#(I say in regards to a game that's even worse than ds when it comes to 'everyone you love dies')

[v-iv-rusty]

bloodborne is one of the few games that can be kind of emotionally draining for me if I play it for too long (in a good way) but the main thing that keeps me going is the need to see what new kind of fucked up creature is creaching just around the corner

#misc.txt #echo plays bb #the sound design in this game is great #you hear the worst noises you've ever heard just as you're about to put down the controller for the night #and then it's like 'oh well I just have to go see whatever the fuck that thing is now.' #got to bloodstarved beast today and it is soooo so gross and wet looking. I love it. it's awful. bestie <3 #I also noticed that the crawling guys down in the sewers are still wearing clothes. I'm. unsure how I feel about that #curious what the lore is on what determines the different types of beasts people turn into? I assume that's what's going on down there #I 'finished' the quest with gascoigne's daughter as well. or at least she's not at the window anymore. :( #idk what I expected honestly. I've been spoiled on all the main things in this game (lore+most bosses) but not all the inbetween stuff #was sort of hoping that maybe if I gave her the brooch she would stay put..but I knew that wasn't going to happen #BUT I did get an old lady to go to the chapel. she kinda sucks but that's ok #chapel dweller has a friend now :) btw if anything happens to him I'm killing everyone in this room and then myself #(I say in regards to a game that's even worse than ds when it comes to 'everyone you love dies')

[greenjokwe-blog]

Monthly Greejily Media (January 2024) - The First of Who Knows

God I hate Twitter. I mean I still use it way more than any other social media, but I'm so tired of it man. From all the recent mistakes, to how posts get popular, to how it and TikTok's business decisions have infected the entire tech industry at large. All that and more is good enough reason to move my media threads away from that platform, but truth be told I'm only so moved by these things in that regard. Nah, more than anything, the format for media threads on that site just got tiring for me. Feeling the need to fit in everything into a single tweet, the want to put every single media I've consumed in one place even if I'm not particularly moved or interested in the updating process. So, I thought this'd be much nicer. Having a little section on my Tumblr dedicated to the stuff that's interested me the most, on a monthly basis. A lot more appealing! And that way I can talk about whatever I want for as long as I want. Fantastic. This probably won't stop my full reviews (there are still a few I want to write, but writer's block is getting to me right now), but this is definitely a more flexible format for me at least for now. Let's start shall we?

I might as well start with video games, as it's the thing I tend to talk about most on this blog, but truth be told I haven't actually beaten a single game this year yet. There's one game I'm currently working on beating, but because I'll be taking a more casual approach to that one (as well as gaming in general this year I imagine), I'm not comfortable talking about that one yet. Two games I'll talk about for now though, and will definitely probably come up again I will discuss though, one of those being Picross 3D.

I've never been invested in Picross but I've always found it a good time. I love all kinds of old puzzle solvers and Picross/nonograms in general have been a great, shockingly modern version of that that fit amazingly for video games. Picross 3D has felt like the perfect culmination of what Picross has achieved for years, and seeing the praise for it I knew this would be a great step for me getting into more of Picross in general, and I was right.

There's not much I can really add here, I feel no need to explain what Picross is and not much to add to it's actual gameflow other than its so addicting and there's so much of it here. I'm approaching halfway through right now and this game has nearly 400 puzzles. Each puzzle is like a trance, they all have logical and sensical solutions, and the satisfaction of finding a discrepancy, deleting/saving blocks as needed, and realizing you've just opened a whole new set of options for yourself feels amazing.

I only have two issues with it as of right now, one of them being because this game was made with a DS in mind, and because there are no zoom-in options for the game, trying to get the correct block to delete can often feel very finicky. The other issue being, well I can't play too much of it! I start seeing Picross when I close my eyes and it comes up with unsolvable puzzles! I'll talk about my future adventures with Picross no doubt in the future though, so get ready.

Another game I've been into, and you should expect to see again in these posts, is Burnout 3: Takedown. Again, probably not gonna say much on this for now, but I already have over one hundred gold medals for the courses in this game. This game has such good variety, despite having a fairly limited number of tracks it makes real good use of it, and it's technical ability for a PS2 game can only been the work of gods. Also it feels amazing to play holy shit. I get why there's never been a new one of these, but the worlds been worse without it.

One thing I will say though, don't be surprised if I write a full review on this game where I inevitably tear the latter Gran Prix to shreds, cuz holy shit the last one I did was so fucking hard. The game has great feel, design and good tells for a PS2 game, but it's still a PS2 game. You can be a god at this game and still get fucked over. But the fact that the game is so tantilizing and the amount of fuckups that can happen with you having a smile on your face... yeah I'll have to make a full review on this game when I 100% it, watch this space.

All right, next up films and television!!!

This is the section I was really excited for. I haven't talked about film at all on this blog, and I wanna make up for it. There's still a TON of films I watched last year that I want to talk about, so don't be surprised if I start making tangent posts about those at some point. More than anything, I want this year to be my film and book year, so expect it to take over all these upcoming posts from now on.

To start with, the show I finally finished, Gundam 00! This was the Gundam series I always wanted to watch even before I knew what the UC was, and now being a huge Gundam fan it's made watching the full series an... interesting reflection. I did post my opinions on the first season after finishing it last year, and I'll stick by those. Despite its problem with plotlines and characters, this show is a great response and reflection of what led to the Iraq war, as well as the war on terrorism in general. Season 1 also ended extremely strong, so Season 2 had a lot to live up to. A lot that I knew, based on a general sense and public opinion that it wouldn't. It ended up with me dropping the show for a few months until I eventually picked it back up after watching Wing rightfully thinking "it can't be any worse".

Thankfully it wasn't! The show picked up a fair bit after the second half, and included a lot of interesting arcs and stories (mainly, the stuff regarding the ALAWS) to consistently keep the show fairly solid. However, there was still a ton of problems. Plots were even messier here than they were during the first season, a huge portion of motivations just got cut in half, the characters are even less likeable here (aside from the worst ones, which are nicer now by comparison), and the main issue of the villains being a LOT less compelling here than they were in season 1, to the point of both detriment of the show and making it feel a lot more standard-Gundam faire, compared to S1's striking originality. However, there's still a lot to like! Again, a lot of the plotlines I liked such as the ALAWS and everything with Marina, the Gundam designs and effects are still solid, animation is nice (even if at points I'd prefer more clearer and concise boarding and battles), and it still carries over a lot of the themes that made Gundam 00 so solid to begin with. So despite it's weakness I'd still say that season 2 is worth the watch, if anything else for more of Setsuna and Graham.

Oh yeah and I uh, watched the movie as well.

OK, slight spoilers ahead, but I'm just gonna get through this very quickly here. This film is dumb. All of the political intrigue of the show is basically gone to make a James Cameron-inspired dumb anime blockbuster. The main villains are a cross between Xenomorphs and Terminators. It's got quip dialogue. There is a scene where they somehow make the comical approach to Allelujah's mental illnesses even more comical by giving him this Hulk-style action switch sequence. The film largely focuses on characters that get no payoff, with Setsuna being the only strong focus throughout. It's dumb. It's shallow. It's a mess. It's also kind of fun??? I can't say it looks visually much better than the show, but what it does have is a fairly simple but strong premise that fits the world fairly well. And whenever something cool happens it manages to make it REALLY cool. So that's always nice. Somehow, still a very satisfying conclusion to the series despite everything that it is, and probably up there somewhere in the middle of the Gundam films I've seen so far.

That was the first of the three films I saw this month, with the other two being not quite as schlocky. In fact, on the complete opposite of the "war is bad" scale, we have the 1957 Soviet film "The Cranes are Flying".

While a much-beloved classic by prestigious classic by many, I knew essentially nothing about this film an hour before I decided to start watching it. When I started watching the film, I was fairly disappointed in how, premise-wise, this film doesn't really have much different from what I wasn't already used to from a variety of war history, poetry, and sad mid-2000s webcomics. As stunning as this film could be with its technical prowess for the 50s, I was worried that this film wouldn't really do much for me. That was until I reached about the halfway point.

The small little trick this film plays with you (that's not really much of a trick, mind you), is extremely potent and gives this film relevancy to this day. Not being just a film about war-torn lovers, this film focuses well and truly on it's main character, Veronika, and all of her strifes and problems that arise either as caused by the war, or by her family. This film goes in to a lot of issues of women's suffrage and plight that you would not expect a film from this era to discuss, and does it with great decorum and respect (although, this came out the same year as Nights of Cabiria, which, wow, what a year for feminist film). There are some scenes in this film that are filled with harrowing emotion that I can definitely see why it's considered such an underground classic, at least as far as the west is concerned.

