks cooled by ice. The boy contemplated his options before choosing a root beer. Not very bold of him, but he couldn’t risk getting even the slightest bit drunk the day before he had dance again.

Dan gulped down a bit of the carbonated drink and looked around in hopes of seeing someone else who looked like they had no one to talk to. He quickly figured out that all of these people knew each other, as no one was alone. Feeling discouraged, he made his way to what appeared to be the back patio. There, he could further collect his thoughts about the recent and upcoming events involving a certain hated dancer. Dan found the back door and exited the house.

As he sat down on the top wooden step of a short staircase that led to a garden, Dan noticed a man standing alone in the grass below him. Finally, someone he could talk to!

“Hey!” Dan could tell he’d slightly startled the man when he jumped and quickly turned his head.

“Oh, um, hi.”

“I’m Dan. You?”

“Aiden.”

“Come sit!” Dan patted the wood panel next to him, he didn’t like talking to people that far away from him. As Aiden (who appeared to be around the same age as Dan) drew closer, his light blue-grey eyes became more and more vivid. “Is that your natural eye color?”

“No,” Said Aiden, who was now also sitting on the top step, “They’re contacts. A fashion statement I guess.” He let out a faint laugh, and Dan could see why Aiden had chosen that color. They complimented his dark skin in a way that was both striking and inviting at the same time.

“What brings you here?” Aiden asked.

“A friend invited me.”

“I just needed to get out of the house.” The two boys laughed together for a few seconds, then quieted back down. Their conversation continued for a good seven minutes or so before the topic turned to career paths. Aiden divulged that he worked at a security system company as a salesman, and then asked Dan what he did for a living.

“Well, I don’t really have much time for a job.”

“Is that because you’re still in school?”

“Actually it’s because I’m pretty much constantly at my dance studio. Today was one of my rare days off.”

“Wait. You dance?”

“Yep.”

“Like… hip hop?’”

“That as well as ballet, jazz, contemporary. The list goes on and on.” Dan laughed modestly.

“Hm. Interesting.”

“How so?”

“Well, dance is more of a feminine thing, right? So like, it’s kinda gay that you’re a dancer.”

Dan choked a bit on the remaining root beer left in his can. “Excuse me?”

“Dude I mean if it’s your choice to be gay then whatev-”

“Are you fucking kidding me? First off, no, male dancers are not all gay. Secondly, no one can choose their sexuality.”

“Bro, chill. I just think it’s not that manly for a guy to dance, that’s all.”

“Not that manly? God, your masculinity really is fragile, isn’t it!” Dan was sick of all the comments he got about being a guy dancer. Was the concept really that hard to grasp?

“What did you just say? You’d better fucking take that back, asshole.”

“Dan? What’s going on?” Sarah emerged from the house, leaning out of the sliding glass door. She had a beer in her hand and her dark red lipstick was a bit smudged.

“This guy’s just being a dick, that’s all.” Dan glared at Aiden and stormed off back into the house, wanting to get as far away as possible.

He shouldn’t even have come to the party. He should've just stayed at home and rested. But right now, Dan couldn’t rest. He was too angry. He needed to move. So he walked out of the house to his car and started driving. He didn’t think to much about where he was actually going. But he knew where he’d end up. After five minutes of driving, Dan was in front of IGSD.

The parking lot was empty, so Dan parked right in front of the entrance. He unlocked the door (Ida trusted his enough to give him a key), walked inside, and turned on a light. He contemplated which room to go into, but ended up choosing the room that his contemporary class is held in. He turned on the fairy lights that wrapped around the tops of the walls and plugged his phone into the speakers, scrolling through his music library for a few minutes and then deciding to play Oh Wonder’s first album, choosing to listen to Lose It.

The boy walked to the center of the floor and started to stretch; just because he wasn’t in class doesn’t mean he didn’t need to warm his muscles up. The warm-up consisted of jumping jacks, lunges, left and right side stretches, most of the usual things he did in his classes. The stretching only lasted through three songs, Dan really just wanted to get to dancing. Maybe he’d even be able to choreograph some of the dance that he and Phil would perform?

As Body Gold ended and Dazzle started to play, Dan started to move around the room, getting a feel for the music. He began turning and jumping and soon enough he was lost. It was like the studio vanished and he was in a world of his own. He had no one to inspect and comment on his every move. He didn’t have Phil to compete against. It was just him. Pure, genuine Dan.

The dancer was pulled out of his trance when the song ended, but another immediately started to play. Dan usually didn’t dance to this kind of music, but sometimes he just wanted to be able to dance to something less intense. A couple more songs played, and Dan became a different dancer with each one. His movements slowed, then sped up, then slowed again. The dimly lit room became his world again, he could dance for only himself, he could-

“Are you choreographing?”

What? Dan stopped mid pencil turn and swivelled around to look at who was talking to him, even though he already knew.

“Phil,” Dan said flatly, “What are you doing here?”

The older boy looked slightly aggravated, but answered anyway. “Well I was hoping to come here to choreograph some of the dance, but it looks like you’re already doing that. Mind showing me what you’ve come up with so far?”

“Um, I wasn’t choreographing. I was just doing some… improv.” Dan looked suspiciously at Phil. Why wasn’t he demanding that he have the room to himself, doing some perfect firebird leap just to show off or whatever?

“You haven’t started any choreography? Grasp is in one month and this dance has to be absolutely perfect! Jesus Christ, Dan.”

“How am I supposed to know what kind of choreography to do when we haven’t even chosen a song to dance to yet?” Dan sneered.

“Fine! You wanna choose a song? Let’s choose a song then.”