#[ do i have any resident evil fans on my dash??

[familiarache]

𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓱𝓮 𝓼𝓲𝓽𝓼 𝓸𝓷 𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓻𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓲𝓷 𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓹𝓪𝓵𝓪𝓬𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝓫𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼 𝓹𝓻𝓪𝔂𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓸 𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓰𝓻𝓮𝓮𝓭

Written by Sabrina | Writer is 25+ | 18+ Only please. | crossover super highly extremely encouraged actually | private sideblog to lockedtowers | multimuse | Beta Editor Only

𝓱𝓮'𝓼 𝓰𝓸𝓽 𝓶𝔂 𝓹𝓪𝓼𝓽 𝓯𝓻𝓸𝔃𝓮𝓷 𝓫𝓮𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝓰𝓵𝓪𝓼𝓼 𝓫𝓾𝓽 𝓲'𝓿𝓮 𝓰𝓸𝓽 𝓶𝓮

If we're moots on lockedtowers and you follow here, then i already follow you. this is brina's little pocket of bonus muses. a lot have a whole lotta psychological trauma and its a rough time for everyone.

𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓸𝓵𝓭 𝓯𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓵𝓲𝓪𝓻 𝓫𝓸𝓭𝔂 𝓪𝓬𝓱𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓼𝓷𝓪𝓹𝓼 𝓯𝓻𝓸𝓶 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓼𝓪𝓶𝓮 𝓵𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓫𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓴𝓼 𝓲𝓷 𝓶𝔂 𝓼𝓸𝓾𝓵

links. carrd. memes. promo. ship list.

affiliated. @mastermiinded @tragedyxbound @orangeshinigami

blogs. @lockedtowers @bulletgrazed

introㅤ hello! i'm brina! you may know me from shatteredfears, or bittwitchy, or who knows where else! in the past i've also gone by harley, vee, eris, and otherwise! no i did not change my alias for nefarious reasons or i would not be sharing the old ones i can remember lol.

ㅤcreditsㅤ

psd is a mix of thatbitch by sbcoloring, and bloodsucker by somresources. icon border by faegfx divider by faegfx (threads) lavenderrph (other) pinned by lavenderrph shattered effect (and most png related things) by ravenorlov dash icon by venuscommissions stock photos from unsplash graphics/icons by me (unless otherwise stated) amourare has some pre-put together tag symbol things and i thank them for it

GUIDELINES

001 hello! you can call me brina. i'm in my late 20s, have a fun blend of mental and physical disabilities (no you may not ask, tho if you pay attention you'll probably figure it out lol), get confused easily, a fan of things first and a person rarely, and mostly just want friends. but due to really really bad rejection sensitivity (i think, whether thats the cause or not is uncomfirmed) i will run away if i see a lot of hate towards things i like.

you may know some of my old pseuds (risa, vee, eris, harley, idr what else) no i did not do smthn bad or horrible. i just get tired of pseuds quickly, but have stuck with brina for the last 3 years so wheee.

002 this is not my main rp, but it is a sideblog to my main rp. likes/asks (unless tumblr implements sending asks from side accounts, as they did with replying from side accounts) will come from mendinggashes.

003 usual situation here, please don't just godmod without asking first, don't assume i'm following canon at all in any way, don't assume that your muse appearing in my bio means i will assume anything about your muse, etc. i will always start threads with people i don't already have a relationship with either by muse first meeting, or if i'm given approval to, somewhere during their 'getting to know' phase. i won't assume friends/enemies/any of that, will never force romance, just because i like something does NOT mean i'm going to force it on you. I am not following you because i want to ship/have a specific dyn/etc. i'm following you because i like your writing and i would like to be friends if you're open to it.

004 due to the nature of some characters on this blog, i will not be tagging cults (relating to VFD, and res village), WRITTEN blood and whatnot (photos will be tagged), drugs in writing (wonderland/resident evil/probably asoue too honestly vfd did some fluffed up shiz. I'm not planning on rbing photos so that should be whatever, but if i do reblog the 'wonders' from wonderland, those will be tagged as drugs, cause that's what they are.)

005 this blog is exclusive to my friends/mutuals for mendinggashes. so if we don't write/talk there, we cannot write here. i know some muses here are definitely more sought after than my main bbygirl and the rude demon man i hate, but that's sort of just how things roll ig.

006 I love shipping, don't get me wrong, but lets talk about it before hopping in! as we know, this blog is exclusive to my mutuals on mendinggashes, so i know you actually want to write with me and not just ship with these specific characters.

I do have some specifics: I will never write b.atjok.es romantically, no matter who you are. I will not write incest. I will not write SA. Pleaase don't force these, or ships in general, on me, but do talk to me if you ship our characters! After at least one threat, preferably, because again, all of my muses are canon divergent, so what you know from the series will NOT be what they are here in most situations.

007 if you're gonna send me stuff like 'oh you cant like xyzxyz its so xyzxyz' i'll prolly softblock you so it doesnt really matter but like, don't be weird man, don't be mean to people, why can't people just be nice yknow. i dont wanna be mean, i dont want drama, i just want chill

008 uhhhh please tag animal abuse/death. that's pretty much my one and only wish. though if you're going to post current events on your rp please tag that too, i just i have a lot of health issues that are triggered by stress i'm trying to avoid additional stress at all times.

#pinned.

[maxwell-grant]

Vincenzo: The Gentleman Villain Reborn

Long before there were loudmouth buff guys in spandex, there was the gentleman villain.

There once was a time when the gentleman villain, whether a gentleman thief in the Raffles or Lupin mold, or murderous arch-criminals like Fu Manchu and Fantomas, organizations like Les Vampires, and even in-between figures like Rocambole and Judex, was the coolest thing in the pop culture block. The figures right around the corner of Baker Street, when Nick Carter and Sexton Blake and any billion old serial detectives weren’t quite cutting it. Their time was not to last long in the spotlight, as the pulp heroes consolidated domain in the 30s and then the superheroes took over, but every now and then, they return in various forms, never fully gone. But I’d dare say I’d never seen a gentleman villain story quite so bold, so modern, so dynamic and so gloriously over-the-top in pride over it’s existence, until I began watching Vincenzo.

Vincenzo is BADASS and I don’t use the term lightly. Not just the titular character, but the show itself. It’s currently a couple episodes short of the finale and you should stop everything you’re doing or watching and go watch Vincenzo. It’s been an utterly glorious ride from beginning to end with no shortage of great characters, terrific writing, great relationships and jaw-dropping moments as every episode succeeds in topping each other in WOW HOLY SHIT factor. It’s a shot of adrenaline and storytelling excellence to the eyeballs and you don’t have anything better to be doing right now than watching this.

I mentioned a while ago that Black was a show that, besides being also terrific in quality, captured my interest as a Shadow fan specifically because I saw in Black what I believe is the heart of The Shadow as a character: an embodiment of evil, motivated and created and warped by social catastrophe and strife, set loose to punish true evil in order to protect humanity. In that regard, if Black is where I find the heart of The Shadow, Vincenzo is where I find the spirit of what I like about The Shadow as a series: Cathartic urban fairytales where an extraordinary agent of change, armed with incredible cunning, sleight-of-hand and combat skills, rises above a dark background to command a folk brigade of ordinary people who reveal themselves to be extraordinary through their newfound purpose, to right the wrongs of society’s predators, by being better at their tactics than they are and turning their tools against them. 

I’m gonna spoil it a bit under the cut but please go watch it. I cannot praise this show enough and I’ll do my best to try.

Vincenzo centers around the titular character, Vincenzo Cassano, an Italian lawyer who works for the mafia as a consigliere, adopted by it’s Don at the age of eight. After the death of the Don and an attempted betrayal by his son, Vincenzo flees to Seoul and ends up taking residence at a ramshackle building called Geumga Plaza. Geumga Plaza is the hiding place of a gigantic stash of gold hidden by one of Vincenzo’s former clients, and he intends to retrieve it to rebuild his life somewhere else. Naturally, not only is the hidden room completely impenetrable, but the building is occupied. by residents who are being forced out of it by criminals working for the Babel corporation, which intends to take possession of the building. And thus, Vincenzo has to put his skills into working out progressively bigger problems, as his efforts to uncover the gold turn into a fight against Babel and it’s lawyers, as the problems take on bigger and bigger proportions. 

Vincenzo’s got a lot of what you’d expect from a k-drama at first glance. The leading man is a dashing young man, the leading lady is headstrong and stubborn, you see their romance coming a mile away and they take their damn time getting there, there’s emotional backstories that take a long time to be revealed, lots of wacky side characters and comedy interspersed with the darkest moments, a focus on corporate corruption, and so on. But it’s got an intrusion of elements brought by Vincenzo’s inclusion, such as mob drama, tonal and cultural imbalance, and the gentleman villain tropes that Vincenzo brings, as the catalyst of change whose antics backflip through action hero, romantic hero, super hero and super villain, cunning puppetmaster and gun-toting warrior alike, and start to have an effect on the world around him. His allies become stronger, more determined and effective, and the villains grow smarter and more horrid as they desperately try to avoid their own downfalls.

On paper, Vincenzo is almost a textbook example of how to craft a villain protagonist. He’s a mysterious foreigner with a hidden past and incredible skills who shows up uninvited in “our” world, who starts terrorizing and manipulating people into doing his bidding. He’s got a hotheaded and foolish investigator chasing after his every move, and frequently employs misdirection and sleight-of-hand to fool the authorities. He commits crimes and employs underhanded methods in the service of stamping out people worse than himself. He never really makes any claim of being a hero and actively rejects the notion he’s fighting for justice, but instead states he’s doing it as a matter of principle. One of the characters early on even states he gives off the vibe of a movie villain, even Vincenzo himself tells Hong Cha-Young, the female lead, that he’s teaching her how to be a proper villain. In another series, Vincenzo would be the hypercompetent sidekick to the main villain, or secretly the main villain, the lone badass that the action hero would have a tough fight against before defeating and moving on. But Vincenzo does not allow himself to be dismissed so easily. 

On the first episode, when we’re introduced to him in Italy, he’s painted as the badass to end all badasses. But the minute he arrives in Seoul, he falls for a trick at the airport and is mugged by two cabbies, and has to walk around penniless and without dignity, shouting curses in Italian that nobody understands. He has to sleep in a broken down apartment, his “taking a steamy shower with classical music playing” fanservice scene keeps being interrupted because the shower doesn’t work, and a pigeon chattering outside his window keeps ruining his sleep. 

The tenants of the building are all introduced as varying levels of unsympathetic and useless, or downright creepy. The tailor screws up his favorite suit, the chef who claims to have studied in Italy is a total fraud, there’s tenants who scare us by passing as ghosts and zombies, and Hong Cha-Young is introduced as an unlikable stooge for Babel. Vincenzo is a villain protagonist who is forced out of his grand mafia epic film, where he conducts business around lavish manors while classical music plays, and stumbles onto a korean drama, a world that operates by different rules and where no one has any reason to take him seriously at first, and gradually finds out that the difference between both worlds is not as big as he’d imagined.

It’s only at the very end of the first episode, when the neighborhood gangsters show up to terrorize the tenants, that Vincenzo starts to kick ass again, and he has not stopped so far. In fact, not just him, ALL of the tenants have gradually started kicking ass with him. Hong Cha-Young severs all connections to Babel and proves to be, as his main partner in crime, just as cunning, twice as driven, and three times as batshit and kooky. The tailor who ruined his suit turns out to be an ex-gang member capable of fending off groups of thugs with only his scissors. The creepy piano girl reveals herself a hacking genius, the zombie impersonators become incredible actors, the failed wrestler and badass wannabe becomes his most active field agent along with his equally strong wife, the chef improves his cooking and lends his restaurant as a meeting center, all of the characters, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM gradually become incredible, competent, resourceful people, really no different than they were before, it just took a little courage and pushing. 

The headstrong and foolish agent pursuing Vincenzo becomes 100% smitten with him and quickly becomes one of his greatest allies. Even the neighborhood gangsters, after being left to die by Babel and forced to start anew, quickly become some of his most loyal allies, and gradually redeem themselves in the eyes of the tenants to the point they become friends. In departing from his old family, Vincenzo forms a new one, even if never by his intention. They even all get matching suits.

This incredibly potent, human core surrounding the antics of an extraordinary figure of action is part of what used to make the Agents of The Shadow such a special, meaningful and beloved part of the series, and something every adaptation since then has been 100% poorer for neglecting. But Vincenzo does it, and does it right. I could watch a billion adventures with these people and never get sick of them. 

Vincenzo is a slick, modern take on the gentleman villain that takes many of it’s oldest conventions and provides blueprints for making them work in modern times. His plans often take a performance art-edge as he employs tactics both old-fashioned and modern, like using social media to stage an event in front of the Plaza so the bulldozers set to demolish it won’t be able to pass, or copying files and passing them to his police contact while keeping the real ones when said police contact inevitably betrays him. The tenants put all of their skills to use, no matter how unusual or seemingly useless. Every episode lays the groundwork for a smashing finale where all of the threads come together and we bare witness to a grand tapestry of karmic retribution.

The villains themselves are no slouch, and also have that modern edge that gradually ramps up. They stage discreet assassinations involving gas leaks and watches meant to burst into flames. They stack the deck impossibly against all characters. They employ masked goons by the dozens, armies of lawyers to smudge any connections between themselves and their actions, and every sector of society in covering them, from journalists publishing pro-Babel propaganda to police commissioners. The assistant of the main villain does zumba classes amidst ordering assassinations, and is often likened to a snake and a witch with her "Crystal Ball” (the name she uses for ordering assassin contacts by the phone), complete with a cowardly, scheming assistant she bullies at every turn. The CEO of Babel has a dual nature not out of place in a Jekyll & Hyde/Dorian Grey kind of story. 

The main villain is often painted as a slasher villain backed by massive corporate power, murdering people with hockey equipments and even outright named “Jason” at one point, with a tense string theme song accompanying his deeds. The show hides the villain at plain sight by using one of the most familiar set-ups of romantic dramas and the tension never stops even after he’s revealed. 

Mobster films tend to paint an idealized version of it’s protagonists, not necessarily because of a genuine love or interest with mobsters (I mean, it really goes without saying that real life mobsters are obviously not admirable figures), but out of a sense of displaying a “this is what it could be” fantasy, a fantasy where the mafioso is a dark hero who will still ultimately do the right thing and stick up for the little guy, in a similar way to how superheroes often function as police officers except, y’know, actually dedicated to protecting people. 

Vincenzo does go to great lengths to address the imbalance of putting such a dark figure as it’s hero, through showing how the situation can only be addressed by the intrusion of a figure such as Vincenzo. There’s a scene where Vincenzo and Hong proceed to explain extremely succintly to their cop ally why the “bad apples” argument is horseshit.  One of the show’s characters, someone who’s spent his entire life being the best person he could, and dedicating himself 110% percent to fighting evil even at the expense of connecting with his own family, someone who absolutely should be the hero to take down Babel, admits shortly before dying that it wasn’t enough, that it was never going to be enough, and that what the situation calls for isn’t a hero, but a monster. That monster being Vincenzo, who is not only powerful and monstrous, but commands the loyalty of people high and low class alike, criminals and law enforcement agents, to fight Babel. In his words, “the ultimate monster”, something even the world’s biggest badass cannot defeat by himself. 

On most other set-ups, Vincenzo would be pretty unmistakably the villain. But here, when he’s set up against a starkly realistic depiction of how corporations actually function in our world, depicts that Vincenzo’s ability to clear his way through goons John Wick-style is nowhere near enough, and to that end, he’s gonna have to fight impossible battles using his brains and his allies. And in the end, he defeats them, time and time again, and proves that they were not that impossible after all. 

One can only hope he’s on to something.

Oh yeah and THE PIGEON BY HIS WINDOW ALSO KICKS ASS and I will not explain how, just watch the show, I can’t do it justice no matter how much I talk about it.

#k-drama #vincenzo #i've fallen in the k-drama rabbit hole and I am not getting back up #I love everything about this show so goddamn much #song joong ki #tvn vincenzo

[wefoundloveunderthelight]

Stacy’s Favorite Completed Captain Swan AU Fics

I have mentioned before that reading Captain Swan fics has kept me going through this pandemic and has lightened my mood through the election.  I thought I would take a moment to mention some of my favorite completed AU fics.  

I have to really thank all the lovely fic writers on this list for continuing to write about this beautiful couple long after the show has left the air. As a former Glee Fanfiction writer, I know the struggle of getting in the chapters, waiting for comments, and hoping with that sick feeling in your gut that people will like it. These writers are very lovely and have created great stories that I have loved reading!

I will work on my WIP list later on but wanted to start with my favorites that are completed stories!

Completed Modern AU

These Nights Never Seem To Go To Plan

Author: stophookingatmeswan

Summary: When Emma Swan meets Killian Jones, he's a mix of sass, sex and hot mess. As their lives start to intertwine professionally, they're drawn together personally but their pasts keep getting in the way. A Captain Swan Police AU.

Completed: 2016-12-089

Chapters: 21

An Inconceivable Secret

Author: itssarahndipity

Summary: Ten years after giving away her illegitimate son, Emma Swan feels unexpectedly ready to be a mother. Little does she know she’ll soon meet her chosen sperm donor and quite possibly fall in love with him. Of course, why bother telling him she’s pregnant with his child? That would complicate things, surely…

Completed: 2018-10-03

Chapters: 21

your case or mine

Author: miamoretti

Summary: Detective Emma Swan is one of Boston Homicide's finest. Killian Jones is head of the FBI team who swoops in to take jurisdiction when multiple homicides sharing similarities with her current case pop up out of state. But they'll have to learn to work together to lure out their killer when they're required to go undercover. As a married couple. CS Cops/Undercover/Fake Marriage AU.

