#Might have different answers if it was Bioshock 2 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

angellayercake · 3 months

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I'm seeing your Bioshock posting. Any project your working on that's related?

(I'm excited I love Bioshock)

Thank you very much for noticing!! I have been pretty obsessed with Bioshock and Rapture since I played it last year and then I had a brainwave about how similar the descriptions of Meliora is to the concept (not the reality iykyk) of Rapture.

So below the read more are some of my rambling thoughts. This may turn into a fic one day or it may just stay an idea but who knows? I have included no spoilers for either Bioshock or Bioshock 2 storylines as most of this takes place pre Raptures construction.

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So Jen, you might ask, how would Terzo even be invited to Rapture in the first place? Doesn't Ryan hate religion? Why would Terzo even want to be there?

And I have a very extensive answer for you! (after you chose with me to ignore all dates in canon because for this we need Terzo in his late 20s/30s in the 1920s)

To begin I must explain my headcanon for how the Ministry and the Clergy works. The Ministry was founded in opposition to the rise of the Catholic church in Italy. They opposed the strict and cruel ways the Christian church and wanted to offer an alternative and a sanctuary to those mistreated and maligned. Their numbers grew until they were noticed and forced to flee Italy.

They found a home in rural Sweden, taking advantage of the overwhelming rise of Protestantism and there they stayed, biding their time and increasing their ranks. Their congregation grew so large that they were starting to struggle to sustain themselves so the Clergy came up with a plan. The Projects were different businesses, outreach and recruitment efforts to build revenue and attract the rich and successful to their cause and it worked! They were truly self sustaining and starting to have influence in important places but the Clergy understood that they were playing the long game.

Which brings us nicely to New York in 1922. Terzo Emeritus, third son of the reigning Papa has been assigned to set up a speakeasy to make the most of the Prohibition movement. His goal is to make a load of money and convert as many sinners as he can find. He sets up his 'dance hall' which he calls his House of Sin. There are cocktails and dancers and escorts and cross dressers and all the outcasts and freaks that aren't welcome anywhere else. It gains a cult reputation as a wonderland where anything goes, seemingly built from nothing into the most inclusive yet exclusive club in New York.

Andrew Ryan begins frequenting the place, not because he has tastes for anything other than a pretty girl but because he respects their ethos. He has respect for anyone who disregards laws and social norms and makes their own rules. He is made to feel welcome as are any of the rich and powerful that frequent the club, not because Terzo necessarily likes them but because part of his work there is to recruit powerful people to the Church. He welcomes them personally, brings them the best men or women that they might desire, keeps the drinks and smokes flowing freely until he can bring the conversation around to politics, morals and values so he can see how receptive they might be to the Ministry's teachings.

With Ryan though he barely has to push, almost as if he had come to investigate Terzo's views and opinions for himself. He finds a like mind in Ryan, someone who sees the flaws in society and how they could be improved. He finds himself talking about Meliora openly much to his surprise, the gleaming metropolis of his imagination where people are unrestrained by the petty and the inconsequential, where the seven deadly sins are celebrated and encouraged.

He fears he slips up bringing his religion into his ramblings but Ryan is unaffected by the revelations. He asks directly if Terzo worships the Devil and when he says yes the response he receives is surprisingly respectful. Ryan doesn't believe in God so equally he doesn't believe in the Devil but if he had to pick between the two the one who would earn his regard is the one who chose His own path and didn't just blindly obey. They spend many a night discussing the possibilities of such a place well into the early hours neither of them sure that such a place would ever exist.

Time went on and the world changed. Prohibition ends and the club goes legitimate. Slowly but surely wider society begins to take notice of their live and let live policy and don't like it at all. What was once the place to be seen becomes the place an upstanding member of society would never be seen. Business dwindles as the depression takes hold and by the time the rumblings of the Second World War reach the US they close their doors for good. Terzo returns to the Ministry and to Europe, serving the Clergy in a much more traditional capacity, that is until in 1946 when he receives an invitation from an old friend.

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It takes a hell of a lot to convince the Clergy to let him go, most of them writing off this supposed underwater metropolis as impossible. Eventually though the curiosity and ambition win out and they allow him to go but only if he takes a company of ghouls to keep him out of trouble and who have the abilities to get him out if the worst were to happen, most leaning towards the roof caving in under the pressure of the ocean.

Rapture is almost everything he imagined Meliora to be. The grandiose architecture, neon lights and atmosphere of excitement. The only difference was the underwater setting. It was fascinating, the low blue glow coming from all of the countless windows. Wherever he went he would find himself captivated by the swaying plants on the seabed, the schools of fish or the dark shadow of a whale passing by. The longer he stays the more he starts to forget, until he looks out the window and is reminded all over again of the fascinating place he lives.

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He slips back into his old life so easily, finding many familiar faces from the social circles of New York making up the elite of Rapture. He secures a place in Fort Frolic and goes about recruiting the most beautiful and hedonistic people he can find to work at his club. Anything goes there as is the case with a lot of things in Rapture and it becomes so popular that Ryan even sends his mistress to work with him when she isn't otherwise occupied with him. Everything is perfect for a time but if you have played the games then you know what is coming next.

For now I think I will leave it there. I have a lot of ideas about how he tackles some of the issues that grow within Rapture but if this becomes a fully fledged fic I will save those for that. I hope you have enjoyed my ramblings and I would love to hear others thoughts and ideas if you have any!! I will leave you with the below quotes which were where I started with this so give them a read, would you kindly?

The world since he was last seen has changed. Called Moloch by some, the great industrial machine has been grinding away, grinding everything and everyone down in the process. Spies are everywhere. Their eyes are behind the screens of your televisions and devices, their ears attentive to every frequency in the air. Everything is mediated, pre-packaged, and pressure sealed, your lives preordained. From the cradle to the grave, the world moves along as if there is free will, but this is the grandest illusion. There is no power beyond that which the all-seeing eye controls. The gods are all dead. Even art is pure commodity. But some still fight, quietly at first, but soon they will rise and make the glorious noise of the ancients, donning their masks, these nameless ghouls led by Papa Emeritus III. - Source

To build a city at the bottom of the sea! Insanity. But where else could we be free from the clutching hand of the Parasites? Where else could we build an economy that they would not try to control, a society that they would not try to destroy? It was not impossible to build Rapture at the bottom of the sea. It was impossible to build it anywhere else. Source

"We would sit down to studying exciting Futurist manifestos, sketched the blueprints of utopian metropoles, spiked with shiny skyscrapers stabbing at the heavens belly… Wantonly swollen zeppelins would to carry our gospel of indulgence to the farthest corners of the globe to summon and enslave. (…) Forged in nostalgia of steam and fire, this brave new world of ambition, vice, lust and greed - all so inherent to the enlightened modernity, was always with him through all these years. And it is now - when our church continues to grow stronger and wealthier under wise reign of Papa Emeritus III - that these visions may finally be witnessed and embraced in the preaching's of 'Meliora’ - his most contemporary and humane Encyclical.” - Source

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I chose the impossible. I chose... Rapture, a city where the artist would not fear the censor, where the scientist would not be bound by petty morality, Where the great would not be constrained by the small! And with the sweat of your brow, Rapture can become your city as well. Source

#asks #terzo #papa emeritus iii #the band ghost #bioshock #rapture #headcanon #crossover #my writing #jen's bioshock au

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scanmains · 2 years

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Nexuiz classic servers

#Nexuiz classic servers code#

An attacker can also send malicious, fragmented packets from a client to crash or compromise the servers. Denial-of-service flaws can be exploited to crash servers at regular intervals for large gaming communities. Download a new map from the server? Bam! An attacker might have maliciously “customized” the map.

#Nexuiz classic servers code#

If you joined that server, it “ would allow him to compromise the computers of any players that join his rogue server by exploiting one of the remote code execution vulnerabilities present in the game engine.” Other times, just querying that server would allow an attacker to exploit vulnerabilities. “There are four different issues affecting the Hydrogen Engine,” they wrote, before discussing flaws to exploit Breach.Īn attacker could setup a rogue server that shows up in the database of available game servers. The research paper states, “There are two vulnerabilities in CryEngine 3 due to improper handling of fragmented packets via CryEngine.” And Atomic Games Hydrogen Engine ironically runs games such as Breach. The presentation slides dived into zero-day vulnerabilities to exploit CryEngine 3, which runs games like Crysis (2 & 3). It also showed a code example that could exploit Nexuiz Classic that “uses DarkPlaces engine, a significantly modified Quake engine." “In Quake Wars, the function is called in a bad way on the client-side,” but “in Brink the function is called in a bad way on the server-side.” The Id Tech 4 game engine for Doom 4 could allow a server-side stack-based overflow. According to the research paper, Doom 3 is not affected by the same id Tech 4 engine issues that allow customized versions for Enemy Territory: Quake Wars and Brink. Id Tech 4, better known as the Doom 3 engine, runs games such as Quake 4, Prey 2, Doom 3 and Brink. In ReVuln’s Game Engines: A 0-Day’s Tale, the researchers wrote, “Monday Night Combat is based on Unreal Engine 3, and like other games supporting the Steam platform, this game supports some custom Steam related commands via Unreal Engine Control channel.” It also looked at Homefront, The Haunted: Hells Reach and Sanctum, all of which do not use the standard Unreal Engine 3 protocol before exploring attacks on them. Games that run on the Unreal Engine 3 include titles like Unreal Tournament 3, Gears of War, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas and EndWar, Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Conspiracy, Mortal Kombat, Mass Effect, Lost Planet 3, BioShock Infinite, and various Batman Arkham titles. “Any attacker can exploit them without any user interaction or additional requirements.” ReVuln even wrote cross-game zero-day exploits. “It’s a matter of how many other games share the same engine.” Some of ReVuln’s exploits go after the game servers and other go after game clients. ReVuln doesn’t report security holes to affected vendors instead the company “sells the newly discovered vulnerabilities to third-party companies and government agencies.” They warned that before you assume your game has no game engine, realize that every game, even PONG has a game engine. These vulnerabilities were not previously disclosed before the presentation at NoSuchCon, meaning there are no current patches for protection. The researchers found zero-day vulnerabilities to exploit game engines such as CryEngine 3, Unreal Engine 3, id Tech 4 and Hydrogen Engine. At NoSuchCon, they presented “Exploiting Game Engines For Fun & Profit”. “Thousands of potential attack vectors” in game engines, open the way to “millions of potential targets” aka players, explained ReVuln Security researchers Luigi Auriemma and Donato Ferrante. Are you are gamer? If the answer is also “yes” to playing first-person shooters, then listen up.

