#I don't have a vr setup

[cleromancy]

hey guys i got a steamdeck. what fucking games are there. In the world

[frootertooter]

YEYEEEHWEEHERHAH omg we can finally see how Crane develops overtime oghhghg yesyesyeysyeyesyesyes >:DDD

[carionto]

Difference in encounters

Human: "Hey, try this VR headset on for me would you. It's not a free fall experience thing this time, just a slow trek through some nature that you control."

Alien: "Alright, Human Greg, I will give these things ONE last chance."

H: (muahahahahaa, time to introduce Slenderman and classic monsters to them! I wanna know how they look when scared by something like that instead of the typical existential dread they get when we show them our latest technology)

A: [plays the game]

H: [excitedly anticipating the jump scare moment]

A: [keeps playing]

H: (huh? they definitely would have encountered at least three monsters by now, is it bugged?)

A: [finishes playing and takes off the headset] "Well, that was indeed a lovely experience, Earth's nature of the past is truly verdant and diverse, even in the dark of night. Although I don't understand why I could not interact with the other players that appeared every now and then."

H: "??? It's a single player experience, there are no other players. What?"

A: "Yeah, you know, the two sub-species of the Glak'Rori (Xenomorphs), a weird looking large Hrok (Cloverfield), and the Vrishmishnami one (Zaat) who looked awfully similar to their ambassador to my home planet. Also, how was there a Quatni (Slenderman) playing? They are still a pre-industrial civilization in my home sector. Don't tell me one of you Humans "adopted" one while we weren't looking? You know that's a crime. We've been over this before!"

H: (exasperated) "But! It was supposed to be sca- you know what, nevermind. Want to see what Juliana has been working on, she had this great idea about combining a gravity well and a light speed accelerator!"

A: (in sheer terror, scrambling out of the setup, escaping the premises)

H: "I guess that'll have to do... still, not the kind of fear I wanted to see..."

[hopeymchope]

I wish Spike Chunsoft would just go full "Persona" with Danganronpa and milk it with tons of spinoffs.

I'd be there for every goddamn one of them on DAY ONE, you know. Pick your genre! The minute they figured out how to make a decent third-person DR action game with Ultra Despair Girls, that should've opened the floodgates wide IMO. In fact, if you take any given Persona spinoff, I can tell you how easily/naturally they could develop (and I could get super-hyped for) a Danganronpa equivalent.

Danganronpa Arena is SO obvious. It's the MOST obvious spinoff, and it has been sitting there waiting to be creating for seven goddamn years now. Ever since Kodaka said he wants a DR fighting game. Hey, remember that official DR3 Staff Book art that showed Nanami dreaming about it? Many of us have shared fan ideas for the story and/or for character moves. COME ON, y'all. What's the holdup?? DO IT! DO IT NOW!

Danganronpa: Dancing? FUCK YAS. I mean, there's already some wicked dance remixes of the game soundtracks in that Crypt of the Necrodancer DR content, so why the hell not?? And I recall that @dreamrlu did some great fanart (1) for how the (2) V3 crew could dress (3).

Danganronpa Q, a dungeon crawler? Despair Dungeon already exists, so it's COMPLETELY NATURAL. It's just a higher-quality production of that same concept! And if you haven't seen that fanmade version of the first "Persona Q" opening where it's the casts of DR1 and DR2 meeting up? It's AMAZING.

Danganronpa Tactica? Imagine leading squads from the Future Foundation (including DR1 and DR3 cast members) in missions against remaining Remnants of Despair. I've been playing a lot of tactical RPGs lately, and there's a lot of room to tell a ton of story in this format... plus it's not like you even have to make complex graphics to make it work, so SC doesn't have to worry about struggling with 3D renders if they don't want to. Just consider how Digimon Survive pulled this off with 2D sprite art!

Danganronpa Strikers is, uh, maybe the hardest to justify — but if you set it in the virtual world, that could make it easy! Since Danganronpa S already took place entirely in VR and contained a load of combat encounters, why the hell not do a similar setup for an action game? And if you prefer to keep in the real world, there are still a number of characters I could easily justify making playable in such a scenario — Genocide(r), Sakura, Asahina, Mondo, Nekomaru, Peko, Akane, Great Gozu, Seiko, Munakata, Maki, Gonta, etc. I can even picture some more-unlikely candidates such as Kimura slotting into the roster. I don't even like musou games that much, but ofc I'd play the SHIT out of this one.

Look: I know I'm an insatiable fan who just wants more precious content with these characters. But you can't convince me that these things wouldn't also SELL. The brand reached new heights of awareness and sales with V3, and they haven't really capitalized on that at all aside from giving us "Danganronpa S." We haven't even gotten a new anime since DR3, FFS!

And I'm confident that any one of the ideas listed above would sell far better than a weird digital board game with RPG combat set inside VR, frankly. :P

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

THE HUNDRED LINE: LAST DEFENSE ACADEMY - Journal #11: Route 3 - CONSPIRACY ROUTE [MASSIVE SPOILERS]

//Honestly, with 100 different endings split up into several different routes of how the story can go, the Hundred Line could not possibly be a consistently great game.

//Some routes obviously had to be better than others. I mean, we've already kind of seen it with how awesome and emotional the Retsnom Route was in the end compared to the Casual Route which was mostly a confusing mess.

//Still, I held out for hope that most of the worser routes of this game would at least end up being mediocre to decent, which is kind of how I found the Casual Route.

//...Unfortunately, while I should have expected this, my prayers were not answered.

//THIS route is GARBAGE!

//I did NOT enjoy this segment of the story AT ALL, and I worry that there may be other Routes in the game that are worse, but for now at least, this is a contender for the worst possible storyline the game has thrown at me so far.

//But it's easy enough saying that and not explaining it, so I'll get right to that, but once again:

DO NOT READ THE REST OF THIS POST IF YOU HAVE NOT PLAYED/SEEN THE HUNDRED LINE: LAST DEFENSE ACADEMY. I WILL BE TALKING ABOUT VERY SPECIFIC PLOT POINTS AND MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE GAME.

THE SETUP:

//One thing that makes this analysis a little easier to cover is that the Conspiracy Route doesn't happen too long after where the Casual Route diverges, so we don't have an awful lot of story to cover.

//As a reminder, the way the Casual Route takes off from the original comes from the choice of allowing Hiruko to destroy Nigou or not, so that the group may access his memory banks.

//Choosing to protect Nigou is what spins off into the Casual Route. But letting Hiruko destroy him keeps you on the beaten path, eventually leading to where we are at now.

