#We'll still see them in gen 4!

[natolesims]

It was like any other summer day for Ray. Fishing, grilling some fresh catches... but today it's certainly a special afternoon.

[matchalovertrait]

Look who came for a visit and formally met the family! Alex got everyone's approval, even Noemí's (who seemed a little apprehensive at first. She thought, "Why wear black when there are so many bright, beautiful colors in this world?"). Alex came out of their shell bit by bit, especially because of the Alegrías' open arms <3

[ambersky0319]

Wow it's been ages since I like, actually talked art with someone? Like art program stuff???

Anyways

910 characters listed so far!

Still have some fandoms left to list tho and those will probably add quite a few to the list

Obviously now this project will take far longer than a year, however, I'm actually pretty okay with that since I don't plan on making things super polished

If anything the most time-consuming parts are the actual character listing and then the ref collecting

And maybe figuring out how I'm gonna go about drawing all of them. Because I don't wanna make it completely random but I also don't wanna focus solely on a single fandom at a time - I'd get too bored and some fandoms have well over a hundred characters

I was thinking maybe alphabetical regardless of fandom? That would be fairly random in terms of character, species, and fandom but have enough structure that I'm not too worn out or frazzled about where to start

[reginalusus]

Retro tutorial?

Disclaimer: Tumblr, for some reason, likes to dullen the colour of the screenshots, just know that they're actually a bit more saturated and brighter than how they appear here.

So, after posting my recent retro drawings on Reddit, and getting some comments that genuinely made me cry (/pos), I noticed I also got quite a few comments asking me how I actually do these drawings.

Er, I'm not the best teacher, really, and honestly, there's probably an easier, faster way to do it. But, this is my way of doing it, lmao. I work on a Gen 2 iPad Pro with a Gen 1 Apple Pencil, just in case you're wondering.

Firstly, here are the four apps I use for this kind of drawing:

From left to right: Sketchbook Pro, Pixlr, Photoleap and CapCut. Sketchbook Pro is what I use to draw everything. You could honestly use any drawing app though. We will talk about the other three when we get to them.

Step 1: draw whatever it is you want to draw.

I'm going to use the first drawing I did in this style to help me explain: my simpy Spamton drawing! Firstly, basically draw whatever your little heart wants. Get your sketch layer down. Here's what my sketch layer looked like:

Looks bad, no? Lol, it always starts that way. Just get your drawing down first. I rely heavy on references for clothing. I found this particular pose on Pinterest. Pinterest is great for finding references.

Notice that I have some spaces filled in with the word 'black'. This is literally just to remind me that the particular space will just be filled with a solid black.

This particular pose and setting is tricky, I'm just using it as an example and because I still have the original files for it. I recommend maybe starting with a portrait or a face first.

Step 2: fill in and clean your lines. This is important, especially for the anime look.

When I do linework, I tend to make the lines thicker wherever they meet one another. For this style, it doesn't really work, and I had to train myself to stop doing that.

As you can see, I made some changes along the way, such as making Spamton's expression softer and making him grin instead of smirking. How do I know when to make something solid black? This is mostly for clothes. If you are following a reference, and you notice that some of the shadows are darker than others on the reference, make those darkest shadows your solid-blacks.

So, here we have the finished lines! Remember: no making the lines thicker where they meet! Keep the lines thin all around. If you're wondering what brush I use in Sketchbook for the finished lines, it's this one:

This is the ONLY brush I use for the retro drawings, besides a pencil for the sketch layer. It provides a nice, solid, thin line.

Step 3: Filling Flat Colours.

The easiest step IMO. Choose your colours, fill those babies in.

Unfortunately, I think I deleted my flats layer (I have no idea why, but I cannot find it, lmao), so I don't have an image to show for this step. But, it's self-explanatory. Just colour it in with your flats.

You can choose saturated colours if you wish, but we'll be editing that sort of stuff later.

Step 4: Shading.

Ooh, the tricky stuff. But this is what will make or break the look of the drawing. Besides lines, shading is important as fuck for this style. I recommend pulling up some screenshots from actual 80s/90s anime. For this Spamton drawing, here's some of the ones I used as a reference:

Remember to make your shading on separate layers! You may want to change their tone and opacity later, as I did.

The shading in old anime is usually done with one colour, which is cooler-toned than the flat it is based off. Remember to keep the shading as simple as you can if you want to actually make it look like a screenshot from an anime or cartoon.

For shadows, I used the multiply tool or the overlay tool. You can mess around with these to see which one suits your drawing best. It mostly depends on the colour.

For 'lights', I used either the soft glow tool or the overlay tool. However, I don't recommend spending too much time 'lighting' your colours. Retro anime tends to focus more on shadows rather than lighting (obviously there are exceptions).

As you can see, the only 'lighting' I used on Spamton was a small section of his hair, and a shine on his suit. The rest is either shadows or flats:

For clothing, follow a reference or follow where your light is coming from. For this, I followed the reference.

Step 5 (Optional): Adding Gradients.

You don't need to do this, but to help with the 'mood' of the drawing, I added a gradient over the top of the layer. I chose a dark purple/blue to give that city vibe, then I used the darken tool and turned the opacity down. So, it looks like this:

The difference isn't much, but it will add a lot to the vibe!

Step 6 (Optional): Backgrounds. *Shudders.*

I'll be real, I can't do backgrounds for shit. Well, I can sort of do them, but I definitely don't enjoy it. If you can do your own backgrounds, this will probably come easier. I have a sneaky, maybe cheaty method, however, to make it look good.

Firstly, make sure any 'windows' or areas in your drawing that you want to add a background to are empty. The windows in Spamton's car here are transparent. You'll want to put your background layer at the very bottom, behind everything else.

Firstly, I choose a solid colour and fill the entire layer. I chose a navy/purple for this one, since it's always dark in Cyber City.

Then, and here's the cheat part, I find a stock image of a city skyline. I deliberately picked one that had sort of 'basic' buildings. Put this on top of your solid colour and use the hard light tool.