#Nexuiz classic servers

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angellascl · 2 years

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Psi ops the mindgate conspiracy mods

It's like piloting a ship in Elite with a mate, one of you flying and the other on turrets, but you're some dude. I controlled most of his body, so I was moving and aiming, while my buddy could shoot and use psychic powers-which is some serious bullshit, since they're the best bits. Instead of letting us play as two psychic special agents, we were playing one. When I tried Psi-Ops in co-op for the first time, I was convinced that something had gone terribly wrong. Fraser Brown: Psi-Ops - The Mindgate Conspiracy I never stopped feeling a little annoyed at the "forced" multiplayer, but long after my Galactic Readiness was maxed out, I was still playing. (But also incredibly lucrative, so as Michael Ironside once said, everyone fights, no one quits.) The shooting was aces (say what you will about Mass Effect 3, but it had the combat side of the game nailed), the integrated missions, small levels, and collective rewards ensured that players actually worked together, and at the higher difficulty levels the extractions could be incredibly hairy. Mass Effect's different classes and races were supported, so players could take it on in whatever style struck their fancy. The different Firebase maps were big and varied enough to be interesting and tactical, but small and interconnected enough to be manageable, even for newcomers. After surviving ten waves, teams would have to move to an extraction zone and hold out until retrieval. Strictly co-op, it put four players up against increasingly difficult waves of enemies from various Mass Effect factions, with special objectives popping up here and there throughout. And I'm glad I did, because it was a blast. But I was also determined to crank my Galactic Readiness to the max, so in I went. I don't begrudge people playing online however they want, but I'm all about the singleplayer and had zero interest in sharing my intergalactic adventures with the great unwashed. I was really unhappy when I learned that Mass Effect 3 would have a semi-mandatory multiplayer mode. The whole thing was framed as a prequel for the first BioShock, grounded in an idea that had taken hold in Team Fortress 2 and many games that followed: yes, you can and should put story into a multiplayer FPS. The multiplayer lobby itself was a Rapture apartment, and your character would receive new, unique messages on their answering machine. BioShock 2 characters' appearance was tied to their progression-as they leveled up, they'd look more and more like a mutated Splicer, a reflection of their abuse of ADAM. Each had their own backstory, melee weapon, and loads of custom, situation-specific dialogue that you'd hear during matches (Mlle Blanche de Glace, a French actress, might say "So strange on this side of the camera," when using the Research Camera to earn a damage buff against an enemy). You played as one of 10 unique characters living in Rapture at the outset of the civil war. "The winning team is decided by who has the greater number of Little Sisters captured." Ah, the pastime of playing football with mutant drug children.īioShock 2 fully embraced the awkwardness of turning its intricate story and setting into a deathmatch. "The goal is to bring the Little Sister to the designated Little Sister Vent as many times as possible before the time limit runs out, and then to prevent the enemy team from doing the same," the BioShock wiki reminds us. Publishers wanted to protect against people selling their Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 copies back to GameStop after completing the campaign. Voila, BioShock 2: Capture the Sister. Coming out in 2010, BioShock 2 found itself in the middle of a strange era where every singleplayer game, no matter how literary, had to have a multiplayer mode.

#Psi ops the mindgate conspiracy mods

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zephyr-rat · 2 years

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The Game Medium: Tension Between Game and Narrative

(SPOILERS FOR THE GAME OMORI)

Heya guys. I’m thinking about making some blog posts that focus on game design and game narrative. These can just be leftover thoughts on a game or just observations that can be applied to the game medium or game genres. I don’t think I’ll do these routinely. These will just come up whenever I feel like it.

If you look at it a certain way, it might be a bit weird to call video games a narrative medium. It’s one of the few narrative mediums in which the medium doesn’t need a story to be truly engaging; the story can literally just be a 2 second premise that justifies the fun stuff you do the entire game like in Mario or it can have none at all like Pac-Man. In other words, the “fun”, the main source of engagement, can be completely disconnected from the in-text narrative.

When you step forth into game design school, one of the first things you’ll probably learn is the M/D/A paradigm: mechanics, dynamics and aesthetics. The mechanics of a game, the individual actions and abilities that you’re allowed to do (jump abilities), will inevitably dictate dynamics, the strategies a player can come up with (the sequence of jump abilities to make across a gap). These dynamics will eventually reinforce the overall aesthetic of the game, the art style, tone, and narrative. In a truly narratively cohesive game, how you feel when doing the dynamic should reinforce what the character feels in the story. However, this dynamic-aesthetic connection usually doesn’t focus on narrative as often as you think it does. In many cases when strategies connect to aesthetics, it’s usually that dynamics reinforce a power fantasy: the ability to be a superhero, a knight, the fastest thing alive, etc. As long as the power fantasy is reinforced through these mechanics and dynamics, you don’t really need a story to reinforce it even further because the mechanics and dynamics are already doing that. It’s entirely optional to have a competently written story for a game.

Because mechanics-dynamics are usually the core of what makes a game engaging, there can be this grave disconnect between what makes a game engaging and what makes the story engaging. This is why many games in earlier ages never really bothered with a story, because all you really need to make a good game is good mechanics and dynamics. This is also why, even in modern games, ludonarrative dissonance is a pretty severe issue, because the interactive engagement powered by mechanics-dynamics won’t be congruent with the engagement powered by narrative. This is how you get Bioshock Infinite where you spend the entire game driving hooks into skulls and gunning down masses of people while the narrative tries to wax poetry about violence and why it sucks.

Compared to other mediums, having different types of engagement is nothing new. A moviegoer can watch a movie just for the movie just for the spectacle, an anime fan can watch an anime just for fight scenes, and a reader can read erotica just to masturbate, but very few mediums allow such a massive disconnect between the narrative and the other types of engagement. The only type of medium I can think of is pop music. Tell me if you heard this before for a pop song: “the lyrics are kinda nonsensical (Rather Be by Clean Bandit) or awful (Sorry by Justin Bieber), but it’s such a bop!” Both songs referenced have reached the top 100 in the billboard charts in previous years. So if interactive engagement can be separated from narrative engagement, how do we handle that?

The easiest answer to this is to make the focus of interactive engagement and the focus of narrative engagement completely congruent to each other. This means making where the feelings of fun of the game happen when strong narrative and thematic beats occur, and having the emotions match accordingly. Boss battles tend to be great examples of this. At the end of a boss battle, how do I feel when doing my mechanics and strategies against them. Did the boss put in an extremely close duel and I feel honored for being able to beat them with my inventive strategies? Or did the boss just, in their final phase, sit there, waiting for me to kill them. These 2 bosses require different dynamics to defeat them, leading to different emotions, and, thus, requiring different story beats to them to match that emotion, to be congruent with the mechanics-dynamics used. However, what happens if the focus of interactive engagement intentionally causes tension with that of the narrative engagement?

OMORI: “The Cruelty of Fun” (SPOILERS FOR OMORI)

To summarize the game, OMORI centers around a kid named Sunny who, after 4 years, decided to become a shut-in after the death of his sister Mari. Ever since then, Sunny has been living within his dreamscape to escape from the real world and from truly processing his sister’s death. Meanwhile, Sunny’s perfect friend group back then completely broke up after the loss of Mari: Hero heads off to College, Aubrey turned into an angry delinquent, and Kel decided to focus more on other friends and high school sports. It’s not until Sunny’s family decide to move out of town did Kel finally reach out to Sunny, inviting him to hang out one last time before moving out.

From then on, the game takes place in 2 completely different worlds: Sunny’s dreamscape that he uses as escapism and the real world in Faraway Town. While both worlds use the same battle system, they differ from each other in certain mechanics, leading to completely different dynamics. The biggest mechanic of the entire game is the emotion mechanic in which each battle unit can hold a certain emotion, and, like most rock-paper-scissors type mechanics, the emotions force a unit to be strong against 1 emotion and weak to another. Happy beats angry, angry beats sad, and sad beats happy. What makes the system so interesting is that, unlike Pokemon or other RPGS, these emotions can be changed dynamically during battle. As such, many of the key dynamics of the game involve manipulating emotions to get the perfect setup and maximum amounts of damage.

Furthermore, another key mechanic of the game is the follow up system in which one of your party members can do a follow up action after doing a basic attack. These follow up actions can lead to massive changes such as changing the mood of a party member or allowing another party member to attack again. Mastering these follow up attacks will allow players the ability to do quick reversals and react to sudden changes. Both the follow up mechanic and the emotion manipulation mechanic are tested immensely in the minor battles and the boss battles, and, in my opinion, are the components that make the battles of Omori engaging.

Both of these key mechanics are only present in the dreamscape world, not in the real world. Because of that, the dynamics and strategies of the real world contrast heavily from that of the dreamscape. When you exit the house as Sunny, battle encounters are little more than a game of clicking the damage action or heal up any damage you receive, and then repeat until the enemy dies. The dynamics of emotion manipulation and the collaboration of emotion manipulation are simply not present, leading to battles in the real world feeling incredibly drab. In fact, if you didn’t get certain items, battles might feel impossible and hopeless as you just flail your arms at the enemy and waste away all your bandages to fix all of the damage.

Youtuber ABItorial made a fantastic video exploring this in which he investigated the dynamic contrast and explained how it affects the emotions of the player and how that emotion gets shaped by the context of the story. In the sense of Omori, it shows the alluring nature of escapism, to hide away in a room and believe in a dreamworld where you have all of the power, especially when in the real world, you just feel so helpless. ABI described it as the “cruelty of fun” in which, by imagining a world in which nothing is wrong and “everything is okay” by the game’s own text, your real friends suffer outside.

This cruelty is shaped by the contrast between what’s interactively engaging (by the mechanics-dynamics) and what’s narratively engaging. In terms of narrative engagement, the fun lies in the dreamscape where one can do interesting strategies in battle and have access to a variety of abilities. Meanwhile, all of the more three-dimensional characters and the tension of the plot lies in the real world. All of the characters in the dreamscape are two-dimension, or at least, flatter than their real world counterparts. The main consequences and conflict caused by Mari’s death exist in the real world while, in the dreamscape, the death is not even mentioned.

As such, there’s this tension between what the player wants to do in terms of a game and what the player wants to do in terms of the story, selling this feeling of what escapism is so alluring to some people. It sells what Sunny is feeling in Omori expertly and doing it in a way that only a game can, because games are one of the few mediums that can allow for a clean separation between game and story. Writers and video game designers, more than most narrative mediums, have to work harder to make those elements congruent with each other.

