#placed narrative

[elinbean]

a win for tortured writers and haunted artists everywhere

#alan wake #alan wake 2 #the game awards #tga #the game awards 2023 #tga 2023 #for real. I was so happy to see it win that first Best Narrative I could’ve screamed #to see a game go places no game— and I’m starting to think no film or tv show either— has ever gone creatively #(and execute the landing SO ENCHANTINGLY WELL) #to see a game like that receive even part of the recognition it so richly deserves… it makes my heart swell. #I’ve never felt so creatively inspired in my life. I’m so happy

[qiinamii]

You gave Xiao your heart.

He thought it was a spar invite.

[Next]

#qiiarts #xiao #lumine #frisk #the art i got too self indulgent about that undertale always has a special place in my heart #also me thinking wouldnt it be interesting to use the flirt route not as frisk #and my fondness to xiao and traveler in particular at this point in time then bam this comic #they're close friends at best with how i see their r/s but putting the tag just in case #xiaolumi #i wasnt sure to upload this at first cus theres a second part and then over time i had figured out a full narrative #soon enough in the future ill do it :3 yes this is a tiny for-fun crossover series incoming #just these two failing horribly at expressing Interest #genshin impact #undertale

[hajihiko]

A surprise visit

#Ryoma hoshi #Hajime hinata #Sdr2 #Super danganronpa 2 #Danganronpa 2 #Danganronpa #Drv3 #danganronpa v3 #danganronpa v3 killing harmony #an art #This is what I ment by being self indulgent w ryoma backstory lol #An au from actual v3 ofc but built on the idea that Ryoma and Izuru both got out for some HPA activities #Conditionally of course. And the dialogue where Fuyuhiko offers them both a place to stay and yadda yadda #You get it. My self indulgent little narrative

[destiel-wings]

this is dean directly speaking to us with the fanfiction writing power and living outside of the narrative he's trapped in, asking us to do what chuck and the cw don't allow him to have

#spn #spn 10x05 #fanfiction writing #destiel fanfiction #fanfic writing #fanfiction #dean x castiel #deancas #destiel #spn meta #supernatural #fanfic #spn fandom #dean winchester #like it's a direct plea #he wants us to create destiel fanfiction #notice how the camera is placed like he's diectly speaking to US in the girl's place? #spn writers who tried doing it are speaking through dean's words #dean the character is asking us to let his dreams come alive outside of the narrative he's can't escape from #and us... we're just gonna have to keep making his wish come true #let's keep writing pals #dean wants you to write destiel fics #he told us

[comradekatara]

i feel like the reason aang isn’t as adored and beloved as he should be is because he’s the protagonist but he’s also not an archetypal western classical hero. i don’t agree with the entirety of that “avatar aang: feminist icon” essay because i think the role of patriarchy and gender in atla is more complex than what that essay posits, but he definitely complicates the masculine ideal of heroism and generally does not conform to patriarchal notions of masculinity. which is very deliberate, especially as contrasted with sokka and zuko’s explicit struggles with the imperialist/colonial standards of an aggressive, militaristic, and chauvinistic masculinity. aang is subversive because he represents an absence of war in a world ravaged by it. through his link to a (somewhat more) peaceful and harmonious past, he represents a better possible future. as katara would say, he brings people hope.

but people don’t like that he’s not visibly edgy or tormented like zuko is (even though he’s a far more tragic character than zuko is, just fyi), that he isn’t “cool” (even though he’s literally the coolest kid ever, just fyi), that he “gets the girl” (even though if anything, she gets him) despite being twelve and bald and nice (the horror!). katara is the more classical hero of the narrative, as its narrator and its catalyst, the adventurous revolutionary who gradually learns to control and use her powers and eventually becoming a force to be reckoned with. zuko is the classical anti-hero of the narrative, his “redemption arc” constantly hailed as one of the greatest character arcs in television. so people expect katara and zuko, as very obvious narrative foils who parallel each other every step of the way, to be the obvious couple, because based on every romance narrative we’ve been inundated with throughout our lives, within our patriarchal society, they “just make sense together.”

