#I didn't need to spend that money like that

[zarla-s]

i need to know more about your feelings of tf2 comic 7 because youre the heavymedic expert

I liked it! Satisfying happy conclusion for (almost) everyone, especially since I was a little worried they were going to kill everyone off, haha. Not a lot of Heavymedic stuff in there but I wasn't expecting much, and really it was about the Administrator and her story, so it makes sense the mercs wouldn't really take top billing for it.

There were a few cute things though! I know "standing next to each other" is like the most graspingest of straws but you know what, it made me smile each time so I don't care.

The big thing of course being Heavy grabbing his boob, which to me reads like him stopping Medic from trying to help the Admin, which I think is sweet in his own way. Medic has his healing instincts!

Medic also puts his hand on his back as they walk away, which I also think is sweet. It looks like he's comforting him.

I really loved the ending sequence where everyone gets together for that dinner party. It's just such a great bookend to how the comics started - initially when their team disbanded, everyone split off and did their own thing. Some of them didn't even keep track of where the others were! A few kept in contact, but mostly all of them just left the others and they didn't seem particularly concerned or interested in each other.

Compare that to them at the end of the comic! Seven years after everything that happened, they're all meeting up together for dinner! Voluntarily! They're introducing their families to each other! They don't have any contracts or jobs forcing them to spend time together. They WANT to have dinner together. SPY TAKES OFF HIS MASK AND IS FINE WITH IT! I just love that so much. They care about and trust each other after everything that's happened, all the years that have gone by. Team as family was CANON AFTER ALL

I think this whole sequence also sheds a nice light on Medic! Medic's been perceived as probably the most uncaring of the group, given that he did sign up with another team for the money and said he wouldn't mind fighting them again (although not too soon after that he ended up saving all their lives against direct orders). A lot of people interpreted that as him not really caring about the others or anything at all, but that's not the case!

Medic kept and raised his baboon baby! He didn't abandon it or use it for parts or anything, he kept and raised it for seven years! Responsibility!

Not only that, Medic hasn't abandoned his friends, signed up with a new team, forgotten them or tossed them aside. He's with them at the dinner! He comes with his baboon baby! He wants to be with them too! He cares about them, genuinely. And of course, the final shot is with him by Heavy's side, both of them just so happy to be there with everyone else.

Love that Medic's smile still looks unhinged too lol. Would I have loved Heavy holding onto Medic's waist? The two of them wearing matching rings? Of course! But them so close to each other and an obvious irrefutable confirmation that Medic loves and cares about his team and wants to be with them is really lovely. Makes me feel fuzzy, haha.

There's speculation too that Medic came with Heavy's family as that person in the back there but who can say for sure. |D

[mollys-meadow]

Who initiates hugs? Jim, definitely. Molly relaxes onto them but she's definitely too shy to ever initiate them.

Who wants to hold the hug longer? Molly. She doesn't say anything about it but it pains her to let go.

Who borrows the other one's phone charger? They both do. Kinda. Jim only forgets his when he WANTS to forget it and if he steals Molly's it's to annoy her, but it doesn't happen often. Molly on the other hand, regularly gets hers lost.

Who loses their keys / wallet? Molly. She loses things all the time, something she inherited from her mother. When Jim is around he points out exactly where she lost it and Molly gets mad that he didn't think to mention it as it happened.

Who's better with money? Depends on your definition of it. Jim is very good at making money so he doesn't mind spending it carelessly. Molly gets paid fairly but London is expensive, despite this she manages to make ado without having to share a flat so I'd say she's doing fine.

Who tried to hide the relationship from their parents? Well, Jim's are dead so there isn't much to hide from them, and Molly didn't exactly try to hide their relationship, merely the true nature of it.

Who's better in the kitchen? Sebastian. I know he isn't part of this relationship but this is the only right answer. Sebastian.

Who needs/gets more sleep? They both are sleep deprived, Molly's work is quite exhausting and Jim is an insomniac but he indulges in a nap every now and then, and he indulges often in waking up late. Molly doesn't, she gets shifty if she stays in bed for long in the morning.

Who's more laid back and who's more hard working? Jim is clearly the definition of "work smarter not harder", he knows how to exploit every opportunity for profit but he's relaxed about it. All the work is on his head, the rest is just seeing it in motion.

Who has more empathy? Molly. She's always been a bleeding heart but it has reached a point where it's not a virtue but a flaw. She gets too emotionally tied and too forgiving and everything just hurts her so much.

If they were to adopt a pet together, what pet would it be? I mean, they already have Toby but... Probably another cat.