Completed: 2020-08-15

Chapters: 30

your wonder under summer skies

Author: LetItRaines

 Summary: Summer in Storybrooke, Maine means one thing for its residents: tourist season. This year, for Emma Swan and Killian Jones, it means relationships ending and friendships changing all the while they attempt to figure out just what their relationship is. It’s somewhere straddling the line between friends and lovers, and there’s no guarantee of a soft landing if they fall into new territory.

Completed: 2020-06-04

Chapters: 18

The Naked Truth

Author: brooke2broch

Summary: Captain Swan AU. Emma Swan, investigative reporter for the Globe, has arrived in Storybrooke, Maine, in the middle of a heat wave to do an undercover exposé on small town political corruption. The temperature gets even hotter when she meets the dashing mayor — and subject of her story — Killian Jones. When his political rival Regina Mills sets Emma to the task of finding the truth, she unwittingly puts her in the path of something darker and more dangerous than anyone ever expected. Although Emma has been in sticky situations before, something about this town, her newfound friends, and the confounding mayor have her edgy. Because for once in her life, Emma may have found something worth staying for.

Completed: 2020-11-27

Chapters: 23

With You I Have Everything

Author: OnceuponaSwan

Summary: Emma Swan is looking to start over with her son Henry. Boston seemed as good of a place as any to escape her ex-boyfriend. After receiving an officer job at the Boston PD, she feels drawn to the police chief, Killian Jones. Both too stubborn and broken, they embark on a romance that can only get trickier as the secret gets out.

Completed: 2017-09-18

Chapters: 17

The Convenient Groom

Author: searchingwardrobes

Summary: Killian Jones just happens to be there when Emma Swan gets the phone call that changes everything: her fiance is leaving her at the altar. The thing is, it also could mean the end of her career. Convenient that Killian has nothing better to do that day. Convenient that he’s secretly in love with her. Not that Emma has to know that.

Completed: 2020-01-18

Chapters: 14

Dark Gray

Author: colormyheartred

Summary: Killian Jones operates a lighthouse in the middle of nowhere, preferring a life of isolation, until one day a woman and a baby wash up on his little island and change his life forever.

Completed: 2020-10-01

Chapters: 18

Devastation and Healing

Author: Jrob64

Summary: Sergeant Killian Jones has had more than his share of tragedy in his life. When he’s injured in an IED explosion, he’s assigned to a physical therapist named Emma Swan. While she tries to help him heal physically, can they help each other heal emotionally?

Completed: 2020-08-28

Chapters: 24

Catch Me If You Can

Author: LetItRaines

Summary: 298 days. That’s how long Killian Jones was away from a baseball field. It’s less than a year, only part of a season for him, but it might as well have lasted a decade as he alternated between physical therapy and spending an excessive amount of time sitting on his couch.

But then he came back and won the World Series.

It’s something no one saw coming, and it’s certainly not something anyone who knows about his arm would predict. Now it’s a new season with new possibilities, and anything could happen. On-field reporter Emma Swan will be there to cover it all even if she is not his biggest fan right now.

Asking her out live on-air will do that.

Completed: 2020-01-29

Chapters: 40

Completed AU

A change in the wind

Author:

nowforruin

Summary: As Emma’s twenty-eighth birthday approaches and Henry becomes more and more distant, Regina decides trusting in her wicked abilities will no longer do – Emma Swan must be stopped from ever reaching Storybrooke. Lucky for her, a certain pirate would do just about anything for revenge. AU, Captain Swan.

Completed: 2015-04-12

Chapters: 24

Strangeness and Charm

Author: bluestoplights

Summary: Killian Jones is a pirate captain down on his luck after a falling out with the Evil Queen. Emma Swan just found out she is the Savior. Their shared goals bring them on an epic quest to liberate the kingdom once and for all. It's a lot easier said than done.

Completed: 2016-07-28

Chapters: 24

The Princess and the Pirate

Author: riddler42

Summary: When the notorious Captain Hook returns to the seas of Misthaven, Emma Swan - personal bounty hunter of Queen Snow and Prince Charming - takes it upon herself to hunt him down. She soon discovers, however, that she's not the only one. They must work together to escape their mutual enemies, but can they learn to trust one another before it's too late?

Completed: 2015-06-28

Chapters: 22

Their Way By Moonlight

Author: profdanglais

Summary: A new curse has fallen on Storybrooke and this time Emma is trapped inside it, deliberately separated from Henry and anyone else who might help her break it. But what no one knows –including her own cursed self– is that she and Killian have the ability to share their dreams, and are working together in secret to find a way to break the curse and rescue the town from a new and dangerous foe.

Completed: 2019-02-05

Chapters: 20

Walk With Me (I Think We'll Find A Way)

Author: Elizabeethan

Summary: Killian Jones travels across realms to find Emma and Henry in New York after receiving an anonymous message about a new curse. When he finally tracks her down, he makes a bold move and greets her at her front door, but before he can even attempt to convince her to come back to Storybrooke with him, he’s met with a surprise that will change his life.

Completed: 2020-11-07

Chapters: 9

Stacy’s Recommended Fics and Stuff

You are all amazing!!! Thank you!

#stophookingatmeswan #elizabeethan #profdanglais #riddler42 #bluestoplights #nowforruin #LetItRaines #Jrob64 #colormyheartred #searchingwardrobes #OnceuponaSwan #brooke2broch #miamoretti #itssarahndipity #captain swan #captain swan au #captain swan fics #Thank you for being amazing #profdanglaisstuff #stacysficstuff

[saintchlorine]

XYZ for the fandom meme

answers under the cut because you gave me the ramble option and idk what i might do with that power

X - top 5-10 characters who are yoUR PRECIOUS BABIES AND YOU WILL DIE DEFENDING THEM

okay here are the first who pop into my head:

sh heather

sh eileen

mei from overwatch

lucio from overwatch

sweet sweet aaron from creep

becky from utopia

hit girl/mindy from kick-ass

brian from mysterious skin :((

i would 100% take a bullet for any of these characters and that’s a guarantee

Y - What are your secondhand fandoms (fandoms you aren’t in personally but are tangentially familiar with because your friends/people on your dash are in them)

resident evil (a crime i know i just haven’t played any of them yet)

dead by daylight (but i bought it so maybe it won’t be tangential anymore)

scorpion – this one’s random bc idk anyone who watches it but i’ve seen approximately three episodes of “scorpion,” didn’t even like it, yet read multiple fanfics about it and know all of the characters’ lore and personalities. i feel like a ghost, unseen and unknown, haunting the barely recognizable halls of the scorpion fandom

Z - Just ramble about something fan-related, go go go (prompts optional but encouraged)

i’m pretty sure everyone knows this already but silent hill 3 is my absolute favorite in the series and every single one of the characters kills me. so here are some notes/opinions on all of them

heather - personally, i think she has the most interesting and known personality out of every silent hill protagonist and thank GOD for it. every time you interact with stuff, you get more of her personality and her thoughts. “it’s bread” is one of the greatest things in gaming history and it’s all thanks to her <3

also having a female character who is so troubled and not even a little bit weaker for it is wonderful. i feel like it says a lot about her that she only lets herself cry quickly and infrequently, instantly putting back on the unbothered face when she’s done. she just feels like such a real teenage girl, guided by her emotions and trying to do what’s right. her teen angst is iconic and the sheer confidence and determination that she approaches everything with is...incredible? inspirational? show-stopping?

douglas - when i was like 15 and playing this game i didn’t care about him at all, but now, older and wiser, i can say confidently that i LOVE HIM. he’s so genuine and caring but really keeps it inside because he’s a Man’s Man. the emotional repression in that dude is astronomical but he’s very paternal and loving in spite of it. his monologue when he’s injured at the amusement park has been known to make me publicly cry. he’s a dad through and through

claudia - she’s another one that i think i had to get a little older to truly appreciate. she genuinely believes that what she’s doing is what alessa would have wanted and that’s so sad to me. she fucking canonized her as a saint in their sect, not having any clue what alessa was put through or the suffering she endured for a religion that didn’t even care about her. claudia is really complex and layered. she’s also really caring, it just comes out differently? she wants to save EVERYONE, not just the people she loves. she’s also fully prepared to burn in hell for the good of the world. that lady...she’s neat and i think about her all the time

vincent - SLIME MAN. i love the archetype of the self-centered, hedonistic Pretty Boy™ just doing chaotic neutral nonsense and he fits it perfectly (maybe not so much the pretty, but he’s trying). he’s so conniving and cruel and awful and i, unfortunately, love that shit. also the creepy way he flirts with literally everyone at all times is something else. i wish konami had given us the vincent and douglas motel interaction because i bet he’d flirt with douglas too and then make him cry or some shit. he’s just Awful like that. but there’s also a lot of room for interpretation with him in my opinion?

in the motel scene with him and claudia where he says “the memory of [leonard’s] cruelty is forever burned into my mind,” he’s obviously being melodramatic but it’s hard to tell if it’s a rare moment of (very theatrical) honesty or if it’s just another mind game stacked on top of the rest. and then right after when he says “what you call faith is just a child crying out for love. that’s why you’re all alone,” he doesn’t say it in nearly as venomous and slimy a tone as everything that came before. in fact, when he says it he sounds/looks kind of...sad? and he doesn’t laugh or anything when she says he doesn’t understand. it seems like an honest moment to me but it’s also totally up for interpretation which i LOVE!

anyways i could legit write an essay on the vincent and claudia dynamic so i’ll stop here, but yeah! thank you for giving me a place to slap these thoughts down! also anyone who read all of that has permission to punch me in the face if we ever meet irl as a token of my gratitude

#thank you so much!! #lauds.txt #answers

[paipayaseeds]

".. So we can all agree that Kaito's a damn idiot right?"

"Atua damned idiot!"

"I had been under the notion that this had been established."Korekiyo joined, agreeing with both Angie and Miu's quips.

Everyone, even Kaede, would nod solemnly, The Pianist having huffed at how idiotic the man's actions had been. Though, she couldn't not understand why he dashed like a madman. Hell, if it'd been Shuichi in that situation, maybe she might have done the same. And considering the height difference they shared, she could totally have pulled off carrying Shuichi to safety. The tempting thought to lift Shuichi resided in her for a moment before she'd snap back to reality to form a plan.

"Well.. I-We should probably have a discussion whenever.. Kaito gets back?"Was he coming back? I mean, he'd been getting chased by the evil little cretin known as Monokuma, and he'd been really fast about it. Besides,

She wanted everyone to be present.. It'd maybe been best to just wait until tomorrow.. Something she really hoped was a current choice.

"Actually I think.. Maybe we should wait. We don't know if we can go to our room-...Where did Kirumi and Kokichi go..?"

"Kirumi went to go chase after them with the med kit.. But don't know where Kokichi went."Ryoma answered her question, looking off seemingly no where with a neutral expression. Kaede could only one look at the fun sized man in disbelief from how calm he'd been about this.. But then again, he'd..sort of been like that for as long as she was able to know the man.

"Of course that little shit takes advantage when turds hit the fan!"

"Not to be the bearer of bad news, but the akido master also took her leave."

"I-Why?"

"Well, Tenko did possess Anya's notebook yes?"

True but.. Really? Did she really think trying to give it to her now was a good idea? Rubbing her head in confusion, she'd plop her head onto Shuichi's to snap him out of his gaze.

"Hey, Earth to Shuichi!"

------------------

If Keebo's warm hands hadn't brought color to her face,

The current situation they'd been in would.

Not only has Anya been granted with the privilege of wearing Kaito's jacket(he'd probably not been getting this jacket back until.. needed-), but she was practically in this man's arms. His big.. Very nice feeling -

Wow okay Anya tone it down you're supposed to be baby.

Her face had been against this man's chest, so she could hear the all too familiar rhythm of his heart beating. The ability alone was way too intimate in her opinion for it rendered a darkening blush onto her freckled face, the freckles painted as if they'd been tiny constellations.

While she hadn't known exactly why they'd been running cause yknow, blood loss and kinda coming back to life, she very much enjoyed being held and didn't plan or want to fall anytime soon. Thought in mind, she'd wrap her little arms around the man's neck, head on his shoulder as she'd close her eyes in slight content.

Her eyes locked with Rantaro's for a bit before she'd break it with the help of her guilty conscious.

She was gonna have to face him and explain herself eventually but..

She didn't want to right now.

Not yet.

"K.. Kaito where are.. We going.?" She'd ask meekly, talking having been a literal chore with how less she's actually done it. The action felt foreign, forbidden even. #introvertsbelike-

-------------

*kirumi is running

Tenkrotch is running -

kokichi is being his authentic self -

I hope this didn't burden you thought the idea made sense

"Kaito's actions are not only rash but also pointless; the student notebook says Monokuma can't directly k-" Shuichi's mumbling had been briefly cut off the moment he had averted his eyes up from the floor, only to meet bright purple ones. "K- Kuhhh...." Shuichi's heart rate flat-lined, body going completely stiff before he suddenly bounced away, only now realizing their intimate position — intimate to him at least.

"K- Kaede, I was just thinking about the, um, here-" He took out his student notebook, eyebrows furrowing in light focus as he swiped through the numerous rules; eyes widening in recognition as he read the rule:

"Monokuma will never directly commit a murder."

-

Kaito had been too busy sweating his balls off from not only the running but the life threat(s) right behind them, so like the dumb, clueless, moronic himbo he was, he hadn't even realized Anya had spoken. "Your dorm! You'll be safe there!" How in any way would that protect Anya, you ask?

He doesn't know. He was thinking on the spot.

Kaito kept on running, even with the burning feeling in his legs, he was determined to make it to Anya's door, already readying himself to break down her door.

Rantaro would kill him, but in their current situation, Kaito had already felt the threat of his and Anya's life, so no, he didn't care.

As Rantaro opened his mouth to speak up again, a light bulb of realization flickering up in his head as he slowed his pace down. Monokuma couldn't even fucking kill them, so why were they running?

Oh right, Kaito had manhandled Rantaro's baby sister again.

Giving himself a quick breather, Rantaro readied himself to chase after Kaito again, only to nearly collapse on his face as he took a single step. The last thing he had seen before he really did collapse on his face, had been the flashes of blue and grey. He wondered if he was having a stroke, despite the only colours he saw being dull colours.

"Degenerate male! Let go of Anya this instant! Hand her over to me, I'm more capable!" Tenko screamed from the top of her lungs, legs going so fast that everyone who had probably been watching them, only saw a fast blur.

"And you have her notebook-" Kirumi added.

"And I have her notebook!" Tenko's deafening voice overlapped Kirumi's.

"Wh- No! I can do it! Just go fight off Monokuma!" Kaito swatted her away, pressing Anya closer to his chest as he hugged her as if she was his favourite toy about to be taken away. His eyes widened in slight terror as Tenko's figure slowly but surely, surpassed his; she had easily been a few steps ahead of him despite Kaito having an unfair head start.

"Hand her over now!" Tenko made a "Gimme." signal with her hands, a soul-piercing gaze glued on Kaito as they both ran.

All of a sudden, Kaito had not only been running from Monokuma but — that much was determined the moment he avoided Tenko's eager swipe for Anya.

"She's mine!" Kaito had spoken before he could prevent himself for doing so.

"She doesn't belong to anyone, you degenerate moron!"

These idiots hadn't even realized Monokuma had given up halfway through their childish conflict. Kirumi had caught him uttering, "I fucking hate my job sometimes," before disappearing off to harass more teenagers.

#Everyone #even Kaede #would nod solemnly #IM CRYING #*nods solemnly* yeah hes a fucking dunce #mod chia #rp #RantAnya

[ruthlessnessisyourdesire-archive]

Anonymous said: 

What are some blogs that you consider part of your rp family?

> Aww anon this is a really cool question. Well I have a particular group of people that are pretty much my always follow. I know people do those follower forever but I haven’t done any before. I get overwhelmed as it is with the amount of people who follow me but some blogs that I will never not be following are: 

@coffee-and-guns​ @theyearningtofly​ Uh hello. Have you seen the babes Lotus and Asuka? Feli has some dolls right here and I stan them to death. They don’t get the interaction or attention they deserve and I will fight until they do. Lotus is 60′s pre-tumblr babe. I’m talking OTP from the onset. He literally will destroy the city of Detroit for her. He will go to hell and back for her. It’s amazing how much this ship has taken over my life but our crazy amount of verses and aus is very telling. We have a ton of plot. Lotixty reigns supreme. And Asuka is my Connor’s waifu as well as Callum’s wife. Best babe.  @diivinerose​ Daniela is not just one beautiful muse. She is so diverse in her three verses that she is pretty much a multi. Curly is my chaos doll but also a shy bean with such great ideas. Our aus are another wild treasure trove. Each verse has something favorite in it. Each rendition I love and DD60 considers Main D his true love. Mad D is the other half of the toxicity known as Corla with my boy Corvus. The ship of Main D and Connor was a surprise in the beginning. I didn’t expect it but I’m glad it happened. Cause I just love her clinical coolness against this supposed cool machine who has more emotion than he should now as a deviant. Best Babe.  @stayhuman-genevieve​ @leaderawakened​ @pathdiverted​ Gen is amazing. Markus is tops. 52 is a babe. OK but also Amanda, Louis, Anarchy the list goes on. All of these muses are amazing and it’s just such a privilege to write with such a wonderfully developed original in Genevieve. She is 60′s weak spot. The ruthless one gave up Cyberlife for Gen. That takes some doing. But they have a ton of shit they went through including a terrorist takeover by that aforementioned Anarchy. We have such great plot ideas and I can’t get enough of them. Main Connor and Markus for my gal too. Main Markus all around. I love him damn it. Genevieve is also my Connor’s waifu. DD60 on the other hand.... just don’t let him alone with Corrupted Gen. OTP status right here. Best Babe. 

