#also very appropriate for this time of the year

[felassan]

Podcast: My Perfect Console with Simon Parkin - Episode 98 - 'Corinne Busche & John Epler, game directors, Dragon Age: The Veilguard'

Summary:

"Corrine and John are the director and creative director of Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Corinne Busche majored in digital animation at the University of Utah. In 2006 she joined the studio now known as EA Saltlake, working through the ranks to become a Design Director for The Sims series. John Epler studied English language and literature at the University of Alberta. After graduating, he was selling televisions when he applied to be a tester at Bioware. At the studio he began working as a writer and director of cinematics. Now, the pair have come together to lead development on the latest entry to the beloved Dragon Age RPG series, which launched at the end of October."

[source, two]

Notes/quotes from the episode, under a cut in case of spoilers:

John Epler: thematically, "DA:TV is ultimately a meditation on regret, more than anything else, not just as an amorphous theme, but how the way we deal with regrets shapes our lives. [Solas'] entire arc is motivated by the regret of what he had to do millennia ago". So many of the companions' and characters' lives are driven by regrets (wallowing, or letting it take over their lives, or facing them and taking a step forwards). "Every character has some different perspective on regret". This theme shows up in Solas, companions, side characters, faction stories and side villain stories

Corinne Busche: "When approaching this game, what was right for this game, it was about being really aware of what it means to be BioWare, first and foremost. The focus on characters. Getting back to our singleplayer roots. Really exploring this world, the deep lore that's been built up around this franchise. And, to be completely honest with you, what worked from those past games that caused our players to fall in love with BioWare titles in the first place."

John Epler: "A lot of the focus just came down to being part of a studio that has a very specific and very real strength in character-building, story-telling, and being on projects that maybe didn't center that strength as well as they could have. I personally love Mass Effect: Andromeda but we had open-world - that was a big thing in the industry at the time - and that starts to dilute your focus. We had Anthem, live service dilutes your focus. So for us, it was really, understanding, what it is that A) people come to this studio to do, people work here for a reason, they wanna make big stories that you can play and which allow you to be a hero of your own creation, but also a focus on characters, a focus on that experience of living in a different world. And for DA:TV, we really wanted to make sure that we got back to those things that made the studio what it was, that contributed to what I would call the 'golden age of BioWare', when, you know, there was hit after hit being turned out. DA:TV was a very conscious return to that with the focus on characters, storytelling, and being just this really bombastic singleplayer RPG that allowed you to play through the story as yourself if you want to, or an idealized version of yourself, or someone who's really different to you. That's the joy of a custom protagonist."

Corinne Busche: "I felt very supported through this, by both BioWare and EA. It's intimidating to buck trends in an era where it feels like almost every game must be an open world, to say, you know what, that works for those titles. For us, the way in which we tell the best stories and be true to our roots - a more handcrafted, intimate experience is appropriate. And just to have that support from within, around getting back to those elements we do best, was fantastic."

John Epler: [around 5 years into development, around the time when Corinne Busche joined the team] "The challenge of the game at that time was it was a bunch of different games that were kind of being spearheaded by different people. There wasn't really a cohesive vision or direction at the time. I was narrative director so I had my storytelling corner and I'm like, okay, we need to focus on character, we need to focus on story, but everywhere else there were so many competing ideas and competing priorities that we had, I mean, conservatively, I'd say three different games going on. So Corinne joined the project, and reached out to me on Slack, said hey, you know, I'm joining, I'd like to talk. And I remember coming out of that meeting with this profound sense of relief, like okay, finally. Because, as narrative director, there's only so much you can do to shape the course of a project, and here comes Corinne, very sharp, very clearly understands what we're doing, and is asking all the right questions. It was just this moment of, okay, good, there's an ally here, there's someone here that knows what they're doing, that can pull some of these visions together into something more cohesive. I'll say, working with Corinne from day one has just been an absolute pleasure, because Corinne gets games, Corinne understands how games work, understands how they come together. I think it's something that we take for granted, but not everyone in the games industry necessarily knows that."