Who is more outgoing? Jim but it's just for show, he doesn't actually like most people.

What is their love language? For Jim it has to be physical contact but he also enjoys quality time. For Molly it's mostly acts of service.

Are they holding any secrets from each other? Yes, many. They don't talk -REALLY talk- so there are many things they do not know about each other, and many things they consciously hide.

Which one is more likely to cheat? Both, kinda, but for different reasons. Molly would be the most likely because she wouldn't think the relationship is real or serious and so she wouldn't think of it as cheating because it's not a REAL relationship. Jim would cheat if he gains something out of it, and he isn't particularly invested in the monogamous agenda so he'd not care.

Which one first brings up the idea of having kids? Jim. He doesn't want any but he knows there's nothing Molly dislikes quite as much as the idea of ever becoming a mother and he knows Molly's mother would be delighted by the idea so he'd bring it up to have fun tormenting her.

Who sleeptalks? Neither. When Molly is really stressed she screams and cries some gibberish in her sleep but that's about it.

OTP questions:

Who initiates hugs?

Who wants to hold the hug longer?

Who borrows the other one’s phone charger?

Who loses their keys/wallet?

Who’s better with money?

Who tried to hide the relationship from their parents?

Who’s better in the kitchen?

Who needs/gets more sleep?

Who’s more laid back and who’s more hard working?

Who has more empathy?

If they were to adopt a pet together, what kind of pet would it be?

Who is more outgoing?

What is their love language?

Are they holding any secrets from each other?

Which one is more likely to cheat?

Which one first brings up the idea of having kids?

Who sleeptalks?

[lesmiix]

HELLO POOOKIE

Can i ask for hyun-ju with a partner who loves to buy her things? Like dresses, makeup, perfumes, you name it ;3

thank you 🙏🙏

Hiiii!! thank you so much for such a sweet request! 😭🫶

Summary: Your gf is broken so you buy her everything she wants (and more).

Warnings: Just fluff, no use of y/n, g/n reader.

author's note: English is not my first language so, sorry if there's any mistake😞 Hope you enjoy it!!

Hyun-ju x g/n reader!

Hyun-ju was never the kind of person who would spend a lot of money on herself, as she already spends a lot of her money on her transition, so she wouldn't give herself the gifts she would like.

You knew about that since you met, when you both went shopping you noticed how she admired the cute dresses placed on the mannequins.

Anytime you asked her if she liked it, she would always answer with a simple "it's cute" and look away, too ashamed with herself for not being able to buy it.

"Are you sure you don't want it? It'd look amazing on you" You said while looking at the tight black dress in front of her.

"I don't know my lov-" She started, but you cut her off. "Try it on at least? I'll pay for it" You said excitedly, at first she denied it, but you, being so insistent, finally gave in.

You knew about her economical situation so you offered to buy her the stuff she wanted so much, but she always denied. She didn't like the thought of you spending too much money on her.

One time you both were shopping at Sephora, because you really needed to buy some products. As you were looking around the shop trying to find them, out of the corner of your eye you saw Hyun-ju in the perfume section, spraying her wrist with a perfume bottle to smell them one by one.

"Any that you like?" You asked her, while hugging her by from behind, wrapping your arms around her waist.

"This one actually smells amazing, but it's way too expensive, maybe I'll come next month when I get paid". She said, putting the perfume back in it's place.

Some minutes later, when Hyun-ju was distracted, you picked it up and put it in your bag to pay for it later and give it to her when you got home.

...

"I have a little gift for you" You said while handing her the little box with a golden print. Her eyes widened as she opened the present.

"Honey, you didn't have to" She started

"Shhh it's okay, a little gift (40$😞) won't hurt"

I have the feeling that she would LOVE makeup, but like she would be obsessed with it, loving how she looks when she wears this thin black eyeliner (she'd be SO good at it btw) but of course, almost all of the good quality makeup brands cost like an eyeball, so she would have the most basic stuff. But you love her and want to see her happy, so ofc you would buy her anything she laid her eyes on.

"Darling, don't you think you already bought me enough stuff?" She asked while you picked a Rare Beauty lipgloss and two different blushes.

"You'll pay me when we get back home" You teased while letting a soft peak on her lips.

At the end of those little dates, you would be carrying thousands of bags filled with just gifts for your dear girlfriend.

When the two of you get back to your shared apartment, you would make her try all the cute dresses, skirts and crop tops you bought her.

"You look gorgeous my love" You said while admiring your girlfriend, who was looking at herself in the mirror with a little cute smirk on her face.

Of course she would thank you with a little make out session.