I think because of the general content of the film there's only so much I can enjoy though, if that makes sense? But that's just an issue for me and old movies in general, nothing against the film itself. I would still absolutely recommend this film to anyone who is interested, as relevant and ever-present now as it ever was. Man, I hate war. And warlord fascists.

Any way, final film that I watched this month, and this one's one for the BOYS!!!!!!!!!!!!! YEAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Uh, spoilers for this one too, by the way.

One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest is a weird one for me to talk about, because if it wasn't for the (admittedly few) caveats that I have with this film I could easily see it being one of my all-time favourites. Had I watched it a few years back it probably would be! The acting is fantastic, portraying each character and their differences wonderfully. The characters themselves are all extremely likeable and each has their own interesting quirks and interests that keep them apart despite the amount that there are onscreen. The technical ability in this film's phenomenal, loads of wonderful shots here, and the way the more compact scenes here move in-and-out of focus is absolutely wonderful. Pace, soundtrack, general story and motivations, all solid stuff.

But... at the same time... I mean, it's not that big of a deal, but like... I was only half-kidding when I called this film a "boys movie" earlier. Not that it's an innate issue! But let's say, I wanted to make a really dumb and unfavourable view on the film, you could definitely theoretically make a Letterboxd review complaining how this film is a contrived story about an evil matriarch trying to destroy "the boys" fun at all opportunities, the evil bitch! This, in and of itself I don't think would be a real issue for me with this films plot alone, but the film constructs itself with this plausible deniability aspect to it, the possibility that these men are just here to chill or self-improve! It puts some of the films accolades and themes and misunderstandings (mostly from guys) into a different context.

This, along with some other issues I have including a couple of character arcs like the Chief, and general ambivalence to certain topics as a whole, apparently don't exist in the book (from what I've been told). It's definitely something I want to read at some point! HOWEVER, all that being said, I don't hold much of this too much against the film, mostly because one, the story is still pretty damn good, and two, god there aren't many other movies out there that treat those with problems and mental illnesses with the humanity and respect quite like this film does. The way the film manages to make sure that each character deserves their own urgency and respect, and makes sure to put blame and point at the terrible ablest structures that demonise and trap them...

I think the best example of this in the film is during the beginning of the film, where the first group therapy meeting is held. The scene manages to perfectly represent the circle the main cast surrounds themselves in, where the previous good mood and vibes of the previous 10 minutes starts dimming. When Mrs. Fletcher asks Mr. Harding about his wife, with the set implication that she was being unfaithful. Harding tries to avoid the question, particularly when the topic of abuse comes up, leading to deflection, however, as the conversation goes on, the emotion from great late actor William Redfield becomes more and more potent. It starts to become more clear that even if he is deflecting, he is truly looking for redemption and self-improvement, and, truth be told, the fact of him being abusive, or even her cheating both start becoming irrelevant (the film never states if they were or not). This is lost on the other patients though, who see this session as just another time of him yapping about his wife, strictly against Harding's wishes. This turns into a shouting match, all the while Mrs. Fletcher and the other doctors do nothing but watch. Despite how this has clearly happened before, despite the fact that it's strictly not working, they let it continue not necessarily because they personally believe it helps, but because they believe it's best to follow the systems and rules set in place by the hospital, even if it only hurts and victimizes the patients who are there just to get help.

So yeah I like this film a lot, I think it's fantastic. I know I kinda went on about it for a bit for a film that's been talked about to death, but whatever. Definitely would recommend, good film good film.

And laaaastt uppp uuhhhh albums I guess? Truth is, I'm gonna have a similar issue with this section that I did last time where I'm not gonna know what to write that much, so I came up with a solution. Most of the reason I did what I did last year on Twitter with my relistens was to make up for lastfm mostly being irrelevant for me now. So, I decided instead I'd make my own lastfm 5x5 charts based on what I listened to that month, either being new albums or relistens. So, here it is:

There'll be times where I probably go on tangents here. For example I FINALLY got around to hearing Quaranta and I of course ended up really liking it. Same with Genesis' Trespass, Far East Suite, and that Funkadelic album. And there's still issues with this format like I might have to differentiate what was new for me and what was a relisten. But I imagine the format will end up changing a lot as the months go on and it might not even be the same next month so, we'll what I do next I suppose, if I scrap this idea don't be surprised, it's probably cuz I didn't listen to that month or something I dunno.

Anyway, that's the update done! God knows if when I do this next month it'll be even remotely as close to as long as this one was. There might be months when I decide to dedicate an entire section to one single piece of art I enjoyed. Maybe there won't be one some months and I just try to put out a review or something instead, or I just choose to shitpost a whole month cuz I REALLY have nothing to say. We'll see. I imagine this'll be a fun format to experiment with, either way. Thanks for reading!

[blazehedgehog]

Thoughts on Nintendo making the Super Mario 35 game and 3D All Stars limited physically and even digitally?

It’s legitimately surprising how blind Nintendo is certain things. And even if they aren’t blind, they’re... ignorant, in a sense? Frugal to a fault? They’re dumb. Amazingly dumb. Let’s go with that. That's a nice way to put it.

I tweeted that I’d recently finished replaying Super Mario Sunshine a year or two ago (it took me roughly four years!) and that I’d burned through the PC port of Super Mario 64 not that long ago over the course of a single weekend. And that, because of this, I found it hard to justify paying $60 for the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection.

I don’t want this to sound like “because I played them for free, I don’t want to buy them.” I already bought and paid for Super Mario Sunshine on the Gamecube, and I own at least two, maybe even three copies of Super Mario 64 (original cart, Wii VC, Wii U VC). That's because Super Mario 64 is also one of the most influential games of all time. I know I say that a lot, but I'll repeat it as many times as I need to. Any third person action game made in the last 25 years owes something to what Super Mario 64 figured out -- analog character movement, how to set up the camera, all of it. Even if Super Mario 64 didn’t invent everything about 3D character movement, it probably still figured out a better way to do it. All modern game design roads lead back to that game. I will absolutely buy another copy of Super Mario 64.

But you have to do it right.

If you aren’t matching or or exceeding the work that fans are doing for free, then you are asking me to pay money for a worse quality product.

I can play Super Mario 64 at wide screen, in 4K, at 60fps, with modern camera controls, thanks to the PC port. It sounds cleaner, and it looks better than the N64 game did. Even if you subtract the recreated textures and the high-def models and just play the game with the original assets, it’s still running smoother and plays tighter, but still feels like Super Mario 64.

A case could be made that these enhancements to Super Mario 64 are pretty big and would require lots of new work and testing (as if Nintendo couldn’t just account for that). But, then, what about Super Mario Sunshine? Now, the All-Stars version has been updated to run in widescreen, sure, but even more could be done without messing anything up.

Super Mario Sunshine as it shipped on the Gamecube ran at 30fps, but that’s not always how the game was shown. For a large portion of its development, Super Mario Sunshine actually ran at 60fps. At some point, Nintendo decided to cap it at 30fps, likely because it couldn't maintain a stable 60. Using the emulator Dolphin, and the right Gameshark/Gecko code modifier, it’s possible to restore Sunshine’s original 60fps framerate.

All the game logic under the hood was probably always running at 60fps, it’s just they capped the rendering at 30 for the final game. And yet, the All-Stars version seemingly retains the 30fps cap, even though the Switch could probably do 60fps in this game with both joycons tied behind its back.

For a company that constantly oversteps their boundaries when it comes to fighting the threat of piracy, they sure seem to be making an excellent case for why people should pirate their games, because they’re lowballing things like this and expecting consumers to gobble it up. Thank you Mister Nintendo, sir, for this generous offering of reheated table scraps.

No other extras, no other bonuses. You get these three games and a soundtrack player. Development history? Alternate versions, like Super Mario 64 DS? What about archival material? Concept art, or anything like that? A lot of people are over the moon about Nintendo history right now thanks to the Gigaleak. No? You’re not going to provide anything interesting or cool? Just a bare bones collection of three games presented basically as-is? Not even Super Mario Galaxy 2? Can't be too generous, after all. It's only been 35 years, and Mario's just one of the biggest, most important franchises in all of gaming. Gotta save Galaxy 2 for the, uh... next 3D Mario collection...?

The whole release date thing is just the final slap in the face. It’s Nintendo creating their own artificial scarcity. This is something I’ve picked up on regarding t-shirts -- I run a Redbubble store with shirts I’ve done, and the sales have never been stellar. In four or five years, I’ve made something like $18. Total.

