#CHECKPOINT: SAVE THE MULTIVERSE

[kudocat]

I CHANGED MESA'S DESIGN!!

I absolutely hated and despised his old design so I changed it.

Honestly better if you ask me.

[wendycandycute]

Night Sky 🌆

[magicalgirlanon]

My comment was removed shortly after

[cleric-archive]

❝ she    asked    me    my    name.    i    can't    remember    what    i    said.    i    can't    remember    anything    before    those    woods.    all    i    know    is    she    saved    my    life,    ﹠    gave    me    a    new    home:    with    lady    shar. ❞ / by chey. *

biography. prompts. verses.

affiliates / @peacedomain, tba. mains / @sanguisarcana, tba.

𝐂-𝐋𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐂    —    a    love-letter    to    larian's    jenevelle    hallowleaf    /    shadowheart    from    baldur's    gate    3,    featuring    comparative    influences    by    my    personal    adaptation    of    the    character.    minors    ﹠    those    under    21,    neither    follow    nor    interact    with    my    content    as    graphic    delineations    of    death,    gore,    religious    trauma,    ﹠    mature / sexual    themes    lie    beyond    this    checkpoint. this    blog    is    multiverse    ﹠    multiship.    if    your    character's    life    or    relationship    with    shadowheart    depends    on    a    decision    in-game    or    an    alternate    outcome    of    an    in-game    occurrence,    refer    to    my    verses    (    or    consult    me    directly    )    to    see    if    i'm    open    to negotiation    ﹠    plotting on those grounds.

[caldraws]

apathy's a tragedy and boredom is a crime /ly

(testing a new style give me feedback) (also if people want i will go more in-depth on this funky greyscale steve)

[cutebunny-26514]

Future billy meets his younger self

[prokopetz]

I feel like a Metroidvania that adds temporal movement rules in the vein of 5D Chess with Multiverse Time Travel might either be really cool or too janky to function.

You're in luck – several of those already exist. If you're looking for recs, my personal favourite is probably Vision Soft Reset. In brief, fast travel checkpoints also function as save-states, so whenever you fast-travel, you're also travelling the point in your save file's timeline when you last visited that checkpoint; when you do so, upgrades that represent physical items are reset to whatever you had at that point in time, while upgrades that represent software are retained across timelines.

This is what a save file in Vision Soft Reset looks like, for reference:

(It’s not quite as unhinged as it looks; the planet you’re exploring blows up twenty minutes after you land, so all of your time shenanigans need to be contained within that 20-minute span. It puts a reasonable cap on an approach to play that would probably be intractably complicated if you had hours and hours to play with.)

[lordbloodysoul]

Name:

Karma Doorman

Title:

"Dept Collector of Justice" - "Prosecutor of Consequences" - "Old Man Consequences"

Nicknames:

The Tall Doorman (Papyrus)

G. D. or Guardian/Big G. (the Human Children)

Old Timer, Pal, Buddy or "Karmamel" (Sans)

Old Freckle (Undyne)

Age:

[REDACTED]

Height / Weight:

6 feet 8 inches (or 2.11m) / 87 kg (112kg with entire attire)

Soul Type

"Collective Soul"

// - A Collective Soul shows trades of all known Soul Types and is shielded by a thin membrane of Void. It looks like a blank Soul with a black outline, that has a small pitch dot in its center from which a vibration rolls across the surface of the Soul. Those waves appear in different colors and strokes. To those who are very sensible to Soul Energy, the vibration will sound like an endless army of different voices breathing simultaneously in sync. The rhythm changes wit Karma's state of mind. It has an aroma/flavour that could be described as "a bittersweet taste of Salt and Iron". The feeling it would induces is more reminiscent of Guilt and Foreboding. Like standing before a King with an Executioner looming right behind you. - //

STATS:

LV

[REDACTED] //Next to it often flashes the following message: "I can see ALL your SINS..."//

HP

[REDACTED] // Their HP is so high that even a Critical from the LvL 19 Human affects it as if they would jut do 1 HP damage //

ATTACK

[REDACTED] //Next to it often flashes the following message: "I make the RULES."//

DEFENSE

[REDACTED] //Next to it often flashes the following message: "Your DEPT will be PAID"//

Doorman-Tier:

Tier S - Class S

History:

Karma Doorman is the original "Blueprint" of their kind within the Undertale Universe. Their Soul was a blank, purified Vessel with trades of both Human and Monster Soul. Within it, their creator stored the power of every willing being of the Old Dark's Court, forging a Soul of immense potential. Made from pieces of countless Entities and the Life-Blood of their Creator, this Doorman was chained to the purpose of "SAVING THEM", but left with a free will to decide on how to accomplish that Goal.