"Thank you for everything baby, I loved it" She muttered as she gently pressed her lips against yours.

a/n: It's 1 am and I'm so so so tired but I can't sleep 😭

Anyway, I hope you guys liked it!!!

Requests for Hyun-ju are always open🫶

[factual-fantasy]

27 Asks! Thank you! :}} 💞

@peaspods

I might not be understanding, but I'm imagining this as people opening up commissions so people can give them money and they can turn around and donate that money to me..

I fear that this would create the opportunity to scam people.. "I'm taking commissions on behalf of Factual Fantasy! They're very sick so please commission me!" only for them to run away with the money they make..

I've been thinking a lot about setting up some kind of commission/donation thing because I'm starting to kind'a need the money.. but idk, I'm just kind'a run down and need some time to keep thinking about it. Thank you very much though <:)))

@zecromgen5

Thank you very much! :) And I've been hanging in there.. there hasn't been much improvement to my health or my mental state. The fact that in April it will officially been over a year since my health started to decline, and the fact that I'm going to spend my birthday at home collapsed on the couch has made me feel very sad <:( But I'm doing my best to work on it.. I'm hoping this new advice from my doctor helps me feel better <:)

And something good HAS happened actually, I got my tablet/FireAlpaca to work again! :))

XDD SJKFJSH AWW! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! :DDD

I've only seen a bit of it from Markiplier. So far I'm 50/50. Somethings I like and others I don't care for 😅

@neo-metalscottic

Thank you so much! :D 'm glad you've liked my recent artwork!! :}}}}

Also for Homes eyes, that was just meant to represent its oppressive presence and the fact that its watching them in that moment.. 👁️👁️

And I don't have any plans for any of the neighbors or Wally to figure out the house is alive. My AU is more like "a day in the life of" thing. Having someone discover Home is alive would move the plot forward. Which I don't feel like doing <XDD

Now communication... Home understands the concept, but he has no way of communicating other than creaking the floorboards and slamming doors..

I've heard about the well. That could work for Cliffjumper and Breakdown maybe.. and the twins perhaps.? But wouldn't they have to have Tailgates body in order to revive him? Hmmm.. idk actually,,

I've watched the bayverse movies, most of Prime and a few other things here and there. I didn't mind the bayverse movies that much, but I can see why a lot of people don't like them <XD

I just imaging trying to consume more than one Transformers media would be a lot to take on.. and I also don't like the animation styles of most other transformers shows 😅

(That's actually how I decided to watch Prime. I took a look at all the shows and went "this one looks ugly, this one looks ugly,, this one looks REALLY ugly.. Oh, this one doesn't look half bad. TFP it is then!")

@acreaturecalledkyfa

I've watched Markipliers first video on it. So far I'm not sure how I feel about those two 😅

The way I immediately opened YouTube and went looking for it XDD

@fandomcenteral (Link in ask)

Thank you so much! :DD This will come in handy!

@mason-gaylord

Aw! Thank you so much!! 🥰🥰

@im-nice-but-i-dont-like-you

Jangles would be a helicopter probably, Gerald would be a tank, Cici would be a Miata and Bibi would be a slightly raised up Miata XDD

Aw, I'm honored that you miss them <:}} Though I don't know if I'll draw them anytime soon.. I'm really not into inserted OCs anymore <:(

I'm waiting on Markiplier to release more videos on it <XD

@fadlingartisanfreakwinner

I like to imagine that Pokémon can learn dozens of moves. But 4 is the limit for official Pokémon battles. So any wild Pokémon in my comics can use/learn as many as they want :0

And yeah, they had that chat eventually. I just never got around to drawing it 😅

@wolfie-777

Nah nah its just iced tea XDDD

@whereismycupofcoffee

:DDD Thank you so much!! :}}}}

AAAA THANKYOU SO MCUHH!! :DDDD

@nuggybee

Yeahh,, Sky has its ups and downs. I'm currently in one of its downs. It seems like I'm let down by everything they're releasing 😓

@smithanonsworld

I feel like I've never seen a rabbit that color... its so cute 😭💞💞💞

@heaventhehedgi3

That sounds like me! Though I don't draw Octonauts anymore 😅

I'll keep it in mind! :0

🥹🥹🥹Aw... that's so sweet! Thank you so much!! 😭💞💞

@captain-skyler1987

You made an account just to follow me? :DD Aw that's so sweet! :) Thank you!

Also I'm sorry to hear you got the flu :(( I hope you're better by now!