For the sake of argument, say that someone wanted to adapt Omori into a TV show or a movie: how would one make the dreamscape, with its two-dimensional characters and saccharine “friendship solves all” morals, as interesting or engaging as the game does through its mechanics and dynamics which, in game, symbolizes the amount of power, safety, and control Sunny has in his own world. One would have to make massive changes to sell that someone would want to stay in the dreamscape when literally a friend outside the dream world turns into a bully and another contemplates suicide. In a movie context, if you just do a direct copy and paste translation, Sunny would come off as selfish and cowardly, hiding behind a flimsy facade and refusing to help his own friends. Without a powerful interactive contrast causing tension between the narrative engagement, something has to replace it.

I highlight this aspect of Omori because this is a very unique aspect to games as a narrative medium and I feel, for more interactive and engaging stories, designers and game writers should explore it. Omori is not the only game that does this. Undertale’s genocide run heavily contrasts the interactive desire of being a completionist with being a murderer, something made explicit with Flowey’s motivation and Chara’s quote of “perverted sentimentality”. Another example of this is Lewis’s story from What Remains of Edith Finch in which the player is asked to play 2 games simultaneously: one where you play as an adventurer in your dreams and the other where you repetitively chop fish heads in your monotonous job.

The further we can explore these different aspects of the game medium, the more we can utilize the medium to its fullest. If you have any other games or game scenes that utilize this type of tension, please let me know! I’m curious.

#OMORI #Game #Game Design #Game Narrative #game medium

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keepingupwiththehistorians · 2 years

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ask game: i challenge you to answer all of them

Thnk you!

What do you guys usually fight about, if anything?

Placidus loves ketchup on chicken. I hate it. Motherfucker keeps using ketchup. Asshole. 2. Shit about sleeping vs. staying up

2. What are everyone's fashion tastes?

Anything casual for me. Runo likes pastel, Sanity likes cats, Ilmari and Casimir like anything. Placitrio likes punk stuff. Antti is all for camo.

3. Who's the best at dealing with stress?

Casimir. Definitely.

4. Who has the weirdest music taste?

Military marches for Antti. And Plac secretly listens to bubblegum pop.

5. Do you see your system members as individual people, parts of a whole, or something else? Do other members see things differently?

Sometimes I tend to see them as me. We are vastly different, but weren't we all one person when I was a young child? We are individuals, that's the truth.

6. Is there anything everyone can agree on or have in common?

Mambo Italiano SLAPS!

7. How long have you known you're part of a system? Has it taken other members a longer or shorter time to come around?

It was the longest for me, as a fucking host. I had people in my head and personality shifts and all, I just fucking ignored it until Sanity just erupted out of place lol

8. What was the discovery process like for you?

"I think I have people in my head" and I named them at 6th grade but gave no fucks afterwards because "they cant be real lol". Then Muse said that I might be a system, so it was like lifting off the veil and oh my.

9. What do you feel your origins are, if you feel comfortable sharing?

Traumagenic.

10. If you could wake up tomorrow and have everyone be in separate bodies, would you?

Oh God yes. Though, Sanity has a catchphrase, "All would do well but us, Karl. We would fall like flies, Karl."

11. Do you have a favorite plural character or headcanon?

I sometimes hc Dr. Gears from SCP Foundation as plural. What a lad.

12. Does anyone like any video games? What about books or TV shows?

Antti: Battlefield 1. We all like it + SOMA + Bioshock. I, Val Pax, Plac, and Sanity love French Revolution related stuff.

13. Who's the most outdoorsy, if anyone? Who likes to stay inside the most, if anyone?

Sanity likes to take walks at night, even at 1-2-3 AM. I am such an introvert.

14. What is religion and spirituality like for your system, if applicable?

We are grateful and try to pray. Casimir, Runo, and Ilmarinen are the best at that.

15. Who, if anyone, are you out to? Are they supportive?

Out to a few old friends and Muse! They are very supportive.

16. Do you see multiplicity as more of a spectrum that everyone's on, or something that only effects some people?

I have no idea. I mean, there are differences between singlets and systems I guess.

17. Any nonhuman members?

Ilmarinen sometimes imagines himself with wings. So does Casimir. And Sanity doesn't like being a human.

18. Do you have introjects? If so, where do they come from?

We don't talk about the introjects.

19. Do you consider yourself disordered? Do other members feel any differently about this?

We keep forgetting shit, barely fucking alive at times. But the disorder is trying to protect us. We wish to be much more than a disorder.

20. What are everyone's favorite hobbies?

I like drawing. Sanity loves drawing and doing research. The Historians love research and writing. Placitrio likes music and arguments. Casimir and Ilmarinen like organising things. Antti likes writing. IX and XXI just like peace.

21. How do you resolve in-system conflicts?

No fucking ketchup, Plac. Though, he always eats some when he fronts. We just shout and talk out loud until we reach a conclusion.

22. Do you dissociate often? What is dissociation like for you, if applicable?

All the fucking time. I barely remember the day. It's zoning out. Also, not registering the memories. I lived a day but I don't ever think about it again, register it as a dream-like state and it doesn't exist in my brain.

23. Do you wish you had more or less members, or are you happy with what you've got now?

I think we are okay. Plac wants to kill me, Sanity, and XXI though. Sanity actually begs for it.

24. How active are your other members? Who's around in headspace the most? Who fronts the most? Who's dormant, if anyone?

Sanity, Val Pax, Casimir, Runo, and the Placitrio are very active. Placidus is usually very vocal in the headspace. Introjects are dormant.

25. Do different members have different art or handwriting styles? Feel free to show examples!

Sanity's handwriting is CHAOTIC. Runo and Casimir have the best one. Will post sometime.

26. Do you ever feel NOT multiple? Like a singlet, or somewhere in the middle of the spectrum? Do you ever forget you're part of a system?

Not this but somehow like the opposite. I accidentally use "we" while talking to people I'm not out to sometimes...

27. Do you guys have different tastes in food? What are everyone's favorite foods?

Fuck you Plac. I said no ketchup! Who the fuck eats ketchup like that, man?

28. Have you ever struggled with denial?

Oh boy a lot.

29. Does your typing style differ depending on who's fronting?

I use the British English variant most of the time. Sanity keeps making typos. Casimir types very formally.

30. Do you have any amnesia? What's it like for you?

We forget every fucking thing we do. Brain doesnt register shit as memories. Like dreams.

31. Do any system members have a different gender or sexuality? How do you guys handle this?

Yeahhhh. Mostly we respect my decisions. However, female or enby members are free to express their gender identity when they front.

32. How has your system changed over time?

We had the introjects go dormant and a split. (Welcome XXI)

33. Who's the oldest member? Who's the youngest?

Hermit is the oldest, like 60-80. Olive is youngest, around 5.

34. Do you see your system more as family, more as friends, more as roommates, or anything else?

Some of us are a family. We are altogether like roommates!

35. What would your perfect life or dream job look like? How does this differ between members?

I, Val Pax, and GHJ want to be historians. Others are okay and glad. Runo could be a therapist. Plac could be a gardener. Casimir could be an architect. Ilmarinen could be a religious worker. Antri would love to be a soldier if we were healthy lol

36. Name your favorite quality of all the members you can think of! Including yourself! ;)

Im the host, i like that. Sanity's art is perfect. Runo has good taste of music. Casimir and Ilmarinen protect our body and soul. Placitrio are energetic as hell. Val Pax writes a lot. GHJ honours history. Olive is so cute. Antri writes helluva military stories. IX is very calm. XXI protects San.

37. What's the most awkward experience you can have that you attribute to plurality?

Forgetting ENTIRE people and conversations. Or lashing out on someone (thanks Plac)

38. Is it easy for you guys to be co-conscious?

For some of us. Plac is co conscious often. And Casimir just waits just in case ae is needed.

39. Are you blurry often? How do you deal with blurriness?

Man I live life in a blur and cant deal with it fkkvsklcd. We actually have a discord server though so we note things down

40. Do you know a lot of details about your system members, or is it more hard for you to parse out?

I know what they share about themselves

#ask #thanks #karl posting #placidus #karl #sanity #runo #valerius paxton #antti e #casimir #ilmarinen #the hermit #the world #olive #placida #placidum #g h juutilainen

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unholyplumpprincess · 4 years

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Headcanons + Imagines Rules

My headcanons and imagines are open 24/7 and FOR everyone! They are totally okay to request at p much any point in time! Drabbles and fics are NOT done by request, however you can certainly TRY to give me a prompt I will be so inspired by that I Gotta write a fic for free (this is unlikely however, but it HAS happened) :D

Fic + Drabbles can be requested by friends and mutuals, check out that post: HERE

!!!Rules under the cut here to not fill peoples dashes!!!

• You must give me an actual prompt or question to work with. Just asking for like "Nsft headcanons for Fuse?" Will not work. Gimme smth to work with, as an example, "What would Fuse be like in bed with a reader/canon character if they were shy about being touched?" Or FULL PROMPTS like "How would Bloodhound respond to Revenant trying to make them horny in the arena by dirty talking them?" Etc! SFW is also allowed but I Am a whore :D

• To further explain the above, you also cannot Just give me kinks like "Pathfinder with an s/o with a choking and breeding kink having sex?" Or smth simple sfw like “Headcanons for miragehound in winter?” PLEASE give me some sorta prompt to work with! Otherwise I'll just tell ya no or to retry!

• You can also just straight up ask questions to form a prompt. Like instead of saying ‘nsft headcanons for fusehound?’ you could instead be like ‘Okay nsft headcanons for fusehound. Who tops who bottoms? What are their favorite ways to get each other in the mood’ etc!

• Example of SFWs might be something like “Michael Myers learning how to celebrate *insert specific holiday* as a family and learning all the fun traditions with his reader s/o.”, ‘What would the Huntress be like if she found out her s/o was pregnant?’ Etc!

• You can ask for up to 3 characters for a question like "What is their reactions to being caught under the mistletoe?", BUT you'll get a lengthier/more detailed reply if you ask for just one character!

• Due to my old blog getting deleted, you CAN ask old questions that I may have answered before bc I'll have a different response! However, if someone asks for smth and it involves ONE character, someone else can ask for that same question for another or two more. As soon as 3 characters are hit, no one can ask for that specific prompt again! (This is due to exploits in the past where I’d end up doing a full cast of 20+ characters.)

• If it is a question I can answer in One word or a quick sentence (Like a roster's fav foods or love languages) you CAN ask for more than 3 characters!

• Wanna make my day? Love OCs? You can ask about my OCs as well! Their masterlist can be found in my bio, pinned post, and here -> LINK HERE

• Canon character x Canon character, Canon character x Reader, My oc x Reader/Canon character are all allowed! If we are friends and I know ur OC extensively, I am happy to do them too!

• For readers, they will ALWAYS be gender neutral, but you can specify genitalia and what lingo to use for said genitalia if you like and the prompt is nsft specific! :D

• And ofc, I can refuse any prompt for any sorta reason!

• NOs: Any obvious ones like in/cest ped/o etc, Rape/sexual assault, miscarriages or anything that has to do with pregnancy in an unhappy way or children in an unhappy way, no angst (I'm a happy blog. Hurt and comfort is abt the closest you'll get!)

• Some fandoms I do (But feel free to ask for specific fandoms or characters before sending a request to make sure I do them! :D): Apex Legends, Overwatch, Dead by daylight, Slashers and horror icons (Michael Myers, Leatherface, xenomorphs, predators, etc), Arcane, Cloud Meadow (Monsters and NPCs), Resident Evil (All games), Stardew Valley, Destiny 2, Hannibal, Assassin’s creed (Some have not been played!), Bioshock, Mario, and lots more! Just send an ask or even DM me, I’m happy to answer :D

#rules #save #headcanons #imagines #princess talks

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victorianraccoon · 4 years

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hello, welcome to my Ted talk.

Today we will be discussing "Tales from the SMP". But before I blow your minds with my theory/realization we must first talk about the butterfly effect.

So, have you heard of the butterfly effect?

The butterfly effect, is used to say the smallest of actions can lead to catastrophic events. Like, for example, a butterfly flapping it's wings causing a hurricane.

Now the important part of the butterfly effect here, is where it was first brought up.

The term was coined by meteorologist Edward Lorenz in 1960. He studying how small changes within his computer algorithm would lead to massive changes to the final outcome.

As cool as that is, Edward Lorenz wasn't the first one to really instill the idea.

Have you ever heard of "A Sound of Thunder"?

It was a short story written by Ray Bradbury, and first published in a magazine during 1952. To pretty much summarize the plot of the story, it is about a man going back in time to kill a dinosaur and then dooming humanity.

To be more specific about it, There is a company that holds onto a time machine, going by the name of "Time Safaris Inc.". Unsurprisingly, They use it for "Time Safaris", in which they let people go back into the past and shoot a dinosaur of their choosing.

The main character of the story is "Eckels", who shows up to Time Safaris Inc. and ends up requesting to shoot a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Before Eckels is brought to the past, the tour guide takes a minute to explain how they plan out the process. The guide says that the Tyrannosaurus Rex they will be shooting is about to be killed by a falling tree. So that upon killing that T. Rex, they will only be effecting the way that the T. Rex dies and don't end up effecting anything else. They even remove the bullets from the bodies as to not leave anything behind.

Time Safaris have also ended up setting precautions. They have set up a metal floating pathway above the ground so they don't touch the ground and end up crushing the plants and/or insects.

The Time Safari guides heavily stress how important it is to Eckels about how he cannot walk off the pathway.

"Don't stray from the path."

What ends up happening for the rest of the story is, once Eckels sees the Tyrannosaurus Rex, he ends up panicking. He steps off the pathway, and crushing a butterfly by mistake. This causes a change within the timeline so major that it greatly effects the human language. There are probably more changes to the present of that world, but we never got to see them.

Now, we are going to take a step back for a moment.

"Don't stray from the path."

Sounds... awfully familiar... doesn't it?

CC!KARL JACOBS, IF I AM PICKING UP WHAT YOU ARE PUTTING DOWN, THEN YOUR CHARATER HAS SCREWED THE TIMELINE

I will rant as to how Time Travler Karl has probably doomed the future in a minute, but I gotta be serious about my theorizing.

We have only seen five episodes of tales of the smp, which is not a ton of sources of info to go off unfortunately. Episode two probably isn't even "cannon", but eh I can't really say.

But we have seen the future once.

Episode three.

The one where Ranboo apparently had a moment where he really liked the idea of bioshock, built a city underwater, then had kids who made false assumptions from screwed up historical documents of the events of the Dream Smp.

There is a problem with this though.

Episode one, he was in the past. Some peasant village that dealt with some murders, probably one of the beginning settlements of flordia.

The issue about this is because since we haven't seen a future without Karl meddling in someway, that means we do not have a untouched future to compare this touched future against. We cannot figure out the type of time traveling rules are in place. Time traveling rules differ from story to story, but they tend to be--

1) Time is set in stone. You change minor events but you cannot change major events.

2) Time is malleable to a point but crushing a bug won't kill the world.

3) Stomping a butterfly to death can somehow mess up the human languages. Sneezing will end the world you are fucked everything is fucked the sun is collapsing because you had to sneeze you bastard you

So, the events that are happening could either be completely time traveler Karl Jacob's fault, or they could always be happening no matter what Karl Jacob's does.

Also there is complete possibility that it's a time loop, which those are confusing as hell and im not even going to try to talk about that.

But if that's the case, that means he's losing his memories for nothing.

All three are quite bad.

Also? There is a complete other possibility on the fact that what is going on in the dream smp could be the "best" timeline. I am not saying Time Traveler Karl thinks that what has happened is the best timeline, but it might be the best it can get.

( The descendent into madness starts here)

Time travel is so fucking complicated in the way that technically speaking if it is happening now in the past, it has already happened here.

Time travel is a very genuinely interesting story telling method, I'm not going to lie about that. It allows for more interesting settings and characters, but holy shit. The part of my brain that enjoys understanding storylines and timelines starts having a conniption whenever its brought up.

But there are so many loopholes that are left behind. Like- Time travel in its self is a Paradox! If the problem has already been solved, then why go back to fix it? Then there is nothing to fix the problem in the first place!

I hope as CC!Karl keeps releasing more of the series it will fill in more holes and answer more questions, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's just me looking too deep into things when I should just enjoy it face value.

Also? I know I am going somewhat on a tangent here, but I have started and I cannot stop. But there legit biological consequences of time traveling! Do you know how much disease Time Traveler Karl has probably been spreading around???

Because here is the thing about time, as it marches on, so does evolution. Evolution is always happening and occurring, some instances more noticeable then others.

If you were to go back in time, not only would you be exposed to very old diseases that your body might not even be able to recognize since how different they appear, you are also bringing newer, more specialized and better adapted diseases into the past.

Where people's bodies are not trained against those diseases.

AT ALL.

SO NOT ONLY HAS TIME TRAVELER KARL JACOBS FUCKED UP THE TIMELINE WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT, HE HAS ALSO UNKNOWNINGLY BECOME A BIOLOGICAL WEAPON.

KARL JACOBS IF YOU INDEED ARE TRYING TO MAKE A CONNECTION TO THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT AND THE STORY "A SOUND OF THUNDER", I HOPE YOUR CHARACTER DOESN'T FOLLOW IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ECKELS.

LITERALLY DO NOT STEP ON THE BUTTERFLY AGAIN PLEASE.

TDLR:

I lose my fucking mind over the possibility of there being a connection of the butterfly effect between "A Sound of Thunder" and tales of the smp.

#a sound of thunder #i am rambling #i wrote this with my essay skills #i swear to god karl i swear to god #i will fight you if there arent major consequences for your characters actions #i am kidding about fighting him #but genuinely #time traveler karl jacobs time hygiene is awful #also like is too oddly specific to not be connected to something #anyway tag rambling over #mcyt #tales from the smp #tales spoilers #tftsmp #literally just #fan theory #probably wrong and im just looking into things #would i tag this as apart of fandom?#does the even have a fandom?#mcyt theories #would this count as dream smp #i guess it would?#i dont fucking know i hate tags #mcyt fandom #mcytblr #i lied about the tag rambling being over by the way #karl jacobs #karl jacobs mcyt #YO HOLY SHIT I POGGED SO HARD WHEN RANBOO MENTIONED THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT #also i for some reason spent an entire day writing this and rewriting it

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rapturerecords · 4 years

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BioShock’s Soundtrack Timeline Quirks and Hiccups

Here’s a question customers have posed while shopping around in this record store: “Is the BioShock soundtrack historically accurate?”

The short answer is no. This is of course including a presumption of a distinct cutoff year. If on the other hand, you would consider the reverse, “Is the BioShock soundtrack historically appropriate?”, well we shall see.

So let’s briefly break down the soundtrack of each game.

In the first Bioshock, the game opens with the year 1960 before taking us down to the underwater city of Rapture. However, Andrew Ryan had cut off contact with the Surface some time before, coupled with the Rapture Civil War officially starting on New Year’s Day in 1959. Granted several songs in BioShock were recorded in that last decade through the 50s including “Danny Boy” (1952), “Papa Loves Mambo” (1954), “It’s Bad for Me” (1955) and so on.

Frank Fontaine’s smuggling operations could account for the fact of the very late 1959 release dates of Bobby Darin’s “Beyond the Sea” and Noël Coward’s “20th Century Blues”, however Fontaine allegedly died in September 1958 according to the newspaper article in the Rapture Standard.

Even with Fontaine’s shenanigans, it doesn’t account for the 1966 version of Patti Page’s “Doggie in the Window” or the 2004 version of Cole Porter’s “You’re the Top” as seen below. Other songs include the assorted instrumental tracks recorded in the 1990s such as “The Ballroom Waltz”, “And All the While I’m Loving You” or even the 1966 song “Academy Award”. Lastly, there is still the mystery of the numerous instrumental guitar and violin songs supposedly performed or inspired by Django Reinhardt used in BioShock.

Creative Director Ken Levine obliquely mentioned the problem of using re-recordings and alternate versions of songs in a 2007 interview with Electronic Gaming Monthly.

...Or I would research on Wikipedia or talk to my dad, and then I would go and listen to little snippets, and I'd ask myself, "Does this feel like it belongs in Rapture?" [Dealing with this era of] licensed music... is a very complicated process, because generally you're dealing with people who are dead and their lawyers are dead. The rights are often very complicated, and so a lot of times we'd want a song and we wouldn't get it. We'd have to find another person who performed it, or another version of the recording or something like that. We had to be fairly flexible.

Overall, BioShock 2 does have the most historically accurate soundtrack of the series, excluding the songs reprised from the first BioShock. The game ostensibly takes place in 1968, or 10 years later from 1958 according to the opening titles.

All things considered, its only soundtrack transgression is using the 1976 version of “Daddy’s Little Girl” as seen below.

