#HAS THAT BEEN MY IGN FOR TWO YEARS NOW??????????

[risingsunresistance]

oh my god music of the spheres released in 2021...

[buginacup]

Advice for a young and hopeful gamedev?

Here's some advice that I heard when I was an optimistic gamer teen and ignored because I misunderstood why it was being given to me - I'll try not to let my boiling cloud of cynicism taint it too much:

When people say "make your first game as small as possible" they're not saying it because they don't think you're capable of making something complex - they're saying it because having a bunch of very small things released will let you practice the harder part of gamedev (actually releasing the thing) while also hopefully giving you a financially buoyant cluster of things for your resume.

Make games that last five minutes - even if only four people ever download them - find the rhythm of ideation->excitement->refinement->labor->troubleshooting in the smallest places possible. The final two steps are sometimes horrible, but if the scale is small you can experience firsthand how worth it is to have a finished THING afterwards.

If you don't know how to even picture a game that small, play Warioware, browse Itch.io and look at the many wonderful games that you can play in 5 minutes in your browser, free yourself of the IGN-Headline chasing developer in your head that says you should make a "Stardew Valley Inspired Worldsim with Parry-Based Combat and Multiple Endings".

The vision of the auteur figures we elevate in indie space is not real. You're a human being with a heart and soul and nothing you make will be perfect or wholly your own. Just make.

---

P.S. The indie game scene as we know it has been extremely reliant on social media for the past 15 years or so, and that landscape is in the process of some massive destructive change. Advice about metrics that could have been useful three years ago isn't worth taking as gospel. Everything I know about building visibility right now is rickety at best, so just try to focus on building up your own self worth as best you can until the dust settles - if it does.

Good luck, and be kind to yourself.

[thedinanshiral]

On the choices we make

This week we got the last article in IGN First series for The Veilguard, and many are not happy.

Here's the article, feel free to read it whenever, at your own risk tho

SPOILER WARNING & DISCLAIMER: I'll mention some spoilers for the character creator options for the Inquisitor. And i have not really read the IGN article, just looked through it vaguely but Twitter made sure i knew what it was about. I also got these spoilers earlier when the embargo on the preview event was lifted, so it wasn't really news to me.

In short, the shocking part of the article people are upset about is basically most choices from previous games don't carry into The Veilguard in any significative way. This news caused a lot of people to despair, become disappointed, sad, and even angry. So here's my two cents explaining why the devs decision to trim down the ever growing tree of possible outcomes from all past decisions was a smart and necessary move.

First let's talk about the Warden. It's been fifteen years since DAO, the Warden has served their purpose. Expecting them to still keep on the spotlight forever just isn't realistic. Particularly lore-wise, they're tainted, they're getting their calling eventually, they can even die in DAO. Even if in some worldstates the Hero of Ferelden is alive, searching for a cure, enjoying family bliss with Morrigan somewhere, this is not their game anymore, hasn't been for fifteen years. And it makes absolutely every sense that Rook doesn't get to casually ask Morrigan of all people about her personal life and her partner. Considering the different origins as well it also makes sense if the Warden is simply referred to as the Hero of Ferelden in codices instead of specifying if they're Cousland or Mahariel, that way all origins are contemplated without the need to select which one we chose, yes i'll say it again, fifteen years ago. Please, play DAO again if you must, but just, please, move on. It's time.

Then let's be real here, DA2 is pretty much self-contained. We see the direct consequences of the DA2 events early into DAI. There isn't much to talk about DA2 choices after that.

And now, about DAI...people were left in the Fade, people drank from a well, Divines were chosen. And The Veilguard is not about that. Sorry, but that also makes sense.

The Fade choice: it's pretty much decided that whoever stays in the Fade during Here lies the abyss didn't make it. They're gone. Sad, i know, but it's also been ten years in game as well and Hawke, Alistair, Stroud and Loghain are only human, they can't survive that. The thread many hang on for hope is Flemeth's words to Hawke "We stand upon the precipice of change. The world fears the inevitable plummet into the abyss. Watch for that moment... and when it comes, do not hesitate to leap. It is only when you fall that you learn whether you can fly" , is not a hint towards them surviving the Fade, it's precisely about them jumping into it. Which is what happens in that quest. There's nothing in those lines about making it out alive, or out at all. It's "whether you can fly", not "that you can fly". People always want these games to be DARK FANTASY full of DIFFICULT CHOICES and CONSEQUENCES that CARRY OVER, but when they choose a loved character to make a sacrifice and potentially die suddenly they expect them to have plot armor and return like nothing happened and nothing was lost? That loss was a consequence of that choice, and we all have to live with it and move on.

The Well choice: Solas' reaction to the Inquisitor drinking from the well is a strong one, but the consequence of that was already shown in DAI, in worldstates where OG Kieran exists we can see Flemeth control the Inquisitor to restrain Morrigan when she's trying to stop Flemeth. There's no confirmation on this but it's possible this power is gone once Solas petrifies Flemeth in the epilogue scene. From there we can only headcanon what happened with that power to control whoever drank from the Well of Sorrows; did the power vanish once Flemeth died? Did Solas inherit it when he absorbed her powers? Did Solas decided to only absorb her energy but avoided taking that particular ability with him? Remember, he's against slavery, servitude, and controling others. He's more into killing people in their dreams, petrifying his enemies and blowing up dear old friends' favourite stuff with his insane mind powers for extra emotional damage. If Morrigan is who drank from the well, it could also be she found a way to nullify that binding to Mythal; we don't know it yet but seeing as she appears in The Veilguard with a headpiece similar to Flemeth's it could even be she eventually accepted Mythal's deal. Anyway, the protagonist this time is Rook, and whoever drank from the Well of Sorrows is not something that affects them, or the main events of the game surrounding the Veil and a double Blight. The Well was drank, let's move on from that too.

The Divine choice: honestly? Not geopolitically relevant this time. The Veilguard takes place in Northern Thedas where the main power is Tevinter, which has its own Chantry and its own Divine. We're apparently not going south of the Waking Sea, so who rules Orlais or Ferelden and who sits on the Sunburst throne ruling over the southern Chantry is of no consequence to the regions we'll visit and the people we'll meet as Rook in this new game. Also, it's been ten years since all of that went down, whatever we made happen with the Inquisition could easily have been changed with a rebellion or two throughout the years.

The choices from previous games that affect The Veilguard are all from DAI, because that's the one game directly connected to The Veilguard; whatever happened in DAO and DA2 happened then and there and we've already seen the effects of those choices, sometimes in the same games they were made on. And the choices from DAI that carry on are limited to just three: Who the Inquisitor romanced, if the Inquisition remained or was disbanded, if the Inquisitor vowed to save or stop Solas. These are the choices that directly affect and are pertinent to The Veilguard events. DIRECTLY.

Now this has gotten some people bitter, like the game is serving Solavellans and dropping everyone else in the Amaranthine to die like their worldstates don't matter, but that's not it. Those two last choices are there even if your Inquisitor is not Lavellan, even if your Lavellan did not romance Solas. Remember, the Inquisitor and Solas can be friends too. They can even despise each other. I guess some could argue the romance option is there to cater to Solavellans too but i ask -rhethorically-, is it not relevant if the man set on destroying the world to return to a past long gone has a romantic history with the hero advisor of our new protagonist? Is it not relevant that this particular relationship was his only weakness, capable of changing his mind and stopping his hand??? Better yet, try to explain how it's not relevant. Considering who Solas is, what he intends to do, his role in determining the fate of all Thedas in the past as he is about to do now, Solavellan is very much relevant. A friend Inquisitor is also very relevant. An Inquisitor that wants his head on a platter i bet has much to say about Solas' role in this new stage too. As for the fate of the Inquisition i imagine it might affect how the Inquisitor can play their role as advisor to Rook, if they still hold the title and have some support from the Chantry maybe they can offer different resources or intel than if they're acting independently.

Every game so far has had many different options available, worldstates abound, paths can fork in so many ways and places it's insane to pretend it all carries on and on and on in every following game, when each game presents a new protagonist, a new institution, and its own theme and conflicts to deal with and resolve. In The Veilguard we'll be dealing with blighted ancient elvhen gods set on destroying the world. What is Hawke got to do about it? What could a senior, dying Warden do to save the world now? Even the Inquisitor can only contribute from the sidelines, maybe, we don't know yet.

Apocalyptic events will not wait for what was to come back to soothe our nostalgia. This time it's the Veilguard and Rook's time to save the world, and i'd say we let them. And let's give ourselves a new chance to make new, differenct choices, with different stakes and consequences we'll likely see soon enough probably backfiring on us. The devs worked on this game with the intention of giving us a full game, avoiding a repeat of previous questionable moves (like the main story truly ending in a dlc rather than the base game). In order to achieve that they had to focus, a lot, on how to carry the narrative forward and develop all these new characters, and let's be honest 100% now, that's pretty difficult to do if they're permanently looking back and dwelling on old characters and events. We can't move forward by looking over our shoulders to what was.

I strongly suggest everyone we give The Veilguard the opportunity it deserves, to be its own game as all the previous games were. For many players including myself their first Dragon Age was Inquisition so previous choices were not registered, we had no idea and still had a great time playing DAI and got so invested in it many went back to play DAO and DA2, and dive into the novels and comics, even Redemption, and that CGI Cassandra movie. So past choices not carrying over to newer games isn't the catastrophe some people are complaining over. Also please don't be arses to the devs over things like this, they worked hard all these years to give us their best, they deserve respect.

Lastly, i'd like to share a phrase in my language, "quién te quita lo bailado", which translates to something like "who can take away from what you've already enjoyed?" (the answer is nobody btw). If you already played previous games and enjoyed them, loved them, and played them 50 times over, that's yours, your experience, and nobody can take that away from you; the characters you built, your headcanons, that's all yours, for life.

Can't wait for October 31st so we can keep enjoying this world that for many of us feels like home.

[brabblesblog]

Ch 19: There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear

Astarion has ascended, and she has stayed with him. Life in the Crimson Palace isn’t as idyllic as it seems. Is there a chance for their relationship to go back to how it was? Or is it too late for the Ascendant and his consort?

This series is about Ban, my Tav, and the Vampire Ascendant. Will be angst and smut, with sprinkles of fluff.

This fic is a softer take on Ascendant!Astarion and of the changes he undergoes after the rite. Can Ban handle the change, and if a chance came, would she choose to run? And can the Ascendant win her back in time? Inspired by the concept of vampire wives and that IGN interview with Larian that discussed the ascension.

Professionally edited by @editing-by-night

Two months after the trip to Reithwin, the Ascendant and his consort celebrate their first year in power.

Read on AO3.

Masterlist.

Ban stood on the balcony, savoring a quiet moment before the guests arrived. With their numerous trips throughout Faerûn in the past two months, they’d only just barely managed to organize a party to celebrate the Ascendant’s first year in power.

Another night, another party. It should’ve been quite trite by now, except this was the first event they were hosting together since they’d reconciled. How things would be different, she couldn’t exactly guess; they hadn’t really discussed anything beyond the usual reservations and planning.

Planning that had not gone too well, incidentally. She had booked the caterers a little late, resulting in a lack of ingredients available for purchase in the market, which had in turn caused a delay in the delivery of the hors d'oeuvres to the palace.

Hands on the railing, Ban looked over the city sprawled before her. She was relieved the party had mostly fallen into place, the preparations having been slightly more challenging than they would have been, had she and Astarion not been constantly on the move the entire time. Not that it would have made any difference regarding the catering, though - she had just plainly forgotten.

Ban shut her eyes for a moment, failing to hear the near-silent footfalls behind her.

“Love.”

His voice was a soft murmur, his hands wrapped around her waist from behind, pulling her close. He breathed in her scent, the fragrance matching his own: the faint smell of death, masked by bergamot, rosemary, and brandy. Beautiful as always, he thought, peeking at her face, although he couldn’t help the small worry that rose in his chest at the expression he found there. Tired, yes, he could tell - but of what?

She leaned into his touch.