I also have not played Dandy's world 😅

@stargirldrawsx3

The first thing that came to mind was very anxious all the time 😅

@network-warrior-01

Ah, that was an April fools post. <XD There is no drawing

[candlemousse]

ENTRY 1 ✦ ❰❰ small ways they show they care

↳ neuvillette ✘ baizhu ✘ diluc ✘ ayato ✘ albedo ✘ childe ✘ kaeya ↳ pure fluff | no warnings apply ↳ this is a draft ive had since 2023 i got sick of looking at it i needed it OUTT. i didnt edit it either so dont even bother sending hate lmfao ik. i agree with you ↳ gn! reader | 588 word count | sfw

Sweet Neuvillette who would rather give up his water drinking hobby altogether than let you walk home alone after an outing together. The mere idea was alien to him; ensuring you got home safely was as much as second nature to him. What kind of gentleman would he be if he didn't? There isn't much risk though either way, no one in Fontaine would ever dare laying a harming finger upon the lover of the feared and respected Chief Justice. But nevertheless he insists.

As an esteemed doctor, Baizhu takes his profession in medicine very seriously, and puts great effort into caring for his patients; and even perfectly healthy you're still a point of concern for him. When you aren't healthy however, his priorities shift from taking care of his patients full time to keeping you at the pharmacy to personally ensure you get better while still attending to his other patients.

Diluc isn't a fan of alcohol, which is unorthodox considering how he owns the most famous winery in Teyvat. So while he hardly ever does indulge in beverages other than water, he always has your favorite drink on hand for whenever you may show up. He'll never admit it aloud to another soul, but it isn't any secret between you two how subtly touch-starved he is; so he'd

Ayato likes to keep his work life and personal life entirely separate, which would mean keeping the details of your relationship anonymous to the public. But that doesn't mean he loves you any less, of course not. He spoils you absolutely rotten with his wealth. Anything you need? You got it. Anything you want? It's immediately at your doorstep, all completely tied prettily with a ribbon of your favorite color. And besides, he's all yours behind closed doors.

Albedo adores you so wholeheartedly that you creep into his thoughts even while he works, distracting him even in your absence. Usually, Albedo would be frustrated by the plug in his workflow; but not if it's you. His writings in his notebook morph into drawings of you that were sketched to the best of his ability, each drawing a memory he enjoyed with you by his side - your smile the day you two built your first snowman, the way your hair blew in the breeze while you packed up after the picnic with Klee, and the way your eyes shone when he surprised you with a cake on your anniversary.

Childe would hardly ever let you pay for yourself. As a fatui harbinger, money would never be an issue for someone who so carelessly spends the company funds, as well as his own. On top of that, he absolutely spoils you rotten; buying you whatever you wish within reason. He'd introduce you to his family of course, his family is very dear to him and you're a part of it now. He feels like hes falling in love with you all over again, as he sees you get along with his little siblings.

Kaeya takes it upon himself to ensure your happiness as a personal responsibility, which really isn't as troublesome as it sounds. If anything, he enjoys it- after all, the smile on your face is worth a hundred days of work. Whenever you're down in the dumps, he would most certainly be there with a box of tissues and a shoulder to cry on as he patiently listens to you rant about your miserable day, tossing in his own sarcastic remarks and two cents every now and then.

[overnightheartbeats]

She only rolled her eyes at his comment, not even worth addressing. Though, the roll of her eyes also communicated her growing annoyance and anger at his lack of a reaction. On the contrary, he was amused? That didn't make any damn sense.

"I don't need to be queen of the university to tell you that you just don't belong. Honestly if you weren't glued to my roommate, I wouldn't even know of your existence. That's how irrelevant you are." It wasn't intentional, her emphasis on my, but she couldn't help it. "Oh, don't act dumb! You know who I'm talking about. Laurel!" Still, as she spoke, she just sounded like a petulant child who wasn't getting her way. And, that really was her right now. Just a child throwing a tantrum. "Unless you already forgot about her," and that, kind of perked her up. Because, if so, maybe she won't have to do all this. "Maybe because you already got what you wanted from her." Laurel hadn't shared anything with her, but she overheard her gushing to her friend. It didn't take much to guess what had happened between them.

"Oh, you didn't say it," humorless laughter followed, flashes of all her classmates going on and on about him filled her mind. "Just everyone else. Like you're god's gift to this stupid fucking place." Laurel raved about him, so did everyone she met. Jenny was sick of it. She completely ignored his quip about Laurel's free will, instead just shaking her head at him. "You're below so much, you're not even close to us," she scoffed at his words. Did he really have such a naive view, just because he didn't come from money? Such a fairytale notion. It's not like Laurel was high up there, not the way Jennys's family was, but she was distinguished enough, she supposed. "I just care about her! In a way you can't understand. I'm here for the real deal, not some college hook up. You're just messing this whole thing up!" Jealousy was not easy to hide.