Was Corinne Busche nervous when she got the call to join the project, a project that was 5 years deep? Corinne Busche: "You know, I was, but I was also tremendously honored. Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment but I love a good challenge. And it's kind of, to be honest, become an aspect of what I do, to join teams and help empower them and get where you need to be. I will say, Dragon Age, we talk about how we don't always get to work on or design the games we play. While it was intimidating, Dragon Age is one of my all-time favorite series. I was one of those people that waited in line outside GameStop until I could get my DA:O copy. I remember walking home with it in hand. So it was surreal, it was surreal. I was aware of some of the explorations, some of the difficulties, what was working, what was not. When I joined we had collectively made as a studio the decision that this needs to go back to a singleplayer game. And I will say, when I picked up the controller, pulled down the build and played for the first time, it was still that multiplayer concept. Yeah, I had that moment where I went, whoa, well, okay, you're in it deep now lady. But what a privilege, and to look back on what makes a BioWare game so special, and to see the talent within the team, it felt very achievable, it did."

What was the main thing that Corinne Busche perceived where the team may have lost their way a lil bit and needed a hand back on track? Corinne Busche: "Well, here's my perspective. I wouldn't even say the team had lost their way, to be honest. There were a number of concepts that had been explored, and there are merits to that. There's a lot of good learnings that come from exploration and indeed failure. In some ways you learn more from that than you do from success. This was a situation where we had an outline of a story, and speaking of my first interactions with John, I had much the same feeling of, okay, this is somebody that knows what this game needs to be, what it can be, that can realize its potential. It was very assuring. It really was looking at, what did we have, what can we keep? And a big part of that was that initial story outline, it was the tech stack that we had, some of the ideas behind the game, about it being more intimate, being true to the deep RPG strategy, the pause and play gameplay, but also an awareness that this is, as with all Dragon Age games, a reinvention, and that intimacy, that immersion, stepping into Rook's shoes was going to be a very important part of this journey for us. So that is to say, we really dissected everything. We took this back down to its studs, whether it's gameplay, progression, mission game flow, I can't think of any rock we didn't turn over. In fact, John, correct me if I'm wrong, but my recollection is, I think there was only one mission that more or less survived in a recognizable form in the game, that being the Siege of Weisshaupt."

^ John Epler: "Yeah, you are correct. That is only mission that I would say looks like it did back when Corinne was joining the project."

[character limit text break!]

Were they given a deadline that the game had to be out by that was looming over? Corinne Busche: "There's always a deadline, and it's important that there is because that creates a sense of drive, prioritization, velocity, you learn what the team can do together. What I will say is that we had tremendous support from within BioWare and EA when we said, look, we've discovered the beating heart of this game, what makes it work, and we're not ready yet. We're not at quality, we think we can do more, we can push it further, we're very transparent with that, because it was important to us that this is a game that is worthy of BioWare and worthy of the title of being a Dragon Age game. So when we go back to that, well, I'm really happy to say that, it wasn't always the most fun conversation, but I'm really happy to say there was a lot of support, commitment and interest in making sure we did get the time we needed."

John Epler and Corinne Busche asked to do this interview together as opposed to only one of them (as DA:TV was a team effort of many people)

[source, two] <- listen to podcast here!

[flaviafulvia]

9/10 I would advocate for more age appropriate couples in media, but I honestly like the idea of a pretty young Penelope.

First, I don’t have any Macedonian marriage certificates in front of me, but historically among nobles a hirl marrying in her teens was pretty normal. Gross, but ordinary. Marriage at that level was about the production of an heir and you don’t want to waste too many child-bearing years.

But what I actually like is how dynamic Penelope’s life would be while Odysseus is gone. She’s basically a kid when he leaves—a smart one, probably mature and someone Odysseus can appreciate—but still not entirely grown into herself. Also her mother-in-law was still alive. Women controlled important aspects of the household, and even if the two got along it was probably more her MIL’s house than hers. At the very least it was at first; maybe some things change under the eye of Penelope—when laundry is done, maybe some old handmaidens have to leave the room with the looms to make way for new ones, there’s a baby—but it’s not hard to imagine how that would be awkward when Anticlea had been running the women’s share of the oikos for decades. Various comedies and lawsuits seem to hint at the fact that rivalries were thought to exist between mothers and the wives sons brought into the oikos. There are no accounts from the women themselves, of course.

(Also, I want to emphasize that women’s work was no small thing and worth respecting. In some societies women spent the majority of daylight hours making or altering textiles because it was *that* labor intensive. Laundry was an all-day group project. Rich women, even ones who were largely sequestered away from men, often had dozens of staff, slave or free, to manage. I can’t speak much on Mycenaean women, but Homeric ones seem to have quite a few attendants, interact with male guests, and spend a lot of time at the loom. They had shit to do and even some choices to make.)