//However, despite letting Hiruko go through with it, Eva protects Nigou from further harm, delaying the situation long enough to allow Sirei to show up and explain things.

//...

//Then what...

//was even...

//THE POINT!?

//Takumi quite literally did exactly what Eva does here at the beginning of the casual route. But no, for some reason, HER defiance leads to the misunderstanding being cleared up, while HIS defiance leads to him being held at gunpoint and brain-raped!

//As much as I do love this game, there are some parts of the writing in the second half here that are just complete bullshit. The way that the timeline breaks off rarely ever makes sense.

//Putting my frustration aside for a moment, Sirei does ultimately explain the full situation about Eva's brainwashing, which we kind of already know, but then also gives a hint that this operation as a whole, as well as all the decisions he makes, is run on democracy, not the needs of a few selfish people.

//By this point in time, I've played a bit further, and I call complete bullshit on this point, but whatever. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

//Also, because this is the point in time where Eva was ACTUALLY supposed to join, I unlocked a new VR mission with her and Moko now on the team. I've already played it a few times now, and this one is actually kind of fucking tough, even with Last Yell strats and whatnot.

//But in lighter news...

//WOOO FANSERVICE WOOOOO!

//So yeah, what happens after all THAT shit is Gaku decides now's a really good time to set up pool party/swim meet at the Leisure Lounge, which is very clearly a scheme to get all the girls in skimpy swimsuits, but everyone decides to go through with it anyway because now more than ever, we need team bonding.

//Real talk? I LOVE the designs of everyone's swimsuits in this game.

//By this point, I'd already seen Hiruko's and Eva's. I'd seen Hiruko's in the CG from Route 0, as you know, but I ended up catching both during hangout events that happened in the Leisure Lounge. But seeing the rest of them, they're all so cool.

//The only one I don't like is Moko's, but obviously the gag with hers is that her swimsuit looks effectively the exact same as her regular outfit; just that it's modified a little bit.

//But generally, you can tell there was so much more thought put into the designs of everyone's outfits than there was in Danganronpa S. DRS obviously had some great designed, but some of them were also just fairly standard trunks and bikini's.

//Some of them also didn't really fit the specific characters, with I think Tenko being a pretty notable example, but here, that doesn't feel like much of a problem. Everyone's fits kinda suit their personalities perfectly.

//While I was looking for the CG's, I accidentally found this one that shows everyone at the pool together, including Eito, Darumi, and Kyoshika, who are obviously missing or dead by this point in time. This is clearly from a different route where I save the gang, and I guess I spoiled myself, but I'm including this image anyway to kind of emphasize what I mean.

//But this is where we get to the breakoff point.

//The next day after the pool day is the next defensive battle, and this is the first fight in this route where we get Eva on the field to fight with us.

//Maybe it's because the circumstances are different and V'ehxness has already been beaten, but I don't remember everyone being this hostile to her in the Retsnom Route. Everyone was kind of willing to get her on the squad in that one, but most people are against it here.

//Anyway, this is the fight against Addamaque, and it ends exactly as you'd expect, but to give this scene a bit of credit, I really like how this was handled compared to the other routes I've experienced so far.

//Not only is the desperation in Addamaque's voice really prevelant when V'ehxness kills him, but also the reality that V'ehxness survived Kyoshika's suicide bombing makes it hit that much harder.

//I just feel really bad, because Kyoshika's death really hit hard, and now it looks like it was all for naught, and that's very upsetting.

//That said, I got really annoyed at this part. Because it's another one of those fights that canonically you are not allowed to win, and this is like...Number 7 for V'exhness so far.

//I got her down to 1HP, and then I couldn't do any more damage to her. I don't think the game was expecting me to beat her down this easily, but I pretty much obliterated her in a single turn.

//So yeah, that's kind of annoying.

//I would have honestly preferred that I defeat her in battle, but I lose in the cutscene afterwards instead of the game just locking me from winning like this.

//Just when it looks like V'exhness is about to (bullshit) win, the UFB flies out of the school to smash into her with a super-powered flaming nuke attack or...whatever. I did think for a second during the buildup that it might be Eito coming back, but no.

//But this is the critical junction, because our next choice comes here, and instead of being a choose two options thing, this one is actually dictated by a battle.

//After V'exhness gets downed, the sneaky bitch uses her golden guardians to grab both Gaku and Kurara. And even though it's completely and utterly not the case because I've done worse for less, Sirei INSISTS that you can only save one of them.

//Which is very much the case. You effectively have to take out the enemies surrounding either Gaku, or Kurara, and whoever you do it for is saved. The other one gets absorbed by V'ehxness and dies permanently.

//Now, CANONICALLY, what you're supposed to do is let Kurara die. Because as I mentioned before, Kako did insinuate that if Gaku dies, the truth behind this whole war won't come to light, because his actions affect the timeline going forward.

//After coming back to save Gaku, I'm not sure how much of this rings true. Honestly, he doesn't really do any more than he normally does, but that's a spoiler for where I'm at currently.

//And it's also basically the confirmation you need to say that I didn't save Gaku on this go.

//This isn't an easy decision either way, and frankly, I think it's so dumb that you can't at least ATTEMPT to save both of them, because with the game's gameplay system itself, it's more than possible. And I really don't like the fact that Takumi insists that both can be saved, and Sirei just tells him. "Mm...No, don't do that."

//While I do like Kurara more, it still sucks to see Gaku get absorbed. And regardless of the choice, this whole segment is so painful to watch.

//V'ehxness is so fucking despicable, and I HATE it in stories where the bad guy's just CONSTANTLY have the upper hand. This is the point where it felt like absolutely NO MATTER WHAT we end up doing, we will NEVER win against her. Not even Danganronpa ever made me get to a point where things felt this hopeless.

//Takumi came back in time specifically to get a better outcome, but this outcome is already so much worse than the previous timeline, because the Supreme Commander is just frustratingly overpowered.

//Anyway, with that, the route diverges into the Conspiracy Route, and it starts off with Sirei putting everyone on this high-energy drink, which makes everyone act coocoo for coco pops, like they're all high.

//I was worried that this was a sign that revolved around the little shit drugging everyone, but I was wrong. Fortunately, or UNfortunately, because I'm not sure what I got was much better.

//If there's one thing I like about this scene it's that while Kurara does still think very highly of herself, she did clearly care about Gaku, and regrets being the one to survive when he didn't.