Her frown deepened at his refusal, a simple no and it had her riled up. "I don't need to ask you for a favor. Just need to get you out of the way, really." Jenny was just talking out of her anger, and had no concrete ideas as to how any of this would work. But, ideas would come soon enough. "No? You're going to regret saying that to me. I'll make her see, just how much of a wrong choice you are. Not worth more time than she has already given you. She's just dazzled by you now, but all things lose their shine. Sooner or later."

Laurel had just finished drying off her hair when she opened his bathroom door. She almost called out to him to ask about dinner ideas when she overheard muffled voices. It didn't make much sense to her, but as she stepped out of his bathroom, the voice became clearer. Jenny? It was her voice, but the things she was saying just didn't match the person she knew. She was quiet as she stepped closer to him, tapping his shoulder to silently ask what was going on? She had heard enough, however. Eli being the wrong for choice was absolutely ridiculous. But, that wasn't what infuriated her. It was the way she was expressing herself about him, and the fact that Eli wasn't saying anything either.

Laurel turned to look at him, confusion washing over her, before she wiggled in between him and the door. Her hair was still damp and a mess when she faced Jenny. Her features were a blend of annoyance and anger, something her roommate was quick to catch on to, because before Laurel even spoke up, Jenny was stuttering and trying to bring in some context to her earlier hateful words. "I...thought you were spending the long weekend at your dad's," she cleared her throat, trying to think of what else to say. "Well, no it's not what you think. I'm just," a nervous giggle fell from Jenny's lips as she tried bringing that sweet side back to the forefront. Harder than it sounded when the object of her sheer hatred stood right next to her. Damp hair, he was shirtless - it didn't take a genius to deduce. "I just, you know that overprotective friend conversation, I owed him that. It's nothing though." The story she was spinning really would only work if he didn't contradict her. And the chances of that happening were slim.

"Save it Jenny. I heard you and I can't stand here and have you spew all of this about him. He is one hundred times better person than you are, and just— you should go. I won't be back, find yourself a new roommate."

Eli chuckled out of amusement, clearly he wasn't even off put by her lame attempt at an insult. "You'd have bigger problems if you couldn't carry your own trash bags." Not that he truly would help her. He had no business with a bully. If he gave her the inch he was sure she'd barge in and make herself at home in his dorm trying to rip him a new one. But, still eyes were on her as she went on.

Surprised eyebrows knitted together as she told him to get lost. "Who died and made you queen of the university, last I checked I belong here. Just because you don't like doesn't mean you get to tell others if they belong or not. Stuck to her? Now, who do you mean?" At this point he was baiting her, he wanted her to be clear since digging her own grave would be her doing not his.

Eli laughed as he shook his head. "I never said I was all that. I'm just a normal human being minding their business. You're the one trying to disrupt that peace." he sighed and rolled his eyes. "It seems to me that you think I'm forcing her to be here. Laurel has got a choice and her own free will. Just because I didn't come from money doesn't mean I'm below you or her. Why do you care so much though is the question?"

"Hmmm that seems more like I'd be doing you the favor and I'm not in the business of doing that for you. So, no." He tried to be cordial given the many insults she had just given him but it was hard standing there taking it. Half of his head turned to see if Laurel had come out yet but also didn't want her hearing this given how much Jenny was talking out of her ass.

[itsallpoliticsstupid]

I've been involved in Politics for a really long time. I'm not even 35 yet and I have already studied and worked in this area for more than half of my life.

A lot of the reason I got into Politics was I wanted to make a difference. I wanted to give something back and serve my country. Not because I'm particularly nationalistic. I'm not a huge fan of most of those in power, and I don't really like the monarchy all that much. It's because I was always taught to do what I can to make the world a better place. And in my role I can do that.

But it's so hard sometimes when I go into work with the knowledge that those who have been elected constantly belittle and demean us just because we are public servants.

Yes, the civil service has massive issues. But widescale fraud is not one of them. People not working 'hard enough' is not one of them. People wanting to spend one day a week at home to work, where they can work in a quieter atmosphere and be more productive, is not one of them.

Because the reality is, as I pointed out in another post, fraud is basically impossible to be involved in whilst being a civil servant. Almost all Western Democracies have strict fraud management and money laundering policies. Every dollar is accounted for. Everything is signed off to a high level. Fraud is not your biggest issue.