@dcwnxism​ @soulxism​​ @lethalxarsenal​ @wintcrcoded​ @resentfuldrcgon​ OK but here the list goes on as well. All of these muses canon and original are just amazing. Iron is the queen of angst. Hands down the best at making me cry. One of these days I’m gonna get her back for all the pain. lol Not only is Nines (now known as Cassius) my canon RK900 but my 60′s exclusive 900 bro. That took some doing let me say. Aiden is 60′s soulmate. Sixden is a ship I never expected but it snuck up on me. I love him. I love Lexi so much. She needs more attention. The one Gavin my Connor will put up with.... as an enemy of course. Oh and WuXian? Caleb loves him already. They will shine bright. Best Babe. 

@creatorofclay​

Did somebody ask for the only Kamski of my life? Well look no further than Kam/Ash/Clay right here not only making me appreciate Elijah but turning me to liking him as a character. I didn’t think much of him when I played the game. But let me tell you waifu right here writes him with such humanity (even when he’s being an ass) that gives such a new perspective. 60 is still on that creator nonsense but it’s in the demon au where he gets to shine with his affection or rather verbal brawls effectively with Elijah. My exclusive Kamski. Don’t @ me. Best Babe. 

@rk800isalive​ @imabittercoffee​

Waifu spotted! My platonic soulmate right here. Eme is someone who gave me a wonderful springboard for Sixty to get his hate on with Connor. That hate took a turn I never expected early on. These two wound up getting over their altercation at the tower. They wound up becoming siblings. The only Connor that 60 considers a brother in his main verse. Let me say the work up for this was some good old work. We wrote so many things with them and still do. I adore their human au. Let’s not forget Sierra. I love this bitch. She’s such a contrast to Caleb but man I’m digging it. Also she is the unofficial goth wife of Corvus but you’ll never hear it from him. Or...will you? thinksmirk Best Babe.

@et-liliium​ @musesdivine​

My baby Cherry has wonderful original dolls and I still miss them. BUT I’m super excited to see Lily on her own blog and my babe slowly getting back into the fandom. Sixty is looking to corrupt that sweet flower but it’s Connor that is absolutely in awe of her. He is in love. Let’s not forget Lily being the good to Corvus’ bad. We got some good shit planned for them. She’s the android Suzanne pretty much ;) Seriously check out these wonderful female muses. They are amazing and deserve all the love in the world. Best Babe.

@robobiitch​

Let me throw some love on Moe right here. Yall wanna see full on enemies with Sixty? Look no further but man we have some good ass plot with assassin au with a little dose of angst. Lust already hates/loves his brother-in-law in the other demon verse. The shenanigans are bound for some good shit. A wonderful Connor and that’s the bottom line cause ruthless sixty said so. Literally such a fun and cool person. I love plotting and just hanging. Best Babe. 

@anderson-residence​

Have you seen these muses? I love every single one and Alley always has something in my inbox that either makes me laugh or worry. lol Sending YK to Corvus is probably not the best idea but I love it. I love chatting about aus, plots and everything in between. Each muse is one I enjoy seeing and I really want to interact more with all of them. Sixty just wants to push Hank’s buttons and probably wants to kill Connor but.... lol Best Babe.

@rxseguided​ @repliicantceo​

A literal bab right here. Jesse, Eli and Elliot are all originals that bring so much more to the plate. If you haven’t seen Jesse in action what are you doing? The evil bitch’s daughter herself? Well then sign me up. Cupcake is a doll and her muses are chef kiss. Got it? Good. Lust loves his angel mom but DD is also in love. ;) Elliot is legit one of Corvus’ official cronies. That’s an honor in the worst way possible. Gotta love that human sk verse with Corvesse. Best Babe.

@triptocained​ @syntheticisolation​

Let me tell you all a story about a fed drenched in heavy rain..... No this isn’t a pun. I swear but Norman is literally a highlight and I’m looking forward to that enemies shit with Sixty. Bringing Jayden into the DBH universe is the best damn thing to happen. Danny brings him to life perfectly. I haven’t seen anybody else do this much justice. Norman is yours alone and deserves all the attention. Also let’s not forget Richard. Look I love this knife happy bastard. 60 still wants to show off Monica but he can wait as long as it takes. Always a pleasure to see on my dash. I’m in love. Best Babe. 

@fearlessandchaotic​

Original babes need more love and Hana his no different. Ely has such development and constant shenanigans I love to see on my dash. It’s always wonderful to see but also Sixty is over the moon for Hana. He hates to admit it but the best thing was coming back to his fiery fox. These two have such chemistry with their ruthless selves they’d sit around and poke fun at people instead of working on a case. Seriously go give the female muses their due love damn it.  Best Babe. 

@vexeddetective​

Vex is a precious babe that I adore the hell out of. Sixvin is here fam. Sixty likes to push Gavin’s buttons. We all know how that shit goes down. I will legit protec this babe. Not Gavin tho. He can fight his own battles and most likely end up wrestling with Sixty. That might end up messy good. Also Lucifer.... whenever he pops up my gal Jade is just: well he’s tall and scary. She probably secretly has a soft spot for him. We’ll have to find out. Please go follow for these two muses. You know you want to bishes. Best Babe. 

@swat-cptn-allen​ @det-gavin-reed​

My canon Allen right here. There is no one else who puts this much love into this muse. Webby is a literal precious bean. Sixty loves and hates Joseph. DD is definitely sof for him. Let that sof boy show his dom ;) I love the way Allen is given more development and his own unique persona from the little we see in game. I never imagined liking this character that much but Webby certainly has made me a fan of him. Please go give my canon Allen some love! Best Babe. 

@ambitiouslyruthless​ @fragmented-personage​

Goov is a babe. I have followed them for a while now and Vius was always a unique bab to see on my dash. Sixty still wants to pounce on him. Results may vary into ruthless territory BUT let him love on this original muse. He deserves more attention and love. Let him be that bastard to Gavin. Such a unique portrayal of Gavin that is totally one of my faves to see. I’m excited for the werewolf/vamp thread. Also can’t wait to see what happens with them in their main verses. Best Babe. 

@thirum-stained​

Always a delight on my dash and one of the earliest people to give my blog here a chance. Luna is a doll who has so many amazing muses and not just in the DBH fandom. Vanessa is Sixty’s waifu. She snuck up on him by surprise. He never imagined to fall in love but he sure did here. I adore all of the muses you tackle. I want to interact more with all of them. They’re forever follows on my dash for a reason. Best Babe. 

@theveryfirst​

This is my one and only Chloe. My literal canon babe. No one else compares and Heather is an all around sweetheart with amazing ideas. The plotting is always something I look forward to as well as just being able to chat. One of the earliest to follow me and still going strong on that forever follow list. Sixty adores Chloe. He feels for her more than he’d ever realize. Until he does. Corvus is still waiting to gets his hands on this angelic android. Best Babe.

> There are so many of you who follow that are so talented. It’s near impossible to give love to you all but there are some new babes who just followed that I’m looking forward to writing with. <3

#ask database #identifying: inferior #//process:anon// #[random // replies] #[code: long post] #{{anon you have no idea how long it took me to write this}} #[code: positivity post]

[lov3nerdstuff]

I Found {Part 2}

*Loki x reader*

Part: 2/8

Words: 3.4k

Summary: Loki finds himself stranded in Underworld, a kingdom hidden deep inside a desolate planet. In order to survive, he puts himself in the service of the tyrant king, who promises to give Loki his freedom back if he fulfills one simple task. Loki is to set out and bring the mad king his newest toy: You.

~A dangerous forbidden love. Abduction. Slavery. Tortured conscience. A mad tyrant... Escape?~

Request: A song fic based on 'I found' by Amber Run, requested by @strawberrysandcream

A.N.: So... This might get a little longer than expected 😅 already have written four parts and there's still more to come. But it's gonna be a ride for sure 😁💗

All Parts can be found on my Masterlist!

______________________________

With the panting guards trailing vaguely behind him, Loki strode into the throne room without awaiting as much as an announcement. He wanted to stay on the king's good side, but he was done pretending to enjoy it.

"My king, I bring you your selected girl." He spoke loudly, with determination but without smiles. Doing this was difficult, even for someone as practiced in ignoring his own conscience as Loki was.

"You return sooner than expected, my friend!" The king laughed and heaved himself out of his jeweled throne to take the few steps down towards Loki. Once both men stood facing each other, with your unconscious form still resting securely in Loki's arms, the king gazed down at you with a vicious smirk.

"Oh, how I have longed for this one…" He sighed almost affectionately and reached one podgy finger out towards your bruised cheek. Loki's stomach flipped almost violently and he had to bite down the prominent sickness arising from the very bottom of it.

"My king…" He spoke quickly, before the man would lay his hands upon you. Somehow he found the thought impossibly hard to bear. Indeed the king withdrew his hand and glared at Loki instead. "...what am I to do with her now?"

"Hand her over to the guards and you're free to go." The king sighed heavily, moving back towards his throne with one last disgustingly hungry gaze at your small form in Loki's arms.

"I… Eh, your highness, I think the guards have exhausted themselves quite enough for the day and I would feel most miserable imposing this task on them. Let me take her where she needs to be, let me see this done. Correctly. To… to prove to you my unyielding loyalty." Loki practically disgorged the words, bowing a little just to emphasize his point.

"You really are serious about completing your task to my fullest contentment, aren't you, little god?" The king chuckled and Loki had to smile to keep his jaw from clenching in anger. He didn't know where this protectiveness over you was coming from so suddenly, so maddeningly intense, but he was not ready to surrender you to these people just yet. The faint warmth of your body had started seeping through the thick fabric of his garments a good while back, mingling with your sweet scent to wrap around his senses, and it had something so incredibly calming, so alluring…

"Absolutely, your majesty." Loki replied with a dashing smile, tightening his grip on you ever so slightly. Obviously his entire being was working against his reason now, lovely… He had agreed with himself that he needed to get rid of you, and yet here he was begging to keep you a little while longer if only to make sure you weren't violated. Things weren't going well for either of you.

"So it be, then. You may take her there yourself, as you have thus far not disappoint me. To the baths in the East wing. Someone will meet you there to see things through."

"Thank you, your majesty." Loki replied politely, but as soon as he turned to leave, he was kept from leaving yet again.

"I assume you understand what happens to those who try to take what is mine? Who lay hand on what it not for them to touch?" The croaky tenor voice made the hairs in Loki's neck stand up in an instant.

"Yes, your majesty." He replied ever so calmly, even though it cost him quite a lot to keep his calm indeed, to keep his voice from dropping an octave in grave severity. With every word and every action he got himself deeper into this mess, but he couldn't help it. He couldn't hand you over, couldn't bring himself to be this cruel even if it would be to his own advantage. But he could shut up for now, and that's what he did.

Without another word Loki made his way out of the hall and down the tunnels towards the baths. This time it was only two guards following him with every step he took, and Loki almost laughed at their faces for seriously believing that they could keep him from doing as he pleased. He didn't feel like laughing though, not even like lifting the corner of his lips out of the grim line they were presently forming.

After a few sharp turns and almost getting lost once, he finally reached the medium sized hall that served as a bath for the inhabitants of the palace. A few natural pools lined the room, along with a couple hot springs and a very cold and very shallow lake. Loki had never liked the place, he prefered not to be exposed to the eyes of others. Maybe his physique being compared to Thor's more often than not in their youth had made him rather self-conscious when it came to nudity. The people of Underworld didn't seem to mind naked skin though, and Loki constantly had to remind himself not to wrinkle his nose in mild disgust.

Now, as he walked into the hall with your additional weight making his footsteps more audible than he was used to, his eyes scanned the room for whoever should be waiting for him here. He almost believed the cavern to be empty, until his gaze fell upon an elderly woman, stout and red-faced, but less vile looking than most other inhabitants of the palace.

She approached Loki with slightly skipping steps.

"My goodness, did you carry her all the way here?" She shrieked as she motioned for Loki to put you down on a flat surface laid out with various furs of a size that had Loki wondering which animals would be large enough to have called this skin their own. After a second of hesitation he obliged, and gently put you down, soft furs brushing against the freezing skin on his knuckles while his fingertips fanned across your soft skin. He shouldn't touch you, and even less enjoy doing it.

"I did indeed." He replied quietly, looking down at your crouched form being illuminated by the many torches attached to the walls. The caverns were brighter than the tunnels at least, making him feel less in touch with the darkness within him.

"Such a lucky girl… The guards usually aren't that gentle with them." The woman sighed as she dug out a bottle with a deep red liquid from her bag, before she looked straight at Loki. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Hm? Oh, no…" He mused, offering her a half smile and taking a few steps backwards. Behind him the guards turned to leave as well, he heard them retreating without even bothering to look. He couldn't tear his eyes off you, couldn't bring himself to leave. Leaving would've felt like a betrayal, for he knew that if he left now, a little piece of his morality would wilt and die alongside you in these crude caves. Maybe even a huge part. Being here still gave him the illusion that he hadn't completed the evil that had been asked of him, that he still could redeem himself. That you weren't lost just yet.

"Isn't she a pretty one indeed?" The old woman asked suddenly, sensing Loki's presence even though he had retreated all the way into the shadows on the other end of the empty cave.

"Maybe. I haven't noticed." Loki lied easy enough, in a more sincere calm. Being alone with only you and the old woman somehow made him feel more secure than with the guards around.

"You shouldn't lie to an old woman. We elderly folks hear enough lies from our friends, don't need any more from our fiends." She chuckled as she moved about your motionless body, making you drink the red liquid carefully. Loki found himself sauntering closer again before he could bring up the will to stop himself.

"I'm not your enemy." He replied in honest interested to make her believe his words. The way she cared for you made him certain that she might be the closest thing to an actual decent person in this godforsaken place. Well, not godforsaken enough, as the one god who currently resided here was trying to escape. But that wasn't the point.

"You brought another innocent soul for our king to devour, didn't you?" She asked calmly, looking at Loki only long enough for him to see that she didn't judge him. Not really.

"I did." He replied more quietly than he wanted to. But the weight of admitting it out loud added another boulder to his heart, another arrow to his back. "And it makes me no better than the devourer of souls himself."

"But you are still here, aren't you?" She smiled, making you drink the last of the red liquid.

"Was that the antidote?" He asked curiously, coming to stand almost directly next to you once more.

"It was indeed. Should be very few minutes until she wakes up, now." She turned around to Loki with the kindest expression he had been given in a long time. "What's your name, dear?"

For a moment Loki debated with his reason if he really should stay here, and if he should be talking to the old woman. People back at home would have considered her a witch most likely, and that alone made Loki like her a little more already. "My name is Loki of Asgard."

"Well, Loki of Asgard, since you are not going to leave anyway, you may as well help me with her." She said easily, sitting down on a large rock with a small groan, and Loki found himself inclined to agree. He hadn't left when he was supposed to, so now he was certain that he wouldn't leave at all. Before long, the woman continued. "They usually either cry once they realize what is happening or they go for the run. And in the latter case I'm not of much use. Usually the guards will bring them back here within minutes, but therefore with more bruised skin than I could possibly heal. Yet, I am under the impression that you might not want said harm to come to this girl, so it would be quite lovely if you could keep her from running when she wakes up. Do you know her name?"

"Y/n." He replied while his eyes were fixed on your chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. Somehow, the sight had something deeply calming. "What will happen to her now, after she's awake?"

"She will be kept in confinement until her spirits are broken, so she won't try to flee anymore or hurt herself or other. And she will be trained until she has mastered her art." The elder sighed sadly, following Loki's gaze to your fluttering lashes.

"Her art?"

"She needs to learn how to please a man, how to please the king before she may be of service to him."

Loki's jaw clenched and his brows furrowed into a deep frown, but he didn't word his disgust nor his refusal to see this plan put into action. He should be working on his plan to escape… not on a plan to save you. If he kept on thinking like this, if he kept on actually seeing all the horrible things happening around him currently, he would really lose his mind.

Ignorance and denial had kept him wrapped in a blissful fog, but then you had literally fallen into his arms… and you had become his focal point to navigate through the haze, so he wouldn't lose sight of what he truly wanted. To escape from this living hell.

Short moments later you stirred, breath hitching as your eyes flew open with a start. You gasped, then turned your head to stare at Loki and the old lady with a shocked gaze.

And Loki almost would've gasped as well, for he had never seen eyes quite like yours, so deep and full of the universe's greatest mysteries. Of joys and tragedies unfathomable to anyone but you. He was drawn in immediately, immensely, impossibly…

"Hello Y/n, dear…" The old woman said with a soft smile.

"No…" You breathed, eyes widening even more as you looked around in the cave. "No no no…"

And with a start, you jumped to your feet and bolted towards the exit so quickly that your movements became blurred to the eye. Yet, Loki was quicker both in reaction and running and caught up with you after half the distance, wrapping his arms around your small form tightly.

"Let me go!" You screamed and thrashed wildly into the open air, actually managing to get one or two decent hits against Loki. He was impressed, but not surprised.

"We won't harm you, dear, please stop fighting." The older woman spoke calmly as Loki carried you back towards her. He couldn't help but feel even more intrigued by you now that you were awake, even if you were currently struggling against him with every power possible. Still, holding you with your back pressed to his chest and your arms pinned to your sides was not even close to a real challenge. But he was fairly certain though that you would pose a serious threat to anyone who didn't possess godly strength.

"Who are you? Where am I?" You asked defensively as Loki dropped you off on the thick furs yet again.