but as much as katara is a protagonist in her own right, aang is the show. the title quite literally represents the central thematic tension of the entire narrative, the colon illustrating the implicit divide between his duties to this brave new world in desperate need of justice and balance, or his duties to his extirpated culture as the last true voice among them. aang is the central figure because this tension represents the crucial ideological battle happening across the entire show. aang is the avatar because he is the only person in the entire world whose values have not been shaped by war.

people constantly laud zuko, in particular, for being the most interesting, complex character in avatar. but i personally don’t even think that’s true. which isn’t to say that zuko isn’t fascinating in his own right, of course, but rather that he’s certainly not the only complex character this show has to offer. he just happens to monologue about his anguish constantly. but aang wasn’t raised as an imperial prince, and so he approaches the world, and his own pain, in a very different manner. the reason he immediately goes to ride giant koi on kyoshi island, mailchutes in omashu, and otherwise goofs around after learning of the shocking ramifications of his people’s genocide is because that’s how he copes with his pain. unlike zuko, who never stops talking about his aches and yearnings, aang represses his trauma and hides his tears behind a mask of upbeat cheerful goofy twelve year old antics.

until he can’t anymore. until he snaps. both katara and zuko wear their hearts on their sleeves, and that includes their rage. but aang’s rage is dangerous specifically because it represents that he has been pushed past his limits, that the conditions of this world in which he is a perpetual stranger, temporally displaced and dispossessed, are intolerable. that peaceful reconciliation is impossible. and the fact that he persists beyond that breaking point, over and over again, to firmly and resoundingly establish his ideals even as they conflict with everything he has learned about this world, a world that is not his own even as he can never return to the world he once knew, is what makes him so unique, so powerful, so beautiful.

i know that aang isn’t the typical hero, neither narratively nor aesthetically, but really, that’s the entire point. the world, our world, needs something other than what we have now. we need someone who will not succumb to the ideals of domination and victory through violence to assert themselves. we need someone who stands firm in refusing to kill the firelord, even as everyone he knows tells him otherwise. we need someone who knows that darkness cannot be vanquished through more darkness, but can only truly yield to purifying light.

and sure, aang is a child, and often acts childishly. sure, he’s not conventionally handsome and alluring. but one thing i will never understand is how that somehow negates his appeal to the masses. because even if you don’t appreciate how crucial he is to the themes of this narrative you all seem to love so much, how can you not love his adorable little face? his precious little laugh, his zest for life, the infinite well of love and kindness he holds in his heart? people who hate aang are crazy to me. because you are, quite literally, hating the world’s most precious baby boy.

#aang #katara #zuko #analysis #hot takes #sorry this one is kind of all over the place #very stream of consciousness bc it’s loving aang hours #and he’s not only meaningful narratively #but he’s also just SOOOOO CUTE #I would literally pay money to babysit him #which I think defeats the point of babysitting but whatever #he’s just. so precious 😭😭😭 #also fwiw I don’t really fw kataang either but like. it does make more narrative sense than the alternative #and if it had been executed better . well. who can say

[magpie-trinkets]

continuing that "maya tries to contact claire" post, i present you the post-Spirit of Justice follow-up

#post that caters to ME specifically #let me first tag #ghost trick spoilers #lost future spoilers #now that that's out of the way. you know who's on that suitcase ;) #also claire is fucked up by time travel shenanigans so it's possible let's just say #also ghost powers grow and change with time sooooo. let's play with canon #layton “i have a dead girlfriend” and yomiel “i had a dead girlfriend” bisexuals #also yes the whole gang traveled to london they're just strolling around #maya had unfinished business and now that she's more powerful she's BACK #this would take place 7-or-so years after lost future/plvspw so layton is in his mid-forties here. i had to look it so correct me if im not #also yes this is a crossover AU i have rotating in my mind i love the source material and layton's and claire whole thing no shade to that #powerful narrative that made me cry #but with aa and gt magic fuckery we have the technology #also about the jail bit. that's a fic i am writing (one sentence every month) #ghost trick #professor layton #ace attorney #my art #ms paint #GOD. that wall of text is surely something

[withdenim]

Sorry for the stupid line callback he was just like. Specifically requested or something. Idk .