//What's even cooler is that now that I've played past this route, this respect goes both ways, since Gaku has similar survivors guilt for Kurara. Considering how at odds the two of them have always been, it's nice to see that they did value each other in some weird way.

//Where things start to go wrong is when Sirei sort of starts spitting on Gaku's memory, saying it's not a great loss because no one really liked Gaku to begin with, but when Takemaru steps up to defend Gaku's name and the two get into a fight, Nigou intervenes and ends up as collateral damage.

//At first he seems fine, but the true effects of the blow become unfortunately clear that same night, as Nigou suddenly becomes corrupted by a third AI program.

//This new AI's name is Gotoh, and apparently, Gotoh is a member of the "Anti-Exodus Faction." A group who believes that humanity dying out is a fate that should be accepted as opposed to making children fight in a war. Gotoh's objective is to send everyone back home to the Artificial Satellite as soon as possible, and to abandon Last Defense Academy.

//Gotoh further explains by revealing to Takumi privately that those who spearheaded the Exodus Project conducted research on memory manipulation at Kamukura General Hospital. He suggests that Sirei and the people behind this war brainwashed Takumi and the others into thinking their lives back on the Satellite were better than they were so we would have a reason to fight to save it.

//I know this is coming out of nowhere, but considering Eva's entire history was overwritten by Sirei, this actually sounds reasonable.

//And what's cool is that Gotoh gives Takumi the same red pill that Sirei gave him at the end of the casual route, which undoes the remains of Sirei's brainwashing in Takumi.

//He then tasks Takumi with trying to convince the other students to turn against Sirei, and go back home.

//And this is where I'm going to stop the summary, because this is where the route's choices start kicking in.

//Honestly speaking, this setup doesn't sound too bad...ON PAPER. However, in execution, this route really does do nothing but a disservice for not only the characters and the story, but to the GAME'S VERY FUNCTIONS.

//What this decision really does is kick off a conspiracy-heavy subplot with major implications for memory manipulation, morality, and control, and a rapid influx of new lore and factions, with Gotoh, the Anti-Exodus group, etc. packed into a short span.

//And as far as I am aware...all of this is COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT in every other playthrough.

//To further emphasize this, the Conspiracy Route takes place over the course of only 4 DAYS. That's not a lot of time, and the Route is defnitely one of the shorter ones in the game, yet compared to all the others I've done so far, by far as the most endings.

//We'll cover them in more detail in a bit, but so far, I've done three routes of this game: Retsnom, Casual, and now Conspiracy.

//The Retsnom Route has 4 endings, the Casual Route has 2, and the Conspiracy Route has 7.

//And without giving too much away, pretty much ALL 7 of those endings result in death, failure, or unresolved ambiguity.

//There are SO MANY ENDINGS, and yet NONE of them are good. Not emotionally, nor from a writing standpoint.

//I distinctly remember Kodaka and Uchikoshi saying they wanted all 100 endings to feel authentic, but that's just wrong here. There's nothing authentic about any of these endings. This path of the game feels like a side plot that doesn’t justify its importance or detour from the main story arc.

//Especially because, once again, nothing shown in this route has any relevance anywhere else in the story.

CHARACTER ARCS:

//Quite possibly one of the most offensive parts of this story is that the characterization of everyone here...I'm not going to say it doesn't get done, but the issue is that when the characters do develop and change their tunes, they quite literally get punished for doing so.

//They're just handled incredibly poorly, and honestly, I don't know how or why something could be fucked up so badly, considering how great the characterization was in Route 0, Retsnom, and hell, I'd argue it was good even in Casual.

//Let's try breaking this down...

//To start with, Gotoh is abruptly introduced as a seemingly helpful figure, only to pivot into an antagonist in most of the endings. Even though this is his route, he remains frustratingly underwritten.

//His motivations are wrapped in hazy philosophical rhetoric, and while he claims to be acting in the students' best interests, his actions say otherwise. He lies, manipulates, and in many branches, straight-up murders the students when they refuse to fall in line.

//It doesn’t come off as morally gray so much as directionless and inconsistent, especially when he should be serving as a compelling foil or tragic figure.

//Takumi, on the other hand, is completely mishandled. He’s forced into one no-win situation after another with no real sense of growth or resolution. He seems more like a narrative punching bag than a character with any real agency or arc.

//I'll go into more of the deep-rooted issues surrounding him in a bite, but despite the emotional weight the writers try to give him, his suffering lacks catharsis and does little to serve the story.

//Sirei too gets to play more of the antagonist in this route, but even his eventual downfall rings hollow. There’s no satisfying payoff, and no thematic closure or character insight. It's just another checkbox ticked off on the route's journey toward a bleak and empty conclusion.

//And then there's Kurara. Her decision-making in this route is jarringly inconsistent with how she was portrayed earlier.

//Yes, I understand she’s dealing with the guilt over Gaku’s death, and that emotional burden should weigh heavily on her choices, but her behavior doesn't line up with her established character. The first major choice you get in this route is for Takumi to decide who between her and Hiruko he will tell about the conspiracy first, and to me, Kurara being an option feels arbitrary, almost like the writers forgot how guarded and confrontational she used to be about their past.

//In the original route, even a mention of life before the Last Defense Academy would set her off. She’d push back, stand her ground, and shut down anyone who questioned their purpose.

//Now, maybe there is something deeper at play. Hell, perhaps Kurara always wanted to go back, and Nozomi’s later remarks in Route 0 support that. And yes, she did agree to stand down when V’ehxness made her proposal, which suggests some internal conflict.

//Even so, while she’s not as single-minded as Hiruko, she was still one of the SDU’s fiercest and most committed fighters. That makes her sudden willingness to walk away from it all feel unearned, unless we assume Takumi’s desperation, Kyoshika’s death, and the worsening conditions finally changed her mind.

//That’s a plausible interpretation, sure, but the narrative doesn’t do the work to fully sell it. It’s an idea we, as the audience, have to rationalize on our own.

THE ENDINGS (#15-#22):

//I normally don't summarize the endings until the last part of my reviews, but I want to cover them quickly, because it segways pretty heavily into the next point I want to make.

//And while it sounds like I'm just dumbing down these endings...I swear to you I am not. I am giving you basically the full recounting of each...

015: A Fair Point

//This ending happens if Takumi refuses to take the red pill, and put his trust in Gotoh. Gotoh kills Takumi.

016: Just A Test

//This ending happens if Takumi takes the pill, but still refuses to trust Gotoh and the anti-faction due to a lack of proof, also wanting to believe that this all meant something. Gotoh kills Takumi.

