#and maybe some other qol features?

[crunchworldsupreme]

Crunch by Crunch / Feb 2023

[honestlyvan]

The main feature apps like this offer are QOL improvements like different layouts, fonts, reading statistics and timers, and the aforementioned download features that are already a part of Ao3.

And if you want to use an app for those features -- honestly, I don't see why not? But be aware that Ao3 supports user-created skins that can look like literally anything you want (and although you do have to know enough CSS to make a theme yourself, lots of fans out there make AO3 skins just for fun -- you just gotta talk to one of them to ask how to make the changes you'd prefer and most likely they're happy to help out) and there are userscripts that act as site extensions that provide all those features and more (with, again, people actively developing them that you can ask help from to write your own if you don't like any of the ones available)

If you don't want the hassle of finding this stuff out or talking to people to ask for these features, you do you I guess. But don't ever pay money for one of these apps, no matter what it does. If it's showing you adds, if it's asking you to buy it, DO NOT, they're asking you to pay for features other fans have already provided for free through other methods.

WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS

WHO IS USING THIS

AN APP??? THEY HAVE A FUNCTIONING WEBSITE

THE LAST FUNCTIONING WEBSITE

[jadeazora]

All of this. There's also eschewing Platinum's fixes to characterization (especially when it came to Cyrus. Fortunately, Masters exists but why should it be the responsibility of a niche mobile game to save the characters?) and pacing too.

It makes some improvements to gameplay, but as Mikey mentioned, it's really inconsistent in how it does things like the Dex and difficulty (easy before absolutely sucker-punching you at the League), and that what it does add are just QoL updates found in pretty much every modern Pokemon game. It also just wasn't what I was hoping for in a DP remake, I was really hoping for an updated story and redesigns. ORAS was my gold standard for how they improved on characterization, and we've gotten character redesigns in every other remake. Maybe they didn't want to change designs because of Masters or whatever, but it just felt lazy.

Imo, it's really the only remake that's worse than the original third version: FRLG is dated now, but was mechanically better than any G1 game and had Sevii. I was never fond of the GO features in LGPE, but it still felt unique enough with the changes they made, plus it's the most beautiful Switch Pokemon game. HGSS added a fair amount of new features, a battle Frontier, and improved characterization for Silver. ORAS feels at least like it stands on par with Emerald, improves the Dex, really fleshes out the characters and story more, added Soaring, it felt like a pretty fair trade-off for what we lost. Still a bit salty no Battle Frontier when I was dabbling in competitive, but it's not a deal-breaker. With BDSP, the QoL changes, Legendary hunting, etc. are expected by now, so that mostly leaves story, which was pretty much untouched from the original DP. There's cool things like the expanded Underground and the Shadow Giratina battle, but it's not just enough to really salvage it in comparison to Platinum.

It was possibly even more glitchy than Scarlet and Violet were upon release, which was a big complaint for people at the time (tho people did abuse the glitchiness in a lot of funny ways or to speedrun the game).

It was the only Pokemon game I never actually bothered to finish, like, I think I only ever got up to the fifth badge. I just literally couldn't find enough to really enjoy or be invested in when Platinum exists and does the things I actually was interested about in DP better. Tho tbf, with it getting outsourced, it was clear it was never the main focus, and according to the Teraleak, was only pushed out in case PLA turned out to be unpopular with fans.

[cephalonserotonin]

Devstream 178 Notes

Megan has cool pants! Rebb has a cool earring!

Dante Unbound

next week!

"We wanted to bring lore! Important for us for people who want some texture… with their food…?" lol

Hence, even though there's no quest with this update, lots of lore! Drusus and other leverian stuff

Dante prex:

They mentioned no sticky corners and someone in the audience cheered.

Styanax deluxe

Nipple talk

Gauss Prime's little goofy run is gonna be an emote! for plat! "This is only a microtransaction panel" - Rebb

Banshee, Loki, and Nekros voidshells!! And some Loki QOL: some buffs, customizable invisibility, and an augment!