Aside from that, its newest songs unique to the game are 1945′s “Dream” and “It’s Only a Paper Moon”. Many songs trend older towards the 1920s and 1930s, reflecting the older portions of Rapture seen in the game with some of the oldest tracks being 1929′s “Daddy Won’t You Please Come Home” and “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out”.

BioShock Infinite and the floating city of Columbia introduces time as central plot point and with it some interesting soundtrack implications. Keeping in mind the setting is 1912, its soundtrack can be broadly divided into three categories

Modern covers of existing period songs were recorded especially for the game such as “After You’ve Gone”, “Will the Circle Be Unbroken”, and the Scott Joplin rags.

Deliberately anachronistic songs are provided as a plot point courtesy of Messrs. Albert Fink and Scott Bradlee rearranging modern songs to sound period such as “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”, “Fortunate Son”, “Tainted Love” and so on.

Lastly there are the period songs meant to evoke the flavor of the 1912 setting. While some are authentically of the era including some very old Edison cylinders, quite a few bleed into the 1920s and 30s including “Ain’t She Sweet” (1927), “Button Up Your Overcoat” (1929), and “St. James Infirmary” (1930). Bessie Smith manages to crossover to both cities in both BioShock Infinite and BioShock 2 with “I’m Wild About That Thing”, “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out”, and “Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl”. In addition, several recordings are presented “live” in the game, but were recorded much later such as the prison work song recorded by Alan Lomax, “Black Gal” in 1959 and “Shake Sugaree” recorded in 1967.

Lastly, Burial at Sea features a coda. Both Patsy Cline songs “She’s Got You” and “Back in Baby’s Arms” were recorded in the 1960s, well after the 1959 date of the events of the game. However in a tragic twist of fate, she would die shortly after recording the songs in a plane crash.

Creative Director Ken Levine again mentioned the problem of finding music “that sounds great to the modern ear” in a 2012 interview with Wired magazine.

But one of my favorite parts of my job is choosing the licensed music. BioShock Infinite is set in an interesting time because it’s right at the beginning of jazz and blues. Music before jazz and blues is not very listenable. I mean popular music -– it’s really kind of awful. You know, the John Philip Sousa marches and stuff. And then you get jazz and blues coming in, with the early stuff like ragtime.

It’s much more challenging to find music from that era that sounds great to a modern ear. BioShock was set in 1959, so we had this huge slate of great music to choose from. But here we don’t have all the chord progressions, and the things we like didn’t exist or had just started to exist. So finding music has been a really interesting challenge...

The most important thing is that you get people to feel things. I’ll give you a hint: There weren’t flying cities in 1912 nor were there underwater cities and genetic technology in 1959 (laughs). So, yeah, you play a little fast and loose. You could argue that this is Columbia and we do things a little differently.

You’ve already heard some of the strange musical things in the game...

Less discerning record customers may have grabbed the wrong discs and are surprised to find the recordings don’t match what they’ve heard.

I have taken the liberty of conducting a synchronization of a number of the more unusual re-recordings which the games use instead of the originals. These are presented in the new stereophonic sound format, be advised it is recommended to have two speakers far apart to get the full effect, or at the very least avoid having two speakers that are too close together.

The original older track is on the listener’s left while the newer one used in the games are on the listener’s right.

Some of the more fantastically-minded among us down here in Rapture might be tempted to simply blame the above on those newfangled Tears. But it is the records that speak for themselves.

youtube

Patti Page’s “The Doggie in the Window”

1952 Mercury Records version (original)

1966 Columbia Records version (used in BioShock)

youtube

Cole Porter’s “You’re the Top”

1934 Victor Records version (original)

2004 version with Vince Giordano and The Nighthawks (used in BioShock)

youtube

Mills Brothers’ “Daddy’s Little Girl”

1950 Decca Records version (original)

1976 Ranwood Records version (used in BioShock 2)

The original versions of the songs are featured occasionally here with the addendum that they were not actually used in the game. They are marked with the RRR for Rapture Records Recommendation.

There are number of other instances where an artist recorded more than one version of a song, typically well before, such as Noël Coward’s 1959 “Party’s Over Now” and his slightly longer 1932 version. But that’s left for another revolution of the record.

#video game music #ludomusicology #bioshock music #bioshock #bioshock 2 #bioshock infinite #burial at sea

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lepoppeta · 3 years

Note

Jatlas for the Ship It Ask pls💖

SHIP IT

1. What made you ship it?

Uhm... that’s an excellent question. My Bioshock experience has been such a sudden whirlwind that a lot of that kind of thing gets lost to memory... but I think it was a combination of the fan-content and Atlas’ accent.

After I found out about the Twist I had probably thought something along the lines of: “Aw, shit. Atlas’ accent was too sexy to give up. I have to make him a separate person now, don’t I?” I don’t quite remember what made me ship him together with Jack -- I think I was browsing through the “Atlas isn’t Frank Fontaine” tag on AO3 and I came across it there.

As you can see I haven’t looked back.

2. What are you favourite things about the ship.

I think concisely it can be summed up with: “angst with a happy ending”.

If you’re wanting a more detailed answer then I’m probably going to have to dive headfirst into headcanon territory. Most, if not all, of my Bioshock fanwork operates within an Alternate Universe. I’m so enamored with my own concept that I’m in the process of making a Spotify playlist that tells the story in song -- and, as you might have guessed, Jack and Atlas get some of my favourite songs. Namely “Elsa’s Song”, “Achilles Come Down”, and “Exile Villify” all in a row.

I love how Jack counterpoints Atlas’ impatience and frustration with his own... I regret to say “meekness” but that’s the best word I can come up with for now. I love how Atlas’ spirit balances out Jack’s heart. I want them to threaten to shoot each other and then cry and kiss and fall into each other’s arms because I haven’t seen you in so long, what have those bastards done to you?

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

I’m actually not too sure, since my version of the ship, while it’s still Jatlas, is... a different Jatlas, if that makes sense. Some people do ship the “Atlas and Fontaine are the same person” with Jack, and I personally don’t like that version of it. More power to ya!

#answered ask #ask game #bioshock #jack ryan #jack wynand #atlas #jatlas

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mediaeval-muse · 4 years

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A refresher

Just in case some people are new (or new-ish), here’s a refresher on me:

My name is Kelly and as of August, I have a PhD in medieval English lit. I specialize in Old English, but I have experience with Old Irish, Old Norse, Middle English, the History of English Language, etc. I also have some experience in “global medieval lit” (as bad a term that is). If you have library access, you can read my article on Cynewulf’s Juliana here. I’m happy to answer questions about how to grad school (in the US).

I’ve taught medieval lit as well as comics, sci fi, fantasy, and HEL at the undergraduate level. I’ve also taught college writing, from basic composition to business/professional writing. So, if you have questions on those topics or want to know “how to college” (in the USA), I can help you!

I also have extensive experience giving talks and writing about pop culture as a public scholar. You can see my work here (scroll down for full articles on Vampyr, Spider-Man: Into the Spider Verse, BioShock, The Evil Within 2, The Dark Phoenix Saga, Love Death + Robots, etc.).

I don’t have an academic job because the job market is trash. But I can offer advice on job market materials.

I don’t post a lot about my studies on tumblr because I’m burned out, but I am always happy to answer questions or talk about aspects of medieval lit. If I don’t know the answer to something, I can usually point you in the right direction.

I also post a lot of book reviews and video game reviews (as I read/play them), and I’m happy to talk about them informally as well.

If you want to know my thoughts on academic books or wonder if an academic book might be useful, I also review those using a slightly different format.

I have a Ko-Fi for my art, but I don’t post art on tumblr.

I’m fairly political on this blog, so if you don’t want to see those things, block the tag “politics.”

I have a hard time seeing when someone tags or mentions me in something, so your best bet for getting me to respond to something is to send me an ask.

I’m committed to making medieval studies (as well as comics studies, pop culture studies, etc.) anti-racist and lgbt+ inclusive, so don’t come to me with your “historical accuracy” arguments. I’m not your white nationalist ally.

#personal

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seeveekat · 4 years

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20 TUMBLR CONFESSIONS

I was tagged by @criminalsenzuri (thank you btw!)

Rules: Answer the questions you are comfortable with and ignore the ones you are not, and tag eight people to do the same!

1. When did you join Tumblr, and when did you become active and started posting (broken down in case if different)?

joined in 2012 and basically started re blogging after like a month of lurking

2. Would you reblog your first ever Tumblr post after responding to these questions?

Naw i dont post cringe anymore

3. How many blogs do you follow?

I just checked I think it’s around i follow 1000+??? which is wild because i olnly see like the same 8 blogs??? many are probs defunct lol

4. How do you find blogs to follow; do you explore Tumblr by topic to find interesting ones, pick from the tags the ones who look interesting, see them on your dash via your current follows - or how?

mainly posts, sometimes reblogs

5. Do you have any other blogs, and if so, why and what are they about?

yeah a jjba one, a star trek one and an art one i dont use anymore where the only thing that is reblogged by people is a shitpost comic about how Mayuri, frieza, and orochimaru were my first anime crush.

6. How often do you change the theme of your blog and how many themes have you gone through overall (as far as you remember)?

Rarely and like two themes i think

7. Do you customize your themes or apply a theme as is?

naw b how ever it looks when i get it is how it stays

8. Do you automatically follow-back, or do you check the blogs of all your new followers, or only if they appear interesting?

I always check but after a while i might follow back

9. How many of the blogs you started following within the first few weeks/months of joining Tumblr you still follow (all, most, some, hardly any)?

a good portion of my Bioshock mutuals are still around????? thats solidarity alright

10. How actively do you use Tumblr’s messaging system?

occasionally to keep in touch with close friends

11. How many drafts do you have currently saved – or do you post/reblog straight away without saving drafts?

drafts??? on my blog??? never :)

12. Do you use Queue when posting?

only on accident

13. Do you use XKit, and if so, what are your favourite features in it?

yes god i love it. one click reply makes reblogging suuuper easy

14. Do you use tracked tags, and if so, what are your favourite tags you check most frequently.

yeah. I check the, Frieza, Mayuri Kurostuchi, Lutece Twins and Klaus von Reinhertz tag daily like the fucking simp I am

15. Do you use tracked blogs, and if so, how many blogs you track?

only for zine blogs :) Gotta stay updated on apps some how

16. Do you keep your Tumblr secret from people you know in real life?

yup, though i have had people follow my blog before knowing me before lmao.