017: Plans Exposed

//This ending happens if Takumi decides to confide in Hiruko first about the conspiracy. Hiruko instead reports Takumi directly to Sirei, and exposes the plan. Sirei kills Takumi.

018: Empty Words

//This ending happens if Takumi decides to confide in Kurara, and then both of them decide that they can't stop fighting if it means giving up on the sacrifices Kyoshika and Gaku made. It's a touching scene that shows great character and maturity...and then Gotoh kills them both.

019: Out of Ideas

//Should Takumi be able to convince Kurara of the pointlessness of the war, the two of them start working with Gotoh, and start thinking of a plan to make sure Sirei doesn't stop them. The main idea is to kill Sirei in the same way Eito did, but it's a choice you make. Should you choose to think of another way, the plan takes too long, and Sirei catches on. Sirei kills them both.

020: Faltering Resolve

//If you DO decide to go through with killing Sirei and formulate a plan to do so where Gotoh pretends to be Nigou, giving Takumi the option to jump him, you get another choice in the moment whether to actually go through with it. If you refuse...say it with me! Sirei kills Takumi!

021: Liar

//If Takumi successfully kills Sirei, he confronts everyone in the cafeteria to explain the full story, and give everyone their pills and the red envelopes that contain the truth about their families back on the Satellite. This leads to the most difficult choice in the route: to either tekll Nozomi that everything we did was pointless, or to remain quiet, neither of which feel right. Should you remain quiet, Nozomi manages to get through to Takumi, and realize that he's been lying to himself about how he feels. About how he knows that the sacrifices meant something, and it's really touching.

//...

//...Gotoh kills everybody.

022: Lambs to the Slaughter

//This one...

//...th-this one...

//...

//I HAVE NO FUCKING CLUE!

//I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON HERE!

//This is supposed to be the true ending of this route, and it's the only one where no one actually dies. If you manage to convince everyone that what happened here was meaningless, and Takumi is surprisingly lenient with everyone. Should they believe him, or desire to stick to their gives, they don't have to join him in going home.

//This is another instance of Takumi and the group being hopelessly dumb though, since there's no evidence that there really is another escape pod at STLDA, as much sense as that makes, and the fact that Gotoh can prepare it remotely is very suspicious.

//It culminates into Gotoh showing up and admitting that what was in the red envelopes were mere fabrications, designed to push us in the "right direction," though everything else he said and did is true. All of this comes out when Takumi is too deep in to back out.

//The game ends with just dead silence, panning shots until it shows the school bus in the middle of nowhere.

//And...That's it! That's the ending! I have no fucking clue why it's called Lambs to the Slaughter. I thought we were running away!?

//But yeah, those are the seven endings to the Conspiracy Route.

//...Do you guys see why I hate this now!?

THE ILLUSION OF CHOICE IN A GAME WHERE YOUR "CHOICES MATTER."

//The Hundred Line markets itself as a choice-driven experience, promising players the power to influence the narrative in meaningful ways, boasting up to 100 distinct endings, each purportedly rich enough to feel like a definitive conclusion.

//The Conspiracy Route is proof that this notion is absolutely BULLSHIT!

//This particular branch is RIDDLED with the illusion of choice. While the game gives the impression of diverging paths, many decisions funnel into the same or nearly identical outcomes.

//In fact, Endings 15 and 16 recycle the EXACT same CG artwork, which is proof enough of the superficiality of the branching.

//This was honestly a problem even BEFORE I started this route. From the VERY MOMENT that you have to choose between saving Gaku or Kurara, when you are VERY CAPABLE of saving both, the game just doesn't let you, because it would rather undercut your agency and break you immersion, especially when differences between choices amount to nothing more than slight dialogue tweaks or timing shifts.

//Of the SEVEN possible outcomes in this route, SIX OF THEM end with Takumi being killed, either by Sirei or Gotoh.

//Tiresome and repetitive are two words to describe that. Bad writing is another.

//The constant inevitability of death, without any emotional or thematic variation, creates a kind of narrative fatigue. Rather than feeling like tragic inevitabilities, these endings feel like lazy dead ends.

//Worse still is the handling of Gotoh, arguably the weakest character in the entire game up to this point. He’s manipulative, dishonest, and fundamentally unlikable, yet the narrative insists on FORCING an alliance with him. The player’s distrust of him is never rewarded, and even when the story teases depth, the execution feels rushed and half-formed. The twists surrounding him could have elevated the intrigue, but instead, they feel like underdeveloped noise, thrown in without payoff.

//None of the endings in this route offer anything close to satisfaction. They range from maddeningly vague to frustratingly unresolved, with little emotional or narrative closure, and DEFINITELY do not enforce the "authenticity," Kodaka and Uchikoshi advocated for.

//The idea that THIS could be someone's first ending is HORRIFYING to me.

//Ironically, the STANDOUT example of this failure is the "Lambs to the Slaughter" ending, arguably the most baffling of the bunch. It's ironic, because this is the only ending in this route that doesn't end with Takumi and his friends getting fucking merced by one of these two dumbass mascots.

//There's no clarity on whether Takumi succeeded in convincing the others, no visuals to anchor the moment, and no dialogue to interpret. The scene is entirely silent and devoid of context, and rather than feeling haunting or thought-provoking, the ending lands as confusing and unsatisfying.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

//This is normally the point where I give my highlights for this game, and some of my favourite moments in the route.

//But I'm not going to that, because I have none. At least, none that I've haven't talked about.

//Ultimately, the conspiracy route feels like a missed opportunity. It's a tangled, lifeless detour in a game that promised dynamic storytelling, and instead of enriching the experience, it undermines the very concept that The Hundred Line was built on: meaningful choice.

//It is also a textbook example of quantity over quality. The barrage of choices gives the illusion of depth, but few of them genuinely alter the outcome or provide satisfying divergence.

//Despite the sheer number of endings, not a single one offers a sense of resolution, hope, or emotional payoff. They're uniformly bleak, hollow, or ambiguous, and none of them feel earned or worthwhile. Instead of presenting a cohesive alternate branch of the story, the conspiracy route plays out like a disconnected tangent that struggles to meaningfully tie into the larger narrative arc or deepen the overarching plot.

//Tonally and structurally, the route feels out of sync with the rest of the game. Events unfold in a fragmented way, and character motivations often lack the clarity or buildup needed to make key twists land. There are flickers of intriguing ideas, such as shadow organizations like the Anti-Exodus group, but they’re introduced and resolved too quickly to have impact, giving the route a rushed, undercooked feeling.