Why? Because they’re always available. The few times I’ve actually encouraged sales a little bit is when I suggested some shirts might be getting retired, eventually. And when you think about it, that’s the entire crux of something like The Yetee. Either you buy this shirt right now, right here, today, or it goes away and may never come back. Limited edition stuff boosts sales because it forces people to make a decision.

It also boosts a festering aftermarket, where, because people know this is a limited edition thing, they can effectively “buy stock” that will effectively collect interest over time. Buy them at $60 now, mark them up for $80, or $90, or $120+ in a year or three. But then all that does is create a scenario where legitimate customers aren’t going to be able to buy the product, because the people who flip these in the aftermarket will have spent $1500 hoping to make a return of $2500-$3000.

You saw this with Amiibo. You saw it with the NES Classic and SNES Classic. It is TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY and every store front worth a penny allows “third party sellers.” Everything is Ebay now. Wal-mart, Newegg, Best Buy, Amazon, Target, whatever. You name a major retail brand, and they probably let some random goober scalp aftermarket products out of their garage. In many states, scalping tickets is banned, but online this is just “business.” I’m sure Jeff Bezos is elated you spent $230 on a Squid Sisters Amiibo double pack (original MSRP: $30). You don’t get to be the richest man in the world by forcing your best moneymakers to play fair.

Nintendo has taken many notes. The bare minimum of effort, for full price, and “oh, gosh, you better buy it now! It might not ever come back! The faster you give us your money, the better!”

Go jump in a lake. I get better and more features in an emulator and I can play these games right now, today, if I really wanted to. If you aren’t going to offer competitive features and business, then our conversation is over.

#questions #nintendo #switch #super mario 3d all-stars #super mario 64 #super mario sunshine #super mario galaxy #scalping #rant #Anonymous

[chartreuse-gale]

Dragon Warrior/Quest ramblings/collective review

I rant about the Dragon Quest franchise a lot.

Two of my video game pet peeves are when people laude the original Dragon Warrior/Dragon Quest as ground breaking (it’s not, see Wizardy/Ultima), or the great grandfather of JRPGs (it’s not, see Hydlide/Dragon Slayer/Fantasian/) I’m generally not a fan of silent protagonists. I rarely identify enough with a character to feel like I’m “in” the game, so I prefer to be playing the role of a character with some kind of dialogue and a personality. Every dragon quest (that I’ve played) has a silent protagonist. That said, I do have some love for the series. I’ve suddenly found myself interested in giving Dragon Quest XI a spin, but instead I went back to Dragon Warrior IV. I remembered liking it as a kid and I’m happy to say I’ve been having as much fun playing it now as I remember having back then. Here are my thoughts on the dragon quest games separated into the ones I’ve finished and the ones I haven’t (mainline only).

Games I’ve Finished

Dragon Quest: This is grinding the game.

Strategy is almost nonexistent in the battle system outside of “Grind XP to LVL UP/Gold to buy better equipment”. You have 1 character and you never fight more than 1 enemy, so all fights are one-on-one. There isn’t any equipment with special traits or functions (just better Attack/Defense). You get access to a total of 6 spells in the game: Heal Heal More Heal Most Hurt Hurt More Hurt Most (these last 3 are usually a waste of MP) The plot is linear (except for potentially at the very end of the game). At least there’s a decent amount of exploration. Worse than Final fantasy I and Phantasy Star I by far, but to be fair, Enix did better with Dragon Quest II, which beat both of these competitors to the punch. Dragon Quest II: So much better than the original.

The grind is mediated by choices that matter in regards to equipment and combat. Also, you have an actual party this time (of 3), Also, Also, you can fight multiple enemies at the same time. Dragon Quest II added a much wider variety of spells (buff, debuff, and elemental damage spells); Equipment that had special functions when used as an item in combat (e.g. the Lightning Staff can cast whoosh), and a smidge more plot. Many people say more grinding is required in II than in the original, but I would argue that Dragon Quest I is nothing but grinding whereas Dragon Quest II breaks up the monotony with a dose of strategy. Comparable to Final Fantasy I. Far worse than Phantasy Star I. Dragon Quest V: Decent.

Also the first game originating on the Super Famicom (although we didn’t get an official English translation till the DS remake)

Allows for a party of 3 (4 in the DS remake). Considered groundbreaking by many for it’s monster recruitment system but it wasn’t the first game to have one by any means (Megami Tensei beat it by 5 years and Wizardry IV by 4). The game is divided into sections based on time periods as you grow from a kid to a teen to an adult, which is a cool way of pacing the games content, and gives you a little more perspective on the setting than you typically get in a Dragon Quest game. Characters are mostly boring outside of one (or two) of the love interests. Did I mention this game has love interests? I think I would have liked it better if there was only one, because it punched me in the heart for not picking the one it leads up to as the primary love interest (who also happens to be the canon one). Has really frustrating setting/plot-gender dynamics with two characters late in the game who I won’t name because spoilers.

Games I’ve Played but haven’t finished

Dragon Quest III: My least favorite game in the series (out of the ones I’ve played).

This time you have a protagonist and you can hire adventures to join you on your quest. They are all nobody characters. Their personalities are assigned at random, and (from what I can tell) only effect their growth. There’s no fucking dialogue with them (which is something I expected after DQ II). Personalities and seeds are fucking annoying, because both of them are random, have huge differences in their effects, and their effects make a huge difference in character capabilities, so it makes me want to spend hours saving/reloading until I get the effects I want. Fuck this game for introducing seeds to the series which appeared in many Dragon Quest games after this (thankfully I haven’t run into personalities again yet). Often lauded for having the “groundbreaking” option of changing character classes/jobs. Yes this came out before Final Fantasy III (Japan), but I would like to make the following points: - Final Fantasy I let you pick your character classes (which came out beforehand) - Final Fantasy III had a class change system you could actually make use of throughout the game (unlike DQ III where you need to get about halfway through the game first) - The original Wizardry came out 7 years earlier and also had a much more accessible class change system than DQ III I played very little of Dragon Quest III (I dropped it before even getting to my 2nd town). Two great thing about this games: It’s the first in the series to give you the option of playing as a woman, and I heard it’s the game that introduced the casino/mini games to the franchise. Dragon Quest IV: This game is Great! Also, Unlike the first three games in the series, Dragon Quest IV might actually be groundbreaking. You ever play Wild Arms I, II, or III? Did you enjoy playing through the prologues that introduce your early party members? Well Dragon Quest IV does a similar thing: The game is divided into chapters. Each chapter has a different protagonist. In their chapter you play them as silent protagonist, but when you encounter them later in the game they have dialogue. This does a lot to develop much of the cast, because you can see how people react to/talk with them and later on you can see how they engage with the player character (who you’re actually introduced to last). The cast is great and falls into a mix of both very old school and very uncommon tropes for a JRPG: You have an aging knight who goes on a mission to rescue children and then goes on a journey to find more about the ominous forces behind their kidnappers (Ragnar). Then there’s a princess who wants to go on an adventure against her fathers wishes so she kicks a hole in the wall of her room and jumps out of the castle (Alena); she’s joined by a young priest (Cristo) and an elderly mage (Brey) employed by her father, who give up on bringing her home and instead ask to travel with her to help her out. Next you have a merchant who wants to raise enough money to buy his own storefront (Taloon). After that you play a Fortune Teller (Nara) who travels with her dancer sister (Mara) on a quest to avenge the death of their father (an alchemist who was murdered by his apprentice).  Each chapter ends on a climax related to motivations/goals of its lead character and each chapter shows more of the world/gives out more info on what is going on behind the scenes. While you actively control the primary characters of a chapter other characters are either controlled completely by AI (in chapters I-IV), or loosely follow a tactical strategy you select (chapter V). I’ve been getting on fine with it, but this might be a deal breaker for some. The music is better than any of the Dragon Quest games I’ve finished (and what I’ve heard from any of the ones I’ve played, but not finished). A remake of this game has an interesting flaw: they cut all the party chart dialogue from the foreign language versions of the DS version; so if you don’t know Japanese, you’ll probably miss out on a lot of character interaction with that version. (I heard this had something to do with concerns that the game wouldn’t make enough sales to cover translation costs of the party chart [which was reputedly two thirds of the game’s script]). Dragon Quest VI Honestly I’ve barely played this one. You have actual characters for party members (a big plus in my book). I’ve heard there’s a job system as well. Plot/setting seem decently interesting on first glance. I might come back to this one later. Dragon Quest VIII I got about halfway through this one.

They included a character-specific skill tree system which is cool, except that there are objectively best routes to take for some (possibly all?) characters and these best routes are not even close to obvious from the outset. It introduced a pretty fun crafting system.