"Calm down, dear… You are safe with us. You're in the palace. The king chose you as his newest companion." The old woman stated calmly, sitting up a little straighter on her rock. She also seemed to have done this more than a couple times… And she didn't need to say any more, for you understood the situation you were in as if it was the most familiar idea to wrap your mind around.

"I'm his newest plaything? That means I'll be dead in a couple weeks, doesn't it?" You asked gravely as you hugged your arms to your chest in an attempt to keep in the little warmth left in your body.

"Of course not!" The old woman said with risen eyebrows.

"Yes it does." Loki replied a second later, opting for honesty at least once and earning himself a side glance from the lady on the rock.

"Let me guess, if I try to run, you'll catch me before I ever reach that exit?" You asked sadly, looking directly at Loki and causing his heart to skip a beat. He cursed his body for betraying him, but at least it didn't show.

"Unfortunately, yes." He replied as stoically as possible, averting his gaze after a moment, for he couldn't bear the sadness in your eyes, the knowledge that you were doomed. And that he was the reason for it.

"Running has no use, and neither has fighting. I'm sorry, dear, that this had to happen to you." The old lady spoke in a sigh as she rose to her feet and walked the two steps over to you to pat your shoulder in what probably should've been a comforting gesture. Loki didn't think it comforted you at all, and thus he decided to stay back where he was, silent.

"Can I at least know your names?" You requested quite calmly for someone who had just learned that their life had basically found a very stretched out ending. But an ending nonetheless. "You seem to know that my name is Y/n… And I would like to know the names of the people who greeted me here with kindness."

Yet again Loki frowned, wondering why you would say such thing, without sarcasm. He wasn't being kind, he was helping a tyrant get his way for the mere skimpy promise of freedom. No, Loki didn't feel kind at all, he only felt cold.

"I'm Agatha, your lady's maid and keeper. And that tall fellow is Loki. He brought you here." The old lady said easily and Loki immediately wished she hadn't, for your eyes snapped to his in an instant, filled with irritation and confused anger.

"YOU brought me here?!" You asked incredulously, frowning at him deeply but luckily without trying to fight this time. "But… why are you still here then? You must be one of the king's friends if he assigned you a task like this, or rather a chess piece he's not sacrificed yet, and that means you most likely were promised a reward for bringing me here. Won't you go and collect it already? Turn your back to the misery that you caused, like everyone else living in the palace? Let me ask… what is your reward? Gems? A girl for yourself? Or power maybe? I hope it's at least something that weighs up to my life's value."

Loki's words died on his lips as they dropped open a little, until his mind caught up with the questions and he had found the capability to suppress the emotions your words had stirred up within him. He shouldn't let himself get dragged into this… he should just leave and forget indeed. But he couldn't. "You know my name, that's more than enough power you hold over me. You needn't know my reasons in addition." Yes, that surely was the most imprecise answer he could've given, and Loki felt relieved. He didn't want you to know about his immense internal turmoil, hoping that things would just untangle themselves eventually if he kept ignoring them long enough.

"Don't be so hard on him, dear… He kept you safe for all the long way here, and that's more than the girls before you had. They arrived here in the worst conditions, believe me… Loki is a decent man." The old woman, Agatha, said gently as she kept patting your arm.

"You know nothing about me." Loki snapped defensively, crossing his arms in front of his chest and glaring at her. She couldn't possibly know anything about him, right? But he had kept you safe indeed, and he intended to continue to do so as long as he could.

"Yeah, he's lovely." You snorted sarcastically, looking at Loki with a risen eyebrow and then turning to Agatha. "But I must agree, I would not have expected to arrive here unharmed."

"I would hardly call those bruises on your face and shoulders 'unharmed'..." Loki commented, cringing at his utter inability to keep his mouth shut for once.

"But you didn't cause them, did you?" You asked in a surprisingly steady voice as a violent shiver made your entire form shake.

"Of course not." He replied in an instant, frowning deeply. Maybe he was a horrid person by character, but never one to cause harm to the innocent.

Agatha ordered you to wash yourself then, in that freezing shallow puddle in the middle of the cave, while she herself went to retrieve some garments for you. She also spoke the carefully worded reminder to you not to come close to the natural pools, for it was forbidden for anyone of the servant status to take a bath in those. Loki only frowned at that yet again, for he saw absolutely no reason behind such a silly rule. He didn't see much sense behind most rules, actually, and that's precisely why he usually didn't follow them.

"You shouldn't listen to her." He said to you out of impulse as you rose to your feet and made your way over to the edge of the water. Small ice crystals floated on the surface of the deep blackness, dancing slowly in the small waves your movements caused. Loki continued before he became completely mesmerized by the sight. "You're freezing anyway, and this water will make it far worse. Then you will fall ill, and as I was informed prior to this instance, the king does not hesitate to get rid of… broken toys."

"Well, all the better for me." You shrugged easily as you turned your back towards him and started peeling your clothes off, upon which Loki averted his gaze immediately, focusing very intently on a spot on the opposite wall. "I'll die in these caverns anyway, sooner rather than later. And if I freeze to death now, at least I won't have to bear the king's hands on my body. I'd rather die, honestly."

And for once, Loki didn't know what to respond as his eloquence was finally lost on him.

______________________________

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[thesteadydietofeverything]

Top 10 Games of 2019

This was an extremely good year for games. I don’t know if I played as many that will stick with me as I did last year, but the ones on the bottom half of this list in particular constitute some of my favorite games of the decade, and probably all-time. If I’ve got a gaming-related resolution for next year, it’s to put my playtime into supporting even smaller indie devs. My absolute favorite experiences in games this year came from seemingly out of nowhere games from teams I’ve previously never heard of before. That said, there are some big games coming up in spring I doubt I’ll be able to keep myself away from. Some quick notes/shoutouts before I get started:

-The game I put maybe the most time into this year was Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. I finally made the plunge into neverending FF MMO content, and I’m as happy as I am overwhelmed. This was a big year for the game, between the release of the Shadowbringers expansion and the Nier: Automata raid, and it very well may have made it onto my list if I had managed to actually get to any of it. At the time of this writing, though, I’ve only just finished 2015’s Heavensward, so I’ve got...a long way to go. 

-One quick shoutout to the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy that came out on Switch this year, a remaster of some DS classics I never played. An absolutely delightful visual novel series that I fell in love with throughout this year.

-I originally included a couple games currently in early access that I’ve enjoyed immensely. I removed them not because of arbitrary rules about what technically “came out” this year, but just to make room for some other games I liked, out of the assumption that I’ll still love these games in their 1.0 formats when they’re released next year to include them on my 2020 list. So shoutout to Hades, probably the best rogue-like/lite/whatever I’ve ever played, and Spin Rhythm XD, which reignited my love for rhythm games.

-Disco Elysium isn’t on this list, because I’ve played about an hour of it and haven’t yet been hooked by it. But I’ve heard enough about it to be convinced that it is 1000% a game for me and something I need to get to immediately. They shouted out Marx and Engels at the Game Awards! They look so cool! I want to be their friend! And hopefully, a few weeks from now, I’ll desperately want to redact this list to squeeze this game somewhere in here.

Alright, he’s the actual list:

10. Amid Evil

The 90’s FPS renaissance continues! As opposed to last year’s Dusk, a game I adored, this one takes its cues less from Quake and more from Heretic/Hexen, placing a greater emphasis on melee combat and magic-fuelled projectiles than more traditional weapons. Also, rather than that game’s intentionally ugly aesthetic, this one opts for graphics that at times feel lush, detailed, and pretty, while still probably mostly fitting the description of lo-fi. In fact, they just added RTX to the game, something I’m extremely curious to check out. This game continued to fuel my excitement about the possibilities of embracing out-of-style gameplay mechanics to discover new and fresh possibilities from a genre I’ve never been able to stop yearning for more of.

9. Ape Out

If this were a “coolest games” list, Ape Out would win it, easily. It’s a simple game whose mechanics don’t particularly evolve throughout the course of its handful of hours, but it leaves a hell of an impression with its minimalist cut-out graphics, stylish title cards, and percussive soundtrack. Smashing guards into each other and walls and causing them to shoot each other in a mad-dash for the exit is a fun as hell take on Hotline Miami-esque top down hyper violence, even if it’s a thin enough concept that it starts to feel a bit old before the end of the game.

8. Fire Emblem: Three Houses

I had a lot of problems with this game, probably most stemming from just how damn long it is - I still haven’t finished my first, and likely only, playthrough. This length seems to have motivated the developers to make battles more simple and easy, and to be fair, I would get frustrated if I were getting stuck on individual battles if I couldn’t stop thinking about how much longer I have to go, but as it is, I’ve just found them to be mostly boring. This is particularly problematic for a game that seems to require you to play through it at least...three times to really get the full picture? I couldn’t help but admire everything this game got right, though, and that mostly comes down to building a massive cast of extremely well realized and likable characters whose complex relationships with each other and with the structures they pledge loyalty to fuels harrowing drama once the plot really sets into motion. There’s a reason no other game inspired such a deluge of memes and fan fiction and art into my Twitter feed this year. It’s an impressive feat to convince every player they’ve unquestionably picked the right house and defend their problem children till the bitter end. After the success of this game, I’d love to see what this team can do next with a narrower focus and a bigger budget.

7. Resident Evil 2

It’s been a long time since I played the original Resident Evil 2, but I still consider it to be one of my favorite games of all time. I was highly skeptical of this remake at first, holding my stubborn ground that changing the fixed camera to a RE4-style behind the back perspective would turn this game more into an action game and less of a survival horror game where feeling a lack of control is part of the experience. I was pleasantly surprised to find how much they were able to modernize this game while maintaining its original feel and atmosphere. The fumbly, drifting aim-down sights effectively sell the feeling of being a rookie scared out of your wits. Being chased by Mr. X is wildly anxiety-inducing. But even more surprisingly, perhaps the greatest upgrade this game received was its map, which does you the generous service of actually marking down automatically where puzzles and items are, which rooms you’ve yet to enter, which ones you’ve searched entirely, and which ones still have more to discover. Arguably, this disrupts the feeling of being lost in a labyrinthine space that the original inspired, but in practice, it’s a remarkably satisfying and addicting video game system to engage with.

6. Judgment

No big surprise here - Ryu ga Gotoku put out another Yakuza-style game set in Kamurocho, and once again, it’s sitting somewhere on my top 10. This time, they finally put Kazuma Kiryu’s story to bed and focused on a new protagonist, down on his luck lawyer-turned-detective Takayuki Yagami. The new direction doesn’t always pay off - the added mechanics of following and chasing suspects gets a bit tedious. The game makes up for it, though, by absolutely nailing a fun, engrossing J-Drama of a plot entirely divorced from the Yakuza lore. The narrative takes several head-spinning turns through its several dozen hours, and they all feel earned, with a fresh sense of focus. The side stories in this one do even more to make you feel connected to the community of Kamurocho by befriending people from across the neighborhood. I’d love to see this team take even bigger swings in the future - and from what I’ve seen from Yakuza 7, that seems exactly like what they’re doing - but even if this game shares maybe a bit too much DNA with its predecessors, it’s hard to complain when the writing and acting are this enjoyable.

5. Control

Control feels like the kind of game that almost never gets made anymore. It’s a AAA game that isn’t connected to any larger franchises and doesn’t demand your attention for longer than a dozen hours. It doesn’t shoehorn needless RPG or MMO mechanics into its third-person action game formula to hold your attention. It introduces a wildly clever idea, tells a concise story with it, and then its over. And there’s something so refreshing about all of that. The setting of The Oldest House has a lot to do with it. I think it stands toe-to-toe with Rapture or Black Mesa as an instantly iconic game world. Its aesthetic blend of paranormal horror and banal government bureaucracy gripped my inner X-Files fan instantly, and kept him satisfied not only with its central characters and mystery but with a generous bounty of redacted documents full of worldbuilding both spine-tingling and hilarious. More will undoubtedly come from this game, in the form of DLC and possibly even more, with the way it ties itself into other Remedy universes, and as much as I expect I will love it, the refreshing experience this base game offered me likely can’t be beat.

4. Anodyne 2

I awaited Sean Han Tani and Marina Kittaka’s new game more anxiously than almost any game that came out this year, despite never having played the first one, exclusively on my love for last year’s singular All Our Asias and the promise that this game would greatly expand on that one’s Saturn/PS1-esque early 3D graphics and personal, heartfelt storytelling. Not only was I not disappointed, I was regularly pleasantly surprised by the depth of narrative and themes the game navigates. This game takes the ‘legendary hero’ tropes of a Zelda game and flips them to tell a story about the importance of community and taking care of loved ones over duty to governments or organizations. The dungeons that similarly reflect a Link to the Past-era Zelda game reduce the maps to bite-sized, funny, clever designs that ask you to internalize unique mechanics that result in affecting conclusions. Plus, it’s gorgeously idiosyncratic in its blend of 3D and 2D environments and its pretty but off-kilter score. It’s hard to believe something this full and well realized came from two people. 

3. Eliza

Eliza is a work of dystopian fiction so closely resembling the state of the world in 2019 it’s hard to even want to call it sci-fi. As a proxy for the Eliza app, you speak the words of an AI therapist that offers meager, generic suggestions as a catch-all for desperate people facing any number of the nightmares of our time. The first session you get is a man reckoning with the state the world is in - we’ve only got a few more years left to save ourselves from impending climate crisis, destructive development is rendering cities unlivable for anyone but the super-rich, and the people who hold all the power are just making it all worse. The only thing you offer to him is to use a meditation app and take some medication. It doesn’t take long for you to realize that this whole structure is much less about helping struggling people and more about mining personal data.

There’s much more to this story than the grim state of mental health under late capitalism, though. It’s revealed that Evelyn, the character you play as, has a much closer history with Eliza than initially evident. Throughout the game, she’ll reacquaint herself with old coworkers, including her two former bosses who have recently split and run different companies over their differing frightening visions for the future. The game offers a biting critique of the kind of tech company optimism that brings rich, eccentric men to believe they can solve the world’s problems within the hyper-capitalist structure they’ve thrived under, and how quickly this mindset gives way to techno-fascism. There’s also Evelyn’s former team member, Nora, who has quit the tech world in favor of being a DJ “activist,” and her current lead Rae, a compassionate person who genuinely believes in the power of Eliza to better people’s lives. The writing does an excellent job of justifying everyone’s points of view and highlighting the limits of their ideology without simplifying their sense of morality.

Why this game works so well isn’t just its willingness to stare in the face of uncomfortably relevant subject matter, but its ultimately empathetic message. It offers no simple solutions to the world’s problems, but also avoids falling into utter despair. Instead, it places measured but inspiring faith in the power of making small, meaningful impacts on the people around you, and simply trying to put some good into your world. It’s a game both terrifying and comforting in its frank conclusions.

2. Death Stranding

For a game as willfully dumb as this one often is - that, for example, insists on giving all of its characters with self-explanatory names long monologues about how they got that name - Death Stranding was one of the most thought provoking games I’ve played in a while. Outside of its indulgent, awkwardly paced narrative, the game offers plenty of reflection on the impact the internet has had on our lives. As Sam Porter Bridges, you’re hiking across a post-apocalyptic America, reconnecting isolated cities by delivering supplies, building infrastructure, and, probably most importantly, connecting them to the Chiral Network, an internet of sorts constructed of supernatural material of nebulous origin. Through this structure, the game offers surprisingly insightful commentary about the necessity for communication, cooperation, and genuine love and care within a community.

The lonely world you’re tasked to explore, and the way you’re given blips of encouragement within the solitude through the structures and “likes” you give and receive through the game’s asynchronous multiplayer system, offers some striking parallels for those of us particularly “online” people who feel simultaneous desperation for human contact and aversion to social pressures. I’ve heard the themes of this game described as “incoherent” due to the way it seems to view the internet both as a powerful tool to connect people and a means by which people become isolated and alienated, but are both of these statements not completely true to reality? The game simplifies some of its conclusions - Kojima seems particularly ignorant of America’s deep structural inequities and abuses that lead to a culture of isolation and alienation. And yet, the questions it asks are provocative enough that they compelled me to keep thinking about them far longer than the answers it offers.

Beyond the surprisingly rich thematic content, this game is mostly just a joy to play. Death Stranding builds kinetic drama out of the typically rote parts of games. Moving from point A to point B has become an increasingly tedious chore in the majority of AAA open world games, but this is a game built almost entirely out of moving from point A to point B, and it makes it thrilling. The simple act of walking down a hill while trying to balance a heavy load on your back and avoiding rocks and other obstacles fulfills the promise of the term ‘walking simulator’ in a far more interesting way than most games given that descriptor. The game consistently doles out new ways to navigate terrain, which peaked for me about two thirds of the way through the game when, after spending hours setting up a network of zip lines, a delivery offered me the opportunity to utilize the entire thing in a wildly satisfying journey from one end of the map to another. It was the gaming moment of the year.

1. Outer Wilds

The first time the sun exploded in my Outer Wilds playthrough, I was probably about to die anyway. I had fallen through a black hole, and had yet to figure out how to recover from that, so I was drifting listlessly through space with diminishing oxygen as the synths started to pick up and I watched the sun fall in on itself and then expand throughout the solar system as my vision went went. The moment gave me chills, not because I wasn’t already doomed anyway, but because I couldn’t help but think about my neighbors that I had left behind to explore space. I hadn’t known that mere minutes after I left the atmosphere the solar system would be obliterated, but I was at least able to watch as it happened. They probably had no idea what happened. Suddenly their lives and their planet and everything they had known were just...gone. And then I woke up, with the campfire burning in front of me, and everyone looking just as I had left it. And I became obsessed with figuring out how to stop that from happening again. 