The hard light tool tends to focus on the lights and basic outline of the image. I did do some smudging and added some lights to give it that 'retro' feel. The lower quality it looks, the better. So then it looks like this:

But the car needs windows! Easy. I chose a blue colour with the soft glow tool and added them like so (on top of all the background layers):

Step 7: Editing in Pixlr.

Now, this is my favourite part: the editing to really make the image pop! Firstly, we are going to use Pixlr, so save your image and open it up in Pixlr.

So, in Pixlr I only do two things: choose some overlay editors and up the saturation. Firstly, the overlay editors. The ones I choose for the retro look are:

Antonio - this blurs the lines somewhat, and makes it overall darker/softer. I obviously do not use it to its full capacity (there's a slider you can mess around with under each tool to find your desired effect, though I recommend using Antonio only a little.)

Hagrid - this will make it look slightly more saturated and sharper. It also adds a sort of 'burn' effect on each outline of the colours. Again, I use this one only slightly.

Ivan - One of my favourites for Big Shot Spamton. Again, I only use it slightly. This one will add an orange effect and 'fix' some of your shading. Though, it only works to its full potential if you have your shading as best as it can be.

Sara - Another really good one for retro anime. It's sort of like Hagrid, but softer. Depending on your colours, it will also add a soft 'glow' effect. Because of this, I only use it a little, as older anime does not have the intense glow you see in more recent anime, in general.

There are lots of other options. You can play around to see which one will suit the vibe you're going for best!

Then, we go into the general menu and up the saturation if needed!

Step 8: Editing in Photoleap - then back to Sketchbook!

Why the fuck do you use two editors? Simple - Photoleap has some cool options that Pixlr does not, and vice versa. We won't be spending as much time in Photoleap compared to Pixlr.

Now, Photoleap does NOT allow screenshots within the app, so I just have to explain it without any images.

In Photoleap, we're only going to be doing two things, and one of those things are optional. Firstly, using the grain tool. This will really add to that 'old' look. Don't go too hard on it!

The optional thing you can do is add a red chromatic abberation. It's under the 'effects' tab in Photoleap. However, sometimes this will take away from the retro look, so use it carefully. I only used the tiniest amount for this drawing to make the lines look 'cleaner'.

Once I'm done in Photoleap, I save the image and export it back into Sketchbook. This is where I'll add/fix some things, such as adding a shine in Spamton's eyes, a shine on the car window and the smoke coming from his cigarette. I also bring the gradient layer back up and mess with the colour a bit (optional).

Have you noticed the large, black border to the right of the drawing? Yeah, that'll be cropped. I decided to make the overall image smaller and, unfortunately, Sketchbook Pro does not allow you to change the canvas size once you've started a drawing (please add this option, Autodesk!)

Step 9: CapCut Editing.

This will seriously be the cherry-on-top to actually make this thing look like a screenshot. Save your image and open it up in CapCut.

Firstly, you'll want to add an 'effect' to the photo. Under 'retro', I personally choose 'frosted quality', because it adds a moving grain and gives an 'old cartoon' feel, which is what I'm after. There are lots you can choose from, it's up to you to play around with it! You can also adjust the effect as you wish. I tend to turn the blur completely off.

Then, the last step in CapCut: adding a caption, if you want. I make the text yellow and add an italic effect to make it seem like an actual subtitle.

Step 10 (Final): Exporting.

That's us basically finished! I'll export it as a video from CapCut, crop it using my iPad's default editing software in the gallery, then export it as a GIF. Exporting it as a GIF lowers the quality a tad further, which is a bonus for this type of drawing. Viola! You now have a retro-anime-inspired piece!

Final Notes

Again, I'm not a good teacher and this is kind of all over the place, lmao. But, I hope it can guide those who wish to try this style!

If you do try it, maybe tag me and let me see if my tutorial worked for you? Or maybe you were just curious, lmao. There's a LOT of steps here, lol, and I'm not a professional artist by any means, so...

Anyway, that's all from me for now!

[accirax]

initial thoughts on DCAS episode 19

Emily has really been going full villain mode these past couple of episodes, huh? while I'm overall not a huge fan of how many women have been portrayed as rude/unreasonable as compared to their male counterparts, i do love an evil queen. i support women's wrongs.

oh, Gabby. how many people wish that were true. (very cute gabellie content as usual)

i wonder if this is a soft confirmation that we'll never see Gabby or Ellie compete again.

this is so important. also, Hunter, the heart is on Ally's pajamas, not her casual look with the jacket. unless he just drew that there because he loves Ally so much :D

glad that Tom can finally admit that he is a terrible liar. truly, the person Tom and Jake should blame is the hiring manager who hired Tom in the first place.

if you loved him this whole time then why did you lie to him about having another boyfriend, Tom? ,':/ (/lh) (i know that he was explaining in this scene that it's because he was afraid, i'm just saying that the extent of his fears is something that shouldn't be swept under the rug, and that i feel it wasn't properly set up enough in s1 or DCAS as a replacement. yes it was showcased in DCAS but we never got an explanation as to Tom's thought process between seasons that would change his mind to make him more fearful.)

*several people are typing*

we NEED to see jaiden teaching Miriam a tiktok dance.

this is your daily reminder to not take anything that's said in a greeting too seriously.

c'mon, Fiore, a true gen Alpha-er would know that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell without having to look it up. unless, oh god, is that too much of a gen-Z reference for gen Alpha to understand...?

HE'S SUCH A DAD I LOVE THEM

this was probably my favorite line of the episode.

this was a really cute detail! even though they were both the archetypal "old person" of their season, Connor is still, like, 20 years younger than Miriam. it totally make sense that she'd still call him kiddo! just, not grandkiddo.

literally even Ellie is rooting for them to finish this plotline already. or maybe she's just feeling guilty for separating them in the first place, and she's lowkey hoping that the damage wasn't that severe.

that's... that's a crime? you can't just burn people, even if they're terrible??? i guess that, given Riya attempting to kill Aiden and directly breaking Connor's leg further, the definition of what counts as a crime is pretty lax in this universe. unless it's about destroying the environment. thanks, Tom! (/j)

also, why is Yul's scar so damn low res?

MCDONALD'S ELLIE ISN'T CANON??? D:

i wonder if this season is going to end with Grett giving Ellie a job/helping Ellie get a job. i could see fitness influencer and fashion designer working together well, as long as Ellie is okay designing athleticwear.

on one hand, i don't like that we don't get to have the finalists pick the people that they're closest with help them in the finale. this feels rather random, and in terms of real-world fairness, having a finalist get stuck with terrible help isn't very fair (i cite Top Chef season 4 as my example). however, i do appreciate how Disventure Camp always mixes the endgame up. it's not very fair in a real-world perspective, but given that it isn't a real game i appreciate the variety.

i also think that this is a nice fix to really incentivize whoever is helping the finalist after (in-universe) we had two really unpopular finalists, Fiore and James, who struggled to get any help. it feels like a reasonable decision that the in-universe showrunners would make.

don't distract him during the finale, you fool!

the Romber strategy!!! wow, and it's even in the first All Stars season, too :D

THE YUL CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT IS BACK ON?!?!?!?!

FIORE FINALE CONTENT! FIORE FINALE CONTENT!

ain't no way she's actually winning and of that $100K though, lol.

y'know, this might as well happen.

Riya and Yul really are perfect for each other (platonic) because every time that either of them gets a chance to either repent and be a good person or double down and keep relentlessly chasing their goals, they both always choose the latter. they're gonna get punished in the finale big time for sure... to the extent that Yul hasn't already been punished by getting that scar(?) to the face. like, seriously, that could be even more damage to his career.

once again, i missed the real Hunter so much :,)

while i love the roast here, does Fiore actually have anyone's respect...?

that's a wrap, folks! the most important character arc of the season is over!

[dearlexies]

let's just have a honest conversation now.

why y'all like enhypen? it's the music, the choreographies? the members? think about it for one minute, just one minute. what made you like them? if it's one of the above great! so you like them, and want to see them doing great, breaking records, being recognized worldwide etc. And i have to tell you, this won't happen if you do nothing. Do you guys understand that other fandoms are getting together just to stop us from winning the votations??? There are people spamming yt comments with emojis to freeze views, we were in the leading idolchamp all the time and then other fandoms got together and started spreading rumors and lies about enhypen, now they're laughing at us. If this doesn't make you sad or mad I'm sorry but you aren't really an engene you just here for the visuals or like to listen to the group and call them the "future of kpop" "4th gen leaders" when it's convenient for your ego and pride. Romance: Untold, has the potential to be their biggest comeback but we are unable to reach the goal of views and likes on YouTube!!! (20M views, and 1,5 likes which is soooo easy to do!!!)

if you don't want stream and vote then what's your plans to make enhypen successful? bc they won't be recognized if you sit here and do nothing. just bc we won mnte doesn't mean it's over, we still have to get the 20M views on yt, we still have to win the allchart and superstarx votation, and there's the live voting on Thursday (and and if it is the same as today the chances of us winning will be very low) Not to mention that we are already out of the Spotify chart and if we keep it that way we won't re-enter.

ENGENEs there are so many ways to contribute in the success of XO. You just have to pick which way will be easier and convenient to you.

1) Stream the MV (YT);

2) Stream XO in diff. sites (Genie, Melon, Spotify, Apple Music, TikTok etc) you don't even need to listen the music, just create a playlist and let it run

3) Pre-voting for music shows; (mnet plus, allchart and superstar x.)

4) Donations;

5) buying the album; there's a chance for us to enter in second in the billboard hot200!!!

6) Using the song's in tiktok videos; &

7) Share enhypen with friends and family

we need to be a better fan base, we need to start to be greedy for enha achievements this era, if we can't continue to thrive and strive to make them better after 4 years, I don't really know what to say anymore. We need to stop saying "we'll do better next time" and can't even reach the mv goal for the first day. the 'next time' you are talking about should be this, please know your priority.

Stream harder now! Go watch the mv! Vote on the allchart and superstarx!

don't wait for miracles that won't probably happen. core and dedicated fanbase was always a key to success.

[gracien-system]

How to be safer when doing self harm.

We've seen a lot of posts talking about how there needs to be more resources for folks who self harm on how to do it safely, and how resources are overly focused on prevention rather than harm reduction. We realized that we have the knowledge to at least contribute to the "how to do this safer" side, and... well, this post is our attempt at that.

I will note that we are not medical professionals -- our mother was, for about 5 years, though, and so was our great grandmother. We've also done enough research to feel confident that we can give at least a general guide and pointers on how to reduce the risk of long term damage from self harm, but we're human -- if we make a mistake, and you happen to know that it's wrong, point it out in the notes. We'll reblog your version.

With all that being said, the info's under the readmore.

When it comes to self harm, there are a lot of methods that people use -- however, physical self harm generally has a few common presentations.

Cutting, scratching, and burning, are the 3 we're going to cover here. We'll go in order, top to bottom.

1: how to be safer when cutting

The first thing you want to do is pick your blade. A razor blade is much different to a knife, and both are different to a shard of glass, even though the aftercare remains similar.

The general guidance we can give is this: make sure whatever implement you use is as sharp as possible, and avoid serrated blades as much as you can. A simple kitchen or pocket knife is probably the safest option you have.

Whatever you use, make sure you sterilize it to the best of your ability beforehand. Dunk it in hydrogen peroxide or alcohol (pouring either over the entire length of the blade works, too.), or take a lighter and run it down the entire length of the cutting edge (this will fuck up the heat treat of the blade, and make it much harder to keep it sharp in the future, so I wouldn't recommend it for anything you'd like to reuse, but it is and option if necessary).