//In the end, despite its ambition and a few scattered high points, the conspiracy route amounts to little more than a confusing detour. It’s heavy on branching, but light on cohesion, character development, and emotional weight.

//And it's enough to land it squarely at the BOTTOM of my list.

-Mod

[henrysglock]

When Kate floated the idea of TFS and the theater being within the grasp of the Mindflayer, it immediately reminded me of these parts of the VR game:

You're playing as Vecna/doing the Mindflayer's bidding, and psychic connections with the kids are portrayed as this dissociation-like "watching life like an audience watching a show". The forest at the drive-in, Dustin's couch (not pictured: Will in Castle Byers viewing through a portal and Mike's version being real life playing out on a crytal ball)...they're all equivalent to the Phoenix Theater. They're within the grasp of the Mindflayer, like they're watching the world play out over the Mindflayer's shoulder.

It also reminded me of the instances in the VR where Henry is set apart from his own supposed memories by the Mindflayer—memories that don't fit with anything we see in TFS or filmed canon:

Like NINA, it's a memory—an inaccurate one, for whatever reason and to whatever end.

And all that ties me into a point I've made before:

Things the Mindflayer does in the VR (fake worlds, edited memories, etc.) are likened to NINA are likened to Vecna visions are likened to Henry's experiences in TFS.

It's all the same. Vecna visions, NINA, TFS, the VR game...it's all on the same beat of "enveloped by the Mindflayer".

This is something I've been saying for a very long time, though I only really laid it out in Chapters 3, 4, and 8 of my TFS analysis:

Equating the VR to NINA and linking it to TFS equates the Phoenix Theater AV setup to the security cameras in NINA...especially so in shots like the following.

Either:

a) beside the camera, much like the audience in the Phoenix Theater is beside the projector/"source"

or b) from a sidelong POV that doesn't line up with any corporeal characters, much like the audience viewing the entirety of the play sidelong in much the same way

Combine that with both NINA and TFS having instances of dialogue between actors and their audiences (on top of the earlier pic of Henry staring directly at the viewer):

We can see that it's exactly as I've been saying: TFS is like NINA is like the VR game. If/when TFS is filmed and brought to streaming, it will be fully equatable to NINA.

Anyway, as I've been saying: NINA is the theater is the Mindflayer's psychic maze—with varying degrees/modes of audience involvement, from the audience being separated by a screen like Brenner with NINA to being included yet separate like the audience of a play, or like the kids in the VR stationed alongside Vecna/the Mindflayer, watching things play out, involved by proximity, to being the actual player in the maze à la Chapter 5 of the VR/Shadow-NINA. You're outside the situation entirely, you're alongside the Mindflayer, or you're on equal footing with Henry. Taking it just one step further, Louis McCartney would, technically, be equivalent to a player of the VR game, would be nearly equivalent to El in NINA. (<- Which is what has always made it so interesting to me that there are TWO arcs of NINA in the VR game, one specifically being from El's POV and the other being from Henry's...and both of them being drastically different from each other)

In short: They're all the same thing—or rather, slight variations on the same thing. You're just in different roles depending on which media you consume.

That is what I took from Kate floating the concept of a Mindflayer-enveloped setting re: TFS. She's not saying anything new. This is all stuff that's deducible from the media that's been released.

[super-ya-boi]

Meeting

((not an open rp, just plot progression. Written in collaboration with @dark-moon-inc and @ni0x (thank you <3)

Word count: 1153 words

Tw: self hate talk, physical violence and derealization.

There will be an important plot summary at the end if you don't want to read these topics. as well as art.))

_____

He knew going was a bad idea but he needed answers, he needed to know what happened to him. 

He stood in the tiny elevator, his nerves getting progressively stronger with every chime of the passing floors.. 

When it finally stopped and the doors opened Jon was faced with a darkly lit lab. He hasn’t hit the point of no return…he could close the elevator doors and leave…he could….but he didn’t. The lab called him in, coaxed him to go deeper. It felt familiar, like he’d seen it before. 

Jon stook a step in; looking around. He spotted a book on a desk and walked over to it, but before his hand touched the book a voice stopped him.

“Jonathan. It’s rude to snoop,” the voice belonged to a woman. Her voice was strong and mature with a bit of an unsettling undertone. 

He whipped his head around and faced the person who owned the voice. She was tall, put together, her hair slicked back into a ponytail and her lab coat stark white.  

“Come, sit, let’s have our chat,” she gestured to a table with 2 chairs. 

Jon walked over to the table and sat down, he tried to pull out all his confidence but it wasn't much and his pinned back ears revealed his anxiety. 

“Don’t be nervous. I'm not going to hurt you. You’re my greatest creation! I could never hurt you,” she said calmly. 

“...what? Creation? What…what does that mean?” Jon already hated what he was hearing. He wasn’t her ‘creation’, she didn't…make him…right?

“You didn’t think I would just let your body go, did you? With your enhanced healing you’re far too valuable to my experiments. Unfortunately I couldn't just keep you though, You have powerful people who care about you. So I made a replacement.” she explained.

…replacement…was he not real…was he not himself…

“It was quite hard actually. I didn't know how to make it so this body could be conscious at the same time as your real one was. Unfortunately I couldn't figure it out. If I had to put the current setup simply, it’s almost like playing VR. Your real body is contained here and this body feeds information to your brain and you control it.” she continued, she talked like this was a great achievement, rambling on and on. It hurt his brain, it didn't make sense, it made him sick. 

…..this body wasn't his…he was somewhere in this facility…this whole time…

“This also means all my work is done while you’re ‘asleep’. So those little ‘nightmares’ you’ve been having aren’t really nightmares, they’re just my research!It’s quite unfortunate that I have such a small window of work, but you and everyone around you won’t suspect a thing because it’s understandable that you’d have nightmares after something so traumatic.” she finished. 

That wasn’t just a nightmare?

‘All the work she’s done?’ What, torturing me!? Making me scared to sleep!? Was the first death not enough!? She has to do it again and again and again!? Over and over till he brakes?  How long was he supposed to endure this? Forever?

He didn't want that, he wanted to be himself. This wasn’t fair! His mind raced trying to understand, he couldn't take it, it was too overwhelming, he didn't know what to do with this influx of emotions…so he lashed out. 

He shot up and charged at her, he balled his hand into a fist and tried to punch her. She grabbed his fist and then threw him into a wall. 

Why was he weak…

She sighed “I knew Robin was the smarter half but I didn't think you were that dumb. Did you miss the part when I said I made you” her voice got a lot less calm and more annoyed. 

….he wanted to hurt her…he hated her…she ruined his life, his relationship…and now he finds out this isn't even really his body.

He didn’t want to be in this body. He wanted to get rid of it…but he wasn’t sure what would happen. He looked up at her.

“What if I just break the body? Would I wake up?” Jon questioned. 

 “I'm not sure, I've never had that happen. I’ve only ever disconnected you from this body, you can try but I can't guarantee you’ll wake up” she explained her tone still annoyed. 

….maybe that wouldn’t work, he didn’t want to risk anything especially since he didn’t know any of the science behind this. 

“Why’d you pick me..?” he questioned.

“At first it was because I wanted the reaction of your friend and I was bored but after I had you in my grasp I thought of all I could learn. Getting your hands on a kryptonian is hard, you know. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to study you, the way you healed, maybe i could transfer the ability somehow. I needed you.” she explained

Jon hated this. He didn’t want to be used. He gets up and watches ‘moon’. When she turned around Jon tried to attack her again, she once again threw him away, he hit the chair. 

Ow.. it shouldn’t hurt…he was supposed to be invulnerable. This wasn’t him…he wasn't him..

“I invited you into my lab and you disrespect me!? I thought you were a better kid than this” she walked over and kicked him lightly with her foot. “Maybe I should be a little rougher on you, teach you.”

No…no he didn’t want that…his..’nightmares’....were already bad enough. He didn't want it to be worse. He hated this…who was he supposed to go to after this…he didn’t have anyone to go to…if..if she had control over him. What if he hurt someone…he couldn’t do that..

He’s taken out of his thoughts when he gets kicked aggressively

..ugh…

“I think we’re done talking, I was going to try and make some sort of arrangement but I don't think you’ll comply. Let’s just stick with what we have now.” she says 

“No..I…” Jon was struggling to talk…why…no, he needed to argue. He needed to find out where his body was…

His vision started to tunnel…no..no.. he didn’t want to…no

______

When Jon woke up he was alone on a street…he looked around and then at his hands…

Is this why Damian didn't want to hold his hand at the gala…did…he know..and not tell him…

no..no he wouldn't do that…why would Jon think that…?  That was horrible of him, he was horrible.

Jon looked up again at the sky…he could hear everything…but it didn’t feel right..it felt muddled. The sky looked weird…everything felt wrong now…

it was wrong…he was wrong…that’s why this happened…why everything fell apart…

What was he gonna do…he didn’t want to go home…he didn't want to see anyone, what if he hurt them…and…he couldn’t sleep…he didn’t want to have a ‘nightmare’. 

This sucked. 

______

[image: Superboy in containment located at facility 207 owned by Dark moon inc.]

Tldr: After Jon was killed moon anon kept Jon's body and made a different one so no one would be suspicious. Moon anon is doing experiments on Jon's body and they're his “nightmares”.  Jon found out not only that his body wasn’t his but also that moon had control over his body. So he’s scared to hurt someone. And is also scared to sleep.

[cheldardo]

the silly (ft. jaja)

yeah i don't have a vr setup but it's still fun to make avatars

(except for the part where i have to use unity)

[andmaybegayer]

Quest 2 arrived, got to fiddle with some existing apps because the previous owner had not logged out. Didn't feel like being mean so I've reset it now but it handles pretty solidly! They have Firefox for VR headsets now! You can just install ublock origin and it works perfectly. Going to find out what the Linux VR ecosystem looks like, it seems... fraught but manageable.

I am interested in playing with LÖVR sometime, I made a lot of quick little game sketches with LÖVE in high school and I really liked the fast and easy development lifecycle.

I have used the Quest 2 before, some friends bought one and I spent some time fiddling with it, fortunately my VR sickness only really occurs on older systems. The first time I used VR was in 2016 at a convention and I had a great time poking around and then I took off the headset, walked around the corner, and threw up in a dustbin. That's never happened since but I also don't do VR a lot.

The previous owner bought a few facepieces and the hard headstrap so that's nice, much more sturdy than the stock fabric setup. Also my spare glasses fit nicely in here so I don't have to get the lens add-in just yet.

There's a video player app that can access DLNA servers so I was able to open some movies directly over the network which is neat.

The avatar system does not give me weird embodiment things like some other systems have, they're too simple, which I guess is probably why Facebook made them like that. It feels like I'm looking at a video game character who looks vaguely like me. I'll have to poke at VRChat at some point.

Very interested to try a primitives based modeller that runs in VR. One of my big issues with primitives modelling is struggling to translate 2D input movements to 3D vertex movements, I suspect a good VR vertex editor would let me get around that. The reason I grok parametric CAD is because it relies heavily on constraints systems to limit degrees of freedom.

[republicsecurity]

Prisoner #2158: "Have you noticed something about TI404?"

Prisoner #5623: "Yeah, the short one. What about him?"

Prisoner #2158: "Despite the armor, the height difference, I've grown fond of his company."

Prisoner #5623: "You too? Thought I was the only one."

Prisoner #2158: "It's weird, right? We've never seen his face, just that stoic helmet. But somehow, he feels like a companion."

Prisoner #2158: "And he's got this... I don't know, friendly aura about him. Even in that armor."

Prisoner #5623: "Maybe it's the way he talks. The AI in his helmet guides him well, keeps things calm."

Prisoner #2158: "True. Doesn't matter if someone gets rowdy. He stays friendly, almost like a guide."

Prisoner #5623: "You think he's got his own struggles in that armor?"

Prisoner #2158: "Who knows? We all do in our own ways."

***

Prisoner #7432: "TI404, they told me I'm allowed out for a day. I'm... I'm scared, man."

TI404: "Hey, it's natural to feel that way. But trust me, it's just a day. You'll be back before you know it."

Prisoner #7432: "I know, I know. But what if something goes wrong? What if I mess up and they decide to keep me in for good?"

TI404: "Listen, I get it. But you're not alone. I'll be right there with you, or another conscript assigned for your day out. We're here to guide you, not to judge."

Prisoner #7432: "Yeah, I appreciate that. It's just... the outside world, man. It's been so long."

TI404: "I understand. Take it one step at a time. Enjoy the fresh air, the sunlight. It's a chance to remind yourself what you're fighting for – freedom."

Prisoner #7432: "You really think so?"

TI404: "Absolutely. And hey, if you ever need advice or someone to talk to, even after your day out, I'm here. We might be on different sides of these bars, but we're all human."

***

TI404: "You ever get the feeling, TT04Y, that this whole setup is just another form of imprisonment?"

TT04Y: "Every damn day. We might be conscripts, but it feels like we're living in a highly controlled system. The suits, the rules, the conditioning – it's like we're locked up in our own version of a prison."

TI404: "Exactly. And the constant surveillance, the conditioning to find every shaved-head conscript 'cute'— it's like they're messing with our minds."

The next morning, the AI decided it was time for some "reconditioning" to ensure the conscripts remained in their artificially induced state of contentment. TI404 and TT04Y found themselves in the reconditioning chamber, where they strapped themselves into the seats. Another conscript, with electrodes in hand and a VR headset ready, strolled in with a sardonic grin.

Conscript: "Ah, the naughty ones. Seems like you've been questioning the system a bit too much, huh?"

The conscript went about his task with a mechanical efficiency, attaching electrodes to their shorn skulls. A VR headset was placed on each of them, cutting them off from the already limited external world. The low hum of machinery enveloped them, a prelude to the invasive reprogramming that awaited.

Conscript: "Enjoy your dose of happiness, gentlemen. Remember, resistance is futile."

TI404 exchanged a glance with TT04Y, both realizing the irony of being labeled "naughty" in a system that had complete control over their every move. They secured the electrodes to their shorn skulls, and the VR headset descended onto their faces, blocking out any glimpse of the world beyond.

Conscript: "Just relax, gentlemen. The AI knows what's best for us. Let it work its magic and make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside."

As the artificial stimuli of the reconditioning program enveloped them, TI404 and TT04Y couldn't help but feel the bitter irony of being forced into contentment.

Reality reasserted itself as the VR headsets were lifted, leaving TI404 and TT04Y feeling disoriented, the grogginess of the reconditioning process lingering. The conscript in charge of their conditioning offered a sympathetic smile, a strange juxtaposition to the authority he wielded moments ago.

"Welcome back, comrades," he said, his voice now carrying a more genuine tone. He handed them each a drink, a small act of kindness in a system dominated by rigid rules.

He extended an understanding embrace, recognizing the internal struggles they must endure.

As the conscript gently rubbed their shorn skulls with a towel, the residue from the electrodes dissipating, he spoke words of encouragement in a tone that aimed to penetrate the layers of conditioning.

"Let's hope you're free of that pesky cynicism now," his words carrying a mix of reassurance and camaraderie. The conscripts, still groggy from the reconditioning, found a peculiar comfort in this ritualistic cleansing. The walls in their minds might have shifted.

The conscript, a supposed authority figure, kissed their foreheads and embraced them, blurring the lines between conditioning and genuine camaraderie.

[blankochan]

Everyday I get closer to switching to Linux on the desktop for daily driving again

I am at the distro picked and a rough idea of what I wanna try and customize it to be like, stage

(although I need to find a USB stick and pray my internet will cooperate as it's been acting up and haven't been able to get much discord bot development done as a result because when it does work i end up playing Minecraft. sorry donutsalmi lol, I swear I'm almost done I just have to like upload my update to my server)

I just hope I can figure out a good setup for my vr.

Because I really like virtual desktop, but id prefer to run everything under proton rather then in a vm.

We'll see, worse comes to worse, I could try putting all of my VR games and anti cheat games in one VM, now that you can virtualize consumer cards. (and I don't play siege so that'll probably work fine)

Tis the year of the Linux desktop I swear

[lea-hi]

Lea! Hi! How? Why?

//Howdy! It's BackSet here and I finally gave in and made a Faller blog. Well, technically. She doesn't actually fit the criteria for being a Faller since there were no Ultra Wormholes involved (the definition of Faller is "Someone who's been through Ultra Wormholes" not "Someone from an alternate universe/different time" and I am very pedantic about this) but I'll call her that for simplicity's sake.

First off, Lea has been dropped in Hoenn cause I have brainrot. Also this is Lea after the main campaign of CrossCode but before The Way Home DLC. At the moment, she is of the belief that the world she's found herself in is simply a new section of CrossWorlds she hasn't seen yet.

Second, off, Lea is only capable of saying a select few words for reasons that will be explained soon. I'll list them here, mostly for my own benefit:

Hi

Lea

Bye

Wait

How

Why

Sorry

Meet

Thanks

All Numbers (in the game she can't say numbers and has to use her fingers but I couldn't figure out a way to effectively translate that to text)

For the purposes of this blog she also gets access to two emojis ✅ and ❌, cause she can't nod or shake her head over the internet.

Now for an explanation of who Lea is. But first, an explanation of the core concept and plot setup of CrossCode:

CrossCode takes place in the popular MMORPG CrossWorlds which is unique I'm the fact that the world (called the "Playground") is actually real and is built on a small moon that Instatainment, the company behind CrossWorlds, purchased. Yes, really. So everything within CrossWorlds is actually there and could be interacted with by a real human person. The NPCs, monsters, and player Avatars are made of Instant Matter. What's Instant Matter? Don't worry about it. Players enter the game via vr headsets. The future is now. Actually the future is in the future.

Lea is a player who has lost her memory and has been put into CrossWorlds in hopes that it will help her regain it. Unlike other players she cannot leave the game, instead entering an unconscious state when she logs out. Additionally, her Speech Synchronizer is broken so she can only say a few words that have been hardcoded into her Avatar (this also extends to writing and her fine motor control isn't too good so writing what she wants to say and using sign language aren't options either, I'm operating on the assumption that the words hardcoded into her avatar can be written in addition to spoken but that's it, no other words available).

Now we get into spoiler territory. These spoilers are not necessary to interact with the blog but they are necessary if you want to follow its story. If you haven't played CrossCode yet, stop right now and go play it. It's really good and your first play through is best done blind. If you're still reading then I assume you either don't plan on playing CrossCode (sad), don't care about spoilers (you really should in this case), or have already played it (you have impeccable taste). Ready? Spoiler time!

Everything I said in paragraph six was a lie!

Lea is not a player but an Evotar, essentially an AI based upon a person's neural map and memories. She can't speak, write, or sign cause she's an early prototype. She has been put in CrossWorlds to regain the memories of the person she's based on in hopes of finding said person. As the Lea of this blog has gone through the main campaign of CrossCode, she is fully aware of and at peace with this fact.

And that's all you need to know. So, yeah.