17. A) Have you ever blocked anyone? B) Do you have anyone blocked currently, and if so, how many?

yeah :/ like 4 for “reasons” and a couple of tag spammers

18. Are you (to the best of your knowledge) being blocked by anyone, and if so, how many, and do you know why?

probably. thats just how it be baybee

19. Do you use blacklist, and if so, what do you blacklist against?

nah B people i follow barely tag and never reblog anything that may trigger me

20. Have you ever made a RL friend through Tumblr, someone who you have also met in real life?

Naw. Discord? Yes. Tumblr? No.

I tag: any of my mutuals lol. Do this is you want! Im curious to see your awnsers!

#just screaming into the void

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baconsoupforthesoul · 5 years

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The Ink Demonth- Day 2- Growth

Forced Growth

A/N: Have I ever mentioned that I love the BATIM Bioshock au? Cause I do, a whole heck of a lot. Alpha Henry belongs to @inkspottie. I don’t know everything that’s planned for this au so I hope this one-shot is alright. I had way too much fun writing it. Anyway, I hope you enjoy~

Norman stared at the operating table as his fellow scientists bustled around him. He felt disconnected, as if he was observing from the outside as he filled a new syringe with another dose of their newly-patented age accelerating drug. How did he end up working in a place like this? When did his haven, the only place that would offer him legitimate scientific work, become his own living hell? Everyday he felt his own humanity slowly drain away as he committed atrocity after atrocity for Mr. Joey Drew. It was days like this that Norman was almost glad that Henry wasn’t alive to see the things he had done. He would be too ashamed to look his old friend in the eye. However, while Henry might be dead, murdered at the hands of his ‘best friend’, his gaze still haunted Norman, in the form of a child, strapped down on the table as his colleagues pumped him full of drugs and chemicals.

Norman’s eyes drifted to the boy in question, seeing him wince as another needle pierced his skin. Despite sporting blue eyes instead of the original Henry’s green, the clone’s gaze was still unsettlingly similar to Henry’s. His stare seemed to go right through him, leaving Norman feeling hollow and exposed. Mr. Drew had named the kid Alpha, which only caused Norman’s dread to grow, knowing that he would most definitely not be the last clone to be made from Norman’s long dead friend.

And if being haunted by the visage of Henry wasn’t bad enough, there was what Mr. Drew had ordered him to do with the boy. The head of Rapture Studios was furious when his first attempt to clone Henry had emerged from the INK as a child. However, he decided to use this ‘failure’ to test their new method of age acceleration, as well as other new and potentially dangerous drugs. Mr. Drew took one look at this boy, this child, and saw only a lab rat, something to be used for his own gain. It made Norman sick to his stomach, especially as he watched poor Alpha struggle against the straps securing him to the table and cry out from the tremendous pain of having one’s body forced to grow faster then it was ever intended. As Norman approached the operating table, syringe in hand, Alpha’s gaze returned to him, eyes wide and glistening with tears. The boy let out a soft whimper, no doubt anticipating more pain to come, and Norman’s hand tightened around the syringe.

“Enough.” Norman’s voice was strained as he dropped the syringe on a side table. “That’s… enough for today.”

“What are you talking about Norman?” One of the other scientists asked. “Mr. Drew gave us specific instructions to…”

“I know what Mr. Drew said.” Norman seethed. “But I say we’re done.”

“But we’ve only managed to age him up to about an eight year old. What are we gonna tell Drew if we fall behind schedule?” Another scientists piped up.

“Don’t you worry about it. Just… go take a lunch break or something.” Norman sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “If Mr. Drew has any questions just send em my way, got it?”

The other scientists all agreed, especially after the mention of lunch, and quickly filed out of the room. None of them even spared a glance at poor Alpha, not even bothering to remove the straps that confined him. Norman let out another exhausted sigh. “Good to know I work with such compassionate folks.” He grumbled quietly before turning back to Alpha. “Now, let’s get these here straps off you, alright?”

The boy stayed quiet as Norman unbuckled and released the straps that held his wrists, chest, legs and ankles. Alpha slowly sat up and rubbed at his wrists. His shoulders were still tensed and a few stray tears fell down his checks. “Alpha? Are you still hurting?” Norman asked and the kid nodded. Norman had hardly ever heard the boy utter a word since he first emerged from the INK, but he knew the boy was a keen listener and understood what was going on around him.

“Okay, sit tight, I might have something that’ll help.” Norman walked over to a different table and filled up another syringe with a painkiller to help ease the child’s discomfort. As he approached Alpha with the syringe though, the boy flinched, scooting away from Norman his eyes wide with fear.

“No nonono, hey, easy there Alpha.” Norman stopped in his tracks and held up his hands as he tried to soothe the boy. “This here’s a different drug. It’s medicine, it’ll make you feel better.” Alpha still seemed unsure, eyeing the syringe nervously. “You don’t have to take it if you don’t want it.” Alpha looked up at Norman, his mouth wide with shock. The poor kid had probably never been given a choice before in his life, everything decided for him by either Drew or the other scientists.

After a moment’s hesitation, Alpha nodded and held out his arm. Norman smiled as he gently took Alpha’s arm, swapping the injection site with an alcohol swab. "This'll only take a second Alpha. I promise, it'll help you feel better." Alpha closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the syringe pierced his skin, his face pinched in discomfort as he felt the liquid enter his arm.

"There. All done." Norman removed the needle and swiftly placed a piece of gauze over the injection spot and secured it with medical tape. “Heh, it’s just too bad that I don’t have a sucker to give you.” Norman chuckled, remembering his own kids getting lollipops from the doctor when they got their shots. Alpha just gave him a confused look. That’s right, this poor kid had probably never even had proper candy before. The only things Alpha would remember from his tragically brief childhood would be labs, injections and pain. Unless… Norman rubbed his chin as an idea started forming in his mind.

“Hey Alpha,” The boy’s head perked up as Norman addressed him. “I got somethin’ I wanna show you. It ain’t too far from here. Did you wanna come with me?” Norman asked, determined to give this child as much choice in his life as he could. Alpha still looked a little nervous but gave a small nod before letting himself down off the operating table. “Alright then, stay close to me.” Alpha took Norman’s outstretched hand as the scientist led him out of the room. The two of them navigated the hallways swiftly but quietly, Norman occasionally pulling Alpha behind a corner to avoid the other scientists and researchers. While he wasn’t violating any rules per say, Norman was pretty sure that Drew would not approve of what he was doing. He didn't like to be bothered by the likes of these researchers anyway. They’d only ask questions that Norman didn't have the time or the patience to answer. Alpha remained silent the whole trip, his eyes darting back and forth nervously as he clutched Norman’s hand tight. The pair of them finally made it to an elevator which Norman ushered Alpha into before hitting the button for the top floor. The scientists gently pushed Alpha behind him to hide him from view as the elevator ascended but thankfully it didn't make any stops until they reached their destination.

As the elevator doors slide open, Norman was relieved to see that the floor was completely deserted. It was a rare sight, as the top floor of the laboratory was a popular spot for people on break. Smooth jazz emanated from a nearby radio as Norman stepped out of the elevator. “This here’s the viewing deck Alpha.” Norman explained, gesturing to the large windows in front of them. It took up most of the room, allowing them to look out into the sea and across the entirety of Rapture Studios. “Mr. Drew had this built to be a sort-of place of inspiration I guess. Let folks look out at the entire city as they dreamed up new ideas and inventions or something like that. Either way it’s a dang beautiful spot.” Norman turned around to see Alpha stare wide-eyed all around him. “Come on Alpha,” Norman took the boy’s hand and lead him right next to the window. “Why not get a closer look?”

Alpha looked out at the studio, his hands pressed to the cold glass. It didn't even look like a studio anymore, more like a city, with neon lights from various shops and business lighting up the dark ocean floor. Glass tunnels stretched from building to building and bathysphere's shuttled the studio's inhabitants from place to place. A dark shape suddenly appeared out of Alpha’s peripheral vision, causing Alpha to let out a yelp as he backed up from the window.

“No need to be scared Alpha.” Norman assured him. “Look, it’s just a squid. He can’t get to us in here anyway.” Alpha cautiously approached the glass again and stared in wonder as a giant squid slowly drifted by, it’s tentacles trailing lazily behind it. Alpha’s face broke out into a rare genuine smile as he watched schools of fish swim by and luminescent jellyfish float up through the ocean depths. Starfish clung to the window and seaweed and aquatic plants seemed to grow all around, hugging the windows and sides of buildings. Alpha gasped as he saw a whale gracefully swim over one of the glass tunnels before flicking its tail to ascend higher towards the top of the studio’s buildings. Alpha’s face lit up with wonder as the massive creature went right overhead as it moved higher towards the distant surface. The boy had never seen anything like this before, spending most of his days cooped up in a lab. He pressed his face right up against the glass, squishing his nose and no doubt leaving hand prints all over the clean glass but Alpha wanted to take in everything that was out there in this strange yet beautiful place.

Norman looked down at the child and smiled as he saw his genuine happiness. “What do you think Alpha? Real pretty out there, isn’t it?” Alpha nodded his head frantically, before turning to Norman with the biggest smile he had ever seen on the kid’s face.

“Thank you.” Alpha finally spoke, in a soft voice, barely louder than a whisper. Norman suddenly felt like his heart was caught in his throat as memories flooded over him. Going out for drinks with Henry, having the poor man rant about Drew for hours on end, showing the man his latest invention, Henry inviting him to the premiere of his latest cartoon shorts, letting the man sleep in his office as he often worked himself to the bone, confiding in Henry all his ideas, and his worries for the future of Rapture Studios, introducing his friend to his wife and kids…

Norman took a deep breath as he tried to suppress the memories of his old friend, the man whose face this child shared. “Don’t you mention it, Henry.” Norman’s voice quivered with repressed emotion but his words were genuine. If he could bring any joy or comfort into this boy’s life, it was the least he could do for all that was left of his dead friend. Even if he hadn’t been Henry’s clone, Norman would do everything in his power to make sure this kid could experience life beyond being just a mere test subject. It suddenly occurred to Norman that he had slipped up and called the child Henry rather then Alpha. His gazed down at the boy but he didn't seem to notice that he had called him by a different name, still too enraptured by the view. Norman smiled and placed a hand on the kid’s shoulder. Alpha glanced up at him briefly, offering him another smile before turning back to the sight before them. The two of them stood there in peaceful silence, before it was rudely interrupted.

“Now where the hell did that sorry excuse for a-” None other then Joey Drew himself stepped out of the elevator, grumbling to himself before he spotted Norman and Alpha by the window. “What the hell are you doing all the way up here, Polk? You’re supposed to be working, not lollygagging and enjoying the sights!” Drew’s gaze drifted downwards and he finally spotted young Alpha, who was now clinging to Norman’s leg and shaking like a leaf. “Why. The Hell. Is he all the way up here!” Drew yelled, gesturing angrily at Alpha who hid his face in Norman’s leg, whimpering quietly.