Anyway, flash forward 20 years. Anticlea is dead and Penelope is older. “Freedom” is probably too grand a term, but Penelope has agency in the things women should have agency over in her home, exerting power as a woman can with her trick of unraveling Laertes’s shroud. She might have a little too much, actually—she is overextended without a patriarch to take up his share. Yet now there is a new fear—that her husband, whether it is Odysseus returning or a new suitor, might infringe on what she’s gained. Maybe they will want xyz room for a different purpose, maybe they will want to keep her solely in the women’s quarters, or maybe they don’t like an aspect of she runs things and asks her to change it.

Maybe Odysseus doesn’t like who she became.

Anyway, just a hc for someone who hasn’t ever featured in my writings lol

[seeinghcsts]

IN AN INSTANT , A BLIP — so quick he nearly missed it , he noticed the blooming fervor behind eliza's eyes fizzle out . warmth snuffed by a winter chill , roaring magma retreating back before committing to its eruption . anticipating the damage and avoiding it . eliza's words stung , the venomous prick of a bee's stinger ( the same one that would bring her a supposedly lethal end ) targetting his exposed wounds and fragile nerves . he believed he was right , that he was the one who was holding on to whatever semblance of control that existed between the two of them , but eliza , , , she was also right . something that made him noticeably tense upon realizing . not with anger , but with a devastating clarity .

something then burned in his chest , something that ached so badly he felt silver lining his eyes . the taught muscles beneath his jaw pulsed like the wings of a hummingbird , the acid of his stomach pressing up into his throat making him queasy . nausea roiled when her face fell , deflating of its once brimming emotion , porcelain features sullied by a desperate frustration and manic upset sinking back to neutrality . confusion , even .

befuddled , thomas blinked , his own stoney face seeming to droop with uncertainty as thick brows knotted on his forehead . " — liza ?? " he said quietly , questioning , watching the flick of a ballerina's wrist as she took notice of the salt ornamenting round cheeks . inspected it on her fingers .

" i'm mad , " he echoed in ambivilant confirmation , unsure of what was happening . his speech wore hesitation like protective armor , the foundation of his previous argument crumbling to dust on the tip of his tongue . " we , , , we are . we were . liza , what's going on ?? are you — ?? " alright ?? okay ?? none of the words seemed appropriate . right . it was clear neither of those identifiers were the case , as much as he wished they were in order to spare himself .

when eliza's desperate clutch came to find thomas's shirt , his free hand moved in equal urgency — coming to rest atop hers , skin of frost meeting that of flame , pressing against her fingers where they fisted fabric . he didn't pry them off , nor did his mitt come to swat at manicured tips like they were the wings of buzzing insects . instead , he held her there , a fear-strung anguish in his expression , wrapping larger appendages around her far daintier ones and squeezing . as if she'd disintegrate beneath his embrace , like he had lost the right to give it .

" it , " he sucked in a breath , lungs quivering , the urge to lie so strong it felt like a fatal blow to the chest . the urge to aid her in her pursuit of ignorance , to lean into her amnesia , to feed his songbird the very same seeds he had given in exchange for her compliance for months — years — so tempting he could taste it . however , he swallowed , shaking his head ; " it wasn't , , , nothing , but — it's okay . we fight , babygirl , it happens . "

then — like an arrow to the very organ that kept him alive — eliza's trembling voice sung ; ' i love you , tommy . '

thomas knew she did ; eliza had said it some time ago , and continued to as if it were a promise . even when it hadn't been said back . love was a vow , a devotion to another , an unrelenting commitment in which the autonomy of their heart was unabashedly sacrificed . GIVEN . it scared the shit out of him — to love someone and mean it .

he had written it back . texted it . offered it in the ways he knew how . thomas couldn't remember if he had ever said it to her , realizing only now that he hadn't .

for a moment — he was blind to their surroundings ; blind to the way they were unhidden and at risk of exposure . if anyone's eyes were on them , he didn't feel them , nor did he seek them out . tom's lids fluttered as she pressed onto her toes , her dampened , rose-bud nose coming to brush against the frost-bitten tip of his . when she stepped away , apologized , he mourned her warmth ; quick in the way he abused his clasp on her wrist and tugged her back to him . tom's palm came to cradle eliza's face , the pad of his thumb caressing the soddened cherry of her cheek , only noticing now that salt had welled in his own eyes and his adam's apple had turned to stone .

" it's okay , " he said quietly , bringing his lips down to press an assuring kiss against her forehead . " i love you , too. " he muttered against the flush of her skin , securing the return of a sacred vow that until now had gone unspoken with another stamp of his lips against her hairline . " — and so does , cam . we'll , , , we'll figure out how to talk to them . together . as soon as this is over , liza , i promise . "

he released her , stepping back some , but not before large hands scooped up hers , the pads of calloused thumbs running along the bumps of rouged knuckles . only now did tom's gaze wander , a brief scan to make sure they were alone , shoulders sinking in a quiet relief upon realizing they were . " it's freezin' , baby , " honey-pot eyes , glossed and burned , returned to moss that would challenge the greenest pasture . he cleared his throat , an attempt to compose himself . " let me — let me give you a jacket , yeah ?? an actual jacket . one of mine . your lil' frilly things ain't gonna cut it . "

— INSTANTLY , SHE RECOILED . the lush , impassioned green of her irises dulled . her expression of righteous fury slackened . eliza wasn't sure what she had been expecting , but it certainly was not this . the bite of his words scraping in her ears , the heat rolling off of his flexed muscles & hitting her like a fresh wave of last night's fire .

" i don't . . . " she repeated the words , wild mania seeding itself in her pupils . a short string of laughter , a touch crazed , followed . " i don't understand ? you think i'm not obsessing over it , too ?! camille — i -- it's KILLING me . i'm her . . . i'm supposed to be her best friend , thomas , & i'm lying to her fucking face . and the longer we hide it , the more reasons she'll have to hate us . to hate ME . because -- " shaking fingers found their way to her scalp , tugging at the roots whilst her head & heart unwound like a spool of thread . " because you're her brother ! you'll always be that . but , if she hates me , then you'll . . . i-- " a sob caught in her throat . the words choked her . tears , that she'd only just noticed , stung against flushed cheeks . they stained the red apple curve , glossed quivering lips , ran down her chin .

her lungs seized but she swallowed back the puddle of blood that begged to come up — refusing to embarrass herself further . when the words finally escaped , they were strained . almost silent . " i can't lose you both . i can't be alone . "

thomas felt too far away . even when he took hold of her wrist & pulled her in , there was a present feeling of distance . a fissure in the fantasy she had tried to become content in . " a year & a half . right now . two more years from now ? until one of us is DEAD ? " eliza would not meet his gaze , her own trained on the spastic heaving of his chest .

chocolate brown curls tickled her forehead . she shivered . the chill that ran down her spine echoed back up when his frame hardened & voice became cold . even his fingertips , still tight on her wrist , possessed an icy sheen of frost . desperately , she mourned the loss of his warmth — even if it had been accompanied by ire . eliza took a shaky breath , turning her head away from him , the shattered dignity of her composure tucking into her shoulder . her head was pounding — war drums urging her to go in for the kill . " after last night . . . this can't be the rest of my life , thomas . " the pressure grew , her head screaming . she winced right before a wave of sick washed over her . long , wet lashes blinked a handful of times before she dared part empty lips once more . " i think that . . . " her brow knit . " i think . . . " her mouth hung open , her cheek twitching . eliza tried to grapple with her mind , her irises glassing , as a thick fog rolled in .

she was angry . no , sad ? the dewy trails of runaway tears , swiped at by her unrestrained hand , were proof enough . only , she could not quite put her finger on why . after all , eliza was not easily moved to tears — always quicker to turn her upset into anger . utterly lost , eliza's red-rimmed eyes desperately clung to thomas , searching his face for answers . stone stare . flared nostrils . ticking jaw . " you're mad . " the speed at which her heart ran made her sick , a sporadic rhythm that shifted from her mixed well of emotions to fear . " we're . . . fighting . " it was less of a question , moreso the woman's hopeless attempt at rattling her broken mind back into action .

quick , remind me . tell me why we're fighting . i don't want to lose . i'm always right in the end . they stood at the tip of her tongue , but the longer she searched thomas's face — felt his iron hold on her wrist , steam rolling from his nostrils , dark curls teasing her warm skin — the more she wanted to forget . allow ignorance to be bliss .

eliza's other hand found the thick cotton of his shirt , knotting her fingers & balling it in her fist . " say it didn't matter . it was a stupid fight , right ? just — tell me it was nothing . " curiosity picked at her brain , but the nausea curling in her stomach warned her she was better off not knowing . if thomas decided it so , she'd allow herself to be content with forgetting . lose one battle to win the war .

" i don't want to make you crazy . i want you to be happy . us to be happy . i love you , tommy . "

rising on her tiptoes , her nose brushed his — wishing the red out of his eyes & enmity off his breath — before she remembered where they stood . in the open with nothing but rubble to shield their secrets . the trees watched from overhead , & she could only imagine what other eyes & ears lingered nearby . eliza unwound her grip on his shirt , freed herself from his clutch , & stepped back . the cold winter's breeze greeted her . " sorry . "

[jackslocket]

IL PREDESTINATO VINCE.

(inspired by @scdria's super awesome monaco poster)

[royalarchivist]

I say this in the kindest way possible, but I think this style of prose is more appropriate for a personal account rather than an update account. I have no idea who's being talked about half the time. 🥲

[ Tumblr meme via @mikaikaika ]

[loullipopx]

Man I hate ¡nstagram lmao. Did I really just have an argument with an art theft about art thievery only for her to play victim and learn absolutely nothing

[hand-face-chan]

I'm only halfway though Hbomberguy's new video and I dont know if this is a universal experience but my main horrified takeaway from hbomb's plagiarism video so far is that one of my highschools TAUGHT AN ENTIRE CLASS OF 13 YEAR OLDS TO PLAGIARISE. LIKE, ON PURPOSE.

I ended up moving to a much better highschool, but my first highschool essentially taught us to "write" essays by reading what someone else had written and then write what they said again but putting it "into your own words". Which in practice was teaching us to change, for example, "the works of Shakespeare were regarded by many as the first popular art form" to "Shakespeare's plays have been said by some to be the first example of popular media". One teacher actually told us that the process of writing an essay was "saying what the people you've researched have said, in a way where it sounds like you said it".

Like. The tactics that actual plagiarists use to hide the fact that they were stealing. An actual teacher tried to teach me to do that.

[quasi-normalcy]

.

[batri-jopa]

Quite recently I realised that whenever I hear or see a word "always" it sounds in my brain more like polish "za każdym razem" (that is "every single time") instead of what I've been taught ("zawsze" is more like "now and forever"). Would you please tell me what it really means?

[marcmorrigan]

my heart's crippled by the vein that i keep on closing / you cut me open

OCs, they/them for seyva and he/him for rauel! bloodless version + original concept sketch and some notes under the cut

heavily inspired by carrie + vintage pulp novel cover art... i didnt end up emulating the style much, but i think i got the vibes okay!!! yayyy blood

[holydrakes]

Sometimes I dug deep into the SoMa 2012-2013 fandom archive and started getting jealous I was not part of the party

[itspileofgoodthings]

see i have all these spicy takes in the drafts that i don’t post out of self-restraint but then i see a spicy take that i hate SO MUCH and then i want to post mine out of revenge. it’s a terrible cycle tbh.

[emdotcom]

I have a wild, new, & bold suggestion for a tumblr feature:

When a tag is recommended or trending. & It previews some posts IN that tag, (showing you thumbnails of art, for instance,) then maybe.

Clicking on that post. Should show you that fucking post.

[dontwanderoff]

im considering making percy jackson the next class novel in my class but like, do i think the kids will actually enjoy it and that they're definitely the right age for it OR am i just wanting to do it because i want to read it???

[plexippusangel]

Once again I am feeling very touch starved right before I hang out with my VERY pretty friend who I can't date on account of how I would be very bad for her in particular despite how much I adore her on every level. I have to keep a grip on myself. Appropriate amount of hugs and the like. I will be sooo so normal about this.

[cave-monkey]

I think one of my favorite thinks about LMK is that Sun Wukong genuinely feels stupid old sometimes in the sense I am genuinely unsure if he knows the difference between a 2yo, a 12yo, and a 20yo. All the characters are fully grown adults, but Sun Wukong is over here treating it like a wacky preteen adventure show because he has no clue. MK probably told him his age once and Mr. Great Sage straight blue-screened for a second doing mental calculus trying to remember what that means for mortals and he still hasn't figured it out. Old enough to be away from his parents some of the time, sure, obviously, but like...only two decades? That's not very many. How many of those do humans usually get?

When he's not tossing it on the mental pile of 'probably not important' he's trying to figure it out from context like a name you don't want to admit you forgot. This has cleared up exactly nothing.