Karma's first appearance within the Undertale Multiverse was due to the waking call of UT Sans's Will to struggle against the Genocide Route's Outcome, which gave their existence a physical Form. Before that, they were just a spiritual presence and afterthought, mostly. A Dread looming above the Sinners, Cheaters and Fools of the World.

[!!!SPOILERS WARNING!!! - for those who wish to Read the FanFiction or wait till I get around to making the Comic, since the LITERATURE SUBMIT on DA doesn't allow much creative Freedom, so I have to do a lot of Re-Spacing and Editing on those Parts. This Section will spoil some of the Plot in exchange for Character Build - If you don't want that spoiled, please proceed to the APPEARANCE Section - !!!SPOILER WARNING!!!]

Karma's awakening shook the original Universe of Undertale at its Core, as they proceeded to exterminate the Genocide Timeline by removing the [ERASE] and [RESET]option from the Human Child and blocking the [QUIT] option. Their DETERMINATION exceeded any existent being in this Original Timeline.

After ridding themselves of Chara, Flowey and purifying Frisk's Soul, they continued [REWRITING]the Timeline, forcing Toriel to stay with Asgore and bringing comfort to his broken heart. They dragged Gaster and his Lab Assistants back from the Void and made Sans forget about the RESETS, weakening themself severely in the process.

Karma intervened in many upcoming Events, including saving the original six children, choosing to live with them in the RUINS, due to the absence of Toriel, and kept them save there. They properly locked the Gate towards Snowdin and became Sans's Knock-Knock Pal, as he recovered his strength, while waiting for time to unfold on its own. They dragged a Criminal into the Underground, who would serve as a trigger for Undyne's role in the future as head of the Royal Guards, as well as providing Gaster with a Soul for his research. When Gaster's experiment was about to end in failure, they leaped in and saved the staff, but Sans got struck and began remembering everything again, including his first encounter with Karma.

The Doorman left him that way, on behalf of his own wishes, closing the Rift towards the Void, straining their Soul towards its limits. When Frisk arrived, they were the one waiting for them, accompanied by the other six children. Together, they left the RUINS and began their journey through the Underground in order to reach the True Ending and the last option that would hinder their Safeguard over the Timeline. [TRUE RESET]

Appearance:

Karma Doorman looks like a tall, thin elf, clad in black robes and armor. Their cloak, which always rests on their shoulders, splits into multiple tendrils, which can move freely as separate limbs from the rest of their body. These tentacle-like arms are connected to his back, sprouting straight from a fissure across his spine. Their hair is charcoal black and slightly grayish in color, long flowing and smooth as silk. The eyes are red and always surrounded by a reddish blush, which runs along their pale cheeks.

When his expression and demeanor change, the eye-white turns blackish and their thin lips stretch into a wide, haunting grin. Often accompanied by streams of rusty, reddish liquid welling from underneath the eyes. This happens mostly in situations that call for them to use lots of Energy and Magic. It is due to the affects his tremendously powerful Soul has on their vessel body. The reddish liquid is not blood, but liquid-form Determinationseeping through their entire body. When reaching their limits, Karma often ends up with ripped skin or deep gashing wounds all over, which they have to let heal on their own.

Personality:

Karma was created by the remaining Will and Hope of Sans from across all RESETS, which shaped part of their personality. They are very intelligent and resourceful, with a developing love for puns and witty commentary. Karma sees his job as part of a Game, partially, but takes every step they make with utmost seriousness. They often hide the seriousness of their intentions to seem as less of a threat than they actually are, which paint them often in the lights of a sadistic psycho, rather than a helpful ally.

Karma is very kind, when not chasing after Sinners and Cheaters. As a manifestation of Consequences, their actions are justified in the eye of fate, however the Doorman has their doubts about it, acting to the best of their conscious, trying to find the best way to deal with every situation.

They are a selfless Soul, ready to give everything and more in order to see their goal achieved, which is the happiness of all deserving of it.