“Would you lower your voice? He’s just a child!” Norman hissed angrily, holding a protective hand in front of Alpha.

“That doesn’t answer my question.” Drew seethed, glaring at Norman.

“I was just taking him to have a look around the place. That won’t interfere with all the goshdarn experiments you want to put him through.” Norman glared right back at his boss, his temper slowly rising.“He needs to get out sometimes. How are you expecting him to grow up properly if he stays in a lab all day? He can’t stay cooped up forever!”

“Why can’t he?” Drew asked. “I told you before this one is a failure. His only use to us now is as a lab rat. While he may be a botched attempt at cloning, he’s the perfect tool to further our research here.”

“He’s a human being, Mr. Drew!” Norman shot back, his eyes ablaze with fury.

“WELL I DON’T GIVE A DAMN!” Drew yelled, causing Alpha to yelp and squeeze tightly at Norman’s leg. “I told you when you came to Rapture, Norman, that Rapture wasn’t held down by petty morality. You can’t say you weren’t warned.” Drew sighed as he straightened his jacket before glaring down at the crying child clinging to Norman. “Now enough of this. Alpha, would you kindly return to the lab? I believe Mr. Polk has some experiments he hasn’t quite finished.” Alpha stiffened at the words, before his whole body relaxed. He let go of Norman’s leg and slowly walked towards the elevator as if in a daze.

“No, Alpha wait-” Norman reached out to the boy but Drew stepped in his way.

“Uh, uh, uh.” Drew wagged a condescending finger at him as Alpha stepped into the elevator. “We’re not done talking. You can return to your work in just a moment.”

“Mr. Drew, you know as well as I do how screwed up this whole thing is.” Norman seethed. “I don’t give a damn what you told me when I came here. This is wrong, and you can’t expect me to-”

“Do you remember what your life was like before Rapture?" Drew suddenly cut him off, walking around Norman like a predator circling its prey. “I believe you had trouble finding work, and you were stuck fixing projectors. I know it was so hard supporting your family with such meager funds, was it not?”

“Just what are you hinting at, Mr. Drew.” Norman growled, keeping an eye on his boss as he stepped idly past him.

“I’m just pointing out that you owe Rapture quite a lot. It would be a shame if you were to lose what you gained here? How is your family by the way? Happy and healthy I assume?”

Norman’s blood ran cold. Drew didn't have to say anything out right. His sugar-coated tone could not mask the underlying threat to his words. Norman was already in too deep and there was no going back now. Not if he wanted to keep his family safe.

“I-I understand what you mean, Mr. Drew.” Norman’s shoulder’s fell, as Drew’s smile grew, sharp and pointed.

“Good, good. I hate to be misunderstood. And you are a valuable asset here at Rapture, we would hate to lose you.” Joey crooned. “Now, I believe you have some work you should be getting back to, hmmm?”

“Yes Mr. Drew.” Norman replied, moving past his boss to the elevator. Drew let out a quiet chuckle as he turned to look out at his studio. Norman stepped into the elevator, and as the doors closed he rubbed a tired hand over his face.

“Oh Henry. Please forgive me.” Norman sighed, not even sure if he was talking about his dead friend or the poor boy waiting downstairs.

#the ink demonth #bendy and the ink machine #batim #henry stein #norman polk #joey drew #bioshock au #spacy writes #inkspottie #injection //

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actiivevisiion · 4 years

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Here We Go!

Oh My Gosh! I cannot believe I am doing this! I know this might come at an awkward time - but, this is my first blog post on the Tumblr Universe! Before I begin I just want to say whether I see you when I stream on Twitch, Twitter, Instagram, etc. thank you for all supporting me time and time again! You are truly amazing human beings to share this world with and without you, I could not be happier! Let me start here! For the people who are new or just recently coming across my name, my name is Jessica! A lot of people know me by my username of ActiiveVisiion on Twitch. I am a variety broadcaster that currently streams a variety of games, like the Bioshock and Assassin’s Creed series to Destiny 2 and Call of Duty series. I am a transgender woman and have been transitioning for about three years (33 months). I currently live in Orlando, FL and have the best job in the world (to me at least). I have a family of my Mom and two amazing brothers residing in Florida as well. I have a wonderful cat, Aspen, which is about a year old. We do not unfortunately know what bread she is, but we know she has Dilute Calico fur. I will have funny pictures to show you later as she is really adorable. Now into the blog post…. I did want to really tell you something. Tonight was a surreal and memorable moment for me. I have always wanted to start a blog (as I just did) about what my thoughts are, what is happening in my life on a more personal level, and be able to interact in a different way instead of just social media and Twitter. I have always been encouraged to be able to help as many people as I can, whether it is in this town, country, or even around the world. I am so fortunate to be in your lives and being able to do this through Twitch. I am grateful for all friendships I currently have or have had in the past (yes, I forgive and start anew). (The [!!!] Will indicate the start and stop of a Trigger Warning) When my blog was all set up, I remembered I had an old Tumblr account that I had before I was in transition. I logged in and I was speechless. This was the first time since I felt it was time to leave Tumblr in 2015. I found Twitch to be my find myself to express how I truly felt. I had flashback moments as a young adult where it was difficult for myself to live as a male. For instance, it gave me a flashback of where I can only express myself through a screen behind closed doors. [!!!] This eventually gave me isolation and mental breakdowns where I wanted to attempt suicide, and I almost did. The night that I had my first suicide attempt was rough. I felt that I could not be true and that I was living a false life. I tried to suffocate myself through a couple of pillows at night when I laid down to sleep. All of a sudden I was gasping for air trying to catch my breath. I realized that I had to live for a reason…I did not know then that I was here for a reason, and eventually I know that I am after my first “real” suicide attempt (we will go into details about that another day). [!!!] Other instances came up that I was reminded of as well! As I took showers and baths as a kid and adolescent, I used to cover these parts with the soap. Also, I remember putting soap clumps on my chest thinking that they were breasts and covering my private parts with soap. I guess what I can tell is that I have come a long way. Just seeing this blog made me feel even more accomplished that I was able to become not the man I was, but the woman who I was meant to be. I just wanted to talk and tell you all some of the nostalgia that I felt. I really feel relieved, but terrified for the same reason. I just wanted to tell you what has been on my mind for a very long time. I was laying in bed last night wishing that things went back the way they were. The friendships and relationships that I had before my suicide attempt I truely miss. I have always felt out of the loop of everything since my return last March. I always felt that I could stream for a very long time. But, as the days go on, my feelings for Twitch have deepy diminished. Many people have approached me to tell me that I look so much happier in real life and on stream. In all honesty, I am not really as of recently. I felt the need of rebuilding those relationships with everyone, but I have had people look at me less and less as time fades. I have faced a lot of turmoil in my life, whether it is on stream or in the real world, but I feel that most of these people have thrown me away like a freshly bloomed pink rose. Due to this coronavirus, we have had to separate from each other, making me feel more isolated from each other. For myself, I have not had social interaction in person except towards my roommate for a few minutes a day. I have been having interactions with Aspen, though. But, this pandemic has been on a path of destruction since it started and it might not go away anytime soon. This is where I would lean on my friends, being able to survive on caring for each other and showing our love. I feel nothing and just numb. I feel like I cannot do this without your help. We need to do something together now so other people do not feel like this. As my time drifts away from Twitch, I come closer to the reality of the past….I do have a couple of people to talk to, and that is a blessing. But, besides these selected few, no one really checks up on me and it hurts. Friendships are two way streets. I feel like I am worthless to the point of why am I even on Twitch. I have never been able to make any dream of mine a reality, whether it is on Twitch or just in life. It is just killing me from the inside out and I just want help from all of you. This is why I have not been able to stream. I feel no compassion, support, love, and have very limited friendships on this platform. People also would say, “Jessica, why do you not take another break?” I will answer that question right here. It is because it is something I am passionate about. I feel like when I am on camera, I can make a difference in someone else’s life. I feel that I can do so much good but I cannot do it without feeling your love and friendships. I have done a lot of soul searching just to figure out this one part of my journey. This is what came out of it. I am alone in this world, to fight my own battles and wars. The world is a beautiful place to share it with, and I feel like I do not have barely any friendships to share it with. This is why I cannot stream as much as I do, and I am deeply sorry. All I want is forgiveness and being able to move forward with our friendships. I want to start thinking positive again and being happy around all of you. Green Day says in its first verse in their song Boulevard of Broken Dreams, “I walk a lonely road, the one that I have ever known. Don’t know where it goes, but it’s only me, and I walk alone.” Help me feel happy again. I think we can do it. Pre-Transition Tumblr: journeyfromwithin.tumblr.com

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listoriented · 5 years

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“B”een There

done that.

So here ends my time playing games that start with the letter B. Thanks for reading! It's been three years plus change. Back in early 2016 when I pondered how the world might look when I finished another letter, I never imagined, even from that unsteady ground, just quite how different things would become (in terms of global political-psychological landscape) - though really all the top-down drama happened that year, and everything since then has just felt like the normalisation and ratification of it, this splintered-systemic madness, the post-parody, post-fake fake-real. Or whatever you want to call it.

Nor did I imagine that it would take me so long. But, life. I went overseas, moved houses, moved cities, went through a breakup, started a PhD, rode a bike, read some books, faffed around. I anxiously played hundreds of hours of Rocket League; I ticked off every achievement in Mini Metro; I spent too long trying to remember what I was doing in Stardew Valley. I reviewed some games over at Gamecloud, which wrapped up earlier this year. Time accumulated in a predictable but upsetting way.

Beloved demigod of gaming blogs RPS went through a full staff turnover, pretty much. It's weird, man. VR happened but remains a bit beyond my periphery, even if it gets brought up from time to time in the groupchat. Battle Royale games weren't a thing a few years ago, then they became everything, now they are still a big deal, the biggest deal, or maybe a large-medium deal, or just a large part of the background - I honestly don’t know how to quantify this. Steam's ubiquity has slipped markedly, through a mixture of managed negligence and increasingly aggressive competition. The inherent limitations of being bound to one commercial distribution system on one hardware platform have always been at the back of my mind, but I do increasingly wonder if my time would be better spent on a project that dug through other veins. The answer is, for now, that sometimes you've gotten keep doing the thing you said you were gonna do, if no other reason than because.