There’s  a decent cast of characters, but they don’t have quite enough going on for my tastes (my fave is Yangus). Plot has an interesting premise, but feels very barebones, and the environments/towns/npcs aren’t very interesting (maybe about as good as DQV, but worse than IV).

This game gets lauded for the 3D models of characters/enemies, but honestly I’ve never been a fan of the character designs of Dragon Quest (especially the monsters), so I feel pretty “meh” about it outside of being able to see your party members in combat (for I think the first time in the series), which is very nice. The music is very ambient a lot of the time. It does a good job of fitting melancholy moments, but doesn’t do such a great job of building excitement during battles and high-tension events. Dragon Quest IX This game feels a lot like Dragon Quest III.

You don’t have any actual characters, you just recruit them and use them in battle (no meaningful intraparty dialogue, character development, etc.) I think I played around 10-20 hours before dropping it.

Final Thoughts

Dragon Quest games vary from game to game in terms of gameplay mechanics, but they vary a great deal more when it comes to characters.

If you like having a lot of control over your party composition and don’t care about having characters with personality, you might like Dragon Quest III, V, or IX.

If you want a party comprised of characters who interact, have personalities, and might even develop over time, you might like Dragon Quest IV, or (sort of) VIII (I haven’t played much of VI, or any of VII or XI, but I heard they also fall into this camp). If you want to play an old school, 8-Bit JRPG that launched a spectacular franchise, might have actually been ground-breaking for its time, and is still fun to play today, check out the original Phantasy Star. . . . . . . (at least, for me it’s still fun to this day) [notes: - edited some typos, and mistakes most notably regarding the Hurt series of spells in Dragon Quest I - Revised some word choices - Added a comment about being able to see your party in combat in Dragon Quest VIII]

#Dragon Warrior #Dragon Quest #Dragon Warrior IV #Dragon Quest IV #Dragon Quest II #Dragon Warrior II #Dragon Quest III #Dragon Warrior III #Dragon Quest V #Dragon Quest VI #Dragon Quest VIII #I'm generally not a fan of silent protagonists

[cryoculus]

Hi! I saw your ask box is open, so if it's not too much trouble could you please write a Kenma x reader piece? Like Reader is Kuroo's little sister and comes to practice sometimes so the whole team knows her. And Kenma comes over on a weekend, or something, and Kuroo leaves them alone for a minute and when he comes back, Kenma and the reader are snacking and bae-ing in quiet.

» Word Count: 1,885 words

Oh gOD this was sent like a week ago I think. I’m terribly sorry. *ninety-degree bow*

Kenma was…interesting.  

He had been ever since your brother, Tetsurou, managed to befriend the younger boy when you were children. You and him were the same age, but you’ve always thought that Kenma was wiser beyond his years.   

And you continued to think so as the three of you grew up.   

The two boys had an inexplicable affinity towards volleyball…well, at least Tetsurou did. With the two of you being the only kids Kenma was comfortable being around, he eventually got lugged in on your big brother’s obsession for the sport.   

Considering his small build, most would assume that he’s not cut out for athletics, especially volleyball. Hell, you’d seen yourself the way that the third years in the Nekoma Volleyball Club treated him poorly when you were both first years. 

But of course, your big brother, ever the shining knight in armor, swooped down just in time to remind Kenma just how great he was at what he’s doing. Not everyone can become the official team setter in their first year. 

Then, he dyed his hair.

You didn’t know what was going through his mind when Kenma made such a major decision. He never consulted either you or Tetsurou about it; he hadn’t mentioned a single word implying that he’s going to bleach his hair freaking blond. 

One day, as you and Tetsurou were about to fetch your friend for a walk to school together, Kenma suddenly appeared out of his doorstep with a too saturated shade of yellow coating what was originally his jet black hair.

Tetsurou hollered hideously, clutching his stomach as he gasped for air. “K-Kenma, what did you do your hair?” 

His face reddened at your brother’s unwarranted reaction. A hand reached up to scratch the back of his neck, probably crumbling under embarrassment.

“I didn’t want to…stand out,” he muttered faintly.

Your brother stifled his laughter. “But you did the exact opposite, though.”

“Nii-chan, you’re being a prick!” You smacked him upside his head, to which he responded with a yelp. 

“W-what? It’s true!”

Irked, you grabbed him by the ear and twisted until he begged for your forgiveness. Tetsurou could really go over his head sometimes. 

“Don’t ask me, ask him!” You pointed towards Kenma, who’s eyeing your banter bizarrely. 

“I’m sorry, Kenma! Maybe you should’ve just went with brown first before dropping this bomb in our faces so suddenly.”

“That was barely an apology!” 

“Can we just go?” Kenma interrupted, seeing that these kinds of exchanges between you and Tetsurou could go on for hours.

As you made your way through the busy streets that led to Nekoma, you walked a few steps behind your brother and Kenma, admiring the latter’s bold choice of hair dye. 

You thought his hair looked pretty, but you wouldn’t tell him that.

As your second year in high school rolled in, you’ve been attending the volleyball club’s practices more frequently. Tetsurou was the new captain now, and holding that position usually meant that he’d be the one calling the shots on-court. 

That was not the case.

You watched idly by the bleachers as they practiced with a team that came all the way from Miyagi. The tension between the coaches was, for some reason, far more severe than that of the players on the court. 

This was one of the rare times you saw Kenma with a sly smile stretching on his lips as he played a full game. It was probably influenced by that orange-haired player from the other team that had energy levels that rivalled Bokuto’s. 

But so far, in most of the games you’ve watched, Tetsurou hardly ever gave commands, especially when Kenma was in the front row. Nekoma’s plays revolved around their setter, to whom they trusted the fate of the match with. 

When the game finished with Nekoma as its victor, you rushed down to the court, eyes sparkling with glee. 

“Kenma, that was really cool!” You jumped up and down before encasing him in a hug. But when you remind yourself how he feels about physical contact, you broke away immediately.

Surprised at your sudden appearance, his lips part a little, but he bowed as a thanks. “I do my best.” 

“Kenma, is she your girlfriend?” The orange-haired player from earlier asked.

The words took a little late for your mind to register.

You? Kenma’s girlfriend?

“No!” you exclaimed, fleeing from the scene before the midget from the other team could ask more questions. 

“Tch,” Kenma remarked, “I was the one he’s talking to.” 

You’ve got it bad for him, you realized.

Whenever you headed home with Tetsurou and Kenma after their practices, you’d always find yourself walking a little bit closer to the setter whose eyes were glued to his DS. You didn’t really say anything to him, you simply settled with watching him play Mario Kart over his shoulder. 

At school, since the two of you were classmates, you’d often try to grab his attention in whatever way you can. Annoying him? Check. Asking if he could share some of his hotdog octopi with you? Check. Wondering he could tutor you on a lesson you already knew about? Check. 

You’ve tried all the tricks in the book, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Kenma already picked up on the way your stares lingered a little too long on him when you parted ways going home; the way his name sounded a bit more endearing when you spoke it; and the way your smile stretched a little wider with him than when you talk to other people. 

What’s worse was that his black roots were starting to show. Even if your good-for-nothing brother officially dubbed him as ‘pudding head’, the first thing that went through your mind when you first notice the outgrowth of his hair was: Oh, no. He’s hot. 

You struggled with these intrusive feelings for a while, unsure if you should go up to him and just spill so it could be gotten over with. Never did you consider the chances of Kenma liking you back. Was he even capable of liking anyone in general? You didn’t know.

Well, you didn’t want to know. 

“Oi.”

You quirked a brow at your brother as you finished the rest of your cereal. What could he want so early on a Saturday morning?

“Kenma’s coming over.”

Oh. 

“What, do you need my blessing or something?” you wondered. 

He shrugged. “Just thought you’d want to know.” 

You did. 

Tetsurou informed that the setter would be dropping by at around ten in the morning. It was nine-thirty and your nerves were all over the place. 

You made sure every corner of the living room was swept to perfection, every throw pillow fluffed, and every piece of furniture dusted. A small, nagging voice at the back of your mind prattled on about how this wasn’t the first time Kenma was visiting, so why were you making such a huge fuss over it?

Before you could come up with an answer yourself, the doorbell rang, and your heart nearly leapt out of your chest.

Tetsurou was the one who answered it. It was the mailman.

Calm the fuck down, you thought. It’s not even—

“Hey, Kenma!”

Behind the said mailman, Kenma made his way to your front door, eyes indifferent as he let himself in. When the mailman was done handing sealed bills to Tetsurou, your older brother shut the door behind him. 

Desperate to seem as casual as you could, you flung yourself onto the sofas, feigning a ‘comfy’ position with stiff posture. Nice. Very casual looking of you.

Kenma took a seat beside you, greeting you with a curt nod. Tetsurou explained that your dad got some Blu-rays in the cabinets, but if he wanted, you could all just settle for a good Netflix series. Kenma insisted on the latter. 

“I’m just going to give these to Mom,” Tetsurou informed as he made his way up the flight of stairs. “Don’t do anything weird while I’m gone.”

Your eyes narrowed at his remark. Nothing remotely weird ever took place whenever you’re left alone with Kenma during these movie marathons. Tetsurou knew that. 

Unless…

You handed Kenma the remote, who promptly selected End of the F***ing World to play on the TV. You’ve watched the show about a dozen times already, so you’re familiar with James’ introductory monologue at the beginning. 

“I’m James. I’m seventeen. And I’m pretty sure I’m a psychopath.”

Yep. What a good show needs was straightforward introductions of its characters’ personalities. 

Right after James uttered the words on-screen, you could’ve sworn Kenma moved closer to you by a few inches. Huh. Must be a figment of your imagination.

As the edgy teenage lead went over a part of his backstory, you could tell that Kenma was definitely closer to you than he was two minutes ago. But you thought nothing of it and continued to watch the show, dismissing your observations as a mistake. 

By the time Alyssa made her appearance in the frame, the distance between your shoulder and Kenma’s was but a hair’s width. You gulped. 

What exactly were you supposed to make of this now? You’ve been friends for years, yes, but the closest you’ve got to Kenma was when you accidentally hugged him after their game with the orange-haired midget. You drew blanks every time you tried to recall any other time where space was this absent between the two of you. There’s no protocol regarding what course of action to take when the shy boy was the one making moves on you. 

Then, when Alyssa and James began making out with a considerable lack of passion, Kenma’s hand suddenly ensnared yours. The contact made your eyes widen in disbelief. You alternated looks between the union of your hands and his indifferent expression, but made no moves to remove your hand from his grasp. 

They felt…soft. Even after practice after practice, toss after toss, his hands were undeniably soft. 

You liked it. 

Your eyes glazed over his face. His hair framed his face suitably, giving more emphasis to his darkening roots. You liked this look on him far too much for your own sanity. You wondered why your brother was the one popular with the girls when this boy right here had a pair of golden eyes that could kill a man. 

But maybe, you’re a little lucky that you have little to no competition when it came to Kenma. Not that you were implying that there was something to fight for in the first place. You weren’t even sure how he felt about you!

At the corner of your eye, you could see a figure dipping his head from the openings in the staircase. Tetsurou snickered to himself, seeing that his plan had come to fruition so quickly. 

You’d deal with your pesky, match-making older brother later. If you so much as utter a single word that could shatter the comfortable silence that permeated the air, you felt like you wouldn’t be able to bask in this chance again. You couldn’t stand the idea.

Kenma was a man of a few words. Most of the time, you’d get a more sincere vibe from him if he did things for you. 

And that’s exactly what you wanted.

#haikyuu!! #haikyuu!! headcanons #haikyuu!! imagines #kenma kozume #kenma kozume hc #kenma kozume x reader #kozume kenma #request #anon #hqscenario

[sirbadgerduke]

Retrospective Thought: “Top Ten Video Game Bosses”

BI figured I’d give my thoughts and opinions about some video game bosses I’ve fought and beaten, maybe even multiple times. No doubt a great villain can often times become a just as great or better boss for you to face; utilising everything you’ve learnt up to that point and then applying whatever other tricks you’ve gained along the way to the boss...or you completely exploit a glitch, use some really OP, nearly broken something or other.  my own guidelines upon how I’m constructing the list: No more than two bosses per franchise, sometimes a franchise just has a bunch, so I’m going with two at most here. Emotional factor, badass factor and impact factor are all the judging components for this list. This is MY list and MY list ONLY, some will agree, others will venomously not, this is just my opinion and not more espousing this list as fact.  So lets begin the list!  10) Vergil - Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening  Devil May Cry is one of my personal favourite franchises in the Hack ‘n’ Slash Action genre. DMC3 is the creme de la creme, the magnum Opus of the DMC Franchise, boy does it have some really awesome bosses. I went with Vergil because he is just like Dante, only less of a joker and more serious and willing to live up to his father’s legacy, for better or worse. He is quite literally the twin bro of Dante and polar opposite too. While Dante is goofing and joking, Vergil is serious and focused. The battles you have against Vergil show that not only are they different, they skill level are not even on the same level, often rocking you around like a game of pinball while you struggle to gain the upper hand in his counters and zoning techniques. The music, the stages, and the combat itself is all superbly done well, you never quite feel like you can rest on laurels against the darkside of the Sparda Twins. it goes without saying that this fight is as emotional as it is badass, especially the last fight against him, to which when you beat him? you found out his fate. Oh yeah, it’s also a prequel to the first game. Great battle, great character.  9) Nemesis - Resident Evil 3 I’m a huge fan of Survival Horror games, whether it be the psychological fuckery of Silent Hill or the despondent, bleak teeth gritting pulse pounding Alien: Isolation. Silent Hill is not quite known for it’s bosses, that I can say, and Alien does not really have one. Hence why Nemesis is on the list. Possibly most intelligent of the Tyrant Class B.O.Ws from Umbrella, Nemesis is one vile, deadly, and ugly as fuck Tyrant. He Pretty much bursts on the scene, kills Jill’s acquaintance via tendril through the mouth and then proceeds to chase you. You are often give the choice of either actually facing the fucker head on, or to escape. Facing him nets you some pretty good rewards, but escaping allows you to conserve your items and ammo. From its first introduction and throughout the game there’s this sense of paranoia, sense of foreboding that he’s following you, even stalking you. This is a masterclass for Survival Horror bosses, and Nemesis stands to be the example that sadly, no one else follows.  8) Brainiac - Injustice 2 Fighting Game bosses are, for the most part, really hard to pull off. You don’t want them to be pushovers, but at the same you can’t have them be stupidly cheap and OP(See Azazel from Tekken 6, Shao Kahn from the MK Series). Brainiac, while no push over, is definitely a balance struck; Not too difficult and quite possibly conquerable. His characterisation, personality and dialogue are all well put together as well, making for a fantastic fighting game boss. A believable threat for the heroes, that even forces them to desperately look for desperate measures to take him out.  7) Grigori The Dragon - Dragon’s Dogma  I’m not going to lie, Skyrim’s Dragons are very lackluster and disappointing in regards to fighting one. Grigori though? quite possibly one of my favourite monster boss battles from a game to date, especially from an RPG to boot. Starting out as a harrowing, tense as hell chase, with Grigori rampaging like all good Dragons do, then proceeding to an air battle, in which you are scaling the body of this giant flying dinosaur to a grounded battle. This boss can easily described as epic, in my books. emotional factor and impact come in the form of Grigori taking your heart, and then much later takes your “beloved” to bargain with you. This battle is fantastic and highly underrated. 6) Liquid/Revolver Ocelot - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of The Patriot Metal Gear Solid is one helluva fuckin trip of a series. Often times goofy, often times really fucking serious, but mostly all tims “fantastic”, so no doubt the final chapter in Solid Snake’s life has a big boss battle right at end to send it off? Eeeeeh, kinda? you pretty much confront Ocelot, and engage him in CQC, up close and personal fisticuffs. This is personal shit, this fight hangs a lot of stuff at stake in the balance, and oh boy is it nail biting. Plus as well the health and stamina bars go from 1 all up to 4 as you punch, kick, throw and choke Liquid Ocelot who then slowly becomes Revolver again.   5) Senator Armstrong - Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance OH BOY, is Metal Gear Rising just the stupidest, most badass shit to come from PlatinumGames? Well yes it is. This boss battles is just off the walls, equally, stupidly badass, silly and profound to some really strange way. The battle starts off with Raiden facing off against a huge Metal Gear for starters, which in most games would’ve been the final boss and thats it. Not Senator Armstrong though, he’s got “NANOMACHINES, SON” that allow him become the most anime as fuck villain in a MGS Series.  4) Slave Knight Gael - Dark Souls 3:The Ringed City DLC. OH YEAH?! I COULD’VE CHOSEN ARTORIAS, GWYN, ORNSTEIN AND SMOUGH, FUME KNIGHT RAIME, SOUL OF CINDER ETC ETC. But I didn’t chose thoses badasses, I chose a pathetic slave knight consumed by the Dark Soul all for the long-haired girl to paint a new world for those who’ve suffered too long. Admittedly, the battle serves as a “Best of Compilation” but by god it’s done nearly perfectly. Gael will most certainly fuck you up without hesitation and proceed to do the same again, again and again. Lore wise, the battle is fantastic and quite saddening too. An ally who helped you, driven mad as you must slay him. His design is also one of my favourites of the more humanoid bosses of the DS Trilogy.  3) Giygas - Mother 2: Earthbound Well then, this final boss came out of nowhere with it’s creepiness, it’s rather dark as hell atmosphere that somehow makes it even worse since most of the game has been rather weird and goofy up and till this point. Straight up fighting will not work against it, you gotta pray to beat him, and boy does it get weirder. Any further and I’m heading into spoiler central, but I’d recommend everyone, especially Undertale Fanboys.  2) Colonel Nohman as The Pilot of Anubis/Aumaan Anubis - Zone of the Enders/ZoE:The Second Runner. Both games use Anubis, ZoE1 he’s an undefeatable boss to which you just manage to distract him to live once more. in the Second Runner? it starts off the same but eventually, you begin to fight on with him, especially gaining the Zero Shift ability. Nohman is the perfect example of a recurring boss/villain that does not suck. He’s easily fantastic, and oh god he’s just so over the top it’s really fu, you clearly hear how well the VA gets into it. The battle is pretty hectic and superbly solid. One of my all time fave mech based game.  1) Gehrman - Bloodborne Where do I begin? The fantastic boss theme, the superbly designed boss arena or is it one of the coolest human enemies in which it feels like you’re fighting a close friend who has no real objection to fighting you reglardless. The hunt calls for him and he beckons without a question. The battle itself is near perfection personified and quite possibly one of the best boss battles. The music plays, giving you a sense of dread, and surprisingly, sense of melancholy. the Bloodborne has countless epic and fantastic bosses in their own. It’s a battle through and through, one of my faves as well as legit being one of the best bosses in most games.  This is my list! how you enjoy reading it, if you disagree or one of your faves is not only list,  just remember its MY list of my OPINION, some bosses not on are super great or I just never played them