#Corvus #Corvus tdp #tdp #the dragon prince #aaravos #aaravos tdp #mystery of aaravos #my art #the nova blade #I know narratively Soren’s probably gonna have it bc aaravos was the catalyst for his family’s shit #even though it was their faults in the first place #but like yk what I mean #STILL THOUGH. #if ezran is faced with the need to take a life to keep peace #I think Corvus should offer to take that burden from him yk #maybe I made up how much they care about each other in my head #but in my head oh boy it’s interesting #btw the constellation behind them is the one in the intro with the cello

[flashhwing]

i love the kirkwall squad because they all have such protagonist energy. any of them could be the main character. except for varric but he did that on purpose. any of the rest of them could be the main character

#like with origins or inquisition every companion has a Plot and Character Arc #but they are all very definitely side characters #like you couldn't reframe the game from their pov and still make narrative sense #unless you were going for a side-character-as-the-main-character exploration type thing #(which is a cool perspective that i eat up every time i see it but i digress) #but the kirkwall squad all have so much going on independent of each other and the player character #you could make the game from any of their pov #and the only time that'd be out of place would be like. 'man how come my character isn't the one duelling the arishok' #this has been a post #dragon age

[mecachrome]

Alex Albon for High Performance

It was this weird thing, because — for example with Yuki, I wanted to take his seat! He was a potential candidate that I could replace. And I remember having that chat with Helmut Marko, and he told me at the time, "You need to driver-coach this guy." And I was like, "I'm not going to. That's a potential seat." And he said, "No, he's already signed. He's guaranteed." So I was like (throws hands), "Okay, fine. Then I'll help him."

#alex albon #* #so many good quotes in this.... saying he only developed his competitive drive upon losing his childhood privileges amongst them #the continuous professional struggle against natural temperament & symptoms of empathy & selflessness truly gets me every time #alex's propensity for self-dissection but also his simultaneous understanding of the drawbacks of such awareness 😵‍💫 #also #it is interesting that finally having his support systems in place and being the most mentally resilient he's ever been in his career #unintentionally stressed logan's rookie environment and replicated the media scrutiny & narratives he underwent his 2nd year with max #i will stop but..... alex albon i adore you

[i-am-but-a-beta-fish]

something about the fact that so many players think (understandably) that ghost is the eponymous hollow knight until they're confronted directly with their existence. your protagonist is the knight—not the hollow knight, just the Knight. like the game is quietly saying, "this one isn't hollow." and then you get further, and you learn more, and by the time you've reached The Hollow knight, you've realized that oh, this one isn't either.

#IDK. something about narrative foils i think. #hollow knight #i seek a place to ramble merely

[mortispoxi]

Seeing Twitter users recommending the People Make Games documentary as a good way to get insight on the issue is so….

I know, I’m always extremely disappointed whenever I come across someone who thinks it’s the end all be all explanations regarding the Studio ZA/UM situation.

Recommending that video always comes with a heavy caveat from me that the person needs to stop around the 40 minute mark since the interviewer shows a very clear bias that’s unbecoming of a journalist.

Regardless, now that more people are finding out about these layoffs, which might take out members of the studio that have been there since the beginning, it could finally help smack some sense into those Twitter users that actually thought, FOR SOME REASON, Rostov, Kurvitz, and Hindpere were lying for shits and giggles rather than seeing what's ACTUALLY going on which is that the investors have a very obvious agenda against the real wronged party. Hopefully this'll also open their eyes to how the People Make Games video fed into this twisted narrative that Kurvitz was somehow at fault/responsible for the theft of his own IP, but that might be asking too much from their concrete brains. Here's hoping though!