Tumblr, our home since 2016, has gone through its own shifts and controversies in this time too. They no longer seem to allow unencoded links (so no-one ever knows what they’re clicking on), it became less friendly to adult content, and as of today apparently Tumblr has been sold on to wordpress. I don’t really know the implications of this last thing.

Some Maths

I played fifty one games beginning with B. Of the forty-eight that I'd deem to have some notional metric of completability, twenty-four of those I (often in the most flexible sense possible), "completed". 50%: Not as bad as I'd expected, TBH, especially as that includes a couple of painful six/seven game streaks where I didn't finish anything.

Ceremonious Award Giving for Games Starting with ‘B’

It is always hard to pick favourites, and from any given vantage point they tend to change. Nevertheless, an act of self-canonisation is in order, as is tradition. Given the nature of this project, I do put a lot of value in titles that surprise me in one way or another. Batman: Arkham Asylum and Bulletstorm were equal Best Goofy Action surprises (it pays having low expectations, sometimes), with an honourable mention to Brigador. The Banner Saga was the most surprisingly thought provoking. Davey Wreden’s autoficitive The Beginners Guide gets the Anodyne Prize for Most Enjoyably Difficult To Put In A Box.

Botanicula was probably my Favourite (total) Revisit, or the best non-surprise.

B was a letter characterised by a few high-budget action series (of which my favourite part was Bioshock 2 (Minerva's Den)), held up by substrate of modest indie things of varying impact. My attention span was all over the place, too. We had a lot of short forays with little to say, but there was there were also more than a few wordier attempts at thought. I'm bad at judging what makes "good" writing, particularly of my own, which I oscillate between accepting and loathing, but I can tell you which games/posts took the cake for length and effort: Baldur's Gate for longest playtime; Burnout: Paradise for highest word-count (and longest gestation period); Battleblock Theater for the most time-consuming method of putting a post together; The Beginners Guide for the most times played through a game in order to try and parse it; Braid for the most external reading and referencing.

I think the most absurdly Expensive-at-purchase game here was Battlefield: Bad Company 2, which also gets the newly thought of I Can’t Believe It Still Has Functioning Online Multiplayer prize. I'm handing the Most Disappointing badge to Broken Age, despite (or because of) already having played it a bunch before attempting it for the list, though Before the Echo (fka Sequence) takes the Aquanox Award for game I inexplicably sunk the most time on trying to finish despite not really enjoying. I hold the Most Contempt for Breach & Clear. Black Mirror had the Worst Voice Acting, and it was also the Oldest Game here (2003), at least in terms of no-significant-alterations though depending on how you want to factor in remasters and remakes, you might alternatively give that prize to Broken Sword (1996) or Bionic Commando Rearmed (1988). Blueberry Garden was Purchased Most Long Ago, in 2009, though the Aquaria Trophy for Longest Unplayed Incumbent goes to Bob Came in Pieces, which I'd bought in 2010 then never installed (it's pretty good, it turns out!). However, the special Emotional Closure Award goes to Baldur's Gate, with which I already had nearly two decades of fond, scattered memories, before finally finishing for the first time during this project.

More Maths

When I started this letter I had 438 games in my steam library. Right now I have 1049 games, which is almost exactly three times the amount I had when I started this blog in October 2015 (~350). I've played 70 games total. A further 57 entered the list behind the marker, into the exempt scorched land of the already visited alphabet, which means we're at 127/1049 = 12.11% of the way through the list, which is a +7% increase on where we were at three years ago. That's not nothing. But at 2.5% per year, it's not a lot. Globally, the average human lifespan is 68 years.

Terrifying Implications For the Future

The maths says that the current terms aren't working, that I'm drowning in a heady mixture of my own relentless consumerism, hesitation, and procrastination from this task which is itself an avenue of procrastination - that at this rate I will probably die (or certainly give up) before even getting to the halfway point, and that we can't continue like this in good faith.

So I'm going to get a bit reckless, even change the rules slightly, in order to try and breathe new life into this thing. All games must still be played for at least an hour - yes, that one stands. But. BUT. I'm setting a hard time limit of one week, from one game to the next, post to post. For now at least. No more lofty words about striving to "finish" games as a rule rather than exception. It's quantity over quality (pretending for a second that quality was ever a concern) from here on out, business over pleasure, irreverence over lengthy considerations, scrapbooking over essays.

On the bright side, this means I can have a weekly posting schedule. Let's say Tuesdays? Tuesdays seem like a good day for posting.

A couple of other things:

List Oriented now has a ko-fi tip jar, just in case you, dear reader, enjoy this blog - or did before it went completely silent for the first half of this year - and feel like helping to pay for my caffeine addiction and/or encouraging me to keep going with this task.

Another thing I want to do is compile a list of links to good places for games-writing and other things that I like, because a) I feel like such a page would be helpful for me to keep a record, even if for nobody else; b) my conception of the internet is permanently stuck in 2008 but also; c) it's hard to remember where to look for good things on the internet, sometimes, these days, given our habitual over-reliance on various platforms to direct us to CONTENT. But one thing I want to include is a list of other places where people are doing this kind of list-oriented project thing. I remember a bunch of them sprung up a couple of years back when we gained a brief and relative flash of notoriety, though I’m not sure how many stuck at it. If you yourself are doing one, or you’re aware of any others who are, Let Me Know!

Anyway, looking ahead. C. An obtuse but interesting letter. Not so many of the big-hitters. A buuuuunch of city builders and management games, a few influential and/or janky platformers, more than a handful of puzzlers, some famed RTS series, a heap of question marks, a coupla interesting art things and a few uh *squints* Shooting Game. Happily for me, a lot of titles that I've not yet gotten round to giving a go, so this will be all...fresh.

I have a vague memory from when I got through A, of looking ahead to C and thinking at least it was a much more compact section than B, at the time, some light on the other side of what I'd already known would be a slog. But here we are three years later, and now there's fifty seven such games beginning with C, so there goes that thought. You'd think, having identified the consumerist-excess problem that catalysed this stupid thing, I would have stopped buying game bundles at some point, made this ridiculous project a bit easier for myself, a little more plausible for everyone else.

But, we must continue. It's a new day. A new letter. A new schedule.

The way is long and it is littered with videogames.

above: “celebrating” my “achievements” with a ‘b’eer

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jyfnhmlmwriter · 6 years

Text

Just a Note (Fully Updated as of 2/19/19)

Hello everyone! If you couldn’t tell from my name, I am a writer that writes for people of the MLM orientation. Meaning if you are a “man loving men,” these are for you! I also write for nonbinary/gender neutral people as well!

So, in case you are new to fanfiction and don’t know the lingo just yet, here’s a list of term’s you’ll likely 👀…

______________

(Y/N) - Your Name

(H/C) - Hair Color

(H/L) - Hair Length

(E/C) - Eye Color

(F/C) - Favorite Color

_______________

There is the possibility for more than that, but that’s the basics and I’ll inform you at the beginning of the chapter if that’s the case.

Next, the stuff I can do! I like a bunch of different things, so I’ll list off the ones I am able to do at the moment and add on either when I discover something new I like or someone reminds me of something. Here it is!

_______________

~Hetalia

~Supernatural

~ Fullmetal Alchemist (not done with this, but I know enough)

~ One Punch Man

~ Free!

~ My Hero Academia (not caught up all the way, but enough to know the main characters, yes I am open to doing some of the teachers)

~Avengers

~Guardians of the Galaxy (but not Groot or Rocket please)

~Spider-Man

~Deadpool

~The Arcana

~Mystic Messenger

~Bungo Stray Dogs

~Fairy Tail? (I've only watched part of season 1, but I'm willing to write for it)

~Death Parade

~Yuri!!! on Ice

~Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator (Only Craig for right now until I do the others’ routes, and platonic Amanda x Dad)

~2064: Read Only Memories (Only TOMCAT and Lexi for the time being, I’m not finished with the game yet)

~ Detroit: Become Human

~Castlevania: A Netflix Series

~Stardew Valley

~Bioshock Infinite

~Monster Prom (not for the most recent DLC, I haven't played it yet)

~Attack on Titan (I'm not caught up with the manga and part of season 3 so please have mercy on me lolol)

~Overwatch (I don't know all of the lore, but I'll do my best)

~The Legend of Zelda (I see you, Sidon lovers. You can't fool me)

~Dramatical Murder (I won't be writing for the twins because their route makes my skin crawl and Aoba is my son who deserves better)

·~· To be continued ·~·

How to Request

1. State which character you want

2. State whether you want the reader to be trans or cis male

3. Give me a plot. You can be really specific or kinda vague, either works. If you don’t give me a plot, I’ll ask if you have an 💡. If not, I’ll make one up myself, so please don’t complain if it isn’t what you had in mind.

FAQ - come here with any questions, comment if your question isn’t answered

Will you write for female readers?

I will only do male/FTM trans readers and male characters. There is an obnoxious absence of male reader stories and I want to cater to those trying to find them. Trans reader stories are even rarer, so I want to write for them as well. That being said, I won’t write for MTF trans people because I don’t know their experiences and I’d rather not write any than write them and offend people.

What about female characters?

If they are requested, sure! However, male characters are a higher priority since I, as someone who is sexually attracted to males, find it easier to write males in romantic situations over females in romantic situations. It also makes me slightly dysphoric, so it’s kinda uncomfortable for me to write females. I probably will write them, but it will take longer than male readers.

Will you write for OC’s?

I don’t mind if you have one, but I will not write them. First of all, I like deeply analyzing characters to get a grasp of their personality and how they talk and act, and I can’t do that with OCs. Along with that, I want these one-shots to be open for everyone and not have to have people skip past the fic with your OC to get to other reader inserts.

Can you use my name as the reader?

No. I won’t personalize stories to one requester. As stated above, I want to keep these one shots open to anyone who wants to read them, and I can’t do that with personalized stories.

Will you write angst?

No angst. It makes me 😔 and I’m just a sucker for cute stuff and would rather write that than 😔 stuff.

What about smut/softcore smut?

I’m more open to doing softcore stuff than full blown smut, but I might if I really feel like it.

Can it be platonic/family stuff/etc?

Yes. I am fully welcoming to writing characters as father/mother figures, parents, uncles or aunts, just friends, anything. But please specify if this is what you want. As stated above, I will only do what you tell me, so if you want something like this, please ask! I’ll also do stuff like changing the ages, such as the character and reader as friends at a young age or maybe a character’s 👶. That being said, if you want a specific age, I’ll 👀 what I can do!

Yeah, so that’s the basic gist of this thing so I hope you guys request and I can’t wait to write for you!

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