What surprised me is that every time the sun exploded, it never failed to produce those chills I felt the first time. This game is masterful in its art, sound, and music design that manages to produce feelings so intense from an aesthetic so quaint. Tracking down fellow explorers by following the sound of their harmonica or acoustic guitar. Exploring space in a rickety vessel held together by wood and tape. Translating logs of conversations of an ancient alien race and finding the subject matter of discussion to be about small interpersonal drama as often as it is revelatory secrets of the universe. All of the potentially twee aspects of the game are balanced out by an innate sense of danger and terror that comes from exploring space and strange worlds alone. At times, the game dips into pure horror, making other aspects of the presentation all the more charming by comparison. And then there’s the clockwork machinations of the 22-minute loop you explore within, rewarding exploration and experimentation with reveals that make you feel like a genius for figuring out the puzzle at the same time that you’re stunned by the divulgence of a new piece of information.

The last few hours of the game contained a couple puzzles so obfuscated that I had to consult a guide, which admittedly lessened the impact of those reveals, but it all led to one of the most equally devastating and satisfying endings I’ve experienced in a video game recently. I really can’t say enough good things about this game. It’s not only my favorite game this year, but easily one of my favorite games of the decade, and really, of all-time, when it comes down to it.

#outer wilds #death stranding #eliza #anodyne 2 #control #judgment #resident evil 2 #fire emblem: three houses #Ape Out #Amid Evil #games #video games #GOTY

[theirrationalzone]

My Top Ten Games of 2020

Let’s just address the giant elephant in the room from the offset: 2020 has been one giant mess of a year. Every event, every major moment this year just felt like the worst case scenario every time.

For a lot of us though, there was one saving grace: video games.

2020 has been a damn fine year for video games. From the return of certain classic franchises to some amazing new entries and experiences. Gaming really managed to thrive in a year where other entertainment mediums such as films and television struggled.

Let’s dive in and take a look at some of the games that made this year a lot more bearable:

10: Watch Dogs Legion

I’ve had a soft spot for Ubisoft’s hack ‘em up franchise for quite a while. I didn’t think the original was as disappointing as it was made out to be and I thought the second one was an underrated gem. When Legion was first announced, I liked a lot of what the game was setting out to do but I wasn’t ready to pull the trigger on getting it. I decided to give the game a chance in the end and I’m glad I did.

Legion might suffer from the same pitfalls that have plagued other Ubisoft enterprises, but the recruitment mechanic is one of the coolest systems I have seen in any game ever. The fact that you can recruit any NPC that you see on the streets of London and use their unique talents to complete your objectives is just an awesome thing in and of itself. Its depiction of London is also incredibly fun to explore and cause mayhem in. While I found the writing to be pretty subpar, the game quite buggy and the whole PS5 upgrade fiasco a farce, I still found Legion to be a fun open world experience overall.

9: Resident Evil 3

Resident Evil has been on a real hot streak as of late, hasn’t it? Ever since Capcom made a promise to its fans that the Resident Evil series would go back to what made it so popular in the first place, the series has gone from strength to strength. Last year saw the release of the RE2 Remake which was absolutely excellent in that it kept the spirit of the original while also taking a few liberties of its own. It was only a matter of time before RE3 got the same treatment and well... it did.

I’m just going to spit this out. It’s not as good as the RE2 Remake. It didn’t need to be though. I still think this is a good game that provides a satisfying and fun survival horror experience. It carries over a lot of the elements that made the RE2 Remake such an excellent game and in certain areas (especially the writing) it makes a few improvements. Plus the game looks absolutely stunning thanks to the RE Engine. It is quite short. It is missing quite a bit of content from the original game. It definitely isn’t as replayable as the RE2 Remake. I still had a blast with it though overall. If this really is a blip for the Resident Evil series, then it must be in a really good place right now.

8: Tell Me Why

Dontnod Entertainment have fast become one of my favourite developers in the industry right now. When I first played Life is Strange back in 2015, it felt like a revelation. It weaved a fantastic story with characters you genuinely cared for and took you to a place you never wanted to leave. I’ve enjoyed all of their other ventures since then such as the underrated (if quite janky) Vampyr and Life is Strange 2.

Tell Me Why is another venture that fits the Dontnod MO: A grounded emotional story with slight supernatural elements, a degree of player choice and a setting that makes your jaw drop. The major difference here is the game’s attempt to portray a transgender character. That’s nothing new in and of itself. It’s more the fact that it attempts to accurately portray a transgender male character which is a bit of a rarity in all forms of media. Transgender portrayals (from what I’ve seen) tend to focus on male to female rather than female to male.

I’m in no position to comment on whether the portrayal is accurate or not, but I got the impression that Dontnod really went out of their way to get this right. Their FAQ explains that they worked with GLAAD and the voice actor to get it as right as they could. That alone deserves huge praise, but I also loved the Ronan Twins’ story as they dealt with their harsh past and the uncertain future. The game was a delight from beginning to end and it just looks absolutely gorgeous to boot. Dontnod have done it again.

7: Bugsnax

One of the early delights of the last generation was a little ditty known as Octodad: Dadliest Catch. It was a fun little physics based affair which cast you as a octopus masquerading as a human. The game had a terrific sense of humour and it was just bloody fun to play. Young Horses (the developer of the game) kinda went dark after that. They only really resurfaced to release two bonus levels for that game and then they just disappeared again. Now we know why that was the case...

Bugsnax retains some of the qualities that made Octodad such as a memorable game. A great sense of humour and a unique gameplay hook. You play as a reporter sent to the mysterious Snaktooth Island to interview an explorer called Elizabert Megafig who has discovered these unusual creatures known as Bugsnax. After crash landing onto the island, you discover that Elizabert and her significant other have gone missing. It’s up to you to find out what happened while also documenting and capturing Bugsnax for yourself. Capturing the Bugsnax is a big part of what makes this game such a delight to play. As you unlock more tools to play around with, you can come up with different strategies and methods to capture these weird snack based creatures. It’s pretty awesome. Throw in a lovable set of characters to interact with and a beautiful environment to explore, and you’ve got one of the most lovable games released this year.

6: Mafia: Definitive Edition

The last few years haven’t been too kind to the Mafia franchise in my eyes. I really wanted to like Mafia III when it came out back in 2016. It was a sequel I waited years for and it did have some good qualities such as an excellent story that dealt with some pretty heavy topics, solid gameplay mechanics and an amazing licensed soundtrack. Unfortunately the game had one of the most tedious and boring gameplay loops I think I’ve ever seen in an open world game. It just got so dull after the first couple of hours.

This year saw the announcement of the Mafia Trilogy which was to be a celebration of the entire franchise with a remake of the first game, a remaster of the second and a re-release of the third. Half of this was botched with the remaster of II being poorly put together and the re-release of III receiving a broken patch. Things were looking grim for the remake...

As you can see by it being in this list, we were proven wrong. Mafia: DE is a fantastic remake that pays good lip service to the original while also expanding on certain elements. The story which follows the rise and fall of cab driver turned wiseguy Tommy Angelo is more fleshed out with new sequences and character moments that weren’t in the original. Gameplay still retains the solid shooting and cover mechanics of Mafia III and the driving feels absolutely excellent especially when you put it in simulation mode. Lost Heaven is just gorgeous to behold as well with its bustling neighbourhoods and beautiful countryside. I hope this is the beginning of a redemption arc for Hangar 13 and the Mafia franchise. There is a lot of promise to build upon from here.

5: Deadly Premonition 2: A Blessing in Disguise

Anyone who knows me personally or has followed me on social media for a while knows that I’m a big fan of Deadly Premonition. The 2010 cult survival horror hit pretty much encapsulates why I love video games with its lovable hero, an eccentric cast of characters and surprisingly solid mechanics considering the budget it was made for. It was definitely more than the sum of its parts.

When I found out that a sequel was being made exclusively for the Nintendo Switch, my jaw hit the floor pretty hard. I thought any hopes for a sequel were dashed when SWERY left Access Games (the original dev), and yet here we are. A Blessing in Disguise is a brilliant sequel to the zany original. It captures everything that I loved about the original game to a T while also improving in certain aspects. The story is more ambitious this time with it being both prequel and sequel. A lot of the gameplay elements have been improved. The combat benefits from better aiming controls and an upgrade system for both York and his weapon. Getting from A to B is less wonky (and more fun) thanks to the addition of a skateboard rather than a car.

While I do still think the original is better due to the more creative side quests, the more challenging difficulty and the fact that it functions better from a technical perspective, I’m still a big fan of DP2 and it deserves your attention. Here’s hoping that it makes its way to other platforms in the future.

4: Ghost of Tsushima

This last generation has been good for Sony and its Worldwide Studios. In the last five years, they’ve managed to produce hit after hit after hit. A definite far cry from the first year of the PS4 where they produced some dire exclusives. Infamous Second Son was one of these. Sucker Punch’s first effort on the console was very pretty and a good technical showpiece for the console, but as a game, it was boring and dull. I couldn’t even muster the strength to finish it. The standalone expansion First Light was a huge improvement in my eyes. It cut out a lot of the fluff from Second Son. I knew then that Sucker Punch would eventually give us something amazing. They certainly did in the end...

Ghost of Tsushima is honestly one of the best exclusives that Sony has ever produced. Giving us a brutal tale in the vein of a Kurosawa flick where samurai Jin Sakai is forced to betray his code in order to drive out the Mongol force that has enslaved his homeland; we have a story that is genuinely gripping from beginning to end with an incredibly powerful final duel to boot. The combat is incredibly fun with a brilliant combat system that is easy to pick up but challenging to master. Duels especially show the combat system at its finest. Upgrading your abilities genuinely makes you feel incredibly powerful as you begin to decimate enemies left, right and center. Stealth is solid giving you plenty of tools at your disposal and certainly changes up the gameplay a fair bit. Did I mention that Tsushima Island is one of the most aesthetically pleasing locales in any game to date? Well I’m saying it now. It is one of the most beautiful locales in any game to date.

I’m very excited to see where this new IP goes in the future because this first entry is just incredible. A must buy if you own or plan on owning a PlayStation 4 or 5 in the near future.

3: Astro’s Playroom

Memorable pack-in exclusives are a bit of a rarity nowadays. The last one that sticks in my mind is Wii Sports, and that was a long time ago.

Astro’s Playroom serves as the pack-in title for the PlayStation 5 as it is pre-installed on all units. It’s also my favourite exclusive for the console so far. The main reason for this is that Astro’s Playroom evolves past being just a tech demo for the console and its fancy new controller. It actually is a fun little platformer in its own right. It offers something different with every level. In one level you can transform into a giant ball and attempt to navigate some pretty tight platforms, and in the next, you take control of a rocket ship and navigate through corridors while also avoiding bombs. There is great variety here and to be fair, it shows off the potential of the new DualSense controller fantastically.

Plus the game is just one giant love letter to the PlayStation brand and the games that made it what it is today. You’ll see references to obscure PlayStation paraphernalia such as the Multitap and UMD discs, and also games like Final Fantasy VII and Silent Hill. The final boss of the game in particular is one giant callback to something you might remember if you got a PlayStation 1 back in the day. I won’t say any more, but it made me yelp in joy when I saw it. If you plan on getting a PlayStation 5 in the future, make this the first game you play. You won’t regret it.

2: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2

Activision have been on a roll in the last few years with the revitalisation of some of their classic franchises. Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon for example have enjoyed newfound success thanks to the excellent N Sane Trilogy and Reignited Trilogy. When it was revealed earlier this year that Vicarious Visions and Beenox would be resurrecting the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater franchise with a remake of Pro Skater 1 and 2, my heart skipped a good few beats.

The Pro Skater franchise means a lot to me personally as I have very fond memories of putting hours into 1 and 2 when I was a kid. Going through the Career mode with each skater, learning the gaps and getting used to doing manuals when they were introduced in 2, it’s all ingrained into me. I’m happy to say that this is probably the best remake I have ever played. It perfectly captures what made those first two entries so special. Each level is beautifully recreated with a ton of new details that serve to enhance these levels. The soundtrack includes all of your old favourites like Goldfinger’s Superman and Rage Against the Machine’s Guerilla Radio along with some fantastic new tracks like Less Than Jake’s Bomb Drop.

The gameplay definitely taps more into Pro Skater 3 and 4 territory with Reverts and Flatland tricks included. These tricks don’t feel out of place and the game does give you the option to play it legacy style if you want. It feels magnificent overall though. The physics are pitch perfect. Creating lines and large combos is still as addicting and rewarding as ever. Online leaderboards certainly tempt you to reach for the stars if you’ve got the ability. Career mode isn’t particularly long, but the pretty robust Create-a-Park editor and solid multiplayer suite should keep you coming back for more. I’ve already put dozens of hours into this and I have no intention of stopping anytime soon.

If my number 1 entry on this list didn’t exist, this would be my Game of the Year. As it stands though, this is a very close second.

1: Doom Eternal

How do you follow up one of the best first person shooters in recent memory? Basically turn everything up to eleven and then some. Doom (2016) was such an eye opener when it launched. It gave everything we could have ever wanted from a new Doom game: a whole planet full of demons to kill and some big guns to help them back to where they belong. It was awesome and an easy choice for my GOTY back in 2016.

I anticipated Doom Eternal with bated breath. The excitement was building but the nerves were building with it. How could it live up to the previous one? What if it makes the same mistakes as Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus? Thankfully my worries were unfounded as soon as I loaded up the game and was thrown straight into the fold with a Combat Shotgun and some entry level demons to destroy with it.

Doom Eternal is the FPS genre at its absolute finest. The levels are much bigger with more secrets to find and loads of demons to kill. Said demons are much more plentiful in their ranks and they move faster too. Fortunately enough, you have a huge arsenal to deal death to these demonic denizens from the depths of Hell such as the starter Combat Shotgun, the Plasma Rifle, the Ballista and even a giant sword known as the Crucible. Enemies now have weak points to exploit as well which can turn the tide of battle and it rewards accuracy. Before you know it, you’ll be entangled in a ballet of bullets, beams, blood and guts (HUGE guts mind you.) This game makes you feel like a hero at the end of every fight. It’s so satisfying.

Toss in a soundtrack that will get your blood pumping and your goosebumps raising along with environments that will make your TV or monitor look like a window to a scorched earth, and you have my Game of the Year for 2020. Well deserved for sure. I really need to get on that DLC.

To those of you who actually took the time to read all that, you have my heartfelt thanks. I really appreciate you reading this and I hope my choices made sense.

To those of you who just glanced at each entry and skimmed through the text, I don’t blame you for doing that. I still appreciate you taking a look anyway.

All that’s left for me to say is that I hope each and every one of you has a safe holiday season and I hope that the New Year will be better for all of us.

I’ll see you all in 2021. Stay safe and well, folks.

#goty 2020 #ps5 #ps4 #switch

[thenovelartist]

Falling for the Dork, set 6

<<Previous set  Next set>>

18.      In the Rain

The rainy season had begun once again, meaning that Marinette was unprepared for the first big downpour of the season. And this time, so was Adrien.

“Okay,” he said, looking at the downpour. “I have an extra hoodie in my locker. I’ll grab that for you, and then we make a mad dash to your house.”

“There’s no better option, is there?”

“Not really.”

“Okay.”

Together, they walked to Adrien’s locker, where he pulled out a black hoodie with a bright, neon green paw on it. He scrunched the fabric up in his hands so he could easily pull it over her head. She slid her arms in the overlong sleeves, and Adrien flipped the hood up over her head before giving the pigtails that stuck out of it an affectionate tug.

She blushed bright red.

They then made their way to the front of the school again, only to pause as they stared out at the rain.

“You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

“One, two, three!”

They took off like a shot, running as fast as they could and, blessedly, not getting stopped at the crosswalk.

By the time they made to the safety of Marinette’s house, the hoodies were drenched and their pants were soaked as well. But they were laughing as they stepped into the entryway of Marinette’s house.

They took off their soggy sneakers, then got out of the hoodies that were almost wet enough to be wrung out. Their shirts were mostly fine, but their pants were another story.

“I think I still have those pants I designed for you,” Marinette said. “I’ll grab those for you, and we can toss our clothes in the dryer.”

“Sounds good to me.”

They trekked up the stairs to Marinette’s room, where she did find the pants from a previous design competition that would fit Adrien. She sent him into the bathroom to change while she quickly changed in her room, putting on a pair of fuzzy pajama bottoms and a fully dry shirt.

Adrien knocked on the door. “You changed?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she said, opening the door

To reveal a shirtless Adrien.

“Seems like my shirt got wet, too,” he said with a shy grin. “Could you throw it in the dryer, too?”

Marinette was trying not to stare at his bare chest. “Um, yeah, totally.”

She quickly took his clothes, then made her escape from the stupidly handsome shirtless boy she had a crush on.

Though she wasn’t a fan of drying everything together, the clothes could stand it this once. After taking a breath to steady herself, she marched back up the stairs. It’s okay. There’s nothing special about seeing Adrien shirtless. It’s all fine.

Except it wasn’t because all the lies she told herself went straight out the window at the sight of shirtless Adrien in her room.

She dug through her clothes, tossing an oversized shirt at him. “Put this on, dork,” she said.

“What? You don’t like all this?” he teased, shooting her an exaggerated flirty smile while he flexed his arms.

Marinette had to swallow as she watched the muscles in his back and arms tighten.

Slowly, Adrien’s expression faded as he turned towards her, his brows knit together in confusion.

“You look good.” The words came tumbling out of Marinette’s mouth before she could even think to stop them.

Outside, lightning flashed, and thunder rolled shortly after. Marinette felt herself blush bright red as Adrien looked away, rubbing the back of his neck.

“I’m gonna go get snacks,” she said. “And then some Ultimate Mecha Strike three?”

He nodded, but still didn’t look at her. “That sounds good.”

“Okay.” It took everything Marinette had to not run from the room. And then once she was out of the room, not to scream.

 19.      Akumatized

They were in their last year of schooling, meaning that it was time to start applying to universities. Adrien had a handful he applied to and would be happy with any of them. But for Marinette, with her love of fashion, wanted a spot in the top fashion school of Paris. And considering she wanted to go to the best fashion school in Paris, there would be a lot of competition.

“And what if I don’t make the cut and then I’ll never be able to live out my dreams as a fashion designer.”

Which meant Marinette was beside herself with nerves and making up ridiculously dismal conclusions.

“You won’t have to worry about that,” Adrien said, a plan hatching in his mind, “because you see, I’ll be your secret weapon.”

Marinette took that the complete wrong way and looked horrified. “No! I do not want to use your connections—”

“No no no,” he dismissed. “Not in that way. You see, I myself have a foolproof plan for getting you in.”

She paused, looking a little lost. “And just what would that be?”

“You see, Marinette. I don’t know how to tell you this, but I’m actually have secret superpowers.”

The very corner of Marinette’s mouth twitched upwards. “Superpowers?”

He nodded, trying and failing to keep the smile off his face. “I have an army of butterflies that I can use to transform people into my personal minons.”

Her smile was growing. “Oh really?”

“Yes,” he said. “I send them out into the world and when they land on people’s shoulders, they become my minions. If you don’t get in, I’ll be angry for you, meaning all the minions I create will be evil minions.”

Marinette was biting her lip at this point, desperately trying not to laugh.

“With my army of minions, I will march down to the admissions office and tell them they better accept you or I will use my evil army to destroy the entire school meaning that—guess what?—it won’t be the most prestigious fashion university in Paris anymore.”

Now, her face was in her hands, her shoulders shaking. He could hear her quiet giggles, and he felt like a winner.

“Then, I will go to the new most prestigious fashion university in Paris and I will march my army to their admission office and say they better accept you and by that point, they will, because my evil powers will have been exposed for the world to see and no one will turn me down. That will be my evil plan to get you into that university.”

Gradually, Marinette’s laughter subsided to the point she dropped her hands from her face and looked at him with a beaming smile and cheeks pink from laughter. “You. Are such a dork.”

He grinned. “Feel better?”

“Much,” she said, stepping close to wrap his arms around his torso in a hug. “Thank you, Adrien.”

He couldn’t resist cocooning her in his arms. “You’re welcome.”

 20.      Hamster

There was a carnival in town, meaning rides and games and such. Marinette and Adrien couldn’t help but want to check it out. Originally, they were a group of four, but Nino and Alya split soon after their arrival, leaving Marinette and Adrien to their own devices.

Which they really didn’t mind.

After going on a few rides and getting some snacks, they found themselves wandering around the games. Adrien couldn’t help but notice how her eye caught on a jumbo plush hamster. He knew she wanted a live one. Frankly, he did, too. Preferably with her.

“Come on,” he said, leading her over to the game. “Let’s try for it.”

It was a game of “knockout.” They each got 5 balls and had to knockout as many clowns as they could. Marinette managed three. Adrien got all five.

“See? You’re my lucky charm,” Adrien said with a grin.

She giggled. “You’re such a dork.”

They each got to pick out a prize. Marinette pointed to the black cat while Adrien grabbed the jumbo stuffed hamster. “For you, my lady,” he said, presenting it to her with a smile.

She beamed, her cheeks coloring red. “And for you,” she said, handing over the cat.

“You should keep it,” he said, “and think of this kitty cat every time you see it.”

“That’s what the hamster is for,” she said, squeezing it tight. “Take this one, because I want you to remember me every time you see it.”

How could he resist that?

He named it Plagg, and it took up a permanent residence on his bed because, true to her intentions, it did remind him of her every time he saw it.

 21.      Nightmare

School was over. They had graduated, and university was right around the corner. Meaning that they were all going off to different universities and starting the beginning of their adult lives.

Even though he’d known it for months, the realization slammed full force into Adrien right after graduation as he was saying good-bye to all his school friends. But it wasn’t until midnight that night that he realized that ‘friends’ meant Marinette, too.

And in his panic in the night, his heart racing and mind whirring, he thought that it was nothing short of a living nightmare.

First thing in the morning, Adrien headed over to Marinette’s house. It was early, and he knew Marinette wasn’t exactly a morning person, bus to his surprised, she answered, immediately turning excited at the sight of him. “Adrien! What are you doing here? I thought you were busy today.”

“I was,” he said. “But I’m kinda ditching my fencing class today because I really want to talk to you.”

Her expression fell, turning serious. She let him inside, and they quickly headed up the stairs to her room.

“Yeah, what’s going on?” she asked, sitting down on her chair.

Adrien collapsed on her chaise. “Remember how… yesterday, we were saying good-bye to everyone? Realizing we were all going our own ways?”

She nodded.

“I just…” He sighed, leaning his elbows on his knees. “Out of all our classmates, I’m most terrified saying good-bye to you.”

She frowned, her brow knitting together in confusion. “Adrien, you don’t have to say good-bye to me. We’re staying close, remember? I’ll always be around.”

“But what if you aren’t?” he challenged. “What if we drift apart? What if you’re busy with your school and I’m busy with mine and we don’t stay in contact and—”

“Hey, hey.” Marinette had stood from his seat to grab hold of his cheeks. She gave him a soft smile that calmed his racing heart. “That’s not gonna happen. Even if we have to put each other specifically into our schedules, we’ll find time to stay together.”

He sighed. “I don’t think… you fully understand, Marinette.” He reached up to grab her wrists. “That… That I’m worried I’ll lose you.”

“You won’t lose me,” she quietly replied, her head slowly getting closer to his.

“No,” he said. “Not that kind of lose.”

“Then what kind of lose are you talking about.”

“The kind where you live your life and I’m not there every step of the way.”

A long silence slipped between them.

“Marinette,” he said, moving his hands from her wrists to cradle her cheeks. “I’m sorry I never told you this sooner, but… it took me a while to realize that losing you in that way really isn’t okay with me. I really, really like you. And… I want nothing more than for you to be mine.”

Her breathing was coming in short, shallow bursts, and her cheeks were bright pink. Just as Adrien grew worried he’d overstepped his bounds, her eyes grew glassy and a smile stretched across her cheeks. “You have feelings for me?” she whispered as if not believing it.

He nodded. “For a while now,” he admitted.

If it was possible, her smile grew larger. “You have feelings for me.”

“Yeah,” he said, his own smile growing. “I do. And… And I can only hope that you have feelings for me.”

She sniffed. “You’re such an idiot.”

The words caught him off guard.

“Yeah,” she said. “Because… I’ve been in love with you for years.”

Those words hit him like a bat to the chest, knocking the air out of him and leaving him stunned. “Wh… really?”

Her smile widened, and with it came a tear.

He was quick to wipe it away with his thumb. “Really?” he asked, not sure he believed it. “You like me?”

Marinette nodded.

And that was all the confirmation he needed to yank her down against him, cocooning her up into his arms and pressing his face into her hair. “You like me.”

“I do,” she said shifting in his lap. “Since when did you like me?”

“I’d say it probably started when Juleka’s older brother came to town.”

“Luka?”

“And I hated how you were spending time with him.”

Slowly, Marinette pushed away from him so she could look him in the eyes. “Kitty?” she said, smile on her face. “Were you jealous?”

He growled, glancing away from her.

She giggled, her hands finding his cheeks again to pull his attention back to her. “You liked me since then?”

“That was the beginning of it, yeah,” he confessed. “Ever since then, seeing you with other guys… I just… and the thought of losing you…”

She settled back against his chest, her arms looping around his torso and holding him tight. “I don’t want to lose you, either.”

He clung to her like a lifeline. “Marinette,” he began. “I really… I love you, and I don’t want to let you go. I don’t want to lose you. I want to pursue more with you. Will… will you be my girlfriend?”

Her arms tightened. “Adrien,” she said. “Nothing in the world would make me happier.”

“And we can’t let college pull us apart,” he insisted, heart fluttering nervously at the thought.

She hummed. “The love of my life just confessed his love for me. If you think I’m not going to fight tooth-and-nail for you, then you don’t know me very well.”

#miraculous ladybug #fanfiction #adrienette april 2019 #adrienette #marinette dupain cheng #adrien agreste #the confession you've all been waiting for #fluff #romance

[slamsams-blog]

Spectre - #24WeeksofBond

This week’s film in our 24 weeks of Bond marathon is the latest film in the franchise, 2015′s Spectre.  This would be, (or so he thought at the time), Craig’s final Bond outing...hence why it’s been SO INCREDIBLY LONG for a new Bond movie to come out.  Craig had other things he wanted to do before he could be convinced to suit up as Bond one more time.  But man oh man, am I over these 3, 4, or 5 year gaps in between Bond films.  Daniel Craig has held the role of Bond longer than any other actor - even longer than Roger Moore!  That’s is pretty crazy to think about.  Hopefully the next actor to play Bond isn’t so wishy-washy and we get regular installments at a better pace.  Here’s hoping...ANYWAYS

Spectre is a beautifully cinematic, high speed, throwback to the classics that all too often gets the “Tomorrow Never Dies” treatment.  This film was Sam Mendes’ second Bond film in a row, the first one being “Skyfall” which has been regarded as one of the best Bond films not just of the modern era, but of all time.  So when Spectre came out with the same director at the helm, everyone was expecting it to be the greatest film in all of cinema history.  Unfortunately, it just didn’t quite live up to the hype and therefor this movie gets unfairly ragged on.

Not just ragged on...but absolutely SHIT ON.  I’m not kidding.  I’ve seen a lot of “Bond ranking” posts and YouTube videos where this film is in the bottom 5, and one time I even saw it at the bottom.  THE BOTTOM.  Like, worse than “Die Another Day”.  If you actually think that Spectre is a worse movie than Die Another Day, then you either have no clue what you are talking about, have poor taste in action movies, or are just trying to be controversial to be controversial.  Spectre is by no means the best Bond movie ever, it has its plot holes for sure...but it is CERTAINLY not the worst, and y’all need to start showing this film some damn respect.  Pardon my “R” rated language, YouTubers got me hot!

All that being said, I REALLY enjoy this film.  Right from the beginning we have an incredibly visually stunning pre-title sequence at a Day of the Dead parade in Mexico where we see Bond mysteriously tracking a stooge.  With heart pounding music, incredible costumes, and a beautifully shot scene of Craig tight-roping the roofs of the buildings that causes my anxiety to explode...this is such a stimulating experience.  We later find out that Bond was going rogue and M is pissed and suspends him indefinitely.  But Bond is just following a trail that Judi Dench left for him in a video she recorded before she died.  Why didn’t she tell Bond about this before she died? Whatever...it’s just a movie. 

This leads Bond to uncovering an organization called “Spectre”. You can find the acronym for it in my “From Russia With Love” post!  Bond infiltrates a secret meeting to where he finds out the man at the head table is someone from his past.  The man, who eventually turns out to be Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz) was once a boy who’s father had taken Bond in when his parents died, making ole Franz jealous, and eventually kills his father and fakes his own death...after he was declared dead he adopted a new name - Ernst Stavro Blofeld.  Odd choice, but here we are.  We have a Blofeld again!

Waltz was an exciting pick for the part, but he doesn’t blow me away in the role.  There is always a subtle creepiness to him, but I think he could’ve done more with it.  There was talk of him being replaced as Blofeld in the next Bond movie, but there was enough fan outrage where they squashed that...so I guess he’s doing something right.

One fun aspect of this film is that there is a Bond villain, that Bond never deals with.  Max Denbigh (Andrew Scott) or “C” as Bond dubs him, not really sure why, is a surveillance officer working for MI6, but secretly for Spectre.  Not so secret though, if anyone has seen “Sherlock”, the mere sight of Andrew Scott makes you think he has to be a villain.  He strolls in and politics his way into dumping the double 0 program in favor of ultra cyber security and drones.  If successful, Spectre would have full control over everything.  This guy is all M’s problem, and he deals with him from concept to completion.  Atta boy M! I just always liked how M was on his own with this storyline. 

Another aspect about this film is Bond is falling in love with Madeline Swann (Lea Seydoux), the daughter of Mr. White who has been a thorn in Bond’s side working for Spectre.  Mr. White has seen the light and now Spectre has poisoned him, giving Mr. White reason to give Bond all the info he needs and to protect his daughter.  To me this relationship is a bit rushed and forced.  Bond and Vesper in Casino Royale was done properly, but here, Swann seems to fall in love rather out of the blue. And we’re supposed to believe he is leaving MI6 for her.

We’re also treated to a badass train car fight!  I love me a good train car fight...sadly I don’t think there are any more in the series.  Bond comes face to face with the silent, giant, dagger thumbnail mammoth of a man named Mr.Hinx (Batista).  I’m a little biased here because I’ve been a lifelong Pro-Wrestling fan.  But I gotta say, Batista has acting chops.  This train car fight scene is BRUTAL, and is the scene I think about when I think about this movie.

In conclusion, Spectre is a beautifully shot film with an extra dash of humor, and an excessive amount of call backs to past Bond films.  The voodoo-esque nature in the opening (Live and Let Die), the clinic where Bond finds Madeline Swann (On Her Majesties Secret Service), the crator where Blofeld resides (You Only Live Twice), the ejector seat! (Goldfinger).  While it’s fun to see Spectre tip it’s hat to the past, as a die hard Bond fan, you kind of go “ok, I get it”.  And of course, they kept dropping hints in the movie that Craig was leaving the franchise which stressed me out - especially at the end.  I LOVE Daniel Craig as Bond and I, for one, was not ready to let him go just yet. Also, because of the number.  What I mean by that is the number of films each actor has done has been different.  After “No Time To Die” this will be the movie tally:

Lazenby: 1

Dalton: 2

Brosnan: 4

Craig: 5

Connery: 6

Moore: 7

The next actor to play Bond, can ONLY do 3 movies.  If he doesn’t, it just might bother me for the rest of my life.  Unless he goes for 8?  Well, my obsessive compulsive disorder aside, Spectre is not the perfect Bond film...but it deserves respect for the cinematography, characters, and action scenes.  We should all be thankful Sam Mendes came into the world of Bond, and threw a splash of paint on the franchise.

That’s it for this week!  Hope you enjoyed it!

Reviews from Friends:

My Mom:

I was mesmerized by this film. I think the theme song and opening artwork were stunning. Daniel craig was an older, darker version of Bond. I was pretty thrilled to see him with a mature love interest for once. Someone near his own age. I was hoping she would go on through the story but it was not to be. I thought it was very well done. Anxious to see more of this mysterious dark Bond.

Jake Benrud

Until reading your blog, I didn’t realize this wasn’t a well received Bond! I actually really enjoyed this movie. I think this is the third time watching it for me, and I really appreciate the portrayal of Bond by Craig. I thought Waltz did a great job with Blofeld. The drilling scene is always a bit unnerving, but I’d expect nothing less from a sadistic Bond villain. I did think that for all the intelligence that Blofeld and the SPECTRE organization should have that it was pretty poor planning to be able to destroy their entire facility with one shot to the propane regulator. I mean if you can arrange for an elaborate Bond haunted house at MI6 ending with Blofeld hiding behind bullet proof glass, maybe take the time to protect the propane tank at your facility. Chances are if you’re an evil genius looking for world domination, you’re probably going to have Bond at your door step shooting up the place. I digress. Despite this, I thought the story moved along well and it’s a solid installment of the series.

24 Weeks of Bond will return next Monday with -

Thunderball  

#24WeeksofBond

[nightcoremoon]

ok so let's talk twilight. girl meets vampire. girl falls in love with vampire. vampire falls in love with girl. girl and vampire start dating. evil vampire wants to eat girl. vampire kills evil vampire.

new moon. vampire leaves girl. girl gets depressed. girl rebounds with werewolf. werewolf wants to fuck girl. werewolf realizes he's the rebound. werewolf leaves girl. girl seemingly attempts suicide. vampire learns about this and attempts suicide. girl goes to tell him she's not dead. vampire king gives a warning.

eclipse. vampire and girl are back together. evil vampire girlfriend wants revenge. evil vampire girlfriend makes evil vampire army. vampires and werewolves kill evil vampire and army. vampire king gives another warning. vampire marries girl.

breaking dawn. vampire and girl get married. and fuck. girl gets pregnant. baby will kill girl. but abortion is ~evil~. girl dies and gets turned into vampire. werewolf wants to fuck the baby vampire. vampire king shows up to kill the baby. it was a big misunderstanding lol. happily ever after except for the people who died.

that's the gist of things for anyone who doesn't remember.

ok so there's two groups of people. team edward, people who are satisfied with the canon. team jacob, people who say "fuck that, girl should be with werewolf instead". and many people on team jacob proceed to say that team edward all condone pedophilia and stalking and other terrible things. fandom wars happened. and in the end, most people moved on.

...

but not me.

now, I wasn't an obsessed super fan. I thought the first book was boring as shit until the second half. it took me a month to read the first half and three days to read the second half. I read the entire second in literally one day. the entire third in like 3 days. and the entire fourth in like 5. I watched all the movies in theaters. but none of this was by choice. my mom and my several sisters basically made me, but it was okay I guess. personally my fandom progression started with final fantasy 12. it moved into eragon, death note, jak and daxter, avatar the last airbender, invader zim, tales of symphonia, a dash of harry potter, sly cooper, my little pony friendship is magic, dead space, red vs blue, twokinds, resident evil, etc. I'm not in the twilight fandom by choice, but I know all the lore and trivia so fuck it. I might as well be.

I'm team edward.

I know what you're thinking. "but he's 100 years old trying to fuck a teenager! he watched her sleep! he almost killed her drinking her blood! he made her suicidal and depressed! he was super jealous and possessive whenever jacob was around! he broke her bones when they had sex! he impregated her with a monster baby that killed her! HE IS TEH EVILEST EVAR!!1"

let's take this one piece at a time.

1- he didn't try to fuck her. she tried to fuck him. but he said not until she's a full grown adult capable of making her own decisions, and not until marriage ~because premarital sex is wrong~

2- yeah watching her sleep was a little creepy but we can attribute that to stephenie meyer thought it was romantic because she's a dumb white mormon cultist

3- he is a VAMPIRE, and not by choice. and it was either suck the poison out of bella or let her become a vampire. which he didn't want to happen because ~being a vampire sucks 🥁~ so yeah he saved her life. and he managed to not drain her dry and kill her even though her blood is so goddamn delicious because she's a fucking mary sue

4- he didn't make her suicidal and depressed by leaving the country so she didn't get in any life threatening situations like being around jasper who has the self control of a fat kid in a twinkie factory. bella just took the breakup really really badly, and if someone reacts badly to a breakup, it's on THEM, not the other person. saying any differently is, what's the word, toxic and clingy. her emotional instability for plot is just indicative of the author's inherent misogyny (which makes sense, as dumbass mormon cultists are rife with the stuff)

5- he was not jealous and possessive. JACOB was the one who was toxic, since "that cold one will TAKE MY BELLA AWAY FROM ME". jacob wanted bella for himself because he had a crush on her since they were kids, and it was a super unhealthy obsession. edward could read his thoughts and was pissed; consider his backstory in hearing potential rapists' thoughts and killing them. but edward couldn't kill jacob because he was bella's friend. nothing more, though, and jacob fumed in his nice guy fedora

6- again, edward is a VAMPIRE, and a horny bastard at that, because he is a gentleman and therefore probably was a virgin too. he even told bella countless times that it would happen but bella thought it was #WORTH to get some of that hot vampire dick. I guess she's into some super kinky shit. no wonder 50 shades of grey made sense as a twilight fanfiction. anyway, bella seems to have fully consented, otherwise she's the world's most unreliable narrator.

7- the monster baby plot arc was propaganda against female bodily autonomy because "teh babby haz a SOUL and abortion is MURDER even tho she'll LITERALLY DIE otherwise but hey backwoods redneck mormon values are more important than the lives of women, right? anyway, ironically enough, he respected her bodily autonomy by not fixing the mistake he didn't think could happen (uterus vampires can't get pregnant but dick vampires can get other people pregnant? NANI, THE FUCK???) because bella didn't consent to him killing the fetus that was literally breaking her bones from inside since ~abortion is wrooOOoong~

and now, counterpoint.

...and counter-counterpoint.

"edward groomed bella" edward's main focus when she was 16 was to not kill her and drink the delicious cherry fanta, and his main focus at 17 was to make sure she didn't die and that nobody else killed her and drank her delicious cherry fanta, and only when she was a full ass adult was he like "alright fine you wanna marry me sooooo bad here's ur fuckin diamond ring". yeah they made out but like, consider that a FUCKING MORMON WROTE THIS BOOK. one can't fault a character for the dumbassery of the author. that's why in this house we stan james potter. and besides, a few years ago whilst playing truth or dare I at 21 was dared to kiss a 17 year old and I did- granted I didn't know he was 17 at the time but that doesn't even matter because granted edward was a lot older than 21, but granted that doesn't even matter anyways because you know how many teenage girls would make out with oscar wilde, keanu reeves, chris evans, or danny devito jason momoa if they had the chance? I know I would have. it isn't necessarily sexual unless you want it to be. besides, the argument could be made that brain development stops when you become a vampire, considering their body stops developing too. technically edward had the brain and body of a 17 year old, he was just 17 for a long time. so any way you slice it, there are acceptable explanations justifying this in the magic fantasy land of what-ifs and JUST BAD WRITING.

we good?

now let's tackle jacob.

he demanded she "choose" him over edward. he was just as childish and petty as mike. oh, poor mike. he was just too dumb. SWM be like. anyway, he literally abandoned her, his friend, because she wouldn't fuck him, when she needed her best friend the most. because that's who jacob was to her. he was her best friend. she kinda ignored him because edward is smexy and it overpowered her tiny teenage girl brain, or at least that's the author's excuse (yay for internalized misogyny). when they were in the mountains and he was keeping her from dying of hypothermia edward literally had to ask him to stop thinking about fucking her. while she was unconscious. which is kinda rapey. and then to top it all off, he wanted to fuck her baby daughter. so jacob is literally every single thing people called edward. he is jealous, possessive, creepy, obsessed with bella, and a whole bunch of other stereotypes associated with brown skinned man wanting to fuck white skinned women.

...

...

...

oh dear god.

wow I can't believe that the white woman who took an existing native american tribe and rewrote their culture to fit her vampire love story for white girls to have a sexy ~exotic~ savage feral werewolf boy in the love triangle turned out to be a racist all along.

so ideally, jacob would be the ideal partner for bella. lore-wise as well. bella and jacob grow old together in their plain regular normal human lives (and hopefully bella's face doesn't get clawed off like sam and leah BIG OOF FOR THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE), edward and tanya get married like they were supposed to do all along and gallivant off and do vampire things, all that jazz. edward isn't creepy and weird, bella isn't a magic mary sue with a magic fucking jean grey mind shield, jacob isnt an asshole.

but after reading the books and the evidence provided, I cannot in good conscience be team jacob over team edward.

thank you for your time.

fuck stephenie meyer.

and fuck all the dudebros who dog on girls for liking twilight anyways, as if dudebros don't watch and consume shitty media all the time.

[numberonerandomblogger]

The Gamecube review

So, it has been 18 years since the Gamecube was released and now, with my newfound free time, I can finally review what I’ve experienced from its gaming library. First, I’d like to say that this review is only my opinion, although it might be a bit controversial since I have my own issues with it. Second, I’ll divide the games in some categories for this review.

Platformers

Gamecube had an abundance of platformers, with most of them being in 3D. It’s a bit like the N64 era, but with even less 2.5 D platformers (aside from Megaman, Viewtiful Joe, or Alien Hominid). I ended up liking most 2.5 D platformers on the console and Donkey Kong:Jungle Beat remains an amazing game, despite being very easy. Due to this oversaturation, most of them tried very hard to stand out by mixing up gameplay mechanics with something “cool” (guns, cars, etc.) to appeal to kids and I ended up not liking those too much, such as Ty, Shadow The Hedgehog, Vexx, etc. Meanwhile, the other games that stayed true to themselves became classics always considered by fans, such as Billy Hatcher & The Giant Egg, Pac-Man World 2, Super Mario Sunshine even though I don’t like that game at all, etc. While I wasn’t really a fan of the direction platformers were taking during that era, which heavily affected their quality, there are still a few diamonds in the rough.

Adventure/Role-Playing Games

The Gamecube had plenty of adventure games and, despite open-world games becoming more and more of a thing, the Gamecube had very few open-world games. Only The Incredible Hulk:Total Destruction, True Crime, or even GUN were open-world on the consoles. So, more traditional adventure games were put on the console. I really loved The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker for what it was, despite a few problems it had. Starfox Adventures was also decent, but far from great. The Legend Of Zelda:Twilight Princess tried too hard to please its “hardcore gamerz” fanbase and to look cool, so I still found the experience slightly dissapointing. At least some gameplay mechanics. The Resident Evil games were also the only source of adventure-horror games on the console aside from Eternal Darkness, which I think is a really great horror game with lots of interesting ideas. Role-Playing games on the console were also fairly scarce, especially compared to the Playstation 2. They were fine, though. Paper Mario:The Thousand-Year Door was pretty good, although a bit overrated due to some characters’ halted development and some gameplay mechanics I am not a fan of. The Baten Kaitos games look like they could have been on PS2 in terms of quality, and are really good games. I thought the Pokémon games on the Gamecube (XD, Colosseum) were really nothing special both in terms of story and gameplay compared to other RPGs despite trying to appeal to an older audience. Tales Of Symphonia was great and could compete with PS2 RPGs. So yeah, I liked the Aventure games/RPGs of the Gamecube, but most weren’t that extraordinary.

Shooters

As far as shooters go, there is a big variety of them. Even including a few 2D shoot-em-ups, although only Ikaruga is really fondly remembered. The vast amount of First-Person Shooters on the console wasn’t really that surprising and rarely did any of them try to stand out. Two titles that stood out to me were Metroid Prime 1 and 2. Rather than just focusing on killing the bad guys, there was a vast amount of effort put into exploration and, while the sight of a 3D Metroid game doesn’t instantly make me happy, that’s something I can honestly get behind. I’m glad Retro Studios took their time to create a deeper universe for Metroid. They were a few other shooters, such as Metal Arms:Glitch in the System, but I don’t think that many of them stood out on the Gamecube aside from Killer 7 and P.N. 03, but that game isn’t the best due to its unusual controls. Star Fox: Assault might not have been the best game in the series, but it was still somewhat alright to play and kept the arcade-like spirit of the franchise. Oh, and there’s also Geist, a Nintendo-made First-Person Shooter. Too bad it had a great idea that was better executed elsewhere.

Fighting games

Unlike the N64, the Gamecube got quite a few good fighting games. Sure, most of them are licensed games, but most of them were really fun. Even better is that Mortal Kombat appeared on the console in 2004. Super Smash Bros. Melee might be rushed, but it still works really well. Custom Robo can also be considered a fighting game, but it has an interesting story mode that’s somewhat darker compared to the happy-go-lucky Nintendo 64 games and can feel like an RPG due to its structure. The 90’s atmosphere is what sold me to this game. As for the licensed titles, anime games based on Naruto or Zatch Bell were fine, but they also weren’t the best fighting games in existence due to a copious amount of problems. This era saw the birth of a bunch of Power Stone clones for some reason (One Piece:Grand Battle, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, etc.), which was a good thing, in my opinion. The only bad thing about it is that Capcom still won’t make Power Stone 3 despite their formula being so successful other companies ripped them off.

Other

Despite the Gamecube not having a realistic car simulator, it had a good amount of realistic-looking racing games. Too bad I honestly do not care about any of them. F-Zero GX is a fun but somewhat frustrating futuristic racing game. Just be prepared for the mind-crushing difficulty and you’ll have a good time. Mario Kart:Double Dash!! Has some great ideas that kept me hooked for a while, but I’d rather play Mario Kart 8. Kirby Air Ride is probably my favorite racing game on the system: it uses a single button and the joystick to deliver a rather unique experience. I would definitely recommend it. Animal Crossing, on the other hand, is either something you love or just don’t care. I personally think the Animal Crossing novelty wears off after a few weeks, but I still somewhat “like” it. My favorite game on the console has to be Chibi-Robo: a cleaning/simulation/platforming game where you control a small robot that has to clean the Sanderson’s house. It’s weird, charming, and has a unique story that surprisingly ends up being very dark. Luigi’s Mansion was also somewhat dark, yet ended up really being charming and interesting thanks to its nice atmosphere and neat gameplay. As for rhythm games, we only got a few of them, including Dance Dance Revolution:Mario Mix, which only has some neat remixes. Nothing else about it is really worth the price. Speaking of Mario spin-offs, I really didn’t like some of the ones on the Gamecube. Super Mario Strikers has a single unlockable team, Mario Superstar baseball’s mechanics rarely work and the AI might take advantage of that during the single-player mode, Mario Power Tennis’s gimmicks didn’t entertain me enough to prefer the game over the N64 one, Mario Party 4’s mushroom mechanics were somewhat predictable, and Mario Party 7’s mic-enhanced minigames and overall board designs just bored me. That was the time when I stopped caring about Mario spin-offs.

Overall, I liked the Gamecube’s gaming library, although I didn’t like many aspects of it and had a much better time with the PS2 or even the Dreamcast. I think the Gamecube MIGHT be a bit overrated due to a good amount mainstream gamers growing up with it using their pink nostalgia glasses in order to complain that THEIR era was better than the current era, just like a good amount of previous Nintendo fans complaining on forums about how THEIR era was better back in 2001-2006. It’s an eternal cycle.

#billy hatcher #shadow the hedgehog #gamecube #eternal darkness #chibi-robo #wind waker #kirby air ride #mario #metroid prime #star fox #nintendo

[thiscrimsonsoul]

RP Wish List!

{ out of paprikash }  Okay, people... My dash is full of talented writers tonight and I'm just sitting here wanting all the AUs, all the crossovers, and all the canon re-dos I can stand. So here’s a wish list comin’ at you. If you’re interested in doing any of these things, either reply to this post or come into my ask/messages!

Wanda & Marvel Characters / Settings

I need more threads set between the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War. Particularly ones that deal with how she handles Pietro’s death, how she gets to know each of the Avengers, how she adjusts to life in America, etc. There’s a huge emotional, cultural, and psychological gap between Ultron Wanda and CW Wanda that I am itching to explore.

Evil Wanda. I just kindof need it. Maybe Pietro died during the Hydra experiments and she just stopped giving a shit. Or maybe the stress/trauma of the experiments made her mentally unstable and crueler. I would love to explore a disenchanted, cold, rogue Wanda, whether she’s ultimately redeemable or not.

Batshit crazy Wanda, heh. Maybe she doesn’t deal mentally very well with Pietro’s death. Or maybe she has been unknowingly deteriorating mentally over time the more she used her powers (like a tradeoff kind of thing where each time she uses her powers she sacrifices some of her sanity) and reached some kind of breaking point during CW or IW. Maybe she lost her mind trying to bring back Vision or, unable to bring back Vision, she invented her own version of him using her magic. Whether treatable or not, insane Wanda is something I would like to explore. 

Wanda & Crossover Characters / Settings

I need Wanda in a zombie apocalypse. Any Resident Evil fans out there? Replace Hydra with Umbrella and add zombies and mutated creatures and there you go, heh. I need it.

Wanda in a Silent Hill setting... Would the town trap her? Would it ultimately let her leave? What kinds of things would the evil in the town try to get her to confess to/admit to herself? Who might she get stuck there with? Lots of dark secrets could come out in a thread like this, I love it, ugh.

Other Muses of Mine & Marvel Characters / Settings

Okay fans of characters like Groot and Pickett... I have an adorable fandomless fantasy leafling OC that will absolutely ruin you with his cuteness. His name is Jix, and he can make just about any character smile. He’s a ball of energy and exudes positivity, even in the more dire of situations. He’s also addicted to fruit. Big time. I would love to see him in an Avengers setting, doing just about anything with anybody, I just need it. His blog is @xleafyheartx​, and if you want to see what he is like, I wrote a thing between him and Wanda here. People with Marvel muses, please hmu if you would like your muse to interact with Jix!

I need Nemesis from the Resident Evil and RE: Apocalypse movies (so originally a human named Matt Addison) to either interact with Avengers muses in a crossover setting during a zombie apocalypse, or in a Marvel setting... maybe one in which he was experimented on and turned into Nemesis by Hydra instead of Umbrella. He’s a lot like a hulk who can’t ever change back into a human, except much scarier looking... and with tentacles. But free of Umbrella’s/Hydra’s control, he’s really just a big puppy who wants to help people and loves cookies. I’m not kidding. Chocolate chip are his favorite. His blog is @freewillacquired, and if you would like your muse to interact with him, let me know!

#{ out of paprikash } ᵒᵒᶜ #rp wish list #pleeeeeeease #let's do all the things

[sirbadgerduke]

Retrospective Thought: Top Ten Games of The Year 2018

Oi! 2018 was pretty good year games, innit? Maybe not as consistent as 2017 for quality, but I reckon it’s still a damn great year! Anyway, now that all the other Game of The Year stuff has happened, I think I’m going to do my own list, which I’ve done for a couple of years now. Well, let’s get to it, which games blew my socks and which 3 particularly royally blew my socks off!

10) Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth - Hacker’s Memory(PS4/PSVita) Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth is basically Discount Persona with a Pokemon battle system(only with a cooler way of switching moves via a skill bank of sorts). The story, however, is not a follow up from the previous title but a companion story of sorts. You play as a Hacker whose account has been stolen. You embark on a journey to regain your account and to stop the person responsible for the whole thing. The story pretty much opens up as you progress, taking some of the previous game’s plot with a dash of “Alternative point of view” to boot. Hacker’s Memory has it’s downtime moments, sometimes it can feel like a real grind, but leading a team of your suited up fave digimon has never felt better, definitely worth picking up if you like Persona and Digimon!

9) Dragonball Fighter z(PS4/XBO/PC/NS I enjoyed both Xenoverse games, they aren’t perfect and the RNG is real ass with a side of cancer thrown in. People clamored for a new Dragonball Z flavoured, bonafide fighting game. ArcSys delivered on that front, and boy did they really deliver the goods! The gameplay is frantic, epic and balls to wall bonkers. It’s easy to pick up if you just want to fight around with your favourite characters, whilst also in-depth for those seasoned fighting game maniacs. The gameplay is top tier and an absolute pleasure to play. Pick it up if you’re a Dragonball Z, Fighting Game or both fan!