#video games as art #video games #games #devil may cry #resident evil #dark souls 3 #bloodborne #Injustice 2 #devil may cry 3 #zone of the enders #dragons dogma

[snowdragon4]

Young Justice case files 801G

The suicide Squad

Chapter 1: Meet the new boss.

“I’m not resigning, just taking a leave of absence…I need a break Kaldur… You, me, Wally, we founded this team, without him….”

—:0:—

One year later. Belle Reve penitentiary

A familiar throbbing pounded against the inside of Floyd Lawton’s skull, as well as irritating chafing against his wrists. “Ugh, fan-fucking-tastic.” He lifted his head, rolling it from side to side to stretch and crack his neck. Opening his eyes he wasn’t surprised to see that he was back in the circular room, shackled to a chair by his wrists and ankles. “Good to be back.” He droned. Looking around the room he noticed that six of the twelve chairs were filled with the unconscious bodies of his fellow cell mates.

“WOO!” He jumped, startled from the sudden exclamation coming from a chair to his right. “Who’s ready to have some fun time?! Ha ha ha!!”

He rolled his eyes before looking at the colorful woman bouncing in her chair. “Good to see you too Harley.”

Harley Quinn squealed with excitement. “Hey DS! Ready for good ol’ fashion playtime!?”

“Oh yes,” another of the crew was beginning to come too, “anotha’ rip-roarin’ good time, eh mates?”

“Mornin’ Diggy!” Harley bounced again. “Aren’tya excited!? Hehehehe!?”

The Aussie rolled his neck. “Let’s jus get this ova with.”

Floyd shook his head. “There’s gotta be a better way to get us here then to gas us in our cells.”

“Awe, but it’s the highlight of my day.” Harley stuck her lower lip out.

Before anyone could correct her on how horrendous the drugs after effects were, another of the group let out a low growling his as he began to wake up.

“Now how do ya feel Sheila?” Digger Hawkins glared at Harley, “you woke up Croc-y.”

The animal hybrid known as Killer Croc hissed in his throat before opening his reptilian eyes.

“Wakey, wakey Croc-y-poo! It’s playtime!” She was only met with another low hiss and the barking of fangs. Clearly not appreciating being woken up.

Floyd however turned his attention to the final two. He wasn’t interested in the older looking man with the long face, who was slowly starting to wake up, instead his focus was on the girl. A young girl with cool blue hair and pale skin.

“Who’s the squirt?”

Harley followed his line of sight to the girl. “Oh, That’s Caitlin. She’s new, well new-ish. They call her ‘Killer Frost’!” She added a bit of drama to her introduction.

Digger examined her, before curling his lip. “A bit young for the big ‘ouse eh?”

“Not when you’ve killed an entire halfway house by freezing them to death.” Harley giggled.

Dr. Light had finally woken up, managing to hear the last parts of the conversation about the girl seated next to him. Floyd could see the good doctor look her over with a hungry look in his drug induced eyes.

“Poor girl,” he said in a low tone to his voice, “she can’t be no more the sixteen.”

“Eighteen douchebag,” Caitlin’s eyes opened revealing a pair of clear ice blue orbs that began shooting in all directions with fear, “What the f—what is this!?” She screamed.

From the door at the far left side of the room stepped an African-American woman dressed in a short purple business suit, and a cold commanding air about her. The Warden Of Belle Reve, Amanda Waller. “Good morning.” She greeted. “Everyone comfortable?”

“What is this!?” Caitlin shrieked.

Waller glanced at the frightened girl with disinterest. “Settle down miss Snow. This is what you wanted. A chance to get your sentence commuted.”

“Commuted!?” She wriggled in her chair as if begging to be set loose. “You said you were gonna transfer me to that meta halfway house in Metropolis?!”

Waller approached her, hands behind her back and face placid. “I’m sorry. I must have misplaced your paperwork. So you still belong to me.”

“Waller being manipulative? What a surprise.”

She glared at Floyd, but ignored his comment for the moment. She stood in the center of the villains addressing each of them. “For those that are new to this dance,” she gestured to Caitlin and Dr. Light, “welcome to Task Force X. My unique team in dealing with issues the ‘Hero’s’ are to, for lack of a better word, pure to handle.” There were nods, smiles and murmurs of agreements, “however, lucky for you, I won’t be running this operation.”

“Awe, but mommy Wally,” Harley pouted.

Waller frowned. “You will instead be on loan for the duration of this mission.”

“Alrigh’. So where’s the boss, let’s get this shit show started.”

Floyd didn’t care who was running things as long as he Shaved time off of his sentence. Suddenly he felt a cold chill raise the hairs on his arms and neck. A heaviness settled over his stomach in a way far worse than Waller could ever do when she was around. Looking around the room it was easy to tell that the others were feeling just as uneasy as he was, but what he didn’t catch until now was dark mist settling over them.

Waller grinned. “It seems our host has arrived.”

A man slowly emerged from the shadows, dressed in a black overcoat resting over a three button black suit and a blue tie. Underneath combed ink black hair was a pale face with five o’clock shadow, a crooked nose and a small grin. What drew Floyd’s attention however was his eyes. A deep brown so dark they were almost black, and empty. Completely empty.

He glanced at each member sitting in the circle. “So this is my merry band?” It wasn’t hard to locate the thick English accent he spoke with.

“Your merry band that’s on loan.” Waller corrected.

The stranger shrugged before beginning to pace around the prisoners. Harley Quinn, with her limited movement, did her best to puff out her chest as he passed her. “‘Ello govna’. God save the Queen. Pip pip, Cheerios. And what’s your name talk, dark and handsome?”

He winked down at her. “Names Landon darling. I run hell.”

A loud scoff sounded from Dr. Light. “Run hell? Like the devil or some nonsense?”

Landon turned around, his grin vanishing and eyes going cold. Well colder. “Flattering, but no, not the devil. Old Lucy left office a few thousand millennia ago and since then a few Kings have taken his place. I am the latest in the line of rulers. Don’t worry, I won’t make you bow.”

“Awe,” Harley looked up at him with large pouting eyes, “but I like being on my knees.”

He turned back to her, his grin returning. “I don’t doubt that at all.”

“Alrigh’ stop the flirtin’. You got some action for us or not?”

“Right,” Landon acted as if he had forgotten the others were there, “let’s get to business. First things first.” He flicked his wrist so that his palm was face up, followed by excruciating pain. The six prisoners began shouting, screaming and roaring in agony as electronic devices the size of quarters shot from their necks and landed, bloody, in his hand. “You won’t be needing these silly things.”