Neither is civil servants not working 'hard enough.' I have friends who were in Ukraine and Russia when the war escalated in 2022. Friends who were in Kabul when the Taliban reclaimed Afghanistan. Friends in Yemen, in Syria, in Lebanon, all when regional conflicts started. I have friends who were in Paris during the terrorist attacks, and Brussels. And all these people were just ordinary people, who were caught up in a bad situation. And you know what they did? They didn't run away.

They stayed behind and helped. They helped to support our citizens overseas in getting out of these countries. In finding loved ones when things were chaotic. They didn't shy away from this, even though in many cases it wasn't their job to do it. Because they are good people, who work extremely hard.

Even me, I haven't been in those situations, but I work on one of the most challenging and complex Foreign Policy issues in the world right now. It's hard. It's physically and mentally draining seeing what I see. But I do it because I believe in my work. I enjoy it. I'm good at it. And every day I go in I work damn hard, because I want to make the world a better place.

Even with the tide turning against people like me, I will still fight. I will do what I can to help.

Don't get me wrong. I would much rather be in a situation like somebody like @mishacollins. Have a good platform and uses it to try and educate people on what is going on. It would be far far easier for me. I wouldn't spend every waking moment staring at the news, making sure I was up to date on what was happening in world events; working 70 hours a week and then learning a new language on top of this. But I don't have that, so I do this instead.

I guess my point in all this is, it angers me so much what is happening to my fellow public sector workers in the United States. Of course, some will be your average career civil servants who landed a good job and never left. But there are those like me who just want to make a difference, and this is how they do it.

And now, if they don't align themselves with a philosophy that they don't agree with, they will be forced out.

And that is absolutely disgusting.

I don't expect many people to engage with this post. But I just needed a place to rant, and sometimes this is the only place I really can.

Now, I will enjoy my weekend and come back on Monday fresh and ready to take on the world. I just hope it doesn't fall apart during my limited time to enjoy myself.

[egberts]

happy bratz community is furious day

[shinesurge]

sorry i am Strugglin over here i think i blew all my positive brain chemicals beating myself against the bars of Normal Human Communication this week lmao

[random-townie]

I couldn't agree more.

I play other games than The Sims and it's just unbelievable in what condition is that game after so many years of development and the shocking amount of money you need to pay EA for their scraps and pieces of constantly broken content. It is unbelievable, because any other game being constantly maintained in unplayable state like TS4, would be despised and at some point - rather sooner than later - players would held the studio/developers accountable of their BS by abandoning the game. (Check for example the fail of New World couple of years back and how few mistakes led to players exodus, doesn't matter if they fixed it later.) There are indie games fully created by a single person that have better gameplay than TS4 has - and will ever have, no hopes here. (Browse some info on Stardew Valley if you never heard if it.)

There is also a bigger game example from smaller studios which started with great disappointment after being overly hyped and upon release didn't deliver almost anything that was promised. But the studio took it seriously. They improved the game so much that today are it's simply incredible. And over the 8 years of constantly providing immense updates to gameplay adding new mechanics, new immersive quests and deep lore pieces, new activities, overhauling and expanding huge parts of the game both in terms of graphics and gameplay... THEY DID NOT TAKE A SINGLE EXTRA PENNY from their players. Look up the history of No Man's Sky, you might be shocked in comparison, if you only ever played TS.

Now this may be an unpopular opinion, but what the hell. If it triggers you, maybe it means something.

I mostly observe Sims Community, having my first simblr experience just now at 37 yo. But what I can see is also very alarming. The vast amount of TS4 Content Creators that are being reimbursed financially by the EA for promoting their faulty product. There is something I think we need to understand when we are consuming content from our favorite Simmers on YT, IG, TikTok, here on Tumblr. These content creators, with all my love and respect for their work and their content, may not be on EA's payroll, but they are benefiting financially not only from the ads placed in their content anymore. They are biased and they are being paid by EA to be biased.

This is really great PR and marketing strategy. Listen to their sugar coated honest reviews, fake enthusiasm and fake surprise to the content they were involved in making and now you are listening to nothing less than a lousy sales pitch. To be clear, use their creator code to support them if you like them, watch their content, but lets just keep our critical thinking on and call out the BS when its needed.

There's nothing bad in it if you are happy with what EA delivers, just giving you a perspective here. What EA does is predatory and abusive. Look at the lawsuits related to the Epic Games Fortnite being exploitative and using techniques triggering your urge to spend money on content. So many of us, Simmers, are adults, many of us probably with or own kids. We so often despise games like Fortnite with their time limited offers, battle pass, constant FOMO. Getting to 100th paid DLCs and still counting, while being massively promoted by content that should be always tagged as sponsored, well, I dont think it is so much different.

Happy Simming everyone. Love your game, love your Sims, the stories you are telling publicly or just in your head, love your favorite Simmers. But be real too. 💚

I've just watched the Business and "Hobbies" trailer and to say I am disappointed is an understatement. Which I know is not unique to me, and many others feel let down by this almost seemingly intentional mockery of a name. But it just shows me so much why I've been having difficultly playing / enjoying this game lately (aside from my own personal mental health issues going on right now).

And it just comes down to the fact that like many others...I'm so tired of this. I'm tired of having to wait for modders to improve on what EA half-bakes, I'm tired of building pretty sets and feeling bored the moment I hit play, I'm tired of making gorgeous characters only for them to feel flat.

It's like EA hits their target (like...Life & Death was a good pack from a gameplay standpoint, in my opinion) and it keeps you on the hook. Then they quickly shove whatever ungodly amount of kits between packs down our throats, and rush off to release the next one without it feeling full.

Like many of you...I bought & played The Sims and The Sims 2 (both when it came out back in the 2000's & on rerelease) and truthfully...while playing them, I couldn't help but to feel sad. It's goofy as fuck to say but it genuinely breaks my heart how far from grace the sims franchise has fallen.

I love this game so much. It really does make me happy at times, but lately, I just don't find much joy in it. If anything, it leaves me frustrated and disappointed these days whenever I try to play. Maybe it's part of getting older, and the fact that $40 is a lot of money when you're constantly scraping the bottom of your change jar to make it to the next payday.

This game is so bloated with content, and half of it is broken and uses the same animations over and over and over. Like with this much DLC, and how expensive all of it is, I should never be bored when I open this god damn game. Yet, unless I use poses for storytelling or mods, I always end up that way. Like, I don't even want to use poses anymore, and I'm sick of mods feeling almost essential just to enjoy myself.

I just want to open the game and play it as is. But it's not fun.

And that really, really makes me sad.

I don't know what this means long term for me as a simmer. Maybe I'm just in a lull, and just need some space from this game for a bit. I don't know. I guess we'll see what the future holds & maybe I'll feel better soon.

[fixing-bad-comic-art]

just like a quick heads up and bit of housekeeping, for "I was raised Catholic and by fucking God does that mess you up" and "over the years people have made exceptionay kind offers" reasons, going forward I'm going to try to be more active on this blog and with every edit I'm going to be including"like my stuff? support me here" links. Those links will always lead back to various charities helping folk in places like Sudan, the Congo, and Palestine. I'd Uber appreciate it if y'all lent them your kindness instead of directing it at me and preferably played along with the bit however best suits you.

[actual-corpse]

Just got a rude reminder about how great it is to never have children/ be an only child.

There's too much drama involved with dying, apparently.

[waltwhitmansbeard]

why are you paying for a service that you don't enjoy? beacon has not been around long enough for there to be any meaningful change in quality or content from what came before it, so if you're paying for it now and you don't like what they're doing, then you almost certainly didn't like it before you started paying for it.

at no point did i say that viewers didn't have the right to criticize critical role. critical role is art, and all art is subject to criticism. that being said, having been in the fandom for quite a while, i have seen quite a lot of criticism that is, in my opinion, unfair and unrealistic, and i think it's important to call that out when it happens.

there is a difference between finding entertainment and demanding entertainment. i have spoken before about the fact that i, personally, wasn't super entertained by the aeor arc of c2. it wasn't bad, i didn't hate it, when i do my rewatch of c2 i certainly won't be skipping it. but my personal tastes made me more interested by the political and piratical plots of that campaign and not so much the wizard ruin one. that's okay. that's my preference. but i know when i sit down to watch critical role every week what i'm signing up for. i'm signing up to watch SOMEONE ELSE'S D&D CAMPAIGN. it was not created or played with my interests in mind. when i dm for my group, it is my responsibility to keep my players' interests and needs in mind. it is NOT matt mercer's responsibility to keep my interests and needs in mind, nor yours, nor anyone's, unless they're sitting at his table. cr does not work like, for example, dimension 20. dimension 20 was ALWAYS an entertainment show first, and therefore the entertainment of its viewing audience has always been a primary concern. that is very much not true of critical role. critical role was a group of friends' home game first, and we were invited in to watch. do i think matt considers the entertainment of the home audience when he plans? absolutely! do i think the players consider that entertainment when they make their choices at the table? absolutely! but i do not think they do or should make those considerations first. this is what makes critical role different than other actual plays d&d shows (at least the big ones; i cannot comment on shows other than cr, d20, naddpod, and dungeons & daddies). we are watching a home game that, yes, has a high production value, but is still a home game nonetheless.