When you cut, pick your location carefully. Avoid the wrists and lower arm (there are a lot of veins and nerves you could accidentally damage or sever, which is a bad time.) a nice rule of thumb (though it may not work for everyone) is "if you can take your other hand and feel bone on both sides of the arm, it's probably too low". Make sure you don't cut lengthwise -- if you accidentally catch a vein going lengthwise, you'll almost certainly end up in the ER or worse, whereas going horizontally has a much lower chance of something catastrophic happening.

Other places to avoid cutting are: inner thigh (nearby artery), and the groin (extremely high bloodflow region).

While cutting, to avoid infection, it's important that if you set your blade on a hard and non-sterile surface, you wash it with alcohol or peroxide before using it again.

Try to avoid cutting deep -- muscle damage is hard to heal from, and nerve damage is harder still. Skin deep wounds will scar, but muscle deep ones usually require stitches.

Once you're done, wash the wounds and your hands with soap and hot water, then a disinfectant. Dry them with a towel or paper towel, then put bandages over them (or bandaids, if they're small enough.)

How to apply a bandage: get cotton pads, gauze, or something similar, as well as tape. Press the gauze against the wound, then tape it to the surrounding skin. Change once every 4-6 hours (or until you can see blood on the exposed side, whichever is sooner.) until the bleeding has stopped, then once every 6-8 hours until it has healed.

You've minimized your chance of infection, scarring, and permanent damage. Good job. We're proud of you. /gen

2: how to be safer scratching.

With scratching, you want to make sure that you wash your hands thoroughly before and after, especially under your fingernails. A good way to make sure that your fingernails are clean is to take some soap, put it in the palm of your hand, then scratch the palm for a few seconds under running water. Do this with both hands.

If you draw blood, make sure to disinfect and bandage the wound. If you don't, make sure to wash it afterwards.

Scratching carries of a lot less risk of permanent damage as opposed to a lot of other methods, but has a much higher chance of infection if you draw blood and didn't disinfect your hands. Just be careful, and you should be fine. We're proud of you. /gen

3: how to be safer burning.

We can't advise on the method as much as we would like to, here, because there are a lot of ways to burn yourself. We're going to assume lighter, but the advice we give should be applicable to most localized 1st and 2nd degree burns. If you give yourself a 3rd degree burn of any sort, no matter how localized, you need to see a doctor as fast as possible.

1st degree burns are comparable to a (mild to moderate) sunburn -- uncomfortable, potentially risks infection if not cared for properly, painful, and just generally not a great time, but not very dangerous if treated properly. Standard protocol with all burns is to wash the affected area(s) in cool water for 30 seconds to a minute immediately after the burn. With 1st degree, it's your choice whether you want to apply something like allo or lotion to it, afterwards. It might help reduce pain and/or help it heal faster, but it's your call. Just make sure to keep the area clean and cool.

2nd degree burns are more serious. Depending on how big the area burned is, you might want to see a doctor, but that's up to the individual. If you want to treat it yourself, wash for 30 seconds to a minute in cool water, then apply a lotion or allo to it. Once you've done that, apply a bandage over the area, and let it heal.

We aren't an expert in identifying what is first, second, and third degree, in terms of burns -- but there are plenty of resources our there to help you with that. If someone adds one to this post, we'll edit this to include it.

Congrats, you've minimized the risk of long term damage. We're proud. /gen

Closing notes

We know there's a lot out there that would like to say that recovery is an on/off switch. It isn't. The best way to recover is to minimize the harm as much as you can today, and and work towards other coping mechanisms as you can. Don't believe that you're lesser, somehow, for needing an intermediate step, or intermediate steps.

We hope you have a wonderful rest of your day/night, and we wish you good luck -- both in your recovery, and in your life.

[queengenweek]

Queen GenWeek 2023

Attention, Queen enthusiasts across the world: we bring to you Queen GenWeek! We decided it was high time we brought back this event so we can celebrate the enduring friendship between the members of Queen together.

When and where?

The event will take place from Thursday 15 June-Sunday 18 June. You can upload your work on Tumblr using the tag #QueenGenWeek2023 and @queengenweek us. We'll make sure to reblog all contributions with this tag to this blog for an overview! When you post your fanfiction on AO3, please add it to the Queen GenWeek 2023 collection.

What does Gen mean?

Gen, short for “general,” is a term used in fanfic communities to refer to works of fanart that are platonic: they explore bonds of friendship rather than bonds of romance. There may be some form of romance in the background, but the main focus should be on the non-romantic relationship between the characters. Gen fanart celebrates the friendship between characters.

Mind AO3's Gen tag and policies for further instructions.

With help from last year's event post, refer to this amazing resource on asexual/aromantic characters and how to give them substance! This is an ASPEC safe space and consciously inclusive.

Who and what is welcome?

Everyone who wants to celebrate the platonic friendships in and around Queen is welcome! All gen-oriented works of art are welcome, which include but are not limited to:

Fanfiction

Other forms of literature (poetry)

Visual art (traditional or digital)

Moodboards

Playlists

Photo edits

If you prefer so, you can stay anonymous during the event. Both AO3 and Tumblr have options to post anonymously. You can use this quick guide on how to post anonymously on AO3. If you want to upload to Tumblr anonymously, you can DM us, and we will share your contribution on your behalf. You can also submit any questions you have about the event to us with the ask-button or DM function.

Prompts?

To help you get going, we’ve come up with different prompts for each day of the event. You are free to use them, improve them, combine them, mix and match them, or do whatever you feel like with them: creativity is key!

Day 1: Thursday 15 June

Lyric: I'd better go to bed and have an early night

Childhood friends

Growing apart

Cult classic: The Outsiders

Looking back at memories

Day 2: Friday 16 June

Quote: “The group tends to be the most stable family we’ve got.” B.M.

Police encounter

Getting lost in a strange city

Cult classic: Spirited Away

Facing a fear

Day 3: Saturday 17 June

Lyric: Take heart, my friend, we love you/Though it seems like you’re alone

Family/marriage problems

Revealing a secret

Cult classic: The Lord of the Rings

Getting a tattoo together

Day 4: Sunday 18 June

Quote: “Not too bad for four ageing Queens.” F.M.