#disco elysium #studio za/um #za/um #people make games #and I’m not even getting into Bratt’s response to the criticism he got #this man deleted so many YouTube comments that pointed out the inconsistencies and bias #it’s such a reddit conspiracy theory but at the time I briefly thought Kompus paid him off to push the narrative in his favor #now I’ve talked about this before in a post from almost a year ago #but i truly believe Bratt’s heart was initially in the right place but let his anger cloud his judgement #after kurvitz rightfully denied him a way to wrap up his video in a neat little bow cause he knew the studio would use his words against hi #something in Bratt must've snapped cause all the blame got pushed on Kurvitz for no reason other than he felt slighted by his response #it's kinda tainted PMG's work for me b/c moving forward I'll have doubt if the story truly is being accurately reported #my response #mp

[vaguely-concerned]

Merrill banters I am thinking about all the time always 24/7

merrill truly will incessantly worry she's stupid and missing the point all the time and then take you out with the most beautifully worded and compassionate breakdown of the thematic spine of DA2 you've ever heard. no actually daisy I think you're the only one getting the point here slowly but surely

especially this one, actually: (also why I could see how bioware would bring merrill into DA:D on solas' side, but also I really really don't want them to because her arc is just -- it's just incredible and I don't want them to mess with it lol)

'I don't think people are cleansed by fire'. people make mistakes and you have to believe in them anyway. yeah basically that's the thesis of dragon age huh

#'hawke is my friend. they are my people'. simple not stupid. I love you so much merrill #dragon age #dragon age 2 #on second thought let's not go to kirkwall; it is a silly place #merrill #the way you also sense through merrill's story how varric is like... protective to the point of slightly paternalistic over her #(not in a deliberate/ill-intentioned way but just with the intensity of how badly he wants her to be ok. I feel u bro) #but also clearly respects her insight and intellect so much #he gives her by far the most 'glimpsing the shape of the narrative' moments #merrill is kind of diametrically ideologically opposed to solas when you think about it -- her wanting to preserve the past #is about helping the people who are already *here*; to give something back to them #solas is planning on killing the people already here to give *someone* back the past one day #(I don't necessarily think he's entirely convinced by himself tho so like let's see how that one plays out haha)

[robinfollies]

Been really pondering Fantoccio and the cursed citizens lately… like, if you’re stuck in a city for 15 years with some of your only company being these cursed globby versions of the people that used to surround you normally, you’d start to Notice Things that remind you of who they used to be, right?

#I HAVE SO SO MANY THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS GUY HE MAKES ME SOOO SAD. FANTOCCIO…. #i really do think about his time in the city a lot. like a whooole lot. #like ofc these are weird amorphous blobs but yknow. there may still be some semblance of who they used to be within them #they have old habits or hang around in places they used to live idk idk. #they still have some of that old humanity they used to hold i guess… even in their cursed forms… #a little spark of hope that maybe everything will go back to normal someday #i dunno. and maybe eventually they even start to LOOK normal. all in ur head #fanto’s supposed to be younger here btw!! id personally put him at around 12-14 maybe? #also the bear baker’s name is Miss Cardamom!! unfortunately she is doomed by the narrative…. so sad… ú_ù #the bg characters were VERY VERY FUN to design!!! hehehe #billie bust up #bbu fantoccio #bbu the fella #robin’s art #2024 art #didnt mean to go as hard on the art as i did… twas supposed to just be a simple sketch comic HAHA #comicfollies

[ragesingoddess]

Odysseus, on his journey home to Ithaca, was visited by a ghost.

#this was born from my silver/odysseus brainrot which is constant and is making me progressively more insane #a story is true a story is untrue #etc #john silver #black sails #the odyssey #odysseus #long john silver #james flint #captain flint #i keeps thinking about how both odysseus and silver represent charachters haunting the narrative and are at the same time haunted by it #they csnt escape it but are also the ones that shape it #they were both characters trapped into their own legend in a way #characters that got caught up in a war they never wanted to be a part of in the first place #storytellers forced to same the same story over and over again #anyway.