Easter bunny ears have FUR (using tech for the companion rework) and are now PERMANENT! "Nobody could stop me," - Rebb (Geoff boos)

Protea prime! Including her gear!

And Velox prime, Okina prime, Rhoptron prime syandana (this is GORGEOUS), a bonus alt helmet that moves, and an ephemera (no asset for this yet)

Yareli deluxe!, the Kompressa deluxe

"If you haven't played Yareli, maybe depending on where you get your warframe news…" LMAO the subtlest shade. I've liked Yareli from the beginning and definitely thought the initial backlash to her kit was overblown, so

blah blah soulframe

New update between Dante and Tennocon featuring the Stalker: Jade Shadows

Jade, our 57th warframe

Cinematic quest update from the Stalker's point of view!

J is the second to last letter we need to cover the alphabet, we're just missing U Audience member: what about Umbra? Rebb: No, that's Excalibur Umbra. If your arsenal said Umbra Excalibur you might stand a chance in court.

Warframe 1999

Very much a Warframe update, but a different style of update. New lore, lots of content, a new Warframe chapter. The gorgeous Arthur is our poster boy.

It's not a single player Warframe spinoff, a "Warframe 2" (I confess I was among those theorizing this). Those nipples stay on.

and now, waking up from his nap… it's Ben Starr! "Arthur is a very mysterious character who I am bound by NDA to say… VERY little about!" He's SO cool. and REALLY sexy. He's relatable. He's gonna be a badass, he's got a samurai sword.

Excalibur is a frame. Arthur is a PROTO-FRAME.

Just as an aside, Ben is adorable and hilarious, very fun to watch.

Stuff about Conflict between humanity and the non-human.. "you don't perceive humanity without how it reacts to others."

a first look at Aoi, our proto-Mag, and I am GAY SCREECHING

Bike: the atomicycle

Q&A

Audience member in a (Uniqlo?) metal gear rising revengeance shirt that Rebb recognized and appreciated: when is my man Caliban getting buffed? A: If Pablo were here, he'd say ask me at TennoCon.

Q: any other warframes getting reworks? A: Inaros rework coming with Dante unbound. Loki rework not planned.

Q: What inspired proto-Mag's design? A: Liger did Arthur and Aoi. We had a very specific vision for those two protoframes: Arthur being the "man scout," and Aoi we wanted a nice contrast to Arthur.

Q: Two questions very well worded I didn't get them down in time because I was nodding along. About stat sticks / pseudo-exalteds and trading. A: Stat sticks: we've talked about it but no changes planned. Trading: we've talked about maybe adding riven filters but not much more than that.

Q from guy in Dante DMC trenchcoat: Drifters? Maybe new outfits? A: In Unbound we are bringing one more operator outfit to drifter.

Q: I've been playing Warframe for 10 years, and I'm legendary 4. Any additional benefits for high rank players? A: The social benefits of being a high-rank player are unexplored. In terms of more mechanical aspects… we're thinking more social benefits. congrats on being legendary 4!

Q: When's infested liches? A: Steve is that you

Q In the second metal gear shirt: warframe 1999... dark sector? A: A lot of what Warframe was built on was the scifi part of dark sector that was never meant to be. So it's poetically coming full circle, that 1999 is dark sector inspired. Q: is there a plan for the dark sector remaster? A: 1999 is the dark sector remaster.

Q: Is there going to be fashion protoframes? A: Actually, yes… And that's all I'll say on that.

Q from Leon Kennedy: is squad link coming back? A: RIP scarlet spear. Not coming back in the way you might think, but we're experimenting early days with something you might like. It's in an urn. Geoff: that's pretty dead. Rebb: Someone hasn't played Baldur's gate 3! It's not totally dead, but mostly dead.

Q: Has anyone at DE considered a TTRPG or even a war game? you could blow games workshop completely out of the water. I'd rather give money to you than them any day. A: We're all fans of that kind of content, we'd endorse fan content, but we don't have the time to pