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↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ seven daemons.txt now available ꒱

sadly, i couldn't get a recording of this to work… but i had forgotten with the definitive edition of gamedec, there was a dlc named 'seven daemons' where you play as ken zhou. i decided that, before starting my new playthrough of the main game (to go hunting for goodies and lore)… i wanted to try this out.

so i did! i've made notes as i played, and taken screenshots where i could. obligatory warning for spoilers below the cut, as i make a deep dive into what happens alongside my interpretations of the plot / ken's character.

immediately off the bat, i love that the game starts with ken playing a racing game (sky racing) and being so immersed in it that he curses when receiving a call that, tragically, costs him the victory. that said, i also love the dialog you can choose for the phone call:

꒰ hi, my name is shivani thana; i'm the [chief innovation officer] of the peh corporation. i'm calling because i'm in need of assistance. you're ken zhou, aren't you? the e-sport star turned gamedec?

[ask if she's a fan] yeah, you're a fan?

i don't really understand e-sport, and i wouldn't be calling if you were still a professional player. ꒱

ouch! poor ken. he takes it like a champ, though. and understandably so when you read his codex entry about himself:

anyway, the first game we appear in is seven: the days long gone… fitting given the dlc name. the codex describes it as a

꒰ postapocalyptic rpg mixing magic with technology. ꒱

and is a pre-information era game that even ken hadn't heard of despite his career(s). things are pretty standard until you find shivani's avatar almost lifeless. she's got no data, and a technician comes in to chastise you… until they recognize you.

i unfortunately didn't have the skill, but i'll include the option because it's funny to me:

꒰ ken zhou? the ken zhou? what are you doing here? [he gasped] are you having an affair with shivani?! i won't tell a soul!

[sleeves; say that it's a love affair] ꒱

but even if you don't say that option, the technician still makes a few playful nudges until ken replays the recording of his call with shivani. which is interesting as it stands because it could mean a few things:

gamedecs record their calls for legal reasons; harder to bury evidence and raise wrongful suits if there's proof of the communication

all calls made using certain devices are recorded for a variety of reasons; easier to make targeted/personalized algorithms through data collection, potential content moderation on the large scale… there's a lot of interesting corporate possibilities there that really could emphasize the cybernetic dystopia.

which also ties in to the whole idea of daemons in this universe.

they're a lot different than what i've seen them defined as.

in traditional computing, daemons are simply programs that run as background processes (and, as a fun fact, usually end with the letter d for classification; d for daemon).

in the cyberpunk 2077 universe, of which i'm also a massive nerd for, daemons are a unique type of quickhack that allows netrunners (or anybody with the right cyberdeck) to effectively upload malware onto other people's decks.

in gamedec's virtualium, daemons are ai assistants that mold themselves based on the data of their user. things like virtualium habits, personality, the usage of your seat and suit… they mold themselves to your tastes and needs to become the perfect virtual assistant; a new right hand, so to speak.

and this somber tone is reflected through ken's perception of the virtualium, particularly where shivani's office is concerned:

then again when we convince the technician to leave us alone as we investigate:

beyond that, the first major choice of the dlc is whether or not ken allows ryan, one of the peh corporation employees, to install one to him. seeing as the only experience we know so far is that having a daemon has created a backdoor of sorts to 'shut down' shivani, the obvious answer would be to refuse…

but for the lore, we allowed ryan to install the software, meaning that peh corporation now has full access to our helmet.

almost immediately, we see the consequence of this: a crossbow bolt strikes ryan mid-sentence and he starts bleeding and itching, stating that he has to log out and that these 'pranks' target the programmers who work on the daemons. we don't get much time to process it, though, as our daemon springs to life and begins walking us through the installation process which.. immediately provides us some funny characterization for ken.

i opted for winning, as ken seems very reminiscent of/nostalgic for his career as an esport champion. since i have scalpel now, i was able to see what the daemon did with our data; not much was learned beyond the fact it was able to observe what we were doing.

going around the environment gives us a few interesting convos, including one with a watcher named alex. they're trying to persuade peh corporation to publicize their ai-training data, as, quote:

꒰ corporations always try to evade releasing data, open data act or not. peh's argument here is that it's a trade secret. i don't care about trade secrets [em] i care about public interest. algorithms influence the very way we experience the world. ꒱

what i find nice is that you can sympathize with alex, with ken stating,

꒰ come on. they've surely considered the consequences. it's their software [em] they don't want a lawsuit. ꒱

… and then you're propositioned to allow alex insight on the daemons as peh corporation has attempted to stunt their investigation. of course, we agreed, and summon our daemon to learn how to subtly scan them and record the data.

one of the more interesting interactions is attempting to scan an ai by the name of artanak, because it doesn't work. he catches you, but he isn't really upset by that. in fact, he provides some relatively interesting insight on the development of ai in the gamedec universe:

꒰ last time we also coexisted; ais helping humans with their tasks. until it turned out that we were able of making independent decisions. sometimes our decisions influenced humans and obviously it ended with war and destruction. i'm surprised no one here remembers it, really. and other ais seem even more secretive than in my time. ꒱

in investigating the area, we find evidence pointing toward the person who'd shot ryan, and thus attempt entering the creative team's space. likewise, helping out others in the area reveals that some daemons have had glitches regarding company crediting, leading you to believe something is wrong in the coding department. unfortunately, either gate doesn't let us through and we'd have to earn an authorization token. the way you earn the token is honestly kind of fun; a group of employees playing "the josh"… aka just standing around telling bad jokes. you have to out-joke them in order to win your place.

some of my favorite ones that ken can tell include:

꒰ you know, i'll have to go to the bar after this… but you set it so low, i'll have to dig. ꒱

꒰ you're a dictator. with the emphasis on the dick. ꒱

winning the josh gets ken the title "silver-tongued punslayer" which is just. so funny to me. he seemed genuinely proud of his dad jokes! and i love that for him.

the coding area is technical and there's not a lot there either in terms of new development. fascinating convos about the migration of npcs in this game's rework into a virtualium, though! and as you snoop around, other employee daemons confront you and lead you to your secondary deduction of what is wrong with shivani's daemon. with what we saw re: the crossbow bolt and footprints, it feels clear the daemon itself is not the problem (as much as it would be in a practical sense; this level of ai augmentation seems highly unethical at best and outright dangerous at worst) but that someone meddled with it.

of course, ken puts it more succinctly:

so we head to the creative division and i am. immediately stricken with love because there is a person with a funky robot mask and modulated voice. shoutout to dungeongeek for being that guy(tm).

anyway, the investigation continues and you find the armor of the would-be assassin, along with a note, and more footprints. as an aside, here's another funny bit of dialog:

then i'll be so for real… i spaced out a little, got up to do something, forgot i was playing, then came back very confused. but that's not the game's fault, that's just my brain being my brain!

investigating the creative division involved a fun side-plot about rewritting a questline for the game's revamp, and then you meet the alleged attacker. they talk a lot about their distrust toward shivani and the daemon program as a whole, and how there will be no apologies for the attack against ryan. you also end up getting an interesting code that cracks through the daemon software, and find yourself back in shivani's office…

and into an argument between ryan and a peh corp representative who seems all too eager to remove ken from the premises. after persuading them to let us intervene, we connect to shivani and find an amusing little like… minesweeper meets frogger type bridge puzzle. beyond that is shivani's avatar and a data node. you find out she'd been personally modifying things and creating, effectively, a carbon copy of herself against the company's safety protocols.

and that's effectively it! in my case, ken… saved the daemonn and ended up killing the original shivani, as her conscience had been so far gone it was impossible to discern the two.

i would assume there are more peh corporation sympathetic endings, given there is an npc that allows you to betray alex/interrupt their investigation, as well as the fact there was a pretty extensive branch of deductions to make for what seems like a straightforward case.

the premise was really interesting, and i like how this does play into ken's characterization throughout the main plot of gamedec. he's very headstrong and very focused on doing the right thing within his role, even if he takes a more laissez-faire approach to the conversational side of it. to have witnessed how one corporation could so easily take advantage of people, only to find out that it's potentially happening again, though on a much larger scale...

it really adds weight to his interactions with the player and to his death.

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↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ admin.txt now available ꒱

finally started to sit and play through the game again! well.. sort of. i decided to start with the seven daemons side story where you play as ken zhou.

i'm taking notes while playing (unfortunately i cannot record things right now), so i'll be putting out a nice little post about that once i get around to getting through it/finishing the story!

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i'd meant to post this around the time i did my playthrough on youtube, but this is what i used for the intro of my first video. it's the cgi intro to the game; transcription is as follows:

꒰ it's a strange profession—gamedec; you're neither a player, nor a detective. you know the rules, and how people break them. how they leave a… digital trail.

and there is always a trail.

a flaw in the source code, back doors used by cheaters, anonymity—skins—used to cover up unpopular activities. all can be found; all can be traced. with a lot of skill… and a little bit of luck—sometimes more than a little, because there are surprises even for a gamedec…

but in the end? you keep your eyes on the prize. this is my story. what's yours? ꒱

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another video from the game files; it's the splash behind the credits! enjoy this 1-minute long clip of torkil.

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↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ admin.txt now available ꒱

happy new year! i never did get around to replaying gamedec back when i said i would, but as a new year's treat to myself... i will finally be revisiting it (whilst waiting to hear back on a job offer).

got some posts queued up already, and looking forward to sharing what i find!

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unfortunately i can't get much into the game files (unpacking things is a nightmare for unreal engine-based games, in my experience)... but i can access a few things.

here's a splash of background footage called "war clip compressed".

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TRANS DAY OF REMEMBRANCE 2024

Don't have the spoons to make a spiel about how solidarity in and out of the community is important, but wanting to highlight that as is. We need to speak out and show up for those who fight alongside us, and for those we've lost*.

*Remember: Any concrete numbers you see statistics wise are not 100% accurate. The violence against us, especially our BIPOC siblings, are majorly under-reported.

Here are some organizations and resources to share around, with attributions and pronouns (as of writing the post). I'll section this off based on what type of resource/org they are... more or less--

Archival.

2600 Pages of Hate: Transphobia and Fascism by maia crimew (It/She)

Black Trans* Oral History Project by Blu Bachanan (They/Them) and Naomi Simmons-Thorne (She/They)

Digital Transgender Archive by K.J. Rawson (He/Him) et al.

LGBT+ Intersectionality, a Google Drive full of Resource Books

The Mirror Memoirs by Amita Swadhin (They/Them), Jaden Cervantes-Fields (He/Him), and Bilen Berhanu (She/Her)

NYC Trans* Oral History Project

The Trans* Library (Carrd)

University of Victoria Transgender Archives (Canada)

Varied.

Baltimore Safe Haven, established by Iya Dammons (She/They).

Bklyn Boihood, established by Black masculine-of-center queer and trans people of color.

Black Trans Femmes in the Arts, established by Jordyn Jay (She/Her)

Black Trans* Travel Fund, established by Devin Michael Lowe (He/They) and Morticia Godiva (Her/Shey)

Brave Space Alliance, established by trans and gender non-conforming individuals.

FedUp Collective, established by Zain Lugay (They/He), Sam (They/Them), Cody (He/Him), Ian (He/Him), JO Walduck (She/They), et al.

For the Gworls, established by Asanni Armon (They/Them; Sources Vary)

The Gender Affirming Letter Access Project, established by transgender, nonbinary, and allied mental health and medical providers.

"The Gender Binary" is a Misnomer; Gender Has Always Been a Hierarchy by Talia Bhatt (She/Fae)

Privilege, Power, and Pride: Intersectionality within the LGBT Community by Kittu Pannu (He/Him)

The Okra Project, established by Gabrielle Inès Souza, Max Rigano, and Celyna Jackson (Pronouns Unknown).

Organización Latina Trans in Texas, , established by Anandrea Molina (Ella/She, Rigoberto Reyes/Monika Adams (Él/Ella/She/He), Gia Pacheco (She/Ella), Danny Lopez (Él/He), Noemi Garza, Barby Ledesma, Vanessa Garcia, and Kassandra Rivas (Pronouns Unknown).

Princess Janae Place, established by Jevon Martin (He/Him) and Dani Farrell (He/They).

The Transgender Education Network of Texas, established by various BIPOC trans community members.

Trans*, Gender Variant, and Intersex Justice Project, established by Janetta Johnson (She/Her), zy'aire nassirah (He/Him), zen "zee" mills (She/Her), van dell (They/Them), Valentine McClain (They/She), eli b. (They/He), et al.

TransgenderNI (Northern Ireland) / Belfast Trans Resource Centre, established by trans community members.

TransInclusiveGroup, established by Tatiana Williams (She/Her/Goddess), Krys Gordon (She/Her), Adrianna Tender (She/Her/Diva), Mei-Lan Diaz (They/Them), and Na'stacia Buchanan (She/Her).

Trans Latin@ Coalition, established by Paolo Coots (She/Her/Ella), Arianna Inurritegui-Lint (She/Her/Ella), Alexa Rodriguez (She/Her/Ella), et al.

Trans* Needle Exchange, established by Oliver (Pronouns Unknown).

And remember, community is what keeps us alive.

It is important to call out bigotry in our spaces; important to let those here know we value them and their existence. Do not solely fight for those who are gone, fight for those who are living with us here and now.

Let the folks in your lives and in your communities know you care about them. Listen to them. Learn from them. None of us are free until all of us are free.

Which is why I'm also going to drop broader-focus organizations and resources for the global community:

alQaws for Sexual & Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society

Canadian LGBTQ+ History

India's LGBTQ+ Movement

LGBTQ+: A Troubled History in Mexico

LGBTQ+ Orthodox Jewish Education (PDF)

LGBTQ+ Narratives in Pakistan

LGBTQ+ Rights Ghana Support Fund

Nigeria's Queer History

Queer Activism in Africa

Queer Nigerian Emergency Fund

Feel free to add onto this (preferably with more grassroots kinda stuff/individual spotlights; anything goes long as it's vetted really).

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sketch and sketch with colors because... yeeeah.

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HURRICANE HELENE RELIEF

Since I'm incredibly anxious and very much annoyed, I'm compiling this post as a sort of master list of relief organizations and individual fundraisers for those in the path of Hurricane Helene.

Many of the links I post on this won't be individuals, but I encourage those within the path to add their links to this post in reblogs! Likewise, if you have any organizations / volunteer / grassroots efforts y'all would like to share, please do so!

LAST EDITED: 9/29/2024 - MAKE SURE TO CHECK REBLOGS FOR UPDATES!

My list is particularly focused on widely accessible resources, as well as Florida specific resources since... I'm from Florida.

(INTER)NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

American Red Cross - The American Red Cross is on the ground helping people as Hurricane Helene approaches land as a very dangerous storm. Helene may produce winds over 150 mph, a massive 20-foot-high storm surge and as much as a foot of rain. Prolonged power outages and tornadoes may occur. The effects will be felt hundreds of miles inland including in Georgia and the Carolinas.

FEMA Disaster Assistance Improvement Program - The Disaster Assistance Improvement Program’s (DAIP) mission is to provide disaster survivors with information, support, services, and a means to access and apply for disaster assistance through joint data-sharing efforts between federal, tribal, state, local, and private sector partners.

Roll Mobility - An application that equips wheelchair users with reliable information about the accessibility of restaurants, public spaces, businesses, trails, and parking areas. Good information to have on hand, especially for those evacuating from their home areas.

Warmline Directory - Providing extensive yet accessible resources that empower individuals to find the mental health and wellness resources they need through a directory containing accurate and in-depth information. For those unfamiliar: Unlike a crisis line, a warm line operator is unlikely to call the police or have someone locked up if they talk about suicidal or self-harming thoughts or behaviors. A good resource for individuals in mental distress due to natural disaster circumstances.

Food Not Bombs - Recovers food that would have been discarded and share it as a way of protesting war and poverty. They also reduce food waste and meet the direct need of communities by collecting discarded food, preparing vegan meals that they share with the hungry while providing literature about the need to change our society. Food Not Bombs also provides food to protesters and striking workers and organizes food relief after natural and political crisis.

Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies - The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies (The Partnership) is the only U.S. disability-led, 501(c)(3) organization that prioritizes equity, access, disability rights, disability justice, and full inclusion of people with disabilities, older adults, and people with access and functional needs before, during and after disasters and emergencies.

FLORIDA

Volunteer Florida Disaster Fund - The Florida Disaster Fund is the State of Florida’s official private fund established to assist Florida’s communities as they respond to and recover during times of emergency or disaster. In partnership with the public sector, private sector and other non-governmental organizations, the Florida Disaster Fund supports response and recovery activities.

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 52 Organizations Listed)

GEORGIA

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 60 Organizations Listed)

TENNESSEE

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 49 Organizations Listed)

NORTH CAROLINA

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 45 Organizations Listed)

Beloved Asheville - A community-led coalition dedicated to providing home, healthy, equity, and opportunity for all.

Triangle NC - This links to another post I've made, but Triangle Mutual Aid is organizing supply drop offs as well as financial support.

SOUTH CAROLINA

State and Local Level Referrals - When a disaster occurs, local governments often work together with community leaders and organizations to provide on-the-ground emergency management. Curated by FEMA. (Has 44 Organizations Listed)

INDIVIDUAL FUNDRAISERS

Support a Resilient Family Seeking a New Home - LINK ; Tumblr @junpei-iori-ace-defective (Close Friend of the Affected) | Fundraiser Text Below:

My name is Adam. I'm not the best at this; I never thought I'd have to do this, but my family and I lost our home on September 26th due to the hurricane Helene here in Florida. No one in our area thought it would get bad, but we didn't have any rain. All of a sudden, the water rose, and by midnight, our home was flooded with three feet of water. I had to carry our pets to the neighbors and my disabled wife through five feet of water. Then, my elderly disabled mother and grandmother through the water. We lost all of our clothes and many of our belongings, and our landlord will be having us move out. We have nowhere to go, so today I'm asking for help from the kindness of the world. Anything can help. If I can get enough to get us into a new home, it would be a blessing. Thank you all, and God bless.

Help Rebuild Lives After Devastating Flash Flood - LINK ; Tumblr @undeadnecromancer (Close Friend of the Affected) | Fundraiser Text Below:

On September 27, after being trapped in a flash flood for 5 hours, my father, Jeffrey Fuller, and sister, Kayla Fuller, left with their lives ❤️ but lost everything else. My father had set his life up to be simple and enjoyable. He didn't have a lot extra, but he had everything he needed, and now all of that is gone. Unfortunately, he did not have flood insurance, and the older you get, the harder it is to bounce back from something like this. For a man who has always shown up for everyone he loves, he needs us to show up now. Please help my father rebuild.

If you have seen the video circulating around from Jeffrey Fuller where it looks like a river is going through his house and he ends it with a “Love you all,” you have seen what has brought on this devastation.

Hurricane Helene Aftermath Help - LINK ; Tumblr @moonenjoyer (Affected Individual) | Fundraiser Text Below:

Man I hate to do this but I'm in Valdosta, one of the cities hit the worse by Hurricane Helene. It's BAD here. In particular, there's no estimate of when we'll get power back. Word on the street is it could be a week or longer.

I work from home and going without power that long, I won't be making any money. Meanwhile my groceries are all spoiled in a fridge with no power and my car is on E. All the gas stations are down atm and when they're back up I KNOW gas prices are going to be crazy high because of all of this. In fact, EVERYTHING is going to be more expensive for a while because of this.

If you have anything to spare to help me with gas and groceries and just surviving this, I'd really appreciate it. If not, a reblog/share would mean a lot. Thank you ❤️

Save Nate and Amanda's First Home - Urgent Hurricane Needs - LINK ; Tumblr @luckyfirerabbit (Affected Individual) | Fundraiser Text Below:

Hi. I'm Porter Henderson. This isn't about me, though. You’re going to see a lot of fundraisers with Hurricane Helene. This might be a little different.

You see, I’m writing this on behalf of my landlords and friends, Nate and Amanda. The home we share with an additional disabled man in Lithonia, Georgia had some repairs that they couldn't afford, made much worse by the hurricane. They'd been limping along like everyone dealing with inflation and underemployment, but the situation has become urgent, and they need and deserve help.

Nate and Amanda have been my friends for over a decade, and when they heard I was no longer able to work and in a bad situation, they offered me a place in their first home. I told them I wasn’t sure what or when I would be able to pay. They told me that if I ever won my disability case I could start paying rent then.

You see, I'm trying so hard to save this home because they’ve tried so hard to save me.

I was so grateful to move in, and they treated me like family. When I lost the ability to drive, they made sure I got to my doctor’s appointments, and still do. When I can’t afford food, they take me to food banks, and what I can’t find there they’ll help me get at the store. They meet all the needs they could reasonably meet, and then a couple more.

I’ve lived here for three years now, and they’ve never stopped assuring me that I am wanted, even if I can’t contribute to the household on a daily basis. They have never let me go without if there was any other way. They have helped friends and strangers every time they have seen a need. They are unfailingly honest, incredibly trustworthy, and extremely hardworking people.