The Entity judges all on a fair standpoint, giving anyone the benefit of the doubt if it is present within their actions. Which is why they sowed pity and understanding towards Sans more than to Flowey, Frisk and Chara.

Karma is a follower of the principle of "Mutual Consent". They never force their way, feelings or the likes upon others (unless they need to judge that person for being a dirty Sinner, Cheater or the likes). Knowing that everything in life comes with consequences, they rather stay on a neutral ground till they’re sure of the others intentions.

Likes:

Puns and Humor (by that extend Sans)

Cooking

Baking

helping people

singing - ( he loves humming this Song here)

Children

hunting Sinners and Cheaters

napping

Dislikes:

Sinners and Cheater of all kinds

Mettaton (to some extend, since he finds the Robot quite obnoxious)

too spicy food

Capitalism (they've been trying to kill it off for since they've gained consciousness)

Gender- and Race Labeling (which is why they refer to themself as a "they" and won't accept anyone miss-gender them whatsoever)

Capabilities:

Due to their DETERMINATION, Karma is capable of blocking Tricksters, Sinners and Cheaters from abusing Fortune or, in the case of the Fallen Children and Flowey, the power of RESET. They can exterminate these Options and force their prey to face Consequences, without a backdoor to escape out off. The Entity can also alter the flow of time and space to previous states and interact with Checkpoints (which they mostly destroy instantly). They can reanimate people, by simply restoring their last intact living position. While restoring entire Landscapes and areas, they have to focus their manipulative power into a comfortable shape, which mostly appears as a Ring following near the ground, walls and ceiling behind them.

When they first appeared in the Universe of Undertale, Karma was only visible to a selective few. Mostly those aware of the RESETS. While traveling backwards through the Underground with Sans, they created Rifts within the fabric of the World to quickly advance. Similar in Sans's use of shortcuts only on a basic sense, as these Rifts interconnect on a completely different plain of thought. Like a Road along the weave of Space-Time itself.

Their strength comes not only from their Soul, however. Karma’s power forms from the Will of Justice and Vengeance lingering within the World they inhabit. Since their body was formed by Sans’s recollected strife to stop the fallen child from their murderous rampage, their power connected to it. As such, his memory became vital to their strength, but to ensure their goal was fully achieved, Karma decided to REWRITE him, even at the cost of a fair extend of their own power.

Karma's attack abilities range from direct hands-on Battle to them using their tendrils as extended limbs for range combat. They can use various magics, too.

Since their DETERMINATION is so high, Karma is capable of changing the RULES of Combat. They do so to 'playfully' dispose of their targets.

In such occasions, they like to play "JUDGMENT HELL", a game where he provides their foes with the means to battle them properly. Giving them armor, weapons and item to use. They also stag a persons SIN to their STATS, exceeding the limitations of the Universe’s limitations. Within the game they play the PROSECUTOR, who protects a JUDGE from the ACCUSED. While the ACCUSED try to kill or persuade the JUDGE it is the PROSECUTOR's job to keep the JUDGE save and eliminate the ACCUSED. When an ACCUSED perishes, they will be respawned with a penalty to their STATS. When the HP reaches 1, the next strike will indefinitely kill the ACCUSED. They will be erased with the severity of their sins burning their bodies and souls out of current existence. The PROSECUTOR can't act on their own, besides shielding the JUDGE. The JUDGE has full reign over their actions and decides if a person is worth of MERCY or not.

The Doorman is capable of all Magic Abilities. During Combat, Karma uses mostly White, Black and Red Attacks, although they like changing their Style up on the fly sometimes. Fighting them is quite the bad idea, due to them not acting upon the RULE of attacks having to always be in the same repeating patterns. Each of Karma's attacks is acting like a Critical Strike or Instant Kill Move, which makes the experience that much more frustrating. They also can slay foes straight outside of an open FIGHT.

For more casual activities, Karma uses their power of levitation for transport or just simply sitting in a floating position. They multi-task via their tendrils a lot, often preferring them over their own arms and hands. They can use healing magic to quickly close wounds, set bones or just giving a soothing warmth to distressed people. They usually, however, don't use that much magic overall. Only if it is absolutely required or helpful in aiding their goal or people in need.