They watched the world go by, watching the passage of time as they themselves remained timeless.

“Been an interesting year,” Ban said, turning her head to look at him. His gaze had shifted towards the city, but a smile broke across his features at her words; she watched his smile lines crease. He was dressed in black trimmed with gold tonight; the outfit never failed to make her weak in the knees.

“Hm. Nothing more significant than anything in the past two centuries,” he teased. His smile widened a fraction more, the tip of his fangs peeking out. The worry he’d initially felt eased a little, smoothed over by the sight of her relaxing in his presence and rather visibly admiring him.

She scoffed, nudging his side with her elbow.

“Your ascension’s not significant enough?”

The smile shifted again, becoming more pensive. “You would think it the most important thing, but no.” Astarion leaned down a little, just enough so that his breaths ghosted over the shell of her ear, making her shiver. He liked that, liked her responding to him in such a reflexive manner - as if she still couldn’t help how she felt for him, despite everything that had happened.

Astarion pressed a kiss to her shoulder. “This. This is what’s important.”

He let go of her waist, moving in front of her, blocking her view of Baldur’s Gate in an attempt to get her to focus on his words. The thought of what this day represented made his eyes go impossibly soft, a little guilt seeping into his voice.

“It’s also been a year since I turned you, you know?”

Ban considered that for a moment. A year since she’d technically died, reborn into this unlife in her lover’s arms. A decision that could have honestly gone horribly wrong - and for a while, it had.

Did she resent him for it? A question without any real answers. It should probably be a resounding yes, given the turbulent times that had come afterwards, but the truth was that she didn’t regret anything, because it all led to being in this moment with him.

“Do you ever regret that? Turning me?” she asked, waiting as he searched for a response, his face unreadable.

Astarion had expected the question; after all, he was the one who brought up changing her. That didn’t mean he’d actually prepared a good response, though.

“Don’t be upset,” he began, “but no, not really.”

His eyes immediately locked onto her face, searching for signs of her withdrawing into herself. It had become a reflex for him to do so whenever he said something risky. He figured if she wouldn’t talk, he could explain the moment he noticed her beginning to retreat.

Ban didn’t, thankfully. Instead she crossed her arms over her chest - not the best reaction, but neither was it the worst.

They obviously had the same answer about her being turned, she thought, but there was still the rather interesting question of why he felt that way.

“Because I would have aged, and why would the Ascendant want to be with some old crone, huh?” She tried to keep it light, smirking.

Astarion shook his head. “Because I don’t want to lose you to something as pedestrian as time.” That much was true. The idea of losing her was already inconceivable to him, but especially to something as avoidable as age? Something he could easily remedy with a bite?

He offered her a hand, which she took; he pressed hers against his chest. “I want you here, with me, forever. And turning you was essential to that, as… as unsavory as it is to think that I may have pressured you into it.” The other hand wrapped around the small of her back, pulling her closer.

“You did give me a choice,” Ban reminded him, as a gesture of conciliation and comfort; he dipped his head in acknowledgment of this grace.

“There was, of course, a degree of selfishness there, too.” He didn’t elaborate; they both knew that possessiveness had taken him over, made him keep her inside the Palace for months. That possessiveness had been born of fear and hurt and anger, but had damaged them nevertheless.

“I don’t really want to talk about it, Astarion,” she replied quickly. She wasn’t hiding; but she wanted tonight not to be about the darkest parts of their past. “We’ve said everything that needs to be said on the matter.”

He bit his lip. “I merely wanted you to know I haven’t forgotten.” That he kept what he’d done in mind; that he was trying, even if things seemed well enough now. His eyes tried to convey what he’d been denied the chance to say; they were round and pleading, asking for her understanding.

Ban’s eyes softened as she saw the earnestness in his. “I know. But I don’t really want nor need you to remind me just how much of an arse you were. Trust me, I remember plenty.”

Embarrassed, Astarion laughed, conceding the point. He took the moment to retreat to safer waters; it had begun feeling a little too charged for a casual conversation with his wife.

“Fine, darling. Whatever you wish, even if it’s deluding yourself into thinking I’m not that person anymore.”

“Oh, I know you’re still just as horrible as you were back then,” she teased back, “To others, at least.”

He made an affronted noise and opened his mouth to retort, but Ban shushed him, brooking no argument.

“Don’t you remember this afternoon?” She smirked.

Fingers snapping, he stalked through the ballroom.

“Where’s the food? Did we not schedule it to arrive by highsun?”

The head caterer approached him, swallowing past a lump in her throat.

“My lord, it’s just been delayed a few hours. We didn’t have the time to prepare, with such short notice and-”

“Short notice?” He glared down at her, daring her to interrupt. “You’re saying it’s my wife’s fault? We paid exorbitant amounts of coin with the expectation of exceptional service, and that includes being on time - regardless of when we put the order in.”

With a wave of his hand, he dismissed her. “Now run along and get the hors d'oeuvres in, lest I change my mind about hiring you lot.”

“To be completely fair, darling,” Astarion said, “I was doing it to defend your honor.”

The mirth was still there, the slight tease in his voice that protested but I did it for you! - obviously not his only reason, but he’d run it into the ground if he could get away with it.

“Sure you were,” Ban responded, amused. “I have to admit it’s rather adorable of you, though.”

Astarion scoffed, but did not object.

Instead he stilled, allowing the quiet to stretch between them. They gazed at one another, savoring the feel of the other’s presence as they reveled in their mutual affection.

Astarion eventually broke the silence.

“I may have something for you tonight. An idea.” He was nervous, part of him already reconsidering bringing it up. “You needn’t say yes.”

Ban tilted her head at him, curious. “If it’s another gift from Halsin, Astarion-”

“No!” He said, a tad too quickly, a little offended she thought he’d accept more advice from the druid on sex. On any damn topic, really.

“Well- I mean- it kind of is? Not a gift from Halsin, but it’s within the general vicinity of that topic.” Astarion cleared his throat. “To be clear, I mean sex.”

“Spill it,” she said, her eyes crinkling as she tried to hold back a laugh. It was only lately that Astarion had felt comfortable enough to be visibly flustered around her again, instead of being, well, angry, and she cherished each instance of it.

Astarion drew himself up, squaring his shoulders, trying his best to regain his composure and seem unconcerned. He shifted gears, deciding to play the rake again. If nothing else, it would at least make her laugh.

“I was just thinking. You’ve been so wonderful to me, so willing to try out delightful new experiences.”

He smirked; eyes dropping into that half-lidded gaze that had stolen the hearts of countless people, but most importantly - had stolen hers. Astarion was still nervous, but he mastered himself and proceeded with his plan.

“It got me thinking about this idea - ceaselessly - and what better time to bring it up than our - I suppose our anniversary? Every wicked turn deserves another, after all. So - when we make love tonight, when it’s just you and me… would you be willing to let me lead?” he purred. There was a hint of mischief in his gaze, but there was also trepidation - they both knew exactly what had happened in the past, and how those previous instances of Astarion taking charge within the bedroom could have affected Ban.

He wasn’t doing this as repayment for trying out new things with him, especially as he knew she was likely to decline. Instead, he offered it as a way for him to demonstrate progress: a subtle plea for her to surrender herself to him and trust him, the way he had done for her.

All that, and a little bit of fun, of course.

Ban couldn’t help her body’s reflexive response, stiffening. The request wasn’t something she’d expected to hear in her near future, perhaps even at all, ever again, and she immediately felt the instinct to hide - for a moment, she allowed it to rule her, lifting her hand from his chest. Astarion, ever vigilant when it came to her, noticed immediately.

“Love, no,” he urged, his demeanor quickly shifting to one of concern. He was already regretting running his stupid mouth without thinking through all of her possible responses. “We do not have to. Don’t ever have to, if that is what you want.”

He felt her hand pulling further away. “Don’t. Don’t do that.”

He felt himself becoming more anxious, unsure how to defuse the situation before she could withdraw even more. Frantic, he spoke the only word that could.

“Please.”

Relax. Ban forced her hand to stop, allowing Astarion to gently press it back down against his heart; she felt it hammering beneath her palm. She wanted to comfort him; she also wanted to give him an answer that was genuine.

She mulled over his request. He kept his eyes on her; the picture of patience, although he wished to be anything but.

“I can try,” she ventured. She wasn’t completely sure she could handle it, but she couldn’t deny that there was an appeal in having Astarion dominate her again.

It had been good, once upon a time, back in the Shadow-Cursed lands. She remembered when they’d still been exploring each other’s bodies, what the other wanted and enjoyed, without sex itself. Astarion had intuited that she did, in fact, like having him in control. For someone like him, who’d had none of that for so long, it had been an exhilarating discovery.

And then, of course, Ban thought, the rite had come along.

Astarion recoiled at her response, mistaking her calmness for reluctant acquiescence.

“If you’re doing it for my sake, there’s no point. I’m not - of all people, love, I won’t do that to you. I merely asked because I know you did like it, before it all turned to shit.”

No. Don’t think I want to force you. Please.

The idea that she might be going along just for his sake made him physically ill.

Ban bit the inside of her cheek, dropping her hand. She leaned into him, resting her head on his chest to close the small gap that remained between them; a gesture of comfort and reassurance. His response was automatic, the arm around her tightening. He kissed the top of her head.

She gathered her courage. It still took effort, to fight back against the unnecessary voice in her head that screamed run, hide - but it got easier by the day; he made it easier.

With his soft words, with his candor. With a forbearance she had never before known to exist in him. With his love.

“Can you tell me, Astarion, exactly why you ask this of me?” Ban mumbled into his embroidered jacket.

A soft chuckle broke free of him, as fear was replaced with elation and relief. Yes, she’s working with me!

“You allow me to show you how much I trust you, when we… when you take charge of me,” he said, the bravado and seductive act discarded for now. “I had hoped you would afford me a similar level of trust.”

There was a small hint of hurt in his words; he made no effort to conceal it.

“However, you do not have to. You never have to. It was just a suggestion; you can forget I ever said anything.”

Ban considered it. It would be helpful, an opportunity for her to display her renewed faith in him. She closed her eyes, exhaling; his hands moved to her back, tracing comforting circles between her shoulder blades. Astarion rocked her gently, as though they were dancing to some tune only they could hear.

Sheltered in his arms, the answer felt easier to arrive at. “I think we can try,” she repeated, “I can use the same word we used to, if it gets to be too much.”

Astarion smiled, relief and gratitude suffusing him. “Thank you, Ban. Truly.”

He hesitated. “There is… another thing, if you’ll indulge me once more.” Another pause, longer this time. “Rhapsody.”

“What about it?” She’d known that he’d often spent time gazing at it after she’d left him. She’d never bothered to ask why, she’d assumed it had to do with the rite, and hadn’t wanted to pry.

“Would you mind if we brought it to bed with us?” The words came out in a rush, almost stammered.

She raised an eyebrow. “What? Why?”

Visions flashed through her mind - of Rhapsody, protruding from his heart, his blood staining his shirt, all over her hands, as she carried his barely-conscious body out of Vel’s manor. Her breathing picked up and she felt cold all over. Why isn’t leading enough for now? she wondered.

“The dagger played a role in numerous moments of my life - moments that altered the course of my fate. None of them have ever been good.”

“Then why bring it into our bedroom?” She crossed her arms, bringing her breathing under control with effort. “Look. I had to watch that thing almost end you. That’s not something I’m itching to relive.”

“For precisely that reason. It is a weapon steeped in painful memories, memories I’d very much like to write over. I want… to see it in your hands whilst I’m inside you, to keep that image in mind instead of… everything else. And what better time to do it than on this night, an anniversary of sorts?”

Ban sighed, exhaling through her nose. “Is that why you used to go stare at it? To remember?”

Astarion’s eyes flicked to her, uncertain. “Indeed. I have made effort to make peace with my past, and Rhapsody feels like the one piece of it that remains unchanged. We’ve rebuilt this palace; almost nothing tangible remains of that time of my life, other than that blade.”

“And so you think this would… finally remake it?”

“Redefine it,” Astarion corrected. “Making new, out of the old.”

Ban considered it. Rebirth, in a sense, just as tonight was also a rebirth of sorts, recontextualizing his ascension and her turning from something she regretted into something they could celebrate. It wasn’t a horribly unpleasant concept, in any case, and she figured if it was too much, they could stop.

“One condition - the blade is not touching you. I don’t want to draw blood. And once you have the image you want, we stop using it.”

He nodded. “That’s perfectly fine by me. Thank you, for considering this, and for allowing me to take the reins once more.” He paused, a thoughtful look crossing his face.

“I do think taking the lead would also help me, darling,” he added. He vacillated between revealing an even deeper truth and leaving it at what he’d just said.

He decided to err on the side of openness. “It would help me determine whether my own faith in myself is warranted.” If he’d truly improved and become someone worthy of her.

Ban sighed, but didn't look up from where she’d buried her face in his chest. She found it easier to speak this way at times, not meeting those crimson eyes and that too-handsome face.

“I have faith in you. Not completely - but enough for this,” she said softly, “I know, however, that saying it is one thing, and doing it is another. I’m not afraid - not really. It’s just that old, instinctive-”

She waved her hand, trying to signify that it was a frivolous thing; something she could easily cast aside. A small mistruth, one she was willing to offer to further smooth over the wrinkles of their relationship.

He wouldn’t allow that. “Your old fears - ones that I caused. I am aware, much as you like to pretend I’m not.”

Ban tried again. “Well, they’re not-”

“An issue?” Astarion shook his head. “They are, Ban. I watch for them, attempt to catch them before they sink their claws in, fight them off with whatever honesty my wretched heart allows me to express.”

“I don’t begrudge you this, nor for having these fears in the first place, but don’t discount them. Not when I work as hard as I do to dispel them.” He felt a little piqued, a little insulted she thought he didn't notice, that she didn’t see how hard he worked to spot them, assuage them.

“Just- just let me have tonight, in spite of them. Let me win against them for once.”

Astarion gazed down at her. She looked so small, wrapped around him like this, and it made him wish for nothing more than to hold her forever.

Ban was pensive. Astarion had never been one to be so open about their struggles; that had been a recent development. This sudden burst of frankness threw her off-balance, but in a good way. His candor yet again made it easier for her to dismiss the very fears they were both fighting.

“I mean, I already did say yes, Astarion,” she teased, but immediately backtracked when she saw he wasn’t in the right mood for banter.

“But I’ll repeat it. I do trust you enough, and I definitely love you enough, to try.”

Astarion tried to remain stoic, stewing in his own melancholy. Elation won out, however. He broke into a rather giddy, unguarded grin, squeezing her tightly in a hug.

“I-” His voice cracked. He cleared his throat, then slipped back into the seductive act, although it came off more playful than anything else.

“I’ll make sure tonight will be one you won’t forget.”

They danced in the middle of the crowd. They made a striking, if slightly mismatched pair - her dress was simple, his suit ornate. Where he was pale and silver-haired, she was golden and dark. He was long and lithe, she was small and muscular. And yet, they were so obviously in love, so in tune with one another as they glided across the dance floor, that their differences only heightened their allure for all who observed.

While Astarion had previously encouraged her to pick more lavish outfits, he had been leaving her clothing choices to her since they’d reconciled. He now realized he should have done so long ago. The dress clung to her perfect body and it made his cock stir pleasantly. He tried to tamp down the wave of arousal, knowing they would have all night. He spun her around elegantly, catching her at the end of the turn.

“Are you enjoying yourself, love?”

Parties had not been something she had enjoyed in the past; she was often relegated to being a piece of décor, hanging on his arm when needed and dismissed when not. Ushering guests around, then standing by the door to bid them farewell at the end.

Ban cast a sweeping glance across the ballroom, taking it all in. Not much had changed; it was still the same sort of vapid, soulless event these types of parties had always been. But tonight was better because of Astarion - he hadn’t left her side tonight, and had kept her involved in every conversation. A far cry from how they used to operate.

“I could take it or leave it, I suppose,” Ban answered playfully, as he pulled her tight against him. The music swelled and he leaned in; she smirked, expecting some snarky response.

The playfulness dissolved as the heat of his lips pressed against her own. He pressed her flush against his body; his hips ground against her muscled thigh.

She had to bite back a moan; his hands on her back were insistent, his hips impatient, as if he couldn’t wait to ravage her; whether that was true or manufactured didn’t matter to her right now.

“I needed a little taste,” he whispered as their lips parted. His eyes gleamed with need, an almost predatory look in them. Ban hadn’t seen that look in so long, and a small sense of trepidation crept over her at the sight of it. However, a much larger part of her felt anticipation. Heat began pooling between her legs.

Astarion’s hips were mid-grind when he noticed the arousal in her gaze. Between that and the way she pressed even closer to him, he was confident his tactics weren't unwelcome. But there was still a niggling what if in his mind, the habit honed to near paranoia by his constant need to be vigilant with regards to her emotions. He wanted to be sure; to check in anyway.

“Was that alright, love?”

He wanted to begin laying down the playful, teasing banter, to set the mood, but… not without Ban’s express approval.

She responded with a small nod. The gaze that met his was sultry. Coy - not attempting to wrest control from him, but full of lust. His excitement escalated and he felt himself hardening. He shifted his legs to readjust the fabric of his trousers and slid a hand down to her ass, giving it a squeeze. She raised her eyebrows in amusement and he grinned, delighted in the response he’d received.

“It was acceptable, my lord,” Ban said demurely, the old sobriquet slipping from her lips with ease. Long unused, she felt confident enough to use it tonight and trusted him not to take it too far. She was aiming for unconcerned, but entirely missed the mark, coming across as more eager than anything. She silently cursed herself when Astarion smirked knowingly.

That eagerness went straight to Astarion’s cock, and he let out a breathy groan.

“Then I’m sure you’ll positively love what I have in store for you later,” he murmured. He gave her another quick kiss, another quick squeeze on her ass that she tried and failed to slap away, then Ban disengaged, chuckling.

Minx, he thought, shaking his head. It was mind-boggling how easily she could bring him to his knees.

“You’ll have to wait, Astarion,” she whispered as the dance ended and she pulled away, taking two steps back. “Go mingle, now. I’ll check on the catering.”

With that, she disappeared into the crowd, leaving him alone, but happier than he’d been in a while. And with a decidedly rock-hard cock.

He watched his wife fade from view, then went to talk to his guests, more confident and more present than they’d ever seen him before, in this first tumultuous year as the Ascendant.

[lopposting]

Hello Puppet pals + Romeo fans

would you like a fresh, fun new dose of pain tonight

On Romeo (long post)

So way back in april, in the taiwan event they showed some material from what looks like early builds of the game. this is the still i want to talk about today

It's gepetto (romanized to "zepeto" here) asking if we've "killed the beast".

In the released version, we meet him outside in rosa isabelle street after the KOP fight. It looks as though he's even beside the same lamppost. There's no other similar scene of us meeting gepetto like this, so it's likely referring to the puppet king. (When we meet him on the bridge, he's seen that the donkey has been killed, so we wouldn't need to lie.) but the thing is, this question is a YES OR NO ANSWER, meaning one or the other would be a lie.

So maybe in the early versions of the game it was actually possible align with/spare the puppet king (and by extension romeo) and then lie to Geppetto about it. (I mean, it's possible that it's simply just lying about not killing him to G, and we couldn't spare him to begin with)

I think they realized that they couldn't possibly make such a narratively important boss fight optional and that story-wise it wasn't linear enough to work. The story as a whole is not nearly as effective without his loss.

TLDR: I'm speculating that that image was from an early version of the game, and Romeo could've actually lived but the devs made the hard call against this.

[It's also possible that they just made that image for the purposes of presentation, and that it doesn't mean anything, or that it's another beast entirely.]

But still, somehow it makes it the more tragic. *stares blankly into space.*

(bonus fun notes below)

In this IGN interview before release, Director Choi dropped a big hint about romeo here.

"Yes, this is the king of puppets. And we want to call him a character and not a monster, because he will be the centre of the story. So if you play more and discover more about him, you'll find out more about what he is and who he is."

the puppet king being lampwick was also inadvertently leaked by IGN in this video:

I don't think people unfamiliar with the story would know anything, but pinoheads definitely would've and did recognize what "romeo" alluded to

They kept Romeo's ENTIRE EXISTENCE a secret up until launch. During the roughly two years of promotions before release there was never any mention of Romeo before release. Zip, Nada, so much so that the budding fanbase was starting to assume that he wouldn't even be in the game. NO ONE saw it coming when we found out who exactly we killed. Developers did consider that people who had read the book would catch on to particular things, so, bravo neowiz

And here's the other ingenious thing - they showed us the "Mad Donkey" boss early on in the demo and NOW I'm starting to wonder if this was a deliberate play. Almost everyone assumed this was already the game's iteration of Lampwick, so Romeo came as a surprise, and I think the proceeding story reveals about who the King of Puppets truly was were very effective.

also.. it's extremely cute what they did with the character. Of course, Romeo is the canonical name of Lampwick in Pinocchio, but the name "Romeo" is also probably the most heavily associated with Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet (which also takes place in Italy, as does Pinocchio!). And then we meet him in a theatre, and he puts on a play for us before we fight. Romeo supposedly had an affinity for acting, as Carlo did with the piano (I have heard this around on reddit, I don't know where this originates from, please lmk if you've seen these lore items). But most of all, Romeo and Juliet is a deeply remembered tragedy - like Lampwick in collodi's pinocchio. They are two young boys who didn't get away.

(maybe all of this was so obvious to everyone else but i love it still haha)

Fun to revisit this stuff after release with new clarity.

[To Reiterate - All of this is just my speculation]

[maxverstappensflatbrim]

Show Me Yours | Matty Healy [6]

chapter six, act one: antichrist

materlist

November 29th 2012

Tommie nudges Matty’s foot under the table to get him to look away from the menu and he looks up, raising a brow.

She grins, sliding the white serviette across the table, dimples showing on her cheeks when he smiles brightly at her.

You look so cool x <3

He tears his gaze from her when Adam and George return, Adam sliding into the spare seat by Ross and George onto the opposite side with Matty.

They place the drinks down on the table that they’d gotten from the refill machine and then pick a menu for themselves.

“We’ve got a month,” Matty starts, tucking the little piece of white tissue into his pocket, “Well, just over a month to get this album perfect.”

“I think it's pretty good already.” Tommie says, chewing on her straw.

“Pretty good isn’t perfect, Tommie.” Matty says sharply.

She holds her hands up, looking to Ross who sits beside her and shares the same look, “Alright, Jesus.”

“Sorry,” Matty mumbles, running his hands through his hair and then resting his elbows on the table, “It’s just, we have to finish this, and we’ve got a show next week with no set list yet.”

“We have like four songs, I’m sure the set list won’t be hard.” Adam shrugs, almost flinching when Matty glares at him across the table.

“Actually, Hann, we have eight songs out right now, not including any Drive Like I Do songs old fans might expect. God, maybe if you listened to me once in a while you’d know. Jesus, you fucking ign-”

“Hey,” Tommie says, brows furrowed as she kicks him, this time not in a playful manner, but a harsh one that has his knee jerking up to hit the table and the drinks spilling, “We’re all stressed, Matt. Ross and I are still working, George is trying to learn the ropes to produce this thing and Adam’s still trying to perfect that stupid guitar solo you thought was necessary. But you don’t see us snapping at one another.”

He remains silent, looking out the window beside him but she presses forward, “Huh? Do you?”

“No.”

“Then how about you talk to us a little better?”

“Sorry.”

“Don’t apologise to me.” She gestures across to Adam who, like the other two, have shrunk back into his seat.

Matty sighs, looking at her then slowly across to her cousin, “I’m sorry, Hann.”

“It’s alright, mate.”

“No, it’s not, Adam,” Tommie says firmly, “Now, why don’t you calm down, we’ll order food, then go straight back to the studio, yeah?”

He nods, then she follows with her own, “Go on then.”

“What?”

“Your turn to pay, Healy.”

“I paid for our chinese last night.”

“Well, with the attitude you’ve had this morning you can pay again today, go on.”

He doesn’t move and she claps her hands in his face, “Chop chop, we’re all starving.”

⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

“I don’t mean to.” Matty begins slowly.

He’s walking just behind the other three guys with Tommie who has her hands shoved into her jacket pockets trying to keep herself warmed up.

She looks up when he speaks for the first time since leaving the restaurant. He’s been stuck in his head for their little walk back to the studio they’re working at. Thinking of what to say to her.

“Don’t mean to be so snappy and picky, it’s just, it’s a lot and I need to prove myself, you know.”

“To who, Matty?” She questions softly, looking up at him as they walk, “Us four already know how great you are, how cool you are, who else is there to prove to?”

“I just,” He sighs, “I don’t want people thinking we’ve got this because of who my parents are. We worked hard for this, all of us, we’ve been doing this for years and this is our chance.”

He stops her from walking so he can grab her hands, “This is it, Tommie. If this goes right, we can finally make it.”

“It will go right. We deserve it, Matty. We’ve all put everything into this. Trust.”

He nods, “I know, I know, I’m sorry.”

“We’re all on the same side, Matty, you don’t have to fight against us all the time.”

“I know,” He repeats, chest heaving in a big sigh as he rubs his thumb over her knuckles, “I know. I’m sorry.”

“Good,” She smiles tugging him along a little faster so they catch up with the guys, she tugs his hand awkwardly and he winces as the uncomfortable ache, “Talk to Adam- talk to any of those three- like that ever again and I will break your jaw, Healy.”

“Okay, okay, ow, your grip is really strong.”

“Good.”

⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

December 3rd 2012

She could feel it coming the entire gig, the way her headached and her heart pumped a little too fast. The way the lights are irritating her and the clothes she wears scratching her skin is another reminder of the incoming sensory overload. Which usually leads to an oncoming panic attack.

She’s not unfamiliar with a sensory overload, not being able to handle too many different noises all at once. But between the bass of Ross from beside her, Matty’s singing, her own guitar mixed with Adam’s, the beat of George’s drums and the many different voices yelling at the same time she’s not quite sure how much longer she can take.

But she also knows, once she’s over that barrier between the stage and backstage. Matty will be there, all attention on her, hands over her ears to block out the noise letting her cover her eyes in his chest just like always.

Matty was the one who had found her after the first gig they did, curled up in a ball in the shared bathroom with her hands over her ears and tears running down her face.

He wasn’t quite sure what was going on when he first found her there, but it didn’t take long for him to realise when he was panicking and talking a little too loud which only seemed to set her off a little more.

“Thank you, very much,” Matty says as the last few notes of sex ring out through the audience, “We have been the 1975, and you have been absolutely amazing! Thank you!”

Tommie doesn’t wait, she’s first off the stage straight away, pushing past Ross to get down the little stairs quicker and disappearing into the bathroom.

She waits anxiously, foot tapping as she sits in the closed lid of the toilet and tries to calm herself.

Usually it only takes Matty a minute or two to come after her, but as she taps her foot once more, hands anxiously picking at the skin of her elbow until it’s red raw and bleeding over her white radiohead t-shirt, she realises he’s not coming.

Her breathing is still in stuttered messes and she keeps running her hands through her hair, sometimes pulling a little too harshly.

But a loud knock on the door has her jumping up. She rips it open but gasps when she’s not met with who she thought.

“There you are, we’re all waiting for you.”

George’s brows furrow and he tilts his head, “Tom? You alright?”

She shakes her head quickly, her breathing getting worse as she walks back into the bathroom.

George follows, closing the door softly as he stands there awkwardly, “Shall I get Adam?”

“N-No.” She shakes her head and sits on the toilet lid again. “Not Adam.”

He nods softly once more, muttering ‘okay’ as he kneels in front of her.

“Here.”

“What?”

He holds his hand up for her, “Just like squeeze it or something.” 

George has no clue what he’s doing, he obviously recognises the panic attack she’s having, but he’s never had to calm anyone down from it.

The two times Matty had a panic attack as kids Adam was the one to console him and calm him down, with Ross supporting and George rubbing his back when instructed,

“Like a stress ball.” He adds when he sees her questioning gaze.

She hesitantly takes his hand and squeezes a little, then he squeezes back with an encouraging smile, “See?”

She nods and he moves so he sits crossed legged instead of awkwardly crouching in front of her.

She swallows the lump that was in her throat and George’s other hand comes up to squeeze her knee, “Uh, usually Adam makes Matty talk, which we both know isn’t really an issue for him, even when he can’t breath.”

She laughs a little and George’s smile brightens, “Shall I go get him? Matty?”

She shakes her head quickly, “It’ll pass.”

“You sure? He knows this kind of stuff, he can help.”

“Was supposed to be here,” She says, pushing her hand against her heart as if pushing against herself will calm her breathing. “He’s always here.”

“You’ve had one before?”

She nods quickly, “They pass, G.”

She squeezes his hand again, “Just, don’t leave. Please.”

He nods quickly and moves to pull her down to the floor with him, “I’m right here, Tom, just keep squeezing my hand.”

She nods, squeezing again.

They stay like that for a while, George holding her under his arm, his back leaning against the wall beside the sink until she calms.

“I’m okay.”

“You sure?”

She nods quickly, “Is everyone waiting?”

“We were gonna head to this restaurant, but if you’re not up for it I’ll head back to the hotel with you.”

She shakes her head, “I’m starving.”

“There’s a McDonald’s on the way.”

“I’m okay, George.”

He nods then and slowly gets up, helping her to her feet and guiding her out into the hallway down to where everyone else is.

“Finally.” Matty slurs, drink in hand as he walks over wrapping an arm around her, “Where’d you disappear off to, kid?” He ruffles her hair and she pushes his hand away.

“Bathroom.” She says simply.

“Come, come.” He says quickly, dragging her across the room.

George catches her other arm, hand on Matty’s shoulder, “Not right now, Matty, give her a few minutes.”

“No, no, she has to come right now, or she’ll miss her.”

George sends her an apologetic look and she raises a brow over her shoulder, “Okay, I want you to meet Gemma.”

“Who’s Gemma?”

“Hi.”

She pauses as she looks at the woman before her, much taller than her, with beautiful blonde hair and even more gorgeous eyes.

She smiles, teeth showing and Tommie grins awkwardly, “Alrite’?”

“This is Tommie,” Matty says with an arm around her shoulder, tugging her into his sweaty side causing her to grimace, “Adam’s little cousin.”

Tommie raises a brow at that, there’s no usual little speak that she’s grown to love, ‘this is Tommie, we found her on the side of the road but we love her like our own’ or ‘this is Tommie, my best mate and the third best guitarist after me, then secondly Matty Healy’.

She’s just Tommie, Adam’s little cousin.

“Hi, Tommie. It’s nice to meet you. I didn’t realise you were actually in the band.”

She nods a little, feeling uncomfortable with Matty’s arm around her neck.

“Yeah, have been for almost a year now.”

“She’s being modest,” Matty adds, shaking her around a little, “She’s been with us for years.”

Matty finally moves his hand from pointing at her to the woman opposite them, “Tommie, this is Gemma. My girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend?”

Matty grins, holding his hand for her and pulling her into him to clumsily place a kiss on her lips, missing completely and hitting her cheek.

“I uh, didn’t know you had a girlfriend, Healy.” She chuckles awkwardly, stepping away from him when he tries to place his arm around her again.

“I wanted to be sure, you know,” He says, soft eyes on his girlfriend, “Before I introduce you guys, make you become friends.”

“Well, anyone who can deal with you is instantly my friend.”

She clears her throat a little, giving Gemma another smile, “Uh, George and I were gonna head back early instead, both a bit too tired and he promised me McDonalds yesterday so…”

“Oh, of course, we can all go out tomorrow morning before we leave.”

She nods, “Yeah, yeah, maybe.”

She turns to Gemma, smiling softly, “Nice meetin’ you.”

“Sorry?”

Matty chuckles, “Nice meeting you.” He repeats her words for her, “Don’t worry, took me almost four years to understand her.”

Tommie turns, heading straight for George who’s talking with some daughter of a worker who has backstage access, hand on the wall above her head.

“G?”

“Hmm?”

“Can we go?”

He’s about to shoo her away but when he looks down at her and sees her expression he nods quickly, “Yeah, I’ll call a taxi.”

She nods, moving to Adam and Ross to tell them they’re leaving while grabbing George’s jacket and her bag.

“Do you want me to come back with you?”

She shakes her head, “No, we’re gonna get some food on the way back.”

“You’re alright, yeah?” Ross asks then, head tilting up at her.

She nods quickly with a smile, “Just, uh, tired, George said he wanted to call that bird he met yesterday so he’s gonna take me back on his way.”

“Okay.”

Adam mutters an excuse before following her out, “Tom? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I’m just, not feeling great.”

“Tom…”

He tilts his head, in that mother hen way that she hates, “I’m fine, Ad, really.”

“Ring me if you need anything.”

“Okay.”

⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

George sighs, still searching in his pocket for the hotel room key, the five of them have one room together, it’s got a double bed, two single beds and a pull out sofa bed.

“Shit, what did I do with it?”

He tries passing the loose things in his pocket to her, a pack of cigarettes, about five lighters (none of them work), empty pack of chewing gums and his broken phone.

She doesn’t respond, standing staring into space and he tilts his head but then grins, laughing loudly which snaps her out of her trance.

“Put it in my back pocket of my jeans.”

She nods, forcing a smile but her eyes are still trained on a crack in the paint on the wall behind him.

He closes the door behind them, watching her try to get off her shoes, “You sure you’re alright? You’re acting a little weird, Tom.”

She breathes in shakily and turns to look at him, he worries even more when he sees the tears in her eyes, “Tom?”

“Gemma?”

His shoulders drop a little knowingly and he reaches over to tuck her into his chest, arms wrapping around her as she lets it out. She cries into his plain shirt as he rests his chin on her head. “Oh, Tommie.”

“I-I thought… I thought he liked me, G.”

George sighs, he doesn’t say what he’s thinking, ‘me too, with the way he gushes about you, the way he drools over you, the way he stares every single second his eyes are open, me too.’

The rest of the guys don’t come in until much later, George is sitting quietly in the double bed beside a sleeping Tommie who’s wrapped up in jackets, blankets and pillows. Which is something she does to herself when she feels like she’s getting too overwhelmed with the world.

“Hey, guys.” Matty says loudly.

George looks up quickly, shushing him and gesturing to Tommie.

“Sorry- Ow, shit! Fuck-”

Matty leans down to hold the foot he’d hit on the suitcase that he had left open in the middle of the room, “Sorry.” He says again.

Ross faceplants one of the single beds with a groan and Adam heads over to Tommie, he pushes some blankets back to look at her, “Is she alright?”

George looks over at Matty who stumbles into the bathroom, only half closing the door as he begins to take a piss.

“She was just a little overwhelmed after the gig, think she had a panic attack or something, didn't want to worry you.”

“Is that it? Is she okay?”

“She calmed down after a while, Hann, was fine after a McDonalds and a shower.”

Adam nods and gathers some clothes for him and Ross to change into for sleep.

George pulls himself out of bed to take up the other single bed as Matty stumbles out of the bathroom, he crawls into the bed beside Tommie, using one finger to uncover her sleeping face.

“Baby?”

“Leave her alone, Matty.” George says, not looking up from his laptop.

“I missed her. Was supposed to get drunk with her tonight.”

“Just go to bed.” George repeats, headphones around his neck, the faint beat of a new song coming from them.

He grumbles something but tucks himself in, until Adam is harshly tugging on his leg, “Not in this one, this is my bed.”

“Not fair, you got the double bed with Ross last night.”

“I want to make sure Tommie’s okay.”

“She’s fine.”

“She had a panic attack, Matty,” George snaps, “Told me you were supposed to meet her there…”

Matty shakes his head, suddenly sobering up a lot quicker, “Shit, I-I… ah, I got distracted, I saw Gemma, I wasn’t expecting her and then it slipped my mind what usually happens. I’m so sor-”

“No point in apologising, mate. Just go to bed.”

taglist @thereisaplaceintheheart @indierockgirrl

-let me know if you want to be added :)

[implausiblyjosh]

Did The DVD Drive Help Sell PS2s?

This is a repost of a cohost post from AUG 13, 2024:

Someone made a weird claim on twitter about the PS2 and how important DVD playback was in late 2000, claiming that DVD players were under $100 by the end of 2000. It didn't smell right, but this screenshot they kept posting didn't make sense to me. Where was it coming from, who was saying this about DVD players?

I went to try and find where this screenshot comes from, and it's the Wikipedia page for "DVD player". I went and skimmed the 5 refs included in that article, and as far as I can tell, of the 1 webpage, 1 service manual, and 3 articles, none of them say this about pricing. Here's the specific version of the article I was looking at.

The closest we get is the EETimes reference in that wikipedia article, an article from May 2002 which has "With DVD player prices on track to drop to about $70 by year's end". That's not super helpful because it doesn't tell us where the prices are in May 2002.

The remaining four sources aren't very helpful either. The service manual PDF is lots of circuit boards, no prices. The webpage and and the other two articles are talking about the first year of the DVD player & format, which is about 1997. So that doesn't help us. Where'd this number even come from?

I checked the Talk page for the article, I'm seeing someone point out in 2008 that there were 0 sources on this article, and I'm not digging in the edit logs of the article itself to see when/where the references came from. So we know sometime between 2008 and 2024 these five sources were added, but none of the sources back the claim.

Trying to find articles about pricing from the time, I google "dvd player price in 2000" and get an IGN article from August 2000 that lists prices ranging from $270 to $3,000. To confirm my knowledge of the PS2 launch (because now I'm doubting what I know lol) I find a GameSpot article from May 2000 announcing the price and launch of the PS2, which is October 26, 2000 for $299 USD.

If your entry level DVD player is $300 in August 2000, I don't know how easy it was to find players "under $100" by the end of the year, and definitely not by the PS2's launch date of late October 2000. Based on looking through some articles at the time, we're looking at something that cost the same as a budget Sony DVD player at the time, but also played video games. It's hard to say how much that drove sales, but I did a quick search for "ps2 launch sales", looking for articles before 2001. I found a CNN article from the PS2's launch day that says:

Perhaps the most important perk, the PS2 can play digital versatile disc (DVD) movies, a feature that Sony hopes will make the $299 console a standard appliance in North American homes. The game pad controls the DVD functions with a relatively rudimentary interface, allowing users to skip ahead, pause or view special features.

In Japan, the presence of the movie player has reportedly driven up sales of DVD movies.

Based on quick searches from articles at the time, T\the evidence that the DVD feature helped PS2 sales is way more evidenced than the idea of $100 DVD players by the end of 2000. Hell, trying to find something that gets me close to that pricing claim is a CNET article from 2002 which says:

The cost of DVD players fell more than $200 within two years of their introduction in 1997 for nearly $500, according to Peddie Research. And the price slide hasn't stopped. Although the Consumer Electronics Association says the average price of a DVD player was $193 last year, consumers can now find players for less than $100.

Looking at it all, it seems like the DVD functionality was a selling point according to Sony and articles at the time of the launch, so. Idk, seems like the DVD feature was important to sales of the PS2!

The above was adapted from a thread I made on Twitter. I'm adding the following new thoughts!

I woulda been 6-ish when the PS2 launched, so what I know first-hand of the era is skewed. Listening to people I trust talk about games has given me the impression the DVD drive and playback was important to the PS2's sales and initial success, making for a solid foundation for people to develop a shit ton of amazing, system-seller titles for the platform. It's a hand-in-hand situation, not an either-or situation. Based on what I remember growing up, the PS2 was a good investment for a video game household that loved movies but didn't have the funds to get a DVD player and get a game console. For us, the PS2 was a best of both worlds situation.

But that's kinda... not the point? It wasn't difficult to find these sources talking about price, but it shoulda been easier. Articles talking about DVD player prices should have been in the Wikipedia article, but weren't. That's super strange to me, a wikipedia article about a large and important type of media player has only 5 sources, and more than half of them are talking about it's first year. Google search should have been a lot better to allow me to find more sources from the time, because it was hard to find any coverage of the launch day vibes of the PS2. Thinking about this more after the fact, I think I need to learn how to search magazine scans because I know gaming print magazines at the time would have said something about DVD playback and how important it may or may not have been!

Idk where to end this. Seems like there's a weird bit of misinfo on the DVD player Wikipedia page, which seems hard to correct because I'm not sure where to look for better sourcing. Someone should do something about this I think!

[eruscreaminginthedistance]

Love reading all the new articles and updates about Dragon Age and it's really hard at this point to reign in my expectations. The gameplay showcase made me want to go back to the Inquisition demos that I watched during 2014 that got me super hyped. I was curious just how much from those gameplay reveals didn't make it into the release version of the game; I could remember bits and pieces that I was disappointed didn't make it in, but going back over these vids I'm shocked at just how much was overpromised in the months leading up to release. The demos Bioware showed during 2014 were a completely different beast from the final game. Just in the PAX (Sept 2013, so a year pre-release) and post-E3 demos (Jul 2014, four months pre-release) we've got:

Different camera controls allowing for a more over-the-shoulder style, very similar to what we've seen for Veilguard actually

Combat while moving for mages, as well as drastically different combat animations for everyone, including autoattacking with one's hand rather than the staff

Hyperviolence that never made it into the final game like that one enemy being magicked into a skeleton

The mounts actually speeding up travel

Promises of dwindling bear numbers in the environments the more you kill

Environmental things like boats actually moving across the water in real time

Dynamic events and attacks on the keeps the Inquisitor can claim, rather than the keeps sitting around

On that note, I didn't even remember one of the most bold-faced lies during that Crestwood demos "You can burn these boats to cut off the Red Templar's retreat", crazy stuff

Big choices like choosing between saving villagers or saving your keep

The promise that you can upgrade the keeps once captured

That whole cutscene with Varric that didn't make it into the final game

The content from that post-E3 demo in particular is from pretty much where Veilguard is now. You can see in this IGN vid from August 2014 (roughly two months pre-release and two months after the post-E3 demo) just how much changed in that marketing cycle.

Something I think is really interesting about this retrospective is just how much the gameplay of this unrealised Inquisition game is similar to the Veilguard content. Does that mean that the Reveal gameplay, with the camera POV and smooth action combat isn't representative of the final result? I should hope not. I would hope that the faster gameplay is what Bioware has been aiming towards all along, and have just been stuck with platform limitations until now.

Anyway this was an interesting exercise in examining my own history with the games and why I take everything Bioware tries to market to me in the next few months with a very healthy dose of skepticism. Don't get me wrong, the game looks great, but Inquisition also looked a little too good to be true in a lot of aspects

[dangan-kagura]

Opinion About Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves Having an English Dub. Will People Use It?

So the newest, upcoming fighting game installment by SNK is gonna bring back the Fatal Fury series, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves. And get this, the game is gonna have an English dub!

Exciting?

Well, I say “Exciting?” because I’m not even sure if people are gonna play the game with English voice acting, they might instead play the game in Japanese. The likeliest reason why anyone would want to do this is probably because they’ll think the Japanese dub has better voice acting. This would concern me a little bit, because if I watch people’s videos of the game on YouTube, a majority might prefer to play the game in Japanese and not English.

Now before I explain why this would concern me, what I want to talk about first are the past fighting games SNK made 20 years ago. I’m of course talking about KOF: Maximum Impact. It was a spinoff game that brought The King of Fighters to the 3D fighting game genre, and get this, it has an English dub.

Or rather, a really bad English dub, as in, either no one knows who the voice actors are, what other work they’ve done, or they’re not professional voice actors who have dubbed anime by Funimation. It was the mid 2000s, and at the time, not every Japanese video game series got to cast professional voice actors in the dubbing business. This playlist should suffice as evidence if you want to check out some character playthroughs of the game.

I will say that while there is some positive reception with Maximum Impact (like in the 7/10 range) the game’s bad English dub is probably the reason why no one would want to play it. If I remember right, in IGN’s review of the game, they described the English dub as “piss poor”. And worst of all, the PlayStation 2 version of the game doesn’t have the option to switch between English and Japanese dubs, although the Xbox version has this issue resolved. So if you went to a store that sells used video games and wanted to try out Maximum Impact (if they have a copy) I’d recommend playing the Xbox version if you don’t want to deal with its bad English dub.

SNK even ended up making a sequel, KOF: Maximum Impact 2, although the localized version is titled as The King of Fighters 2006, which is weird since 2006 was when The King of Fighters XI came out on console. SNK even made a third game, KOF: Maximum Impact Regulation A, which was released in Japan only. My guess is that because the first two games had bad English dubs, SNK probably figured that Regulation A wouldn’t sell good outside Japan.

But it doesn’t end there, well, maybe for Maximum Impact. In 2009, SNK released The King of Fighters XII, and I’m sure not many people know this, but the game does have an English dub!

But there is a problem. While the voice acting in KOF XII is better than Maximum Impact, the game doesn’t credit which voice actor voices which. The game now remains as probably one of the most underrated installments in the series, seeing as how the game can be seen as sort of a beta version of what The King of Fighters XIII would be like. I’m not sure if there was a majority of gamers playing the game in Japanese, but from my experience, I chose to play the game in Japanese out of concern that the game’s English dub would be just a lame as Maximum Impact.

The King of Fighters XII ended up being the last game in the series to try out an English dub. When The King of Fighters XIII came out in 2011, that game didn’t bring back the English voice actors from KOF XII, whoever they were. Interestingly enough, it’s one of two KOF games (the other being KOF XIV) where Atlus got localization rights (I think) and even though they’ve made English dubs for some of their own games (e.g. Persona) I’m guessing Atlus chose not to give KOF XIII & XIV English dubs. Or it could’ve been SNK’s decision, thinking back to the bad English dubs the Maximum Impact games had, they probably couldn’t afford to hire professional dubbing voice actors.

For this new Fatal Fury game, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, it does look like this is SNK’s first try to cast professional dubbing voice actors. Unfortunately for me, I don’t know who they are, and I’m too lazy to even look them up. I mean, my generation of dubbing voice actors might be different, so I doubt this game is gonna cast any voice actors I’m familiar with. For all I know, my favorite voice actors are probably retired at this point.

But now I want to talk about why it concerns me that a majority might prefer the Japanese dub over the English dub.

It’s silly I know, but I’m actually worried that people would think the game doesn’t have an English dub if a majority play the game in Japanese. Then again, with all the English trailers, I’m sure people will know the game has an English dub, but I’m worried that people won’t actually care for the English dub, no matter how famous the voice actors are (if they’re famous).

And it’s more than just thinking back to the bad English dubs the Maximum Impact games had, if anyone today remembers those games. I remember 9 years ago when Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- came out. A lot of people were playing that game in Japanese despite the game having an English dub with professional anime voice actors. Back when I used to be a Guilty Gear fan, I did play this game in Japanese, thinking that maybe Aksys Games didn’t have the funds to hire professional voice actors like with SNK. But it’s only until a few months back I got to learn a little more about Aksys Games, namely the fact that they originally localized the Zero Escape series by Spike Chunsoft, and that series has the same kind of voice actors from Spike Chunsoft’s more familiar series, Danganronpa, and they’re the same kind of voice actors used in the Guilty Gear Xrd games.

I ended up learning a year after Xrd -SIGN- came out that the game has, well, I’ll try not to say it multiple times. I found out for example that Tara Platt ended up voicing both Millia Rage and I-No in the game, which surprised me since, at the time, I knew her as the original English voice actress for Vert in the Neptunia series (before being replaced by Carrie Keranen) and in that series, there were plenty of familiar voice actors to me and lots of people were playing that series in English. Vert is my favorite Neptunia girl, and back when I was a fan of Guilty Gear, Millia was my favorite, so I guess it was like… destiny or fate? Or maybe just a big coincidence? Despite this, it did bother me a little to see a majority play Guilty Gear in Japanese and not English.

But Guilty Gear aside, I’m not sure if other Japanese fighting games like Street Fighter and Blazblue are like this too, where there’s a majority of gamers playing them in Japanese despite these games having, again, professional dubbing/anime voice actors. When I did try out Street Fighter IV and the first Blazblue game, I chose to play them in Japanese. But I’ll admit that I’m not a fan of either of these games, I thought Guilty Gear was cooler looking than Blazblue, and Street Fighter IV felt like a piece of shit game (but that’s a different story for a different time). I will say that I do see a lot of people play Soul Calibur in English (myself included) but I’m not so sure about those other games.

As an aside, in the 90s, there were anime movies based on the Fatal Fury series, and they got to have English dubs made by Viz Media (the same people who made the English dubs for Bleach and Inuyasha) and they do have some pretty good voice actors. For example, I remember reading that they casted David Kaye to voice Kim Kaphwan (surprisingly, I know him as the voice of Clank in the Ratchet & Clank series). If Kim does return for this new Fatal Fury game, I highly doubt SNK is gonna recast David Kaye to voice him.

I mean, I can’t say for certain if the Fatal Fury anime films were any good, I’m not one for anime reviews, and this is a 90s anime we’re talking about. There’s also an OVA based on Art of Fighting, but it wasn’t that good despite having an English dub too.

I’ll admit that there are some games where I’ve chosen to play them in Japanese despite the opposite, where a majority might prefer to play them in English.

For example, I play Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom, and even Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity in Japanese, but a majority seem to prefer to play them in English. It’s not that I think the English dubs are bad, though I admit that I’m not big on Princess Zelda having a British accent or Matt Mercer voicing both Rauru and Ganondorf (I think Jamieson Price would’ve been a great casting choice for Ganondorf) but they’re one of those games where the lip sync during cutscenes is based on the Japanese dub. That, and I only know a few of the voice actors, more specifically, I only know that Kate Higgins voiced Purah, and Cherami Leigh voiced Riju. Another example is Dynasty Warriors 9, I play that game in Japanese since the English dub didn’t recast the original voice actors from the other games and the English dub is, well, just as bad as Maximum Impact I guess.

So with the upcoming Fatal Fury game, how are people gonna play the game voice acting wise? Will they actually try out the English dub to see if their favorite characters are voiced by their favorite voice actors, or will they stick with the Japanese dub thinking that the English dub might have some lame voice lines or bad translations like with Maximum Impact. In my case, I’m curious to try out the English dub. It’s the first time in 15 years since SNK gave one of their games an English dub, and it looks like this game is gonna have some very professional voice actors. I highly doubt I’ll recognize any of them, but I’ll still play the game in English to see if I’ll like it.

I hope I made some sense with this blog, and I apologize for how long it is if you made it this far.

[lmjupdates]

LAUREN JAUREGUI RELEASES HER NEWEST EP “IN BETWEEN”, AND TALKS ABOUT NEW MUSIC, LOVE & WHAT’S NEXT!

Before giving her fans a new album, Singer/songwriter, Lauren Jauregui, releases her latest EP “In Between” a 7-track EP that holds emotions, love, and the Ty Dolla $ign assisted single “Wolves” alongside Russ. We’re so excited to catch up with Lauren and what she has in store, read our full interview below. Download/stream “In Between” HERE

By Perry Johnson

TELL US ABOUT THE INSPIRATION BEHIND YOUR NEW EP IN BETWEEN

These songs have actually been sitting with me since 2018/2019. I think the inspiration for all of my music is always pretty personal, introspective, and reflective. I drew from experiences that I was going through for songs like Em(oceans), Trust Issues, & Always Love and then I try to relate the themes in such a way that anyone listening can see themselves in my experiences. All In My Feelings was inspired by a fuck boy lol and then Wolves was inspired by the bullshit I’ve been through in this industry and a reminder to keep going to anyone who needs it.

WHAT SONG AND LYRIC FROM THIS EP HIT HOME THE HARDEST FOR YOU

They honestly each hit in a very deep way lol but I think it’s between Em(oceans) & Wolves. Probably Always Love & Trust Issues as well; Trust Issues always hits incredibly hard lyrically.

ALWAYS LOVE IS AN ODE TO LOVE HOW DOES LOVE SHOW UP ON THIS RECORD AND WHAT MOMENTS LED TO WRITING THIS TRACK

Yeah, it’s an ode to love that can no longer be but will always exist. I feel like there aren’t many breakup songs that acknowledge the fact that there was love shared between the two people involved even if it wasn’t meant to be at the end of it all. Most are either bitter & wrought with regret or mean and dismissive of the love that existed once..so I figured this song summed up my actual feelings which is that even though it was difficult to let go, I will always have a place in my heart and love for the people I have once loved.

LOOKING BACK ON YOUR SOLO MUSIC HOW DO YOU FEEL YOU HAVE GROWN LYRICALLY AND MUSICALLY AS AN ARTIST

I think I’m still in the process. I’ve released 2 EPs and 4 singles on my own. Plus some really beautiful collaborations with my friends, like Snow Tha Product & Halsey. I think I keep getting more and more comfortable expressing myself and like with anything, practice makes for perfection. I’ve been writing since before I put it into song format so I think just getting clearer and better at expressing myself through music has been the biggest growth arc for me. I’m definitely in the studio now making new things..like I said all these songs were written back in the 2018/2019 era, so I’ve grown A LOT as a woman since then and I think that’s reflected in the music I’m making right now.

WHO HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST INSPIRATION IN MUSIC

I don’t know that I have one biggest inspiration. I’m inspired by all kinds of incredible artists that have shaped my ear and the way I hear and complete my songs. I love singer/songwriters so definitely Amy Winehouse, Mariah Carey, Hayley Williams, Alicia Keys, PINK!, Shakira, John Mayer, Jhene Aiko, Summer Walker, Kehlani, SZA, Lana Del Rey. I’m inspired greatly by Beyoncé and the way she executes background vocals and communicates an entire vision and pulls that into her performances. I’m inspired by Christina Aguilera, Lady Gaga, Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, Billie Holiday, Nina Simone…I just love women who express themselves and their truth.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE YOUR 16-YEAR-OLD SELF

I’d tell her to relax and allow life to happen for her. I’d tell her that she was safe now and protected and that she deserves to be present and happy and enjoy the moment. Also to read the contracts and find a lawyer who gives a fuck lol

OUT OF ALL THE TRACKS ON THIS NEW EP WHAT SONG DESCRIBES YOUR TRUEST SELF?

Probably Em(oceans) & Always Love

WHAT IS ONE THING YOU WANT LISTENERS TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS EP

A better understanding of who I am and who they are and some songs that can accompany them through life and make them feel seen and held and shake their asses.

HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH YOUR MENTAL HEALTH BEING IN THE SPOTLIGHT FOR SO MANY YEARS AS WE ALL KNOW SOCIAL MEDIA CAN HAVE ITS GOOD SIDE AND BAD

I honestly have had a lot of rapid growth in this department over the past year. I believe life is as spiritual as it is physical and the more that I tap into how connected I am spiritually, the more I’m able to understand that I am protected and held in realms that go beyond this world. The more I tap into that the less I’m tapped into the matrix and what other people think of me. Most of what other people think or judge about someone is actually thoughts and demons of their own that they’re facing and projecting to feel better about themselves at the moment. I know who I am now and no one can tell me otherwise, especially not strangers on the internet that I do not know personally. So, prayer, breaks from the internet, more time in nature, meditation, creating, and spending time w people I love and by mySelf. All of that really helps keep me grounded.

WHAT BEAUTY PRODUCT ARE. YOU OBSESSED WITH AT THE MOMENT

I don’t really wear too much makeup unless I’m going to events haha so I love a good light, clean foundation. I’m obsessed w my new Caliray free dreaming skin wellness diffusing tint. It’s lightweight and feels like a tinted moisturizer but has better coverage AND it’s clean. Which I love. I love products that are made thoughtfully, sustainably, and with ingredients that don’t harm me or the environment. I also loveee their clean mascara called Come Hell or High Water. I also love me some virgin coconut oil. I use it as a full-body moisturizer and makeup remover and it’s amazing.

BEING CUBAN AMERICAN WILL WE SEE MORE MUSIC IN ESPAÑOL FROM YOU IN THE FUTURE

Definitely. Spanglish energy will always be coming from my corner, whether that’s full Spanish songs or incorporation of it into my English music sonically or lyrically.

YOUR FAVORITE SPANGLISH WORD

Hahaa maybe janguear o chilear

WHAT CUBAN DISH DOES YOUR FAMILY MAKE THAT YOU ALWAYS CRAVE

Omg my mom’s bistec empanizado with a side of tostones

WHAT IS NEXT FOR YOU THIS YEAR

I’m working on my album so very much in the studio and just connecting with mySelf and life and allowing myself to live in the In Between. Definitely going to be taking these songs on the road as well

Team Credits:

Talent: Lauren Jauregui @laurenjauregui

Photographer: Natasha Austrich @natashaaustrich

Stylist: Raz Martinez @itsmerazzie

Make-up: Vittorio Masecchia @vittoriomasecchiabeuty

Hair: Nathaniel Dezan @nathanieldezan

[kinwarband]

Intro post and roster

I've been putting this off forever, so I'm just going to make a rough preliminary post to get my thoughts out so I don't slack any further. I'll edit this later to make it look more official, and will be editing as I gain more characters. Please forgive the mess, I've had a rough couple of months recently-

But hi, my name is Monty! I'm 32, and have been playing Guild Wars 2 for about 8 years now. I've been waffling about wondering if I should actually make this blog for over two years now. So here I am! I'm somewhat shy, and anxious, so I might not reach out often. But I want to get more into the GW2 community, because I like to write and roleplay, and Guild Wars has absolutely stolen my heart. If you want to find me in game, my ign is Attamist.3857 which is also in the blog description!

Now, onto my character roster, which is kinda small lmao

Character List (In Order of appearance)

Charr: Hesperiah Kinslayer / Draekon Gearheart / Kalina Creststrike

Asura: Biologist Chaama / Qhuam / Xematoss (AKA Xema The Lost)

This post is up to date as of 07/13/2023.

This post was last updated 08/12/2023.