[jahiera]

one of the things that hits really nicely for me with Astarion's romance is that he never really encourages or wants you to be some kind of "protector." there are several instances where you can offer him that; protection, swear to him you'll kill cazador, or after his personal quest--I don't have the screencaps on hand, but you can directly say to him that he'll never have to need something like the ritual, because you'll protect him, and HE says back something along the lines of "It would be nice to not need you as my grand protector.... but I appreciate the thought." -- there's tinges here early in act 1 maybe of distrust of faulty promises yes, and considering Tav naive / not comprehending the power of cazador and therefore unhelpful, but even as you proceed, he's never interested in trading a lack of protection for a dependency on a protector.

in fact, the only time he's like "I'm doing it for US... to keep US safe <3" is when he's trying to manipulate/convince Tav into letting him do the ritual. "You want whats best for me right <3333" is the thing he actively uses to try and sway you over to his side, because he knows that's an emotional string to pull on.

there's an insistence of preferring equality in the subtext there; that protection or a skewed imbalance is not what Astarion wants, at his core. he doesn't want a nurse, or to be pitied, or be beholden to anyone. to try and pity him invites his irritation, even outrage. trying to swear to protect him at best gets a fond "I appreciate the Thought" and at worst a "don't be a fucking idiot." it would be veeeeery easy for the narrative to slip into something generic about being able to fix him, but it insists on someone to depend on as equals. give and take in true partnership. and in the post-ritual ending you can really feel the lack of equality there too--only now, he's in the position of both """"protector"""", and more so than that, obsessive beholder of Tav, and he exercises it in overt fashion; of course he'll protect you, your future, your life, is his after all. (and there's a LOT about that that's very interesting to me, and equally as complex & intricate as the no-ritual route in which two people meet on equal footing.) the game never shames this approach of wanting to protect him either, it acknowledges the good intent, and simply shows in Astarion's reactions that there's more here to it than that.

#bg3 meta #bg3 spoilers #like one thing I wanted to avoid throughout my playthrough was winding up in a position where #Tav/Emrys is babying him or putting him down as someone who needed to be Protected and Defended #in my specific playthrough anyways Emrys is noooot interested in being someone's nurse #since it's the kind of trope that can be easily fallen into; but the game doesn't really allow it #Astarion doesn't really allow it #he's just Not interested in that. he doesn't think you can protect him and even at the very end #when you PROVE you can #he isn't interested in that dynamic. he's interested in a partnership of equals #vs the ritual ending where there's no equality; there's possession and desire in its place #both are so interesting & so quick to subvert the expectations of the narrative #like they knew it would be possible to push the I'll Protect You With My Life button and it's never the thing #he's most receptive to #even at the beginning. 'i'll watch your back if you watch mine' hits better for him than promising his safety #because you can't... promise that. not really. #anyways. babygirl. #astarion

[ethanhuntfemmefatale]

sometimes i think about an AA universe where Edgeworth didn't have to be shuffled off every 5 seconds so he could maintain credibility as a rival....where Phoenix didn't have to win every case...yes AA is a game yes i understand why it did that for the narrative. but when I look at those lonely scared 24 year olds from AA1 i can't help but think that their version of a happy ending would be to be able to get used to each other. to face each other over stupid cases and small things. Sometimes one winning, sometimes the other, until it hardly matters anymore, all that matters is finding the truth together. I want them to take each other for granted!!! i want them to look at the other across the courtroom and say "time to face this bitch for the hundredth time i guess!!" these poor bastards have never had anything approaching emotional stability before let them have each other damn it

#idk im just. emotional #i feel like at that age?? at that place in their character development??? romance aside that would be legit be #the best happiest situation for both of them. and i feel things when i imagine it #we see so much of the grand gestures intense moments side of their relationship #they're always helping each other in their darkest moments and stuff like that but i wish they could also have #a very mundane professional dynamic. bitchy and prickly and earnest cause they both care a lot. and loving in their way #it's sad to me that so much of fic revolves around the idea that 'when phoenix and miles start dating miles will finally stay' thats #so tragic!!!!!!! am i the only person who thinks that's tragic #the game had to keep them apart for Narrative Reasons but i know my boy miles edgeworth and he would want to get bored of that spiky hairdo #and that handsome face. from seeing it in court so much. #narumitsu #wrightworth #phoenix wright #miles edgeworth #ace attorney #aa1 #aa2 spoilers #aa3 spoilers