Floyd rolled his neck, feeling a slight tear in his skin, the next thing he knew Amanda Waller was howling with rage. Landon rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers, wrapping Waller in tendrils of black energy and removed her from the room. “Now that we’ve gotten rid of the foghorn.” He let the devices fall to the ground, removed a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his hands of the blood.

“What the hell was that?!” Caitlin screamed.

“Lil’ bombs they placed in our necks.” Digger coughed. “Keeps us docile. Looks like Mister Landon ‘ere just set us free.”

Landon gave a small nod. “I’m of the firm belief that such drastic measures aren’t necessary. Especially when I can offer so much more than miss Waller. Time off your sentence? Pfft! Child’s play.”

“Oh really? And what can you’s do for us?” Harley asked.

Landon smirked, clenched his fist and threw into the air a handful of what looked like black sand. “Well that depends my dear,” the sand began to flow through and around each prisoner, “What is your desire? Money? Power? Fame?” He glanced at Killer Croc. “Hair?”Floyd wasn’t sure what the others were seeing, but for him he could see his daughter Zoe through the shadows forming before his eyes. Freedom? Zoe? A new life? It couldn’t be possible. “Like I said,” he snapped his fingers releasing each of them from their visions and chairs, “anything you desire.”

“What’s the catch?” Dr. Light stood up and folded his arms over his chest, but Landon simply narrowed his eyes at the skinny man.

Landon gave a weak smile. “I’m glad you asked. Sure I promise riches, but what’s the saying? Nothings free?”

“So what’s the caper, Big Ben?” Harley had thrown herself over his shoulder, her eyelashes batting so fast she could blow out a candle.

He regarded her with a knowing and sly smile. “Are you familiar with an organization called ‘the Light’?”

The group tensed. “We’ve had dealings,” said Floyd, “worked a few jobs for them. Why?”

“Well Vandal had asked me some time ago if I wanted to join his super secret club, to which I respectfully declined. However we came to an agreement, I stay out of their business, they stay out of mine. A term that he, unwittingly, violated.”

“Your barking up the wrong tree, mate.” Digger laughed, “we can’t take on, much less kill, Vandal, fuckin’, Savage.”

I’m not asking you too. He has something of mine, and I want it back.” He spun around to address the group. “Get it back for me and whatever it is you desire is yours. Pretty simple.”

“Do we have a choice?” Caitlin frowned.

Landon quirked a brow at her. “I suppose so. I would have figured you would jump at the chance for some, as our Australian friend would say, action.”

She curled her lip in disgust. “I’m not even supposed to be here.”

“No one is,” Light chuckled, “I don’t know about her, but I’m game.”

“Count me in,” Digger raised his hand.

“My deepest desire, uh, hells to the yeah!” Harley clapped.

Floyd shrugged with a half grin. “Sounds good to me.”

Everyone glanced at Killer Croc who flashed a fang filled grin. “I’ll take that as a yes,” Landon approached Caitlin. “And you?”

She looked up at him with a mixture of anger and disinterest, but finally shrugged a shoulder. “Not like I’m doing anything.”

“Splendid!” Landon clapped his hands once and turned to face the rest of the group. “I will send you to the storage facility so that you can get changed for the ball. There, you will meet your liaison. His name’s Chip. Lovely fellow.” He held out his hands towards them, but then stopped. “Oh one more thing.” He faced Dr. light. “Doctor, it’s my understanding that your incarcerated for the attack of a child during one of your ‘light based attacks’ am I correct?”

A slimy grin spread across his long face as his eyes flirted over to Caitlin. “Well she wasn’t technically a child, age fifteen, but yes. Well at least that was the only attack they caught me for.”

Floyd clenched his fist at the sounds of Lights obnoxious laughter. Sure he was a killer, the Deadshot, but never Women, and never kids. What he wouldn’t give for a gun right now.

Surprisingly, Landon joined him in his laughter, sarcastic laughter. He stopped then looked past Light, as if looking at something in mid air, and muttered a single word. “Eat.”

Floyd jumped backwards, a look of fear in his and then on the other’s faces. Seemingly out of thin air something pinned Arthur to the ground then began slashing, biting and clawing at his back before flipping him over and continuing to rip him apart piece by piece.

The whole scene lasted about two minutes, and never once did Light stop screaming. Not until his throat had been ripped out.

“What, the bloody FUCK was that!?” Diggers eyes widened further when saw bloody paw prints, the size of a bears, stalking away from its kill and to join Landon at his side.

Landon patted the air about shoulder level. “A hound of Hell. Unseen my mortal eyes.” His gaze went dark with warning. “Just so you all know. I’m always watching.” He snapped his fingers and the members of his new suicide squad vanished in black smoke.

For the rest of this chapter, check out the link below.

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13191770/1/Young-Justice-case-files-801G-The-Suicide-Squad

#young justice #young justice fanfic #suicedesquad #harley quinn #deadshot #killer croc #amanda waller #dc comics fanfic

[myaekingheart]

summer road trip ; day one

It’s been a really long time since I’ve gone on a massive road trip like this-- when my boyfriend and I were long distance, it wasn’t nearly this intense. He still lived in the same state. Parts of me were excited and other parts were wondering if I actually wanted to do this. I’m typically just not a fan of traveling. I’m like a plant: I like to take root in one place and stay there for as long as possible, and when I move I don’t cope very well. I knew I wanted to come with my parents this time if my schedule permitted, however, since my cousin, who I was very close with as a kid, is getting married. I haven’t been home-- to my real hometown-- in four years. I’m excited to finally see everyone again-- and all in one place-- but at the same time I’m a little bit nervous. I’m so accustomed to being really bad at handling long trips, both the journey and the stay, and so far this is a 16 hour drive and a week long stay. We drove half of the way today, and are staying overnight in a hotel before driving the rest of the way tomorrow. So far, so good, I guess. I packed all my clothes on Tuesday after my last final exam, then packed almost everything else yesterday. My parents headed up to my town last night, spent the night in a hotel there, and then picked me up this morning. I was far more prepared than I expected to be. I had everything packed and ready to go by the time they showed up. We loaded up the car, then I said my goodbyes to my boyfriend which honestly brought back so many bittersweet memories. This will be the longest I’ve been away from him since we moved in together and looking back, I have no idea how we ever managed to do the long distance thing for a whole year beforehand. I’ve only been away from him for twelve hours now and I already miss him like crazy. I guess that’s what happens when you spend every day of the past nine months with someone, though. When you’re away from them, you have a much harder time dealing. I wish he could’ve come with us, but he has work literally every single day for the next week and can’t afford to take time off. Plus, we’re going on a trip together later this summer that he needs to save PTO for. Either way, though, this still doesn’t stop me from wishing. I miss him so goddamn much, I can hardly stand it. I don’t know how I’m going to stand sleeping alone tonight-- I swear I’m going to wake up tomorrow morning completely forgetting I’m in a completely different state, rolling over to curl up beside him only to fall face-first onto the floor. So in a few words, it’s going to suck. And I know the longer I’m away from him, the worse it’s going to get. Day one wasn’t too bad, it just felt like every other day he has a long shift at work and I’m away from him. The drive so far today was long and dull, to say the least. We drove through three states and took the scenic routes for most of it which was a nice change of pace compared to the boring, crowded highways. I got some decent pictures-- I made sure to pack my camera so I could take lots of great photos while I was gone. At least my boyfriend will be able to share my trip with me in that way. I got to spend quality time with my parents, too, which has been both nice and also, somehow, kind of bizarre? It feels like old times again, when I lived with them, and we’ve been reminiscing a lot. I didn’t realize how detached I had seemingly grown from them over the past couple months until now, spending long days in the car with them and traveling cross-country (kind of). I’m having flashbacks to when I was little and my dad worked craft shows and we’d drive every weekend to someplace new. It was always an adventure, but this time feels different. I’m older and I’ve spent so much time away from them. I almost feel like a different person when I’m with them now. I can’t outwardly say fuck anymore like I do at home because they don’t like when I use strong curse words (even though they do often slip and I think they’ve relaxed a bit in that regard). With my dad anyways, I feel like a mature adult person with him rather than just his kid. They don’t have to hover over me and guide me anymore because I can guide myself. My mom, on the other hand, is hyper about spending more time with me. She misses me so goddamn much and I get it, I miss her, too. She just gets really hyped up and kind of childish, though, which sometimes is a little stressful to deal with. Like at dinner tonight, we went out to get food once we checked into our hotel and my dad and I were talking about college stuff, specifically his college experiences and then my mom just chimed in laughing about how the headlights of the car pulling out of the parking lot were shining on us and she could make shadow puppets. I appreciate her naivete, especially in this dark and tragic world, but at the same time when she talks over me and gets too excited about her own words that she mutes out mine, I don’t know. It just gets really old really fast. I don’t know, I mean, all that aside, day one so far has been pretty decent despite spending all of it literally just in the backseat of a car listening to music and talking and napping. I think the biggest downfall of the day, honestly, is just tonight sitting here in a hotel room wishing my boyfriend were with me and trying to tune out the way too loud TV of the people in the room next to us (SERIOUSLY WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU WATCHING THAT NEEDS TO BE THAT MOTHERFUCKIN LOUD??? AT 10:30PM??? PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SLEEP GODDAMN IT). Here’s to hoping tomorrow goes by quick and we can get to our destination in time. At least I brought a surplus of activities to keep me occupied, like my laptop so I can binge Netflix or play Sims or write, and my DS so I can play games, and my tablet so I can find a drawing program and finally start getting back into digital art. Something like that. I don’t know, just...I hope it’ll be good. I hope it’ll all be really good.