[galaxydynamite]

i think i’ll talk about madelon some since they’re definitely the most fleshed out of my self inserts that i actively use (sorry blake i havent been fixated on gx in a while)

i will preface this with a warning for mentions of child death/possible miscarriage implications.

its something thats part of their backstory but if i presented it as intended to be told ingame it would be very vague e.g. “i was supposed to have two siblings, but… their souls are among the cyela lights now. ignes fatui, your father called them.”

during most of their childhood and early adult years they lived with their family in a certain district of rebena te ra, what is now old town - this district was particularly vulnerable to flooding from heavy rainfall, as the architecture was in a constant state of disrepair (blame the hierophant for not sending in anyone to repair it! that’s part of why it’s so overrun by miasma and monsters, an npc mentions this at one point)

when madelon was around 11-12 (think yuri and chelinka’s age after the timeskip) they happened upon a journal written by their mother, which revealed that they were supposed to have two siblings before them, but they died during childbirth. to honor these siblings they never had, madelon made twin dolls and transferred a part of their soul into each of them, dubbing the boy calca and the girl brina (because i love my mythology gags i guess - ring of fates’ plot DOES heavily involve the moon as well)

shortly after rela cyel was established, madelon intented to move there in order to study magic, partially as a means of protecting calca and brina. since they weren’t born a crystal user, on their own they have only mastered blizzara and fira, as well as a shield spell and the simple cure and clear spells - although by pooling their magic with their respective doll (calca for ice and brina for fire) they are able to cast the level three spells, blizzaga and firaga. thunder spells are notably missing from madelon’s skillset due to a childhood fear of thunderstorms they never conquered.

as an aside, due to the ‘sharing’ of the soul, madelon is able to control the dolls as if puppeteering them, but if one of them is significantly damaged, madelon will share the pain, and vice versa. as a result, madelon is very evasive when fighting and uses magic instead of close combat. they can communicate via telepathy (which would bring some nice interactions with chelinka, since she also communicates telepathically with the party members.) so instead of 'using' calca and brina, they exist alongside madelon, almost like parts of them.

as for their role in the game’s story! madelon became acquaintances and then trusted friends of sir latov and lady aleria, as well as meeth and alhanalem (whom they are closest to because of my obvious bias LMAO.) they, too, helped in establishing the villa outside of rebena te ra, and live in a small house on their own, near the cliff so they can see lake cyela. madelon has helped take care of yuri and chelinka since they were born as well, and their previous experience in tailoring doll clothes means that they often provide the family with new outfits — they do get a bit upset when the party commissions armor from the town shops, but their skill doesn’t extend to any sort of protective gear or clothing, so “it can’t be helped”, as they would say. (meeth and al have unique ~sentence enhancers~ to their soeech so. ifigured i’d give madelon one!) madelon also often accompanies alhanalem when he gathers medicinal herbs, because some of the plants that grow in the usual locations can be refined for dyes or similar materials.

i’m actually thinking of changing the scene where cu chaspel appears and kills sir latov because frankly i found him a boring antagonist except for his redeeming trait being that he’s voiced by liam o’brien, which was cool as hell. in my hypothetical version of events, the lich masquerades as alhanalem like she typically does, but latov’s death takes on a much more dramatic turn considering that someone wearing the face of one of the family’s closest friends (and al is for all intents and purposes just as much of a part of the family as latov and aleria are) ends up being the one to kill him. i don’t know whether i’ll commit to this change or not (i’m planning another playthrough on the day of the game’s anniversary, and i did have an idea for a yuri and chelinka roleswap au) but regardless of the version of events, madelon is taken by blackguards from the temple who wanted to eliminate anyone associated with the events that took place at rela cyel and were there during tilika’s sacrifice, whether or not they personally witnessed it or not. they then end up in the cavern underneath rebena te ra, with the crystals subjecting them to visions of every possible past, present, and future.

this is where i don’t have a totally clear idea of development now. if i go with ny possible rewrite, aleria’s role will be shifted around a little bit, so i had the idea that the hierophant could have used madelon as some sort of proxy to view all possible fates — essentially, all of them would be at his fingertips instead of having to rely on an oracle

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #640

Top Ten Gaming Announcements and Reveals

It’s that time of year again, when all the big videogame companies line up to tout their wares like you’re going down a very gaudy American version of Camden market. In the past, I’ve been very excited by this; scouring the back issues (so to speak) of this blog, you’ll notice there was many a year when I made giddy predictions of what I’d like to see. This was, mostly, back when there was an organised schedule to things; a week of publisher hustling at the E3 conference. Now that E3 has gone the way of all flesh, we’ve got a disparate group of companies semi-randomly producing independent videos, as well as other, more concentrated, trailer-fests like Sumer Game Fest. This winnowing of focus might contribute to my relative lack of excitement, but I think it’s more that as I’ve grown I’ve become increasingly time-poor, and my enthusiasm has therefore concentrated more onto something that I can still get inanely passionate about: namely, movies (both those that do, and do not, feature actors with dots on their faces).

Where was I?

Oh yeah, because – despite how thrilled I get by the likes of Hellblade II or how feverishly I anticipate the new Fable – I’m a little bit more disconnected from the cut and thrust of the games industry. Plus, of course, in these days of Reddit and Twitter (as was), most of the big announcements get spoiled. We’ll always know when a company is developing new hardware, because people can track the chip shipments online. If Microsoft announces a new Doom this weekend, well, that’s no big surprise because tons of outlets have already reported it.

So rather than try to predict stuff that is probably going to happen anyway because everyone from Eurogamer to IGN to Gardener’s World has already leaked it – or even just come up with ten “funny” predictions – I’ve decided, like Kirk looking for whales, to go back in time. What I’m doing today is looking at the announcements, reveals, and other things that have happened at these sorts of shows. These aren’t all big E3 shiny floor events; but they are all a reveal of something, an announcement of something, largely from before the days of sticking trailers on YouTube. These are just really cool gaming moments, ones that felt all the more cooler if you were there – obviously I’ve never been there physically, but virtually; ones that were, essentially, worth tuning in for. If for no other reason than to understand the memes afterwards.

And, yes, quite a few of these predate memes; at least one of these I only learned about long after the fact. But you hopefully see what I mean; these are sort of gaming touchstones, Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra; events of cultural import to the industry, ones that are still referenced to this day. And most of them are either just really cool or really funny.

Anyway. We all looking forward to Microsoft announcing an Xbox handheld?

Halo 2 (shown at E3 2003): smoke and mirrors; something we’ll come across a lot here. But this video, showcasing a bespoke level of the campaign made just for this presentation, blew the roof off. After Halo: Combat Evolved redefined the FPS, anticipation was high, and this demo exceeded it. Promising complex scenarios during an invasion of Earth, with multiple NPC allies, and the Master Chief wielding two weapons at once, it was an escalation of everything the first game promised, and phenomenally good-looking to boot. The fact none of it was real or even possible on the Xbox didn’t matter in the long run, I guess.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (E3 2000): I’ve never had a PlayStation and never been fussed about Metal Gear, but this incredibly long trailer – cinematic in scope and presentation but showing actual gameplay – excited everybody. The scale of it, with an assault in a storm on a ship, featured stealth and combat and some incredible well-realised animation and characterisation. Almost made me buy a PS2.

Project Natal (E3 2009): the initial promise of what became the Kinect was really something to behold. We understood motion control thanks to the Wii; but this was, like, invisible. Play tennis with your hands! But more: pick your outfit! Scan in your designs for your skateboard! A Star Trek future seemed round the corner, complete with Lionhead’s Milo, which looked like a holodeck character come to life; an almost human interaction with a virtual character. Of course, virtually none of it was real, but blimey it looked cool.

PlayStation versus Saturn (E3 1995): this one kind of predates me paying attention, but it’s an early example of Sony’s chutzpah. Back in the mid-nineties, the console war was all Sega versus Nintendo; but now Sony was muscling in with its multimedia PlayStation. Sega outlined their expensive new Saturn console, and Sony followed up with one word: “$299”, a hundred dollars cheaper and clearly technologically superior. And that was it really; cocky, edgy, and new. You could say we’ve been living in Sony’s world ever since.

Keanu Reeves in Cyberpunk 2077 (E3 2019): the most recent thing on this list, and the most meme-worthy. Cyberpunk had already been revealed, and at that stage looked phenomenal. The news that John Wick was playing sort-of antagonist Johnny Silverhand was incredibly cool. Then, during the Xbox presentation, out sauntered Neo himself, prompting an audience member to cry “you’re breathtaking!” Without missing a beat, Ted “Theodore” Logan pointed at the guy and declared “You’re breathtaking.” What class, Insert Keanu Reeves’ Character Name From Speed Here.

Doom 3 (Macworld 2001)/Half-Life 2 (E3 2003): two games that I’m lumping together here, because in both cases their reveals felt like a next-step sea change in gaming graphics. Doom 3 – first displayed, crazily enough, at a Mac convention – was the latest example of id advancing PC graphics, with awesome lighting and shadow effects. A couple of years later, Half-Life 2 built on that with stunning character animations and visual effects such as light distortion through water or frosted glass, as well as insane physics simulations. Both games were good (well, HL2 was an era-defining masterpiece), but their announcements were phenomenal.

No Man’s Sky (VGX Awards 2013): unlike most of the other announcements here, this was a game that truly came out of nowhere; I, at least, had certainly never heard of it. But this unknown company reveals this intriguing-looking game with visuals reminiscent of a classic sci-fi novel. However, it was the game’s hook that blew brains though noses: the whole universe was there to explore, unbroken, as you could – in first-person – walk across the world, get in a ship, fly through the atmosphere, journey through space, and land on another planet. The sheer scale of it boggled the mind. Yes, there were a bunch of post-launch woes, but for now that was in the future.

The Grand Theft Auto IV tattoo (E3 2006): GTA was considered a PlayStation brand. The three GTA-era games were a massive deal for Sony, their brand of cool swagger, intense action, and technical advancement fitting perfectly with the image of PlayStation 2. Yes, eventually the games made their way to Xbox, but all the same, but we were all expecting GTA IV to be a timed Sony exclusive. So when Xbox bod Peter Moore pulled up his shirt sleeve to reveal a GTA tattoo, announcing it would release with no delays on Xbox 360, this was a huge deal (as well as, y’know, exceedingly cheesy).

Xbox Backwards Compatibility (E3 2015): it’s fair to say the Xbox One had a troubled launch. More expensive, less capable than PS4, bundled with multimedia features that people didn’t want, and with, let’s be honest, few hugely exciting games. X-boss Phil Spencer instead tried to shore up the fanbase by announcing really cool initiatives like this: tons of Xbox 360 games would be playable, natively, on the Xbox One. This was the beginning of a very consumer-friendly period of Xbox, where they made more and more moves to widen their library and make games more readily available; this first step though, in an era where a new console meant a shrunken library, was phenomenally well-received.

Devolver Digital (pretty much every year): so far all of these things have mostly been big publishers touting big wares. However, Devolver Digital have made a name for themselves by being a weird, scrappy outsider; a publisher of smaller indie games that often have a quirky or edgy sheen. As such, their various presentations and showcases have become almost anti-announcements; violent, profane pieces of performance art, in which executives are mown down in a hail of bullets. Their COVID-mandated virtual showcase resulted in them making, essentially, a short sci-fi film that also made fun of NFTs. Frankly, we need more Devolvers in the world.

[school-sanctioned-movie-bullying]

MCU Rant I Guess

Iron Man is a pretty great movie. The plot is engaging and entertaining, and the characters are very easy to like. Tony Stark was an amazing protagonist who really grew on me throughout the movie, and has become one of my all time favorite characters. He appeared in 10 total movies throughout the run of the Marvel Cinematic Universe a.k.a. the MCU, finishing his run in Avengers: Endgame. To be fully and completely honest, when he died in that movie, I didn’t really care. 

It might seem a little odd that I didn’t care that one of my favorite characters ever died, but it’s the truth. By the time of his death, he had already been in so many movies that it just felt like he had run his course. I wasn’t going into a movie with endgame in the title and expecting even more Iron Man adventures afterwards; his story ended when he heroically sacrificed himself to save the world, and that was that. Most of the original characters from the MCU either retired or died in Endgame, having their stories told to completion. 

Despite that, the MCU is still ongoing, with more and more movies and projects being released every year. I liked the original movies, so even though I felt like Endgame was a good ending, I kept watching and enjoyed some of the newer movies and TV Shows. But the projects that I could say I actually cared about were becoming further and farther between. After watching the Hawkeye TV show, I just sort of stopped watching any further MCU projects, and I moved on.

From those who I have talked to about their experience with the MCU, this also seems to be the case for them. They were thoroughly invested in the MCU during its main-run, and by a year or two after Endgame released, they also moved on and stopped watching the newer movies and TV shows. Very few of the original fans of the franchise are still keeping up with everything Marvel is releasing right now, so why exactly is that?

In my case, and I’m sure many others, it was simply because I lost interest after most of the original characters' stories were concluded. When a story has been told for over a decade, keeping continued interest becomes pretty hard. The new TV shows certainly don’t help with that, as they are each considerably longer and more tedious to watch than a single movie. If people were fatigued by the MCU before Avengers: Endgame, which several fans were, they would certainly not want to watch a six hour miniseries continuing the same story afterwards. Even the most devoted fans have trouble keeping up with content like that.