how you invest your time and money is your business, and if you feel like either was wasted by this finale or by c3 in general, you are entitled to feel that way. i encourage you think about your expectations, though, and whether it was reasonable to expect this particular medium to meet them in the first place.

it is not condescending, dismissive, or belittling to suggest that some of the real-life criticisms of cr's narrative storytelling style that i have witnessed with my own two eyes in my time in this community are unwarranted and unfair, for reasons i have stated here and elsewhere on my blog. you certainly don't have to agree with me—i clearly do not agree with you—but you're not being insulted if someone challenges your opinions.

generally speaking, if you got to the end of c3 and are this disappointed with how things shook out, i think you might just...not like critical role. and that's okay! i know it sucks to spend a lot of time with a piece of media only to realize you don't actually like what that media is—this happened to me with dungeons & daddies, which i didn't realize that i didn't really like until i was well into season three. but again, i don't think the core of what cr is and how they tell their stories has changed that drastically between c1 and c3, so i do believe that people who pay for beacon are getting exactly what they thought they were paying for: a group of friends sitting around a table playing d&d and telling an expansive, complicated story that spans in-world decades. if you didn't like that story, that's fine, but you did get a story nonetheless.

i know some people are going to be upset by how much time vox machina and the mighty nein took up during this finale, so i want to say a couple of things

these campaigns have always been and will always be for the entertainment and enjoyment of matt and his players, first and foremost. their good time has always been and will always been more important than that of the audience, which has been invited in to watch something that existed before we even knew about it. we are of course entitled to our opinions about what we watch, but it's important to remember that those opinions will never, ever matter as much as those of the people around the table.

it is an unspeakable feat of storytelling, collaboration, creativity, and friendship for these people to have done what they just did. over ten years (well over, including the time they played pre-stream) of building a narrative that spanned decades and continents and planes and celestials bodies, of making decisions and seeing their consequences out to the fullest, of bringing to life characters that felt more genuine and real than anything one can find on the silver screen—this is the kind of expansive storytelling that marvel thought it was doing with the mcu. to be able to tell a story so powerful that it cannot reasonably contained within the confines of distinct d&d campaigns is a staggering accomplishment, and we're all lucky to bear witness to it.

it is no one else's fault if you only watched c3, or weren't caught up on c1/2 when you watched the finale, or if you didn't like c1/2 but did like c3. again, you're entitled to your opinions and to how you spend your time, but this story did not begin in jrusar, so it is unreasonable to expect it to end there.

no one, including you, benefits by being salty that these people were having fun. no one, including you, is made better by your dissatisfaction with how these people chose together to tell this story. i have read countless books and watched countless tv shows and films in my life, and none of the stories therein have been told exactly the way i would have told them, and that's what i love so much about being human. if i'd been at that table, of course i would have made different decisions, and of course you would have too. but we got to see these decisions, and these consequences, and the ephemeralness of that is so beautiful i could cry.

as i have i said eight billion times before, and will probably have to say eight billion times again, critical role is not a tv show. critical role is not a novel. critical role does not have a writer's room or a five-year plan. (well, matt might, but not in the moment.) critical role is a story that happens in the moment, a story built on matt's careful planning and the players' in-the-moment decisions and, of course, the rolls of the dice. if you are holding this kind of story to the narrative standards of something crafted for the sole purpose of entertaining an audience, you are always, always going to be disappointed.

[kyouka-supremacy]

---

[harlecore]

the vibes at the club event last night were FUCKED it was so straight and i didn't realize it'd be everyone was friendly but some people were so weird there were evil gay guys i was diagnosed with autism because my costume was isabella lovestory with an abacus i think this fag was just going around diagnosing all of the transgender looking people with autism (me my friend and maybe one other person somewhere) this ugly straight guy hit on me by saying that he thought that being a woman with short hair was brave of me and that women with short hair are always all business (the woman thing didn't even annoy me i mean it's true enough i was just so lost) and i was like im not super business-y im just gay and he did some im not gay but i like gay people bullshit bitch i have an eyebrow piercing and am holding an abacus did you think that i would go for you. also there were so many straight couples fucking in the bathrooms because they were single stalls +_+

[doctor-octiddius]

hobbies include: spending money on Weird Al related things (I've spent 291 euros in a little under a month)