8) Darksiders III(PS4/XBO/PC) I love the Darksiders franchise. I enjoyed the first game, adored the second one, and now I really like the third iteration. Is it perfect? No, is it the best one? Not by a loooong shot, but the game is a blast to play. Following on from the previous game’s style, it’s a companion piece that follows Fury’s side of things during War’s trial at the Charred Council. Fury is one of the Four Horsemen, badasses that do badass shit when and how they see fit. While the first one is a more Character Action experience with Zelda-isms, the second being a reverse of that with a Open World and Dungeon styley, the third, is a smaller game that focuses more on a “Metroidvania” like world with combat feeling a tad like Soulsborne stuff. The bosses are all a treat to fight(well, except one), the world is aesthetically gorgeous despite not exactly being on GoW or Red Dead’s level. Pick it up, give it a whirl and enjoy!

7) Yakuza 6: Song of Life/Yakuza Kiwami 2(PS4) I can write a whole retrospective on this series, I absolutely adore this franchise with all my heart. Yakuza follows the life of Kazuma Kiryu; a form Yakuza big dog trying to live an ordinary life with his adopted daughter Haruka. Now, the story is a rollercoaster of badass moments, heartwrenching scenes with a dash of twists and comedic parts in all equal splendor. The combat, is easily a star alongside the story, solid, fun and very in-depth yet easy to learn. Kiwami 2 is a remake of the second game whilst the sixth game is the final part ot Kazuma’s story. I’d wholeheartedly recommend these titles to those who either have just got into the whole franchise or are veterans to the Yakuza Franchise. Kiwami 2 is also a remake of possibly the worst part of the series. Pick it up if you love great crime dramas with twists and turns around every exposition dumping corner!

6) Hollow Knight(PS4/XBO/NS/PC) Now, I know it came out in 2017, but I only played this game this year, so it still counts for my list. Hollow Knight is a Metroidvania with a Dark Souls-esque style of worldbuilding and story. The gameplay is a pleasure, and the each zone, each area is both unique to one another yet seamlessly interconnected and not too “wild” in the vein of being out of place. The bosses are both horrifying and cute, same goes for the enemies and NPCs you encounter in the game. The music, the art design and the gameplay are all fantastic, quite possibly my favourite indie title since Pyre. You play as a wanderer that happens upon Hollownest, a small, almost empty little town of critters, below lies a dungeon thwart with danger and a terrible past. Any further, and we are heading into spoiler territory. I hugely implore you to pick this little treat up, you will not regret it at all.

5) Fist of The North Star: Lost Paradise(PS4) From the developers of Yakuza, comes an adaptation of a fantastic little Manga called Fist of The North Star, basically Mad Max but with anime martial arts. You play as Kenshiro, the Successor of Hokuto Shinken, a martial arts style of deading folks. While not a completely panel by panel adaptation and more of a single one shot story using the world and characters of Fist of The North Star, the Yakuza style gameplay really lends itself for adaptations like this. The story could easily be just fanfiction, they really made it something more than fanfiction level fanservice. It’s a really good single story set in it’s own little world. The gameplay holds itself perfectly for this adaptation, with a few added crazy kill techniques that you can level to deal out more damage. Buy it if you are either looking to get into this series, or are a long time fan.

4) Super Smash Bros:Ultimate(NS) The flagship “Not a Fighter” fighting game that started as a Nintendo Legacy series brawler to becoming a huge flagship of a video game legacy brawler. I’ve always adored Super Smash, even the previous one(though it’s not particularly jam-packed with content). Ultimate brings back EVERYONE and even includes some newcomers(Who really should’ve been here since at least Brawl), more content than you can imagine, a reimagined classic mode, a new single player and a fun little collecting system called Spirits, this game is a fanservice love letter, and a big one too. It is worth the price, pure and simple, buy it now!

3) Monster Hunter World(PS4/XBO/PC) I only ever played the first one to completion, tried to get into the 3DS titles and thought “I don’t like it” despite loving the shit out of the monster designs. On a whim, decided to World at launch, and boy was that a fantastic decision. I fucking love this game, from the story(simple but fun) right down to how the monsters are programmed to be as naturally animalistic as they’ve ever been, all the while adding in some old and some new beasties to hunt!. I’ve had fun with friends, on my own, raged at certain monsters(LOOKING AT YOU, BEHEMOTH) and spent hours farming for the material to craft weapons and armors I really want. I’ve spent over a hundred years into this game, and will gladly spend the same in the upcoming expansion! Get this game NOW, you will love it, I assure you!

2) Marvel’s Spiderman(PS4) Spiderman is one of my favourite heroes, he’s grounded, he’s tragic, and he feels like a real person. It would stand that a game based on him, would’ve been a huge success(Spidey 2 was great!, Ultimate and Web of Shadows were really good! The others? Eeeeeeehhhhh not so much). Developed by Insomniac, this return to form for the webslinger is a helluva return! The combat is fluid, fun and fantastic, the story is great whilst the City That Never Sleeps is a nice if pricey expansion. But the webslinging, the bread and butter of any Spidey game, is quite possibly the best, better even than Spidey 2 in my honest opinion. The story is superb, and when *that* scene happens? It will hit you like a ton of bricks. The bosses? Probably the best of this year honestly. This is a must buy for any spidey fan, marvel fan, hell, superhero fan of all kinds!

1) God of War(PS4) Usually, a soft re-imagining can be as well received as a Gary Glitter Comeback Tour, but this one? Boy oh boy, this game is a masterpiece. You play as Kratos, older and wiser since his temper tantrum trilogy in Greece, he’s a father again and now must take the BOI on a journey. I really don’t want to spoil it any further for people who haven’t played it yet. The combat is a great revamp overall(I miss doing juggling combos but eh, the rest of the game is steller), hard hitting and brutal like you’ve known before whilst adding a more personalised flair to it. The soundtrack and audio design is steller, as well as the voice acting. Boy oh boy, the story is fantastic too, following a journey of growth(not just for Atreus) and facing one’s demons, it truly is the highlight of the game. More boss variety could’ve been added, maybe a little more enemy variety too, but these are just minor critiques by the most minor of things. Get this game now, you will enjoy it!

So that’s my list, yes i didn’t include Red Dead 2, haven’t completed it, but I’d gladly do a review once I’m done. Another good year of games has ended, roll on the new year, with another batch of stellar games(I’M LOOKING AT YOU, RESIDENT EVIL 2 REMAKE, DMCV AND HOPEFULLY GHOST OF TSUSHIMA!). Hope you have a happy new years, and had a great Christmas!

#video games #games of the year #games #God of War #spiderman #spiderman ps4 #Marvel Comics #marvel #darksiders #monster hunter #monster hunter world #sony #yakuza #fist of the north star #Dragon Ball Z #dragonball fighterz #nintendo #super mash bros #smash ultimate #hollow knight #digimon #cyber sleuth #metroidvania

[beaniegara]

11 Questions

tagged both by @yaboybergara​ and @ricky-goldsworth​ which is great because that gives me 22 questions mwahhahaha thank you folks!! <3 

RULES

1. always post the rules

2. answer the questions given by the person who tagged you

3. write 11 questions of your own

4. tag 11 people you want to get to know better (or however many you want)

now, see, I don’t know what to ask........ so I’m gonna be a little shit and tag folks to pick 11 of these 22 questions and answer them too. nini and gray pls don’t sue me for reusing your questions, thank fdgkfndgfdsk I’m tagging @kaylotta, @queerunsolved, @haunted-gays, @thatmademadej, and @i-am-ghost-proof-baby <3 if yall wanna do it, of course. no pressure.

this is incredibly long (and uncomfortably honest). let’s go lesbians let’s go

first, nini’s questions:

1. How many pets have you had in your life?

one. I’ve always wanted them but my mom and I have always lived in tiny apartments and had no way to care for a pet so it wasn’t until I was 17 that we adopted a kitten!! his name was merlin and he was the laziest, moodiest lil ball of fluff I’ve ever met. I.. had to give him away a year later because we moved to a place even smaller that wouldn’t allow pets so long story short I’m scarred for life and don’t think I can ever take any more pets without feeling guilty to my bone 

this is merlin btw I love him with all my heart and he now lives in a farm. as far as I know anyway.. :(

2. Do you believe in destiny? Why?

mmm interesting question. weird, metaphysical theories aside, I don’t believe anything is set in stone per se, but I do believe that some things are just... meant to be? in a way? for example, you can’t tell me ryan and shane weren’t meant to be friends and find each other in such an unlikely place as they did. one of my mottos, completely stripped from context because it’s from a rather pretentious tv show, is “the universe is rarely so lazy”. meaning that good things happen for a reason, and that you trailed that path for that to happen. yknow what I’m saying? I can’t really explain this without writing a 10 page essay because that’s just how my gemini ass thinks 

3. If you could chose one person on the great beyond, would you take the chance to talk to them? 

you mean someone who has passed away? oh yeah, I would talk to my grandmother. she was raising me and died when she was 4 and that changed not only my entirely life but our whole extended family dynamic... so many questions.

4. From all your hobbies, which one would you love to make a living of?

oh man, writing. I’ve been dreaming of being a writer ever since I was 9 or something. never panned out but that would certainly be the dream. if I could work with videos, subtitling, tv shows, cinema etc that would also be dope as hell!

5. What’s your favorite color palette to wear?

fkgjfsdgiusfdksd I have no fashion sense whatsoever, idk? I do like to wear dark clothes (because weight..) and reds (because pale).

6. What’s your opinion on queerbaiting?

I don’t have the time for it. for starters, it’s something that usually comes from people with very poor writing skills that can’t come up with plots interesting enough to keep viewers/readers hooked in. that already says something. no offense to anyone who is a fan of shows like these, but when it’s mostly written by white men I just don’t have any high hopes for it. you can ask flavs what my reaction was like when I realized the character I had headcanon’ed as wlw in hannibal was actually a wlw. I couldn’t believe it, because what???? since when does that happen, especially in a show run by a white man??? kjdfghsjgd 

I think this is part of a bigger conversation but my point is, don’t fall for it. I know it’s all part of the fight for representation, asking big names to produce big shows with lgbtq+ characters in it and so on, but for the love of god, watch something else too!!!! let GOT rot and die!!!!!!!!! look up different, smaller, cheaper shows, that’s where you find lgbtq+ content creators!!!!!! there’s so many wlw webseries out there, you wouldn’t believe it. you have a choice. don’t give any more of your time and love and word-of-mouth to shows/movies that clearly have no interest in being more diverse. they don’t deserve you. 

and that’s not to say any of it is on us. quite on the contrary, they’re using us. but aside from calling out their bullshit, we do have a chance to boost lgbtq+ content creators. don’t let them fool you into thinking they’re doing you any favors, or that they’re our last chance so we should be paying attention to what they’re doing/saying. fuck them!!!! you can’t queerbait me because I don’t trust you or give you the chance to do it. and you can shove your very straight, very white shows where the sun doesn’t shine, @ hollywood.  

7. Is there a language you would love to speak?

french and korean, mostly. I can understand a little bit of both, but I really wish I was fluent :( oh, will to live and learn, where art thou...

8. Do you have, like, a dream so wild you think it’s impossible?

kjgnsfdkjhjjs having enough money to support myself and my mother??? I don’t have any big, wild dreams, I think. just.......... living comfortably would be a+  

9. How many AUs of your own life do you have in your head?

oh man. I keep thinking about living somewhere in idk iceland or scotland just like... tending goats or something. that’s the most comfortable version of myself I can think of.

I also like to imagine if I could handle being a film director, because that sounds like fun. maybe a screenwriter? anything creative in films, really. 

there’s also the unattainable dream of having a wife and idk maybe adopting a kid? and we’d just. support each other. and love each other. and that’s just. I. [cries]

I like to think how things would be if I were actually hot and not socially awkward.. I’d be someone completely different, basically lol 

10. If you were to meet your younger self, do you think they would think you cool or not?

oh god, younger me would hate present me D: I had such high hopes for myself, I had lots of dreams lol never in a million years did I think I’d be where I am today...

11. Not a question, but please add something postive about yourself, something that you love about you.

IDJFSSIODUGSDFKGDSJ IT’S LIKE YOU KNEW I’D BE A NEGATIVE FUCK, NINI. I................................ I like that I have an easy time with languages? or with classes in general. I like to learn from people, I’m just really unmotivated to leave the house lol 

now onto gray’s q’s:

1. What’s your favourite music video of all time?

straight-up impossible questions right out of the gate huh I SEE YOU, GRAY. I SEE YOU kjdfgjfsdhgkdsjfs

I’ll have to go with a few,

“prototype” by viktoria modesta is just GORGEOUS. I can’t get over this video & song and it’s been years.

“jackpot” by block b looks creepy as shit but the context makes it such a clever yet fun video. take into account that these guys were screwed over by the kpop company that created the group, and that the lyrics talk about hitting jackpot in an industry that’s savage to say the least. to me this video is a visual representation of what a dangerous trap entertainment companies are in the kpop industry, and it also ties in with the groups’ story of being made into dolls by a company and then telling them to fuck off in the end lol 

“treat me like your mother” by the dead weather. I don’t know why I just love it. (cw: gun violence)

“emperor’s new clothes” by panic! at the disco. I MEAN, LOOK AT IT.

“manyo maash” by puer kim. I just love the aesthetic?

honorable mention: “tick tick boom” by the hives because that’s a banger. ba dum tssss.

2. What’s a favourite memory of yours?

I have plenty of good memories, thank god. I think one of my favorites is just hanging out with my friends in 2008-9; one of their older brothers was driving us around town, we were listening to the white stripes at full volume, singing along, all sitting pressed up close together in his shitty car. man, my teenage years would’ve been fantastic if I had stayed there with them!! 

3. Do you play video games? If so, which one’s your favourite?

I DO!!! I mean, not as much as I’d like because a) no money to spare on games/consoles, and b) I suck at basically everything. but I’m obsessed with paladins these days, and I’m also a big fan of LOTRO. I like horror games--mostly the resident evil and silent hill type--and fps. I grew up playing some tomb raider, medal of honor, resident evil... oh, those were the days. 

4. How did you first get into [your fandom of choice]?

with bfu it was that kind of thing where I’d see a meme or two cross my dash and it was always this ridiculous screenshot, or those “that’s it, that’s the show” kinda things with dozens of thousands of notes... until one day I was incredibly anxious, and I needed to watch something or I’d never finish the assignments I had for college. so I just thought “oh hey I should check out that unsolved thing people like so much, it’s buzzfeed so it’s probably good bg noise to work with” lol and it did work, and I did finish my assignments, and that means that I first watched the show barely paying any attention to it because I was busy doing something else. but ryan’s and shane’s voices helped me relax and to this day they still help a lot with my anxiety, to the point that I need to keep coming back every minute or so during episodes because I get distracted just listening to their voices and not absorbing a word lol

5. How did you first get into fandom in general?

uhh.. well, I was a big “pottermaniac” (that’s how I called it) since I was 9, but that was before I realized fandom was a Thing on the internet too. I remember when I was maybe 10 or 11, I entered a chatroom (god, those were wild) just in time to see someone saying in all caps HARRY POTTER IS GREAT AND YOU’RE ALL DUMB FOR NOT SEEING IT or something fkdsjgfdugfsdk and it was this girl using the nickname fawkes. she was older than me, I think that 15 or something, and we exchanged addresses (!!! how am I alive!!!) and were pen pals for a while. but it took me so fucking long to actually find the fandom online that I think my first brush with it was with the arctic monkeys forum I found online in 2008, where I mistakenly said I liked “the muse” and people laughed at me so I never went back to it lol then in 2010 I found out about kpop and that’s when I really dived head-first into fandom life. took me long enough (tbf I was very against the notion of being a “fan” because I was an idiot).

6. What’s at the top of your bucket list?

great fucking question. no idea. I guess.. traveling overseas? if we’re talking wild, distant things. but closer to my reality, getting a job that pays me at least the minimum wage disjgdfgkfsdk #fuckinternships

7. What’s something not many people know about you?

I love dancing and miss it like hell.

8. What’s your favourite medium for storytelling - movie, book, television, musical, comic, internet video, video game, something else? Why that medium?

ohhhhhhh this is an interesting question. as much as I love writing, and think that’s one of the best things we humans have ever come up with, I do love.. musicals? not necessarily theater--although that’s great and I’d sell my soul to see chicago live--but I love the idea of telling stories through music. I really wish we could bring back the custom of telling stories orally, and through music, and that we could as society agree that collective singing is beautiful and should be reintroduced in our day-to-day lives. sure listening to (1) artist singing is great but hAVE YOU TRIED SINGING ALONG DURING A CONCERT WHERE EVERYONE ELSE IS SINGING TOO? best fucking feeling in the world. 

we had two bands in brazil, in different periods of time, that were so incredibly famous they’re still cornerstones in our music history. one was legião urbana, some folk-ey rock band that had a couple of songs telling these really long stories that I LOVE with all my heart. faroeste caboclo is our bohemian rhapsody, most people my age or older know the lyrics to it. and mamonas assassinas was this comical (?) rock band that sang dumb, fun songs that usually told stories too and that was the best. I miss that kinda thing. 

9. What’s your favourite food?

red meat, mainly churrasco. but I also can’t live without chocolate milk AND the whopper. capitalism has me by the stomach.

10. Do you have a joke to share?

fjgfsdgskfdgfsk I don’t.. it’s been so long since I last tried telling a joke, I don’t think I know any?

11. What song/artist helped you through your struggles?

pitty has been a big part of my life for some 14-odd years now. “be ok” by ingrid michaelson and “starlight” by muse were my anthems when depression hit hard during my teenage years. the white stripes has also been a constant, with gems like “blue orchid” and “a martyr for my love for you” turning into sort of theme songs for certain parts of my life. choi sam helped me through college. and even though they were a huge disappointment to the point that I stopped listening to them altogether, block b gave me a good 4 or 5 years of distraction from life.

#not bfu #long post #txt #i hope to god the read more works #bc this is long as shitfuck