Karma possesses the special ability of "REWRITE", which allows him to change any aspect of a Location, Item. Person or Rule. With this ability, they can change the flow of the world to befit their purpose. A REWRITE can only be undone by them or an outer-worldly Impact of similar Determination Power, which is rare.

Due to their massive STATS, which broke the readable Range of the World by a margin, attempting to destroy them via Battle is basically pointless. Bargaining with them will be seen as an insult, which often results in harsher punishment, while accepting ones fate is probably the smartest option.

Karma's destructive power can be placed easily above the power of most living beings in the Undertale Multiverse, however, he would struggle against other Doormen of their own respective Tier.

Relations:

Karma, throughout their journey will befriend many Monsters.

Sans will become their first friend among many, as they take the Role of Toriel after the REWRITE. Papyrus they meet briefly in his early childhood, but won't become a friend to the till later. They will bond with Undyne over a match of strength and perseverance.

The human children, as they fall one by one into the Underground, will end up being raised by them. They refer to them as their Guardian or Big G. for short. Karma collects them and ensures their safety while staying in the RUINS, up until Frisk appears. The children take a shine to them, as they cared for them, teaching them to accept monsters as part of their lives.

POTENTIAL SPOILER:

Similar to Sans growing an affection towards Toriel during the outplay of the Original Timeline, in the REWRITE he grows quite fond of them as they do of him.

In the Canon of the series, the two agree on a relationship based on both of their loss at what to do or expect from the newfound freedom they fought for. The human children encourage their romantic interest in one another, much to Karma's displeasure, as they are completely estranged to the whole romance business. Going even so far as to stopping Frisk multiple times, during their adventure, from flirting with every Monster they encounter.

Trivia:

Karma has no recollection of anything prior to their awakening to sentience. For all they've known, they were always a part of Undertale.

However, Sans and Papyrus both commented on "having seen their eyes somewhere before" and that this was not something good they've remembered.

It spun a bit of curiosity around their mind, which always leaves a bad aftertaste behind.

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

[smugbugunderarug]

Smug Bug Reads: Sonic the Comic#4

        Day of the Badniks was... something.

        I regret laying eyes on this tin can, but it’s too late for that now. Anyways, I mentioned earlier that someone (or something else) being mistaken for Sonic must be a universal thing in the Sonic Multiverse, and StC is no exception.

        Also! The star post! Has wires!?!? I guess I never thought about how they worked, but I guess they’re powered by electricity here? Nothing on the Sonic wiki really explains how they’re powered (or their purpose, besides being checkpoints and gateways to the Special Zone), so that’s something.

        But that brings a load of other questions; like, is there a whole underground network of electricity just for the posts? How much power do these things need? Who even set them up in the first place?

        Moving on!

        News must travel fast around there cause Tails goes out to tell Sonic. Speaking of Sonic... he’s kind of a meanie? I’m not sure how far his mean streak goes, but he could at least slow down for Tails... but to be fair, I never slowed down for him in Sonic 2, so I guess I’m also guilty of that. Anyways, poor Tails.

        Lowkey kinda spoopy and gruesome way to obtain your “organic batteries.” These badniks are definitely more of a threat than the other depictions I’ve seen of them. Dorky looking, if not a bit, but definitely on the freaky side.

        Speaking of freaky, Invader Metal Stitch final confronts Sonic and Tails, and things go sour. Tails thinks Sonic is in danger while Sonic was just trying to fool the thing. The fox thinks he can play hero and...

        ...that didn’t really work out.

        You could see Tails trying his best in the first panel while “D’OH!” is written all over Sonic’s face. Anyways, Sonic and Invader Metal Stitch fuse and it’s still ugly. Poor Tails probably feels bad, but yeah he dun messed up.

        Robotnik might be the smartest egg alive, but he’s also the dumbest egg alive for explaining his plan. Also, I think this is the 1st instance in which we see some form of a Metal Tails? Maybe? I know Archie kind of had one for a while, but I’m not too sure what happened to him... but yeah, Tails you doofus he’s about to get you. This Tails isn’t really all that observant. Still baby tho.

        interesting tidbit here: Robotnik’s base is in the Special Zone. Not sure how long that’s gonna last (or how that would work since it’s really loopy there), but it’s interesting nonetheless. I guess that’d be reason enough to get rid of all the Star Posts, but wasn’t it in the last issue where we see Sonic access the Special Zone with out a post? Is he going to steal all the rings, too? I guess the doc is just doing what he can to prevent Sonic from reaching his HQ.

        Also, they really know how to draw ugly as ugly here. I don’t know what’s on Robotnik’s lip, and I don’t want to.

        Anyways, so his plan backfires almost instantly.

        His Metal Sonic sucks. Robotnik was so sure it would work, but... yeah it didn’t. The suit didn’t pull a fnaf, and Sonic can control it instead of the other way around. That was kind of a sucky explanation, but this comic is incredibly short (only 7 pages) so I guess It’ll have to slide. Sonic threatens Robotnik to release everybody. No, he actually took him by the stache and threatened him to do that. This Sonic is a loose cannon my guy. Once again, the villain conveniently slips away while Sonic and friends week revenge or go back to their daily lives. Depends which critter you’re looking at, tho’.

        So yeah, that was #4. I was kind of hoping for a better ending. I guess Sonic not being controlled served as a good enough plot twist, but I would have rathered a better explanation as to how he wasn’t under control, or even better, have a way for Tails to save the day. So far, he’s just been the clumsy kid that admires Sonic but gets both Sonic and him in trouble, and that’s pretty much it. Maybe he’ll have his own time to shine in a later issue. As much as I would have wanted a different ending, I see why they did it. This was literally the last page, so not much could have been done anyways. Maybe Lost in the Labyrinth Zone will have a better ending.

        TL;DR: Once, there was an ugly Metal Sonic. It was so ugly, that it died. The end.

[timeclonemike]

Axiom Verge: Setting and Plot Analysis

This has been bouncing around in my head for a while, so I’m going to just put it down for posterity.

Axiom Verge is a side scrolling platformer in the Metroidvania Style. Half of the game is exploring and getting new equipment, then backtracking to try that new equipment on old areas to look for secrets impossible to find earlier. The player controls Trace, a physicist who has his experiment blow up in his face, and then wakes up in an alien world fighting for his life.

I’m dropping a Keep Reading Cut here since the discussion will mention spoilers and lots of them.

There’s three main issues I want to talk about: Simulation Theory, the Alternates, and Trace’s Characterization. There may be other, smaller tangents that will get mentioned in passing.

Simulation Theory: This is a philosophical theory that posits the entire universe and everything in it is the result of a simulation being run on a computer. (I have numerous problems with it myself, but those are not germane to the analysis of this game.) In Axiom Verge, this theory is true, but the “simulation” just happens to be a sidescrolling platformer. Most of Trace’s weapons are deliberately designed to invoke classic console game glitches; a gun that causes enemy behavior to glitch out called the Address Disruptor, a lab coat that lets him noclip through walls, and the counterpart to the High Jump Boots from Metroid is literally a device that changes the local laws of physics so Trace can jump higher. There’s even a  device that functions like either a password system or the old game genie / game shark cartridge add ons that let people change the game in different ways, and it’s the only way to get to several secrets and the gear they hide.

About halfway to two thirds of the way through the plot, it’s revealed that all this equipment that Trace has been finding is equipment that Trace originally created. After the lab accident, Trace not only came up with a way to prove Simulation Theory, he managed to design hardware based on the theory. Some of the documents found in the game are from Trace, including an extract / excerpt from his original paper, with a quote that was important enough that it made it into the actual trailer.

Axiom 1(c): Any algorithm giving rise to cognitive entities will be perceived as reality by the entities described.

This, I think, is used to deliberately invoke the idea of the Simulation Theory, and all of the events of the game take that theory to it’s logical extreme; if the universe is a computer program, it can be hacked, it can glitch, and it can crash, which raises two important questions.

Question One: If the universe simulation starts to glitch out or corrupt, what would that look like to the people in that universe? A number of notes found in the game refer to something called the Breach; in game, it looks and sounds like some sort of graphical or audio corruption, and one note calls it “a forced re-linking of the lattices underlying adjacent universes.” The Breach is also responsible for the “Secret Worlds” of Axiom Verge, where assets and set pieces are randomly thrown together with very little internal logic. These Secret Worlds are almost certainly a reference to the “secret worlds” found in the original Metroid game, not just in style, but thematically as well. The Metroid secret worlds were created when the game accidentally started reading its own code as level data. With that as context, the note describing the breach suddenly makes more sense.

Question Two: If the universal simulation should be fatally corrupted or even crash, what happens next? This is only indirectly touched on in two parts of the game, one note describing the backstory of the world of Sudra that Trace is exploring, and the “pathogen” that was released on the world. In the note about old Sudra, it’s said that the people of that world had achieved untold heights of technical and scientific knowledge, but weaponized it and caused untold calamities before they got to the point that they were unwilling, or unable, to continue fighting. Given that they ended up creating at least one weapon that Trace can find, the flamethrower, and hid it in a cave using a literal password system, I think it’s plausible that the Sudrans were actually on the precipice of just such a disaster. In fact, it is entirely possible that they created the Breach itself either as an accidental result of their fighting, or as a deliberate ultimate weapon. This position is supported by the language of the notes referring to the breach and anything related to it with weather terminology; in order to capture the Rusalki, a storm-related machine was activated, and in the events of the game proper the Rusalki can’t get close to the Breach Attractor as long as it is powered on.

There’s also the matter of the “pathogen” that is unleashed on Sudra by the antagonist. If you made a list of synonyms for pathogen, you’d find “Virus” on that list. In light of the Simulation Theory, it’s not even that much of a jump to go from “pathogen” to “computer virus” and this is supported by noted left by the various bosses before they are completely transformed by it; one of them deliberately points out that the algorithm that defines them is itself twisted and corrupted.

The Alternates: One of the big plot twists halfway to two thirds of the way through the game is that the player character Trace isn’t the same Trace that got caught in the lab accident; that’s just where Trace’s memories of Earth stop. The original Trace was left blind and paraplegic by the accident, which didn’t even have anything to do with his physics experiment; a pressure valve froze and that caused an explosion. Trace ended up having a revelation while recovering and developed a revolutionary new theory; the media loved it, but the scientific community ridiculed it and him. They gave him a nickname: Athetos.

Conveniently enough, Athetos is the name of the antagonist of the game, who unleashed all the chaos on Sudra in the backstory.

Trace is actually a clone created from Athetos, as are all of the game bosses. These clones were created by the game’s version of the Save Point, called Rebirth Chambers. The original Trace was completely healed of all injuries from the accident, and there’s a hidden area with his old wheelchair and a note explaining what happened.

The main reason I’m bringing this up is because I saw an explanation video that stated that the Athetos variants created by “Prime Trace” were from alternate universes. The evidence from this was referring to a specific note talking about algorithms across universes, but the problem with this theory is that there is one part of the game where two Rebirth Chambers are actively being used to create more clone variants. So the multiversal theory didn’t even NEED to be invoked, we already have cloning.

However, that note in particular is important because I think it describes the video game phenomena of multiple lives. The relevant test goes “the instances which do not cease carry on for those that do. For most of us this happens without us being any the wiser.” If you’re playing a game and you fuck up and die, you restart at the last checkpoint / save point / level intro / what have you. Again, Axiom Verge explores what a video game reality would look like from the inside.

Trace’s Characterization: If Trace has one defining trait, it is his pacifist nature. He keeps trying to talk his way out of boss fights (which almost works once) and as soon as he realizes that he and Athetos are the same person, he wants to talk to the guy to figure out what the hell is going on and why Athetos has done all these things that Trace would never consider.

This is something that I have NEVER seen fully addressed as far as the plot goes, so I guess I have to do it.

The note next to Trace’s old wheelchair is signed Trace. By the time it was written, Trace had already been healed by the Sudran Rebirth Chambers. However, in the note, while he was impressed with the technology, he understood that it was too dangerous to even try to bring the technology back to Earth in case what happened to Sudra happened to Earth as well.

This is in complete conflict to what Athetos tells Trace at the end of the game before the final boss fight. In that same cutscene, Athetos also says “If I tell you too much, your captors will have to kill you.” (Athetos is referring to the Rusalki, who have control over both the Rebirth Chambers and the “nanogates” inside Trace that allow him to come back to life after dying.) In that context, Athetos making the claim that he just wanted to bring the technology to Earth and was willing to destroy Sudra to do it sounds like a cover story; he couldn’t tell Trace the real reason without putting Trace in danger, but he needed to tell Trace something that both Trace and the Rusalki would believe. (Given that the Rusalki have been lying to Trace since the moment he woke up from the Rebirth Chamber, the can’t really claim the moral high ground here.)

There’s one other important detail about that note found with the wheelchair: “We are going upstream - to the Filter, or whatever lies beyond - for answers.“ Now, upstream could mean several different things. It could refer to an actual stream, implying that Trace arrived at Sudra near a body of water near a Rebirth Chamber, and the stream led to civilization. The word Filter, on the other hand, could refer to a machine called the Power Filter that Trace has to activate in the game and seems to be tied into the power grid for Sudra’s technology, in which case upstream meant following the power supply for all the amazing tech to figure out how it works. Finally, there is the possibility that “upstream”  and the “Filter” refer to the Breach Elevator and what lies beyond; Athetos has his main base in the game in this space elevator kind of machine that is implied to pass through the Breach.

Each one of these scenarios is equally plausible until Thomas Happ makes a sequel or officially supports a given theory on social media or something like that. What each of these things has in common, though, is that it raises another question. Whether it was encountering an alien civilization for the first time, or discovering how the Sudran technology worked, or discovering what lies beyond the Breach...

What did Trace find that was so awful that it made a peaceful, pacifist scientist willing to commit genocide?

[kudocat]

So in my Checkpoint AU, Mesa is not referred to/known as "Mesa", he's referred to/known as "The Ancient". Odd villain name [I know] but hey, who cares? Nobody knows how he looks like

Only Steve and the Cosmic Princess know his real name and appearance.

But why only Steve and the Cosmic Princess? Why not Austin or Billy? Maybe Chris?!

Well… if Austin where to find out, they would have told everyone

AUSTIN: HEY EVERYONE! The Ancient's name is Me…

STEVE: MADE UP! Thanks Austin for telling us this information!

AUSTIN: But I wasn't gonna say that…

STEVE: Yes you were, now please leave and go play with Jellybean.

AUSTIN: Okay!

If Billy where to find out, he would threaten him, e.g:

BILLY: If you don't do [insert whatever], I'll tell the whole world your identity!

MESA: Why the hell is an 10 year old doing in DMs? Aren't you too young for Instagram?!

BILLY: Uhh…

If Chris where to find out… well, it would be bad is just that due to Mesa's physical appearance [My AU! Remember!]… He'll try and be "Mr. Smarty Pants" and explain why he looks like that.

CHRIS: The reason why his/her/whatever they are has black and white hair is because of Poliosis! The lack of pigment in his/hers/theirs hair turned it white, 50/50 of his hair lacks colour, that's why it's white! It's completely harmless though…

STEVE: (interrupting Chris) Chris… my wonderful boyfriend… can you shut up please🥺. My boyfriend is very self-aware about his condition and if he where to hear you comment about his hair, he'll dye it all black and I don't want that. Please stop your yapping session ^w^.

CHRIS: Well okay and… what do you mean "boyfriend"?!

STEVE: I'll discuss it later…

So you can imagine…

[wendycandycute]

My baby uhhh... boy? (Is that right?)

[caldraws]

did i ever post this? i don't think i did.

anyways, STESA <3

[aion-rsa]

Crash Bandicoot 4 Review: A Fun Blast from the Past

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After more than a decade since the last major Crash Bandicoot adventure, it is indeed “about time” for a sequel, and while Crash Bandicoot 4 successfully revives the spirit of the classic ‘90s trilogy, its best moments come from newly introduced gameplay mechanics. 

It’s About Time smartly ignores all of the questionable sequels since 1998’s Crash Bandicoot: Warped. After being trapped in a timeless prison at the end of the previous game, Uka Uka, Dr. Neo Cortex, and Dr. N. Tropy accidentally rip a hole in the fabric of space and time while trying to escape. The mad doctors realize they can escape to other dimensions and they unsurprisingly decide to take over the multiverse. The story has a very fun Saturday morning cartoon vibe to it, though the writing is surprisingly smart, with regular callbacks to previous games and a couple of jokes definitely targeted at adult fans.

This setup leads to the appearance of the four powerful Quantum Masks, each of which grants Crash special powers on his quest to save all of reality. With these masks, Crash can phase objects in and out of existence, change gravity, slow down time, or turn his usual spin into an endless tornado with a longer jump and near-invincibility.