They've never had much, but they've shared everything they have.

Now, though, the hurricane turned a seem in our roof into a gushing waterfall, and finally into a large hole in Nate and Amanda's bedroom ceiling.

We tarped the leaking roof from the inside to channel out as much water as we could, but with a literal hurricane outside, there’s only so much that you can do.

The three of us who couldn’t get into the attic pushed our chronically ill bodies past their limits, dragging furniture away from walls, hauling totes as fast as we could with our canes, shoving empty containers into the corner as we kicked the debris out, and researching strategies for how to deal with the nightmare. Later we would wade through flooding water to dump out rain and tie down loose trash cans, shine lights and relay directions from the attic to outside, as we all attempted to get the water venting outside the house.

To make matters worse, the HVAC needs to be replaced. It’s a seventeen year old system, with a huge crack in the (inaccessible) drain pan and a bad motherboard. Some friends pooled money with Nate and Amanda to get a couple of window air conditioners for the summer. With medications that make three of us sensitive to heat, it’s been a rough summer, but we got through.

Unfortunately, winter is a few weeks away, and it’s going to be a little less than seventeen thousand for a new system to be installed.

What makes it an emergency however, is that without the drying and air movement of the AC, trying to dehumidify everything is going to be even harder, giving us a greater chance of mold. If mold takes hold, I'm not sure if we can save the house.

This fundraiser is for the $2,500 hurricane deductible that we're almost certainly going to be charged by the homeowner's policy and the $17,000 for the HVAC, plus estimated fees for the platform.

Not included in the total are any cleaning supplies, or a tiny storage unit and rental truck if we need one to store all of their bedroom furniture while the roof is redone. (We won't know about any of that until we get the estimate from insurance/roofing.) The claim has already been filed.

The air conditioning is a pre-existing problem, and I've found no way for it to be covered by any charity, government program, or private programs in the state. The ones that my social worker knew about didn't apply (I applied anyway) and I let her know about two more that I found. The religious groups I've reached out to in my area don't work in anything but clothing, children's furniture, and durable medical goods.

If additional costs emerge, or anything ends up being less expensive, I will update and adjust the goal accordingly as soon as I find out.

Please help these genuinely good people. The smallest donation helps. So does sharing.

Thank you in advance.

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↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ admin.txt now available ꒱

in honor of book lover's day (august 9), the gamedec team has put out a short story in both english and polish!

this is really great, considering the books used to be available in english... or rather, the first two were. however, they are no longer for sale and i wouldn't know where to find them.

anyway, checkout the short story "license" using this onedrive link: read here

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↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ original character.txt now available ꒱

that said, i would like to introduce my gamedec to you guys! details are still work-in-progress and subject to change, but it is the character i did a video playthrough with, so what is canon within the series (via that playthrough; i did change the name for my youtube, though) is canon to it...

and yes, my gamedec uses it/its pronouns.

featured above are its official appearance (what i would consider its net avatar), and its alternate appearance (what i would consider its real world appearance)

this is lutz rosenhain. it is a former doctor who comes from low city. however, circumstances with its work and interpersonal life have led lutz to pursue more lucrative work behind the scenes. this is how it became a gamedec. a more expanded summary is as follows:

꒰ lutz was born in low city, the slums. cramped housing, inadequate resources, synthetic light, etc etc. it was a street doctor for the longest time, working in the low city clinics and rendering what aid was possible in these environments. lutz had to "get with the times", and began to indulge in hacking/tech stuff on the side. integrated some into the medical aspect of things, then ultimately went freelance when the clinic it worked at shut down due to funding and resource issues. it saved up enough to move to the mid city, where it became a game dec and kinda got a start-up going there. ꒱

now living higher up in the polis, lutz is still very much an outsider. its eccentric sense of style and reserved personality make it an intriguing individual. talkative, but not cordial. formal, to a "surprising" degree. lutz much prefers speaking in professional circles than those that are more interpersonal and intimate, and as such keeps everyone at an arm's distance. more commentary from when i was explaining its character to a friend:

꒰ the cases in the actual game are like… the breakthroughs. lutz has done some prior, but the first case with mr. haggis and his son are like, the cases that break the glass ceiling.

then the plot just kinda goes from there. lutz helps mr. haggis' son, then helping solve the whole thing with the nanette foundation and the orphan kids, then poor ken dying and the hon clan… and the can of worms that all opens. ꒱

some miscellaneous facts include:

during the investigation, whilst at twisted and perverted (t&p), lutz allowed umbra to engage in some… kinky interrogation. it was very much into the knifeplay and codeplay, and as such would have likely been a recurring visitor to the game world before the investigation.

and more in-depth plot points / explanations are below the "read more", as it contains spoilers for the game.

this summary was taken from discord messages between me and another, so bear with any spelling issues:

꒰ these breakthrough cases just fuckin,, get so dark

the first one is bad enough, with this billionaire's son (who, like his father, has a nice problem of molesting staffers) getting lost in a game world dedicated to bdsm and other taboo interests, stuck in a loop of his own creation (fucking and eviscerating a hooker) by a mysterious third party entity.

and then the second case is like "oh, this won't be so bad. it's a cute farming game". wrong! the in-game sheriff is an older teenager who "liberated" a bunch of fellow orphans from the nanette foundation (a place to give houseless children resources and education through tech) to practically drug them, enslave them, and grind this game so they could turn real world profit by selling off accounts.

then ken is like "hey, chief, i've got my own thing going on, can you help me?" and you agree. and then you end up going to the meeting spot the next day only to find ken dead from an apparent suicide, which turns out to be a murder.

then! then! as you're investigating into it, not only do you almost die by getting jumped and shot, but you have to negotiate a hostage situation as one of ken's old allies short circuits people's game chairs and fries them alive.

and then!!! as you think "okay, what the fuck", you end up going into the hon clan's base of operations (the people who effectively had ken killed), infiltrate their ranks, and get sucked into this empty voice of a simulation that, surprise! turns out to be the bridge between reality and virtualium. there is no "real world", and you meet a previous iteration of yourself: 314.

because there have been 2 resets since the actual investigation into all this began. 314 started it, risked going through the new cycle, and fragmented himself into the code of dozens of people hoping someone would pick up his trail. it apparently happened, because you have 315 (who holds no significance, really) then you. you are 316.

and you can either ally with him (to tear it all down and try to fix things), ally with jester (a representative of an admin collective working for the corporation upholding this simulation), or work in your own self interest.

and it's cool because it is so reminiscent of the relationship v and johnny (note: cyberpunk 2077) have. 314 will, if you protest enough, take control of your body and force you to an objective. he will chime in and express his upset. he will offer solutions. and you can do your best to shut him up or hear him out.

so you may be thinking "oh? so is 314 just you?"

yes and no, because while you are a result of his line of resets, you lived vastly different lives. 314 is torkil! and given its background and personality do draw inspiration from the earlier iteration (314; or torkil aymore), it and 314 are alike. however, the two definitely have their differences and often bump heads while trying to navigate the case at their feet.

ultimately, though, lutz does accept the offer 314 provides and decides to do what is best for the others who find themselves stuck in this sick game. ꒱

[devitalization]

↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ guidebook.txt now available ꒱

all about gamedecs. who they are, what they carry, etc.

꒰ a private detective who solves crime inside virtual worlds. the decisions [you] make will alter [your character's] traits and impact the course of the game, but cases are riddled with dilemmas and rarely clear-cut.

until the 2170s, gamdecs were called "solvers". they started calling themselves "gamedecs" following the death of sam hawthorne – one of the best of their kind, who used to say that, "detection ends the case."

the labyrinth principle states that whoever is inside the labyrinth cannot perceive its structure. this is why they need an outsider with a bird's eye view. such a person must possess three key characteristics:

is a good gamer

knows basic coding

knows human nature

gamedecs are called in by gamers who cannot cope with an in-game puzzle or need help with a particularly difficult part of gameplay. they are hired by clans looking for an extra gun to use in online battles or sought by game-developing organizations and corporations who suspect they are being sabatoged by their competition. gamedecs are also hired by celebrities and politicians who have gotten involved in subtle gaming relations and need discreet help getting out of it.

every gamedec has a different past, a different story. it's a job performed by former doctors, journalists, businessmen, professional gamers, artists, and soldiers alike. what they all have in common is a similar change in their professional lives. they lost interest in what they had previously done – or in all traditional ways of life, for that matter. they experienced disappointment and disillusion, felt deluded, and opened their eyes – each of them describes it in their own way.

in marcin przybyłek's books, the main protagonist – torkil aymore – couldn't force himself to keep working as a doctor, and working as a toy seller exposed him to the grime of a late 22nd-century business. major duncan powers lost his body on the training ground and started using a military mobrium. his wife could not handle it, and so she left him – taking their daughter with her. as a journalist covering upper-class gossip, vivien lacroix ruined several people's lives before becoming a gamedec. max romanov rejected the superficiality of show business, took up cage fighting, and started working as a gamedec.

what do [you] need to lay games in gamedecverse? [you] need six things. four of them are equipment and two of them are drugs.

[your] equipment consists of a computer, a couch, a suit and a helmet. [your] computer is controlling it all. it's the brain of the whole system. and it's the firewall of the system because it is connected to the global net. so if somebody is trying to hack [you], he must go through [your] computer – which is connected to the couch, suit and helmet.

the couch is primarily a bed, but a very special bed. it does several things. first, it prevents [you] from developing pressure sores that you can get from lying down for a long period by massaging and heating the body. most importantly, it heats the nutrifluid.

[your] suit is something that [you] put on before entering the net. it reinforces the couch's function, by also giving [you] a massage and preventing pressure sores and muscular atrophy. so the suit is extremely important because it protects [you]; with proper equipment, [your] gametime can reach as far as four days straight. playing for longer than the allotted time is extremely dangerous, and we do not recommend it.

[your] helmet is a very intricate piece of machinery. it's very expensive, it's very complicated, and it does three things.

first, users need the helmet for devitalization, which disconnects the movement centers of [your] brain from [your] real body so that [you] can move in the virtual world – in the sensory world. [you] can move [your] hands and legs, but [your] real limbs are still lying on the couch. it's like dreaming. [you] can dream of running or fighting, but [your] real body remains still. the opposite of devitalization is revitalization, which is also done using the helmet. and finally, the most important function is the simulation of the game itself.

we have, in our brains, one hundred billion brain cells and neurons. each of them has, more or less, ten thousand synapses. it's a lot, and the helmet stimulates and controls most of it – it creates the phenomenon of experiencing sensations in the virtual world. [you] can see this world, hear it, touch it, smell it, and [you] can taste it. and, well, [you] don't actually go anywhere. [your] brain doesn't go anywhere. it doesn't enter the game. the game enters [your] brain, and this is all done by the helmet.

and now, let's move on to the drugs.

the first is nutrifluid. well, it's just nourishment. [you] attach it to the couch, and the nutrifluid warms the couch. then, [you] attach it to the nano-socket in your forearm so that [you] don't starve while staying in the net.

the second drug is very complex and expensive – it is called gamepill. gamepill is a little capsule that [you] have to swallow before entering the net. this capsule contains billions of nanobots that change [your] metabolic pathways. so [you[ don't have to worry about overfilling [your] bladder or colon. this is especially important when you stay for longer periods in the net. ꒱

[devitalization]

this blog stands with palestine and if you don’t you can get the fuck out. what israel is doing is genocide and i will not tolerate anyone who supports it.

[devitalization]

hi! reblogging this from my main onto my few fandom-oriented blogs because it accesses more communities without directly taking up space within the tags, making it easier to get the opinions of people actively in fandom.

i won't queue it for repost here, but the poll is one week long!

i see a lot of posts about these kinds of things in fandom tags, and across different social medias, so i'm curious bc i never see anybody actually really talk about it in discussions about ai-

feel free to explain why in a reply/in the tags! i opted to use a 4-point likert scale as it allows me to include a neutral option (re: ai art as a whole), but get a non-neutral opinion on this specific subset of ai-generated content.

reblogs for visibility appreciated!

[devitalization]

↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ admin.txt now available ꒱

i live! sort of. I've redownloaded gamedec to my laptop, so I'm hoping to start another playthrough and explore more of the codex/side stuff ^^;

i lost some notes I had saved to post, but that's okay. i can get them back hopefully.

[devitalization]

↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰ admin.txt now available ꒱

a bit of an oddball post, but since i've been looking for more content again, here's a little heads up! i recorded a playthrough of the game sometime back, and somehow managed to forget sharing it here ^^;

so i am making up for that now! if you haven't seen anything about the game, and don't mind "no commentary" style playthroughs, consider checking my playlist out:

view on youtube

[devitalization]

Gamedec