Best Man speech

Teaching each other instruments

Cult classic: Hangover

House fire

More rules?

If you've participated in fandom events before, you probably know the drill by now. If you still have questions on what to keep in mind when creating and/or consuming, please refer to the detailed additional rules we have set up for PolyWeek this year. In short, mind the following:

Support creators.

Tag your work appropriately.

Do not engage with hateful feedback.

Do not supply negativity.

Do not interact with NSFW/18+ content if you're a minor.

We encourage you all to participate, contribute, consume, and support the event if you feel you want to! It's a safe space for all, no need to feel shy about creating. We wish you all the luck, inspiration and fun in the world and hope to see you there!

Hosted by @carrrothead-vol2, @of-streetlightfancy and @shewas-agaystripper

[light-wolf]

Ok, time for some of my Nintendo Direct thoughts! I'll go in announcement order:

Mario & Luigi: Brothership: Well, this came out of nowhere! After the closure of AlphaDream, I assumed the M&L series was dead, at least for the time being, so this was a really cool surprise. Mario RPG fans are eating good lately. Game looks really fun and charming and I'm looking forward to it!

Fantasian Neo Dimension: I'm not super familiar with this game but I've heard cool things about it so it's nice seeing it on Switch. I have soooooo many JRPGs in my backlog already though...

Donkey Kong Country Returns HD: This one was a bit of a disappointment, to be honest. Not that I don't like seeing a great game get an upgraded version available on a modern console, but man... it's been 10 years since the last original DK game, and all we can get is yet another remake? This is one of Nintendo's biggest and most iconic franchises and it feels like all they do with it these days is using it as Mario spin-off fodder. It's just sad. Oh well. Great game, though, highly recommended.

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake: I haven't played much DQ outside of DQV (which is one of my favorite RPGs of all time) but this one is said to be a classic and I like the HD-2D look so it's definitely on my radar. Nice to see the first two games get remade as well. But I can't help but feel that what I really want is a DQV remake in this style. xD

NSO stuff: Great to see Four Swords live again in some form! Also ZERO MISSION FINALLY!! I've been wanting to replay that one lately. I'm not really interested in Turok or Perfect Dark but I guess it's a good thing that the West also has an "adult" version of the N64 app now, as that opens the door to more games.

Super Mario Party Jamboree: I've never been much of a Mario Party fan, but this one looks quite fun! At least it seems more interesting to me than the other Switch ones. I probably won't get it since I'm more of a solo gamer but I'll keep an eye on it.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom: HOLY SHIT!!! YES! YES! YES! Oh man, I'm soooo glad that this game exists! I LOVE 2D Zelda and I've been wanting a playable Zelda for so long. Also the gameplay looks so creative and fun! Not a huuuuge fan of it reusing the "toy" art style of the Link's Awakening remake (even though I loved it in that context) but I feel like this game has enough differentiating stuff to have its own identity, so I'm fine with it. Absolutely love this. Probably my favorite thing about the Direct, and it's releasing quite soon too! Can't wait!

Stray: Not a lot to say about this other than it's a game I really wanted to play back when it first released but I didn't have access to it. So it's great to have it on Switch! If the port doesn't suck I'll probably get it at some point.

Ace Attorney Investigations Collection: YESSSS!! These two are the only AA games I haven't played yet, and while I've considered emulating them for years, this is even better! Also great to see the second game get an official localization. So all around a great thing. AA7 when, Capcom? :P

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond: Oh man, what can I say? It's real. Seven years after being announced with just a logo, we finally got a real first look at it. A very short first look that didn't really show much, but a first look nonetheless. It was a bit disappointing seeing it get a 2025 release date, but oh well. I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being a cross-gen release. We'll see. Can't wait to see more, and find out what's the deal with Sylux.

Overall I'd say it was a pretty good Direct! Nintendo is still giving the Switch a lot of love during its final years and that's great to see. Now, to keep working on that backlog...

[simmie-stories]

Gen 4. Ariel #16 Thunderstorm

"Ursula!"

As the sky turned gray and rain started to fall harder, Seye had come to confront Ursula.

Neither of them noticed Phillip had dived back in the ocean to eavesdrop.

"You turned Haydes into a kelpie! He's been utterly distraught over something and finally told me the truth!"

Phillip's tried to get closer, but he was forced to merman form on the beach when he got pelted by the rain. "Would you like to see how it feels to be an ugly kelpie also, Miss Seye?"

Seye turned and ran... into Ursula's den (I wasn't controlling her... 🤦‍♀️)

Oh dear...

But Seye had a protective charm on, and she smirked as she walked out the door, unharmed.

I'm not sure what happened, but the spell failed.

Phillip was still stuck out here in merman form due to his sensitive scales.

Finally, as he was able to turn back to human form...

He was struck by lightning! I wasn't prepared for this, so I didn't get screenshots...

What was happening....?!

I really had not planned this and don't know how this happened, but we'll roll with it. He must have gotten struck by lightning more than once, but I didn't see it:(

Main Back Next

[deareststars]

Did you get a request? It's General relationship hcs for Cyrus, Drayden, Grimsley, Colress with gn s/o. Thanks!

yes i just received it! i will say that this short of a turn-around is very rare; anyone requesting should expect about a day or two, i just happen to have a LOT of free time rn lol!

also, bc this ended up being much longer than i anticipated, i'm splittng this up into 2 parts. so expect grimsley & colress to come out within the next day or so! thank you so much for requesting :)

characters: cyrus (gen iv), drayden (gen v).

content: gn reader, established relationship, mostly feel-good stuff w/ a little angst in cyrus' hcs. reader is an antagonist in cyrus' hcs, & an elite 4 member in drayden's.

tw: none.

CYRUS

you grew up with him in sunyshore. i imagine this timeline's cyrus is softer, if only because you were there with him through everything the rejection of his peers, the rejection of his parents—they all hurt less when you were there to pick up the pieces.

he's brilliant with technology. if you ever ask him for anything, even as a playful request, he'll try his best to make it happen.

he doesn't understand emotions, but he knows what they mean. so when you come to him, crying or upset about something that happened, he tries his best to comfort you.

you storm into cyrus' office, still battered from your battle with that annoying "hero" from twinleaf. "i thought i was stronger!" you rant. cyrus silently wheels himself out from behind his desk, and opens his arms. you fall into them, letting all of your frustrations out. you stop when he starts patting your head roughly. you shake his hand off. "what are you doing?" he doesn't blush easily, but he's coming close to it. "mars said that people like to be comforted this way," he says. despite your anger, you laugh. "not like you're trying to comfort a growlithe," you tease. he avoids your gaze as his face grows pink.

cyrus also tries his best to express his love for you in physical actions. he's comfortable with movement, not with words. he always has a hand on you—on your thigh when you're sitting next to each other, against your waist that day at the spear pillar.

when he's taken by giratina to the distortion world, he doesn't expect you to follow him, but you do anyway. he tries his best to convince you to go back with them, since he wants you to experience the world, but you refuse.

"leave me here!" cyrus yells, the first expression of intense emotion you've heard in a long time. "you don't deserve to be left here! there's so much to see!" you shake your head, still holding onto him. the hero and cynthia stare at you, wordless, and you know that you may seem stubborn. but you can't leave him behind. cyrus seems to know this. you feel his breath hitch with an aborted sob, and look up, surprised to see tears filling his eyes. even he is shocked, as he frees a hand to wipe furiously at them. "why?" he asks, his voice choked. "the world i desire is the world that makes you happy," you reply. "we'll be together until the very end." with that, the hero and cynthia reluctantly let the two of you go. you know you'll likely never see the real world again, but as cyrus tightens his grip around your waist, you know that this was worth every moment.

DRAYDEN

you meet drayden through the pokemon league. he's not the best with expressing his feelings (as an older man, he's basically a stone wall) so it's hard to tell when he's crushing on someone and when he simply finds them to be a good friend.

and then he shows up to your door, having memorized all of your favorite sweets, hobbies, and books, and gives you a thoughtful gift to express his affection.

when i tell you that this man is a gentleman, i mean he is the epitome of one. picking you up at your house for dates? check. making sure you don't touch a single door? check. elbow held out every time you go into the world? check.

"drayden, is this really necessary?" you ask. he stands in front of you, hand held out with a pokemon league car behind him. he promised to take you out to the most wonderful restaurant opelucid city has to offer, but you didn't think that he was serious. his face remains passive, but he still tilts his head to the side like a confused lillipup. "of course. is it so bad to treat my partner like the royalty they are?"

expect training every single day, both for you and your pokemon. drayden wants you to be the best version of yourself, and while he doesn't subject you to his (alleged) 10,000 push-ups, sit-ups, and squats a day, he still makes sure you eat healthy and push yourself & your pokemon to your limit.

when you lose, drayden is there to help you figure out what went wrong. he's got a lot of advice to give, so no matter what difficulties you go through, he always has something to tell you that makes things seem at least a little better.

he's big on acts of service. there's the obvious door holding and making sure you take care of yourself. but he also does the simplest things, like making you cups of hot tea when league work has you stressed, or cooking you dinner when you come home. this only intensifies when team plasma comes into play.

"i can take care of myself!" you exclaim. drayden stands in front of you, barring the way out from the gym. behind him, you can see the plasma frigate moving overhead, bathing opelucid city in subzero temperatures. he shakes his head. "i know you can. but i cannot take care of myself unless i know that you are safe." "i can't just stand here and watch as people destroy the city i love!" with a final show of strength, you manage to make it past him, and he reluctantly follows you into the city. still, you're sure you're not imagining the way he seems to put haxorous directly in front of you, putting you out of the line of fire.

[nataliesscatorccio]

S3 hopes or predictions?? mostly for the teens

thanks for asking and thanks for waiting while I re-watched to answer! i'll keep the list short and sweet without (much) explanation because I'd love to expand on some of these later while we fill the time between seasons.

Predictions:

1. A Tai-for-president with Shauna-for-VP antler queen campaign. I think we'll see dissension over Nat's leadership in light of the cabin burning, but also Shauna clearly wants it and Tai has already been "nominated" by Van. Just like in girlhood the power dynamics stay shaky. Queen for a Day etc etc

2. Shauna is going to sleep with Travis. Travis knows Jackie in an intimate way Shauna never can. Shauna knows Javi in an intimate way Travis never can. The flesh is gone they can't consume any more of the person they love and the person they killed. I think they're going to get carnal about it.

3. Someone will refuse the draw (also, how do they still have the cards after the cabin burns? My guess is that's what Van stayed back to save after getting Tai out... or maybe they don't burn oOoOo)

4. Callie will (accidentally?) kill Jeff re: Shauna's "if you cum inside me I will raise the baby out of spite to become a killing machine and hunt you down." It wasn't on purpose but I think she might have succeeded anyway. Callie on her Mommy issues shit but also on some Shauna killing Jackie shit, another way to bind them inextricably.

Hopes:

1. I would be over the moon to see Akilah wear the pink converse from the Pilot. I don't believe anyone has yet?! I feel like it's a detail they're saving, and I hope it's being saved for Akilah so we can see her wear them and know she makes it to pitgirl/rescue

2. Personally I'd love to see a few new background characters introduced! I think Yellowjackets has historically done a great job developing background characters into focal characters (Mari this season, maybe Gen next?) and I don't mind to play the "yeah they've totally been here all along" game because, well, they have! 18 girls at the burial etc etc.

3. Saracusa death please 🙏🏼

4. In a completely different tune to my predictions for season two, I hope Ben lives.

Okay turns out I did not keep this short or sweet. Take them all with a grain of salt, but here's hoping! (Hoping I'm right? Hoping I'm wrong? Not sure!)

[bejoomi]

event plot call! (and tracker)

yes hello everyone now that next gen has concluded i have the mental bandwidth to plot for this event so here i am 🫶 i must admit i do not have any great ideas yet nor do i have any scenes in mind for them but i wanted to get a plot call up for joomi and @benayoung anyway! i also need more fresh threads for them in general so like this to plot and we'll figure something out one way or another 💓 i'll go into more detail on how the gang is feelin about the event below the cut, and also use this post as a tracker like i usually do for events!

EDIT: i added @rihabe onto this for the nemo event as well!

JOOMI (ACTING CAMP)

joomi isn't so sure about all this...he definitely sees the benefit in learning more about acting it is just Not Really His Thing...i think he will be interested in how to turn books and webtoons into scripts tho! and light and camera work. he's gonna do his best and he might actually be decent at acting once he gets over the initial awkwardness. which might take a while LMAO it's hard for him to loosen up most of the time and this will be no different. he's like. a Creative Vision guy though, so he gets the role acting plays he'd just rather...be the producer than the actor honestly. so maybe he can come up with an original scene/story to act out w someone for fun opposed to working on a scene from the list supplied by the coaches. idk!

camp 1: @beyuji (1/4) camp 2: @renxbe (1/4) camp 3: @besiwoo (1/4) scene: @bechaerin (2/4)

NAYOUNG (ACTING CAMP)

ms nayoung, sr media and actress extraordinaire at ur service. honestly she is still quite tired from next gen KLSDJFJSLDF but she really enjoys acting and is also really good at it thanks to years upon years of being a fake bitch and pretending to be nice. people can ask her for advice but i'm not sure if she'll actually know what to say to help, it kinda just comes naturally to her now. she's in my head like "that's why it's a bootcamp, there are other people to teach so i don't have to," so maybe coach nayoung is off duty now KLSDKLJSDJKLS but she will be happy to show off her skills. i imagine it's kinda funny honestly like she'll go from animated in a scene to just like -__- during practice time. LMAO

camp 1: @kouxbe (3/4) camp 2: @behyunki (0/4) camp 3: open! scene: @eunaebe (2/4)

RIHA (NEMO EVENT)

riha is a bit of a hopeless romantic but also kinda Shy when it comes to romance, probably due in part to being a closeted lesbian. that being said she'll probably get super into answering any questions she's asked askldfjskdlfj and she loves shopping! and being busy! so she'll do anything with anyone! she's very friendly

thread 1: @bexsua (1/4) thread 2: @beseira (0/4) thread 3: @bexiaoli (0/4) solo: incomplete

[simpuritysims]

THE PIERCE LEGACY: GENERATION 4/5

Eight years later, here we go again! For everyone that may be around but doesn't remember, or for anyone new who might hop on here, here's the basics of this legacy:

Each generation is focused around a new occult life state. Generation 1 was ghosts, generation 2 was imaginary friends, generation 3 was fairies, generation 4 was werewolves, and generation 5 will be witches. If I manage to stick with it, we'll move onto mermaids, then plantsims, vampires, and the last two gens were still up in the air. Each gen also has a colour, with yellow, green and orange being those of the three surviving generations.

We're going to start off pretty light story wise until the kids are at least children, to see if I can actually get back into it, but then we'll see.

All old posts are still linked on their navigation page, and the summary of the most recent generation's story is specifically here. (Bear in mind it was all written 8-10 years ago, so it's not all very well written and is outright clumsy in places, plus some posts were lost to the censors.)

More details below the cut. (Sorry, this got WAY TL;DR.)

The current family is as follows:

Maylu, Nat and Kain Pierce: Maylu was generation 3's heiress, and is the only non-occult sim left in this family. Nat was her childhood sweetheart, and Kain was another fairy they both met at university. What started as a drunken three-way became asking Kain to help them have kids became a polyamorous relationship.

Alfred and Avery Pierce: Generation 4's heir and spare. 'Twins', of a sort, in that they were born on the same day, even if they're actually half-brothers. Avery is blind in one eye and Alfred has stunted wing growth, both as a result of the same incident in their childhood.

Tessa Pierce (née O'Connell) and Ylva Pierce (née Tate): Generation's 4's spouses! Both werewolves that have rough pasts, as all the wolves do. Tessa and Alfred have been together since they were young teens, Ylva and Avery got together later in their teen years.

Ivory Nein-Russel and Adrian Nein-Russel: Unrelated to the Pierces themselves, but Ivory, Tessa and Ylva are practically sisters. With a little bit of an age gap, Adrian and Ivory fell in love last, but no less deeply, and last we saw they'd just gotten married.

Elanya Pierce, Felan Pierce and Calypso Nein-Russel: Heiress and spares (sort of) of generation 5! Elanya is a fairy, Felan and Calypso are werewolves. Calypso was adopted. They're a bit older than when we last saw them, being treated as more around 3-4 than 1-2.

Then, living elsewhere in town and only here for this picture, there's:

Ella Pierce and Faye Pierce: Spares from generation 4, Ella being Maylu's bio kid and Faye being Nat's, a turned-werewolf and a fairy respectively. Ella grew up a normal sim, but got Dexter to change her when they were teens because she was tired of being the only normal sim. This was more dangerous than expected.

Dexter Pierce (née Richwood) and Obsidian Pierce (née James): Spouses to Ella and Faye, respectively. Both werewolves, who like Adrian were also with the pack since they were kids. Dexter and Adrian have a bit of a rivalry, but they've been working on it.

Xavier Pierce and Cyril Pierce: Cousins to generation 5, Ella and Faye's kids respectively. Xavier is a werewolf and Cyril is a fairy.

I have all sorts of weird random bits of personalised occult lore for this family, but the relevant bits are:

There are very rare instances of occult hunters, and there is, technically, still one out there on the trail of the wolves in this family.

Fairies all start with the tiny little wings that then grow into one of the bigger shapes when they get older. Alfred's were stunted by emotional trauma and never grew.

Fairies can develop something called an adeptnature, which is a talent for a very specific branch of their nature magic. Alfred has one for befriending small animals, Avery has one that lets him sense the weather.