Also along for the ride are several new playable characters. Every Crash Bandicoot level can also be played as his sister Coco, who has an identical move set. A version of Crash’s girlfriend Tawna from another dimension plays similarly to the bandicoot siblings, but also uses a grappling gun to reach far off areas. Rounding out the roster is reformed villain Dingodile, who uses a vacuum gun to suck up and fire explosive barrels and crates, and the evil Dr. Neo Cortex himself, who uses a ray gun to turn enemies into platforms to help him get around levels.

The additional characters, and the extra levels that go along with them, are nice, but don’t add much to the experience. Dr. Neo Cortex is a surprisingly boring playable character, while Dingodile is the best of the three thanks to his more unique move set. But I’m not exactly pining for a spin-off at this point. 

The Quantum Mask really remain the highlight here, though you can only use certain masks at specific points in each level to solve increasingly tricky platforming puzzles. While most levels usually just feature one Quantum Mask, you’ll have to quickly switch between them to tackle the game’s final and most difficult levels. Unlike some revivals of retro franchises that skimp on the difficulty, It’s About Time revels in its high difficulty, though that’s not always a good thing.

I welcome the challenge of a precise platformer, but too often Crash Bandicoot 4 relies on cheap trial-and-error gameplay. It’s one thing to mistime a jump. It’s another thing entirely to fall to your death because a newly introduced platform drops without warning or because you have no way of knowing ahead of time that there’s an acid-spitting enemy smackdab in your path. One of the biggest new additions here, crates that spit flames in all directions at regular intervals, seem designed just to increase the number of stupid deaths you’ll encounter. Sure, the older Crash Bandicoot games have always been known for their difficulty, but there’s a reason why platformers aren’t designed like this anymore: It’s simply not very fun. 

Release Date: Oct. 2, 2020 Platforms: PS4 (reviewed), XBO Developer: Toys for Bob Publisher: Activision Genre: Platformer

When you start Crash Bandicoot 4, you’ll have the option of choosing retro difficulty where you’ll have to restart each level after losing a certain number of lives, or modern difficulty, which just resets you to the last checkpoint, keeps tracks of your deaths in each level, and shows a marker where you’re going to land at the end of every jump. Don’t be a hero. Pick modern difficulty from the start. You’ll thank me later. I regularly hit 30-40 deaths my first time through each level, and it took me more than 170 tries to beat the maddeningly frustrating last level just before the final boss. 

To be sure, there are still a lot of enjoyable sections in Crash Bandicoot 4. The iconic chase sequences where you run toward the camera are as fun as ever. A trip to another planet later in the game features a ride on an alien creature through one of the most beautiful and exotic locales ever seen in a platformer. Another level features a very cool romp through a flying car traffic jam that feels straight out of The Fifth Element. But my enjoyment of It’s About Time dropped dramatically when the difficulty ratcheted up.

Oddly enough, bosses don’t actually provide much of a difficulty spike and are among some of the best levels in the game, with a pseudo rock concert fight against N. Gin and a multi-stage battle against N. Tropy requiring the use of all four Quantum Masks among the highlights. 

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While the main story mode is a relatively brisk eight hours or so, It’s About Time features a ridiculous amount of extra content for completionists and/or masochists. You’ll have to hunt down every crate and gem in the game to unlock the more than two dozen skins for Crash and Coco. VHS tapes, which also have to be tracked down, offer flashback levels that are even more difficult than the main campaign. And once you’re done with all that, every level also has an “N. Inverted mode,” which flips the layout, switches enemy placement, and alters the already fantastic graphics in unexpected new ways.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

It’s clear that developer Toys for Bob has a lot of love for Crash Bandicoot and wanted to make the best game in the series. In many ways, the team succeeded, with an absolutely massive platformer featuring some very cool new additions to the Crash formula, but the reliance on some of the series’ most dated design choices leads to an often frustrating experience. 

The post Crash Bandicoot 4 Review: A Fun Blast from the Past appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[kudocat]

British boy enjoying British tea

[I did this in a hurry, so it looks like shit]

Steve: This shit busin' busin' fr. No cap 🧢

Chris: Don't say that… that's cringe.

Steve: Okay boomer😒.

[kudocat]

Testing out light scenes[idk man, I was bored]

Also… Steve! :D

Here's the unshaded[unlighted] Version:

Steve has heterochromia(two different eye colours) in my AU