And there are still plenty of projects in the works for the MCU, which according to IGN, are these:

Mind you these are all the projects that came before:

Anyone who wants to keep up with all those projects has my resounding support, they are going to need it.

But eventually the MCU will stop producing the profits that disney needs to to, and the mouse will shoot it down like a lame horse. When that happens, we can all mourn its long overdue death.

[jcmarchi]

Platinum Games Co-Founder Hideki Kamiya Reveals Why He Left The Studio

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/platinum-games-co-founder-hideki-kamiya-reveals-why-he-left-the-studio/

Platinum Games Co-Founder Hideki Kamiya Reveals Why He Left The Studio

More than two months after leaving Platinum Games, co-founder and The Wonderful 101 and Bayonetta director Hideki Kamiya has revealed why he left the studio. In a new interview with IGN, Kamiya told the publication he decided to leave “because I felt that the direction the company was heading in was different from my beliefs as a developer.”

“Without that element of trust, I couldn’t continue working there, and so I left, so that I could continue working in what I consider to be the right way,” Kamiya said. “I don’t think of games as products, but rather as works of art. I want to put my artistry into games and deliver games that could only be made by Hideki Kamiya, so that players can enjoy Hideki Kamiya games exactly as they are.

“I decided to leave the company and forge my own path, to continue making games that reflect the developers who made them.” 

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Kamiya announced in September that he was leaving the company. His final day was October 12, and that same day, he revealed he had started a YouTube Channel. Throughout his final month at Platinum, his departure, and creation of the Hideki Kamiya Channel, Kamiya hadn’t revealed why he left the studio, leaving fans questioning the decision. Thanks to this new interview with IGN, we now know it was about creative direction. 

Elsehwere in the interview, Kamiya said he had many deep discussions with Platinum president Atsushi Inaba about his potential departure, deciding to leave only after the two agreed. 

“Inaba also had his own set of beliefs as the head of the company,” Kamiya told IGN. “Although his beliefs differed from my own, we talked it out thoroughly, so we were both satisfied with the conclusion we reached.”

Kamiya said the reaction from the development teams at Platinum was one of sadness, with some even crying in his office while talking to him about it. Despite the sadness, Kamiya said he doesn’t regret his decision to quit. 

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For more about Kamiya’s departure, his future, and his ideas around game development, be sure to read IGN’s full interview here. 

Before co-founding Platinum in February of 2006, Kamiya worked on Capcom’s Resident Evil series, helping plan the first game and directing its sequel, as well as its Devil May Cry series. He also directed the first Viewtiful Joe game, and then Okami in 2006 at Capcom’s Clover Studio. Capcom closed Clover later that year but Platinum had already been somewhat founded under the name Seeds, Inc. It was later renamed Platinum Games and the rest was history. 

Kamiya departs from Platinum more than 17 years after he founded it alongside Shinji Mikami, who is no longer there and departed from Tango Gameworks earlier this year, and Atsushi Inaba, who is the studio’s CEO.

While waiting to learn what Kamiya is up to next, read Game Informer’s review of Bayonetta and then check out our thoughts on The Wonderful 101. Read Game Informer’s Bayonetta 3 review after that and then read our review of Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon. 

[Source: IGN]

What do you hope Kamiya does next? Let us know in the comments below!

[breakingarrows]

Games Media in Review: Giant Bomb

I don’t have as long a history with Giant Bomb as I do IGN or Kinda Funny but the love and enjoyment from when I was a fan is definitely equal to those two. I have strong memories of listening to the Giant Bomb Game of the Year discussions in 2014 while pushing shopping carts around outside the Wal-Mart I worked at. I was a premium subscriber from June 2016 until I let it expire in March 2022. About a year ago I sat down to try and narrow down what my personal “golden age” of Giant Bomb was by counting the various shows or highlights put out in each year, this narrowed it down to the 2017-2019 period as being the strongest. Drew Scanlon’s departure was softened by the hiring of Abby Russell and Ben Pack, later joined by Jan Ochoa. Abby and Ben’s later departure, the COVID pandemic making in-person recordings no longer possible, and the later departures of Vinny Caravella, Alex Navarro, and Brad Shoemaker pretty much killed any and all enthusiasm I had for the site. Jeff Gerstmann’s firing (still such a strange warped reflection of his firing from GameSpot due to external ad-pressure which led to founding Giant Bomb, now being fired from that website) didn’t help any interest that may have remained, especially given the site’s response following his sudden departure.

Watching and listening to the current Giant Bomb for these past two weeks has been the most disappointing experience of this series so far. Kinda Funny may not have very strong critical bones, and I can’t say Giant Bomb really does either, both are more to provide entertainment than thoughtful critiques, but only one of them ever provided any laughs: Kinda Funny. I know some of this has to do with finding Dan Ryckert more obnoxious than funny, but also just the overall content I watched (34 videos checking over my YouTube history) wasn’t very fun to watch along with.

When discussing Kinda Funny I mentioned their adherence to enthusiast press talk of excitement and positivity above all else, and while I don’t think that is true of Giant Bomb, I did find their critical talk similarly lacking. Most of it I can attribute to the shadow Dan Ryckert casts over the site. Dan loves wrestling, and specifically loves reenacting the role of the “heel” from wrestling in his work life, a term referring to someone who plays the bad guy who is supposed to make the audience and other cast members mad at them for their behavior. Dan finds this funny, I find it obnoxious. At least during his previous employment at Giant Bomb he had Jeff Gerstmann, Vinny Caravella, and his fellow GameInformer coworker turned Giant Bomb staff Jason Oestreicher to somewhat counter his heel tendencies. All of them are gone now and it shows. During the Giant Bombcast 808 Dan explains why he didn’t like Red Dead Redemption 2 or The Lord of the Rings around 1:42:37, and it was at an early point in my watching that I began to question whether or not I really wanted to continue. It isn’t that I disagree with the opinion being expressed, that either can be/is “boring,” but it is the way this thought is explained that irritates me. This feeling is expressed by others as well. This has always been an issue with people when watching Dan, as I remember my wife never liked him once he started showing up in Giant Bomb east videos with Abby. To me, I’ve always found his critical thought skills severely lacking, and am still surprised he was a writer at GameInformer and for several years and was contributing his voice to the greater critical volume.

Blight Club is their “playing through a bad game” show, but since bad games are so different from bad movies, especially given the time required and the lack of any editing on the backend (which is completely understandable from a production standpoint), it never reaches the sort of fever pitch of RedLetterMedia’s Best of the Worst series revolving around watching bad movies together. I also just don’t find the concept of dressing up in cheap halloween costumes that amusing. Additionally, they’re never together; they're always on video calls with each other, something which really killed a lot of game coverage/channels for me when COVID hit. No more Business Dave Top 10’s on UPF as everyone was working from home now. This has led to some hijinks, such as Dan using layers to replay video during livestreams to the bewilderment of the participants. Again, the specter of his character casts a shadow that makes it something I find mildly amusing instead of laugh out loud funny. Zoom/Discord video chat recordings just do not have the same energy as being in the room together. It is unfortunate because I do support remote work but there is just something magical lost when you transition from doing UPF in the same room together to doing it over a video chat service. This is primarily why I never kept up with Nextlander despite consisting of the Giant Bomb members I’ve followed the longest, and would likely kill Jeff Gerstmann’s channel for me if he ever ends up expanding beyond being a solo show.

The Bombcast continues to be their general gaming podcast of “whatcha been playing?+news+reader emails”, Voicemail Dumptruck is an extension of reader emails in voicemail form. Quick Looks remain a varying-in-length playthrough of recent releases. Unprofessional Fridays are still mostly a grab bag of cooperative games to play together. Game Mess Mornings is the newest show to me, but is basically a version of Kinda Funny Games Daily, itself a version of many familiar morning shows viewed everywhere that runs through the news, now with commentary from Jeff Grubb and a guest. Demo Derby returned recently though with Dan at the wheel it went about as well as I thought it would, that is: he called Final Fantasy X [ten] “Final Fantasy X [x]”  and called Final Fantasy X-2 “Final Fantasy Twelve” to annoy Mike Minotti and beat it into the ground by the end of the demo.

In addition to the standard shows they also have Mortal Kombat playthroughs, and miscellaneous streams such as F-Zero 99 and Counter Strike 2. Checking the video feed from even just a year ago and I was wishing I had done this then instead of now as my perspective would probably be much more popular. They had these shows plus Albummer and Arcade Pit. Two years ago they didn’t have Arcade Pit but did have Bak 2 Skool, VoidBurgers Hot Takeouts, and the Very Online Show. Not only was the video feed more varied but the community was more populated. Comparing the most commented video for the last couple of weeks in September from 2013-2023 paints a pretty bad picture.

Essentially the trend has been ever downwards for the community participation on the site. I previously used comment counts to gauge the audience size of IGN versus GameSpot, and here on Giant Bomb comments on their main site are even more valuable due to their premium subscription. Prior to June 2022 when all premium shows were made free and premium subscription was changed to give you behind the scenes stuff and discord access (though knowing how discord works for large communities this is not a benefit for all but the terminally online), premium would get you exclusive shows like Unprofessional Fridays (where the crew would each bring a game of their choosing to play and show off for the others or for entertainment), Metal Gear Scanlon, Playdates, Game Tapes, Demo Derby, Mario Party Party, and many more. It is important to note in the chart above that prior to the change, five of the nine top commented videos were premium videos, meaning you also needed a subscription in order to comment.

A lot of Giant Bomb’s best content was on these premium shows, but now with premium no longer having any exclusive content, at least none that appear on the site’s premium feed, there doesn’t appear to be much draw to give them money. This conduit of funding was previously what set Giant Bomb apart from most other games media sites before the advent of Patreon, as their fan’s directly helped fund them meaning they could rely on more than just click-through rates to earn them money. Nowadays, with dwindling community engagement, I’m not so sure they have solid footing, especially given the ownership changes and layoffs. CBS sold off Gamespot, Giant Bomb, and CNET to Red Ventures in September 2020. Red Ventures then turned around and sold off everyone but CNET to Fandom in October 2022. Despite promises to keep things as they were, Fandom laid off around 40-50 people in January 2023, including Jess O’Brien and Jason Oestreicher of Giant Bomb.

Other signs of diminished community are that qlcrew has essentially stopped updating its member tags, instead pretty much serving as an RSS feed for the new content but still remains a great filter for older content based on timestamps and tags. Best of Giant Bomb stopped uploading in mid-2021 and has returned for monthly installments for the back half of 2022 and only three videos for 2023 as of this writing. The subreddit is clogged with posts from Jeff Gerstmann and Nextlander, speculation about potential drama and collaboration between those two new channels, and the usual doom-posting about the site you often find on dedicated subreddits. Some of that doom is warranted, however, not only by the comment metrics but also the YouTube views. Out of IGN, GameSpot, Kinda Funny, and Kinda Funny Games for the past four weeks of uploads (discluding trailers), Giant Bomb is at the bottom with an average of 6.68k and GameSpot surprisingly at the top with 257k average view, mostly thanks to their “ALL Fatalities - Mortal Kombat 1 4K Gameplay” video hitting 5.7 million views. Kinda Funny with 12.65k average, nearly twice as many as Giant Bomb, is the second-to-last ranking.

I’m just not sure what you can do with Giant Bomb at this point. I’m sure the backlog of premium content doesn't help with server costs, and with a low view count on YouTube and a guaranteed lower premium subscriber base than ever before I’m just not sure how long you can expect them around, especially given how much they rely on outside staff to help pump up the staff count and variety on their content. It’s sad to see how far the site has fallen. Despite my complaints I think Dan Ryckert is a capable production lead, some of the shows he created for old Giant Bomb were among the best (Burgle my Bananas and Mario Party Party), and I don’t have any ill will or blame for the individuals currently working there. It just is sad to be so disappointed returning to a channel that was once so beloved, and to see that this sentiment appears to be the prevailing one amongst the, admittedly, minority of online forum posters.