[bluerasbunny]

RUIN ENDING SPOILERS; OVERALL REVIEW OF RUIN AND MY OPINIONS ON IT

so

[PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THIS IS JUST MY OPINION!! IF YOU LOVED RUIN, GREAT!! IF YOU DIDN'T, THAT'S COOL TOO!! I JUST WANTED TO SHARE MY THOUGHTS ON THE DLC!!]

i'm gonna be completely honest-

i didn't like RUIN. i wish i could say i did, but i just. couldn't understand any of it

the endings are. bewildering- why can you walk into a freddy thing with the mask on and then suddenly get an unexplained cutscene w/ the daycare music what. im so confused?? the elevator scene w/ cassie was awesome, v sick idea but again it just doesn't. make sense to me why did gregory betray her what

honestly none of ruin really. makes sense to me?? like i can't comprehend what's going on and they just don't explain anything- i want to like it, i really do, but it's explained nothing and raised 5000 questions- its another example of FNAF going so sci-fi that a casual enjoyer just can't. grasp what's going on because of the hundreds of book tie-ins that are left unexplained or the insanely complex lore that's so goddamn hard to grasp

daycare segment was awesome though!! but there's. one little downside to it.

i was right, DCA only got 5 minutes of screen time unfortunately. which is hella annoying considering he's such a brilliant character and eclipse had SUCH a good setup to be an ally and then it went nowhere

(also i hate the mimic im sorry but i just cant. comprehend it nor do i like that you have to buy a ton of books just to understand who he is. also i dont get the AR stuff either that was never hinted at in SB what the hell is going on??? why is vanny's mask VR why can we walk through solid objects whats with the headless freddy what happened to glitchtrap who the fuck is the mimic literally NONE of this makes sense?? also why can we TELEPORT now since when was this a sci-fi novel)

OVERALL; loved the daycare segment, really love cassie and eclipse- didn't like the DLC itself and found it really really confusing- it does get bonus points for cool graphics though!! just. really wish it explained things

i do really love eclipse, cassie and ruin roxy though those guys are cool- and the aesthetic of the plex is brilliant alongside the ambience!! it just didn't match up to what i had hoped it'd be

[dr-strange-glove]

Project overview

Background

I've made this Tumblr blog to document my progress, thoughts, and ideas regarding an electronics project I'm working on. Normally I would keep this in private notes but some people expressed interest in keeping up-to-date with the project, so I figured a blog wouldn't go amiss.

It should be noted that I have a background (and foreground) in academia, but a disdain for so-called "proper academic writing". This may lead to some tonal whiplash - but hopefully will be interesting to read.

Goal

My goal for this project is easily stated: recreate a dataglove (such as one might see in advanced VR setups) using easily accessible (and affordable) components.

Actually doing this, however...... Well, I don't know how complicated it will be. It should be a fun ride though.

Motivation

My motivation, as for many great inventions (see: dishwashers, webcams, and the wheel), is laziness. In many cases, "laziness" is just another way of saying "efficiency". I cannot claim this, because my motivation is to be able to control my laptop (connected to a projector) from the other side of the room without having to get up.

"What about wireless keyboards?" I hear you ask. "They're easily accessible (and quite affordable)." And you are correct. In fact, I have several already. But, to paraphrase 35th US president John F Kennedy, "sometimes you gotta do a more difficult thing just because you can".

Next: some inspiration, and more detailed plan.

[leafdoggy]

I seriously don't get how some ppl actually have vr setups like they just cost so muuuuuch

[henrysglock]

Yessss okay so if you’re seeing what I’m seeing…the trailers/posters/promo marketing for this season of Arcane were ALLLLL about a Vi vs. Jinx showdown. You know, the thing that happened in like episode 3? And then Act 2 and 3 happen. Not only are they not fighting, they are teaming up together for most of the story! Speculation, do you think a kid such as Holly might make like Isha in humanising Henry to our cast and the audience in season 5, maybe shedding some light on the Alice scenario?

YES okay hello

I didn't actually see any of the promo, because I've had arcane and related tags blacklisted for a hot minute 😭 but I absolutely don't doubt you. Jinx vs Cait/Vi was really set up at the end of S1—I feel like one could compare Jinx hitting Piltover with the rocket at the end of S1 to Vecna opening the rifts. "Papa" is dead, sister has chosen the "wrong" side, and we're dealing with a bona-fide act of war. It seems like a perfect setup to really pit Jinx and Vi against each other, and then...boom. Jinx is suspiciously quiet, wallowing in the loss. Vi is resentful, but she doesn't hold as much vitriol as her girlfriend. Isha brings some of the life back to Jinx, some of the happiness, some Powder. Isha's calmed her, too, a little. Vi seeing Isha defend Jinx, and Jinx messing around with Isha, reminds her of her and Powder. Suddenly Vi is faltering. Then all it takes is Jinx coming and genuinely asking for help, and Vi crumbles.

Isha being that reminder, that bridge, does a lot for Vi and a lot for the viewers. Vi remembers that her sister is still her sister, that she can't abandon her (we're pretending everything post-Isha didn't happen quite the way it happened smdh). Isha brings the family back together—the jinx, the beast, the traitor—right before everything truly goes to shit.

By Holly, I assume you mean Nell's character, who is unnamed as of yet.

I absolutely think she could play a similar role. In fact, I'm fairly certain of it. If she is Holly, and she ended up in Henry's inner world somehow, then she'll definitely be a source of "see, Henry doesn't do all that by choice" and "Henry was/is good with and kind to children". If she's someone else, a figment or an alternate-universe reality (see: Ekko's trip in an AU), then it's a chance to dig into "this kind of thing is what Henry always dreamed of". I know Jamie said way, way back that Henry really did think he was going to escape and have a nice life with El. Nell's character is a good avenue to explore that/explore how that humanizes Henry as someone who may have wanted a daughter of his own. I also agree with you that it would be a good way to explore a sort-of "penance" for what happened to Alice (which El could have been, if we take NINA at face value), even though what happened wasn't Henry's fault.

This would humanize him to the audience, but it would also paint him as someone reasonable, someone who can be negotiated with—someone who genuinely does care but might not have the means to act (in terms of power, knowledge, or otherwise).

Having Henry in such close proximity to a character like that almost automatically sets us up for a humanization arc—since I doubt they'd have him harm her, not after releasing TFS and the VR with the characterizations they did—and it sets us up for a possible team-up, much like Vi and Jinx, Piltover and Zaun, "enemies" with a desperate common goal, teaming up against Viktor and Noxus.