#summer road trip 2018 #ramblings

[infotainmentplus-blog]

Five ways foldable phones could change the game An early folding display concept from Lenovo. After years of incremental improvements, smartphones are hurtling towards a big technological leap: folding displays. Foldable phones have been around the corner for years: we’ve seen patents, prototypes, manufacturing and rumors. Heck, Samsung’s mobile chief has even talked openly about the company’s progress with foldable displays. The flexible phone chatter of the last few months has had a different feel, though. It looks like 2019 could be the year the floodgates open. The ZTE Axon M got the ball rolling with foldable phones. ZTE has already launched one product in the “folding” category: 2017’s ZTE Axon M. Unlike that device, which has two separate displays and folds in the middle, the new breed of phones is expected to set the world alight with single, flexible screens. Editor's Pick Samsung may launch folding screen phone as a pilot next year Samsung looks like it may finally be taking some tentative steps towards the manufacture of a phone with a foldable screen. According to The Bell, the company has shared its plans for the production of parts associated … These devices may come in various forms, but the first versions are tipped to have an “outward folding” display, wrapping around the front and back, rather than facing each other inside like the pages of a closed book. Here’s how tech like that could change the industry. New ways to interact For the past few years, manufacturers made smartphones better, with more RAM, nicer cameras, and faster processors in each new iteration. Barring some minor exceptions like the fingerprint scanner (which I’m told will, one day, be the way to pay for stuff at the store), nothing has changed what a phone does, just how well it can do it. The 4K display might look fancier than the HD display, but its core function is the same. On the other hand, when the second camera was added to phones, it opened up new opportunities: face-to-face video calls! Selfies! Nobody wants to go back to the days before front and rear cameras, and a folding display may have the same impact. How many ways will folding phones reinvent the smartphone experience? Flexible screens could essentially turn a single display into two displays. Dual-monitor setups are well established in the computing world. They’re a quality of life improvement some people can’t live without. Folding phones could bring similar multitasking benefits. The recent apps or multitasking menu on Android was instantly popular because it speeds up how quickly you can access a previous app — but what if you could pin the previous or most used app to one of your screens? What if you could have shortcuts to any frequently accessed information or feeds there? Rather than half a screen each, it’d allow for a full-sized split-screen mode. Sound enticing? An example of an inward folding smartphone design. It’s not just shortcuts, either: apps and games could be developed with two displays in mind, providing additional functionality. Overlaid buttons and toggles may not need to crowd the display if they could easily be planted on another, and we could see the rise of Nintendo DS-like games (can I get a Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks port please?). In one move, manufacturers could double the smartphone display area and provide some killer new features to boot. All this is based on the assumption the phones will just be built to f0ld in half. We could see even more folds, for three- or four-screen setups. The screens themselves could even allow for different input methods, not just “pinches,” “long presses,” and “swipes,” but perhaps “bends” and “flexes” too. Manufacturers have always tried to get more smartphone screen onto a smaller frame. In one move, they could double the display area and provide some killer new features to boot. Cameras will become much better Smartphone cameras are the most important feature of the phone for many, and manufacturers are under pressure to deliver great experiences on the front and rear of their phones. This has worked out pretty well so far. Front cameras are geared towards portrait images for selfies and video calling. Rear cameras are dedicated to, well, everything else. The Samsung Galaxy S9’s rear camera is great, but what if it was this good on the front? However, this ostensibly leads to one camera being worse than the other, as manufacturers try to optimize their spending and resources. With folding phones (specifically, outward folding phones), the main camera could act as both the front and rear camera, depending on whether the device is open or closed. If your phone's front and rear cameras were as good as the Pixel 2’s main snapper, would you complain? This would mean OEMs could focus on one exceptional camera, rather than splitting their attention between two, and free up valuable space inside the handset for other components. Making one great camera setup may mean we lose the specialization we’ve come to see in recent times, but if your phone’s front and rear cameras were as good as the Pixel 2’s main snapper, would you complain? No more cracked screens Okay, folding screens may not rule out cracked screens for good, but they are set to make them far less likely. As folding displays must be flexible by nature, they should be far less likely to shatter in an accidental trip to the floor. Flexible screen tech could spell the end of shattered displays. Current smartphones have made great strides in this regard — Corning’s Gorilla Glass has made them sturdier and more resistant to breaks than ever before — but they’re still pretty brittle. A fact only made worse by the current war on bezels and glass sandwich design trend. Editor's Pick AGC creates high-durability flexible glass we could soon see in folding phones Samsung Japanese manufacturer Asahi Glass (AGC) has created a new flexible glass that could be used in future folding smartphones. The news arrives from OLED-Info (via SID) which says chemically strengthened 0.07 mm glass will … Though we don’t yet know which materials will be used in flexible display production (plastic OLED or LCD look like front-runners), we know it will be fundamentally more impact resistant, which means we could be saying goodbye to cracked screens, expensive repairs, and bulky smartphone cases. More choice for consumers, breathing room for manufacturers Should I get a phone with a 1080p display or a 1440p display? Do I want 3GB of RAM or 4GB of RAM? These are the kinds of questions you might have when buying a phone today, but you’ll soon have a much more interesting one: do I want a screen that bends or not? The LG V30 (left) and the Galaxy Note 8 (right) might seem like wildly different phones to us enthusiasts, but not to everyone else. This is a welcome eventuality: a brand new flavor of handset that gives us another choice come upgrade time. Smartphone manufacturers won’t instantly ditch the regular models either, so you won’t be forced to get a folding device if you buy a new Samsung flagship or anything. The Samsung Galaxy X, Samsung’s rumored folding phone, would likely arrive right alongside the Galaxy S10 and S10 Plus, just like the iPhone X arrived alongside the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus. Smaller manufacturers may be able to capitalize on folding phones' weak spots. This new technology will no doubt also benefit manufacturers. Right now, everyone’s battling to outsell each other with, in some cases, extremely similar products. Folding phones could give manufacturers with more cash a new space at the top end of the market, giving smaller brands a chance to focus on what they do best: make regular smartphones. HMD Global is making some great phones like the Nokia 8 Sirocco (left) and Nokia 7 Plus (right). Companies like OnePlus and HMD Global can let Huawei and Samsung worry about folding phones for the next couple of years. The first generation of devices will likely be expensive and unpolished anyway. Smaller manufacturers may be able to capitalize on folding phones’ potential weak spots, like short battery life and thick bodies. Some smart flexible phone ideas might even trickle down to regular smartphones, letting OEMs offer similar ideas on cheaper devices. The final nail in the tablet coffin Tablets are becoming a rare breed. In 2014, Best Buy CEO Hubert Joly said, “I don’t think there’s a category that ever took off so quickly and so big in the history of tech.” I bet he’s never seen one die like it, either. The reason is partly that tablets, laptops, and smartphones have merged in recent years. We’ve gotten small form factor touchscreen laptop hybrids, Chromebooks — which deliver an Android-like experience in a laptop — and large-screened smartphones that work as PCs. The folding phone could make them disappear for good. The Samsung Dex Pad turns your smartphone into a portable PC. Opening up a flexible handset to double its display area would effectively turn it into a small tablet. With the same operating system, these devices would be a more than suitable replacement. The only downside is they’ll probably cost more in the early years. Still, when both touchscreen laptops and folding phones can become a tablet, what’s the point of getting just a tablet? What’s your take on folding phones? Are they going to eventually replace regular smartphones? Will they be another fad? Give us your thoughts in the comments. , via Android Authority http://bit.ly/2tqoVST