Fairies can have a variety of face markings, like Nat's 'eyeshadow' or the speckles on Alfred and such, that almost always skip a generation.

There are three kinds of werewolves: born wolves, moonborn wolves, and turned-wolves. Tessa, Ylva and Ivory are each of those respectively.

Cottonwood Hills, the town I play in, is a generally very welcoming town for occults but does not believe weresims exist. Maylu is working on proving it so the weres in the family can be open about what they are without issue.

Normal sims cannot learn alchemy. (Obviously they actually can mechanically, but lore wise.)

[milesconure]

The Freemaker Adventures: Future AU

In my post with uni sketches I uploaded two concept doodles of Rowan where he's like 16 years old. But those were based on my old design which I doodled back in high school and it wasn't good in my opinion.

And since I'm working on my new AU, which I'm planning to write someday, I've finally decided to update my designs. I was mostly inspired by their outfits in season 2, but also their concept arts.

Rowan Freemaker:

- 16 years old,

- still adventurous and full of energy,

- mixed feelings about being a Jedi,

- more interested in building than fighting,

- has issues regarding his past,

- overworks himself to not think about things,

- gen z humour,

- force builder lacking a purpose.

Zander Freemaker:

- 22 years old,

- works as a pilot,

- dates Becky Smootchenbacher,

- still a mechanic, but it's not his full time job anymore,

- wants to start a family someday, but neither he nor Becky are sure if they're ready,

- still loves starships, but manages to keep his obsession in check.

Kordi Freemaker:

- 20 years old,

- works in Strategy Council,

- much more confident than she used to be,

- still a mechanic, but it's not her full time job anymore,

- keeps her cool most of the time,

- she will still hit you if do one wrong move,

- single (and not interested in dating).

______________________________________________

The reason Rowan got seperate reference is because I felt that it needed to have some of his expressions included. And also I think he changed the most in my AU, since well, kids really do change a lot when they grow up. Adults change too, but it's not that visible. At least that's how I see it and so Zander and Kordi didn't change that much. I MEAN, literally Kordi from All Stars is still the same character we all love. She just has some gray hair *sobs*

Overall, I'm really happy with those references and I'm looking forward to working on my AU more and more (while ignoring uni assignments-)!

I really want to start writing something bigger. Oneshots are great and I have so much fun with them, but I also had so much fun with my Welcome to the Dark Side AU, even if it has only 4 chapters. I personally don't think Future AU will be that long, but we'll see!

[xf-cases-solved]

S1E6: Shadows

Case: In Philadelphia, Howard Graves, the boss of secretary, Lauren Kyte killed himself a few weeks ago, and Lauren is still really broken up about it. Turns out they had a really close relationship, but in a like, father/daughter way and not a creepy boss/employee way. They had such a close relationship, in fact, that Howard is now acting as Lauren's guardian angel, if guardian angels were the ghosts of dead businessmen who had dealings with terrorist groups in Iran who avenged you by Jedi strangling anyone who tries to cause you harm. Philadelphian agents from a vague, yet menacing, government agency are more interested in shady business practices than ghosts or answering direct questions, Scully has clearly watched too many classic horror movies, and Mulder is willfully participating in a campaign of misinformation. What could possibly happen next?

Does someone die in the cold open: Yes, but they deserved it.

Does Mulder present a slideshow: No

Does the evidence survive the investigation: The evidence completed its unfinished business and crossed over into the light.

Whodunit: Kinda depends on which crime you're talking about. Who committed the crime of doing business dealings with terrorists? That was the stereotypical White CEO Businessman(™) who secretly killed Howard Graves and staged his suicide. But if you're talking about the murder case Mulder and Scully were initially working on before getting roped into the terrorist shit, then the culprit was the ghost of Howard Graves. Naturally.

Convictions: In the terrorist case? Presumably the guy they arrested will serve time. In the murder case? Nada.

Did they solve it: Maybe. While Mulder is pretty certain he knows what's up, Scully remains uncertain and there's no way to prove either of them right. And besides, even if Mulder was right, they could not arrest nor prosecute a ghost.

[how do i determine if a case is solved? check the scale here: x]

THIS EPISODE IS SPONSORED BY: Establishing a good relationship with your boss. Millennials and Gen-Zers today are all about that anti-work mindset, but we're not afraid to say that they are coming from a place of ignorance. Back in the good old days, when people cared about their work, and, more importantly, the people they worked for, they were not only improving office morale, but also ensuring that they would never be in harm's way if their boss was to die under mysterious circumstances. Do you have a lot of enemies you need "taken care of"? Is your boss at a high risk of murder? Then we recommend establishing a good relationship with your boss today!

***

General Total Stats:

(green means stat has changed since last ep; red means new stat added to list)

Total Cases *Definitively* Solved So Far: 2 (streak lost again)

Total Number of "Mulder/Scully, it's me" phone calls: 1

Total Number of Times Scully Has Conveniently Not Seen Something Crucial: 3 (during two different paranormal events, she happened to be out of the room, only entering moments after the event ended)

Total Number of Times Mulder Has Been in Mortal Danger: 0

Total Number of Times Scully Has Been in Mortal Danger: 1

Total Number of Sexually Charged and/or Flirty Moments Between Friendly Coworkers: 4 (why did Mulder put his jacket over his shoulder so sluttily if not to seduce his hot partner??)

Total Number of Autopsies Scully Has Performed: 1

Total Number of Times Mulder Talks to an Informant: 2

Total Number of Nosebleeds: 4

Total Number of Cigarettes Cigarette Smoking Man Has Smoked: 2

Total Number of Alex Krycek Sightings: 0 :(

Total Number of Times I Had to Look Up What State the Episode Takes Place in Even Though I Literally Just Watched It: 1 (i almost had to, but then Mulder mentioned the Liberty Bell at the very end and saved me)

Total Number of Times I Had to Look at an Episode's Wikipedia Page to Fill This Out Because It Was Fucking Confusing and/or Too Boring for Me to Pay Attention: 1 (so far it's only been Conduit, but we'll see how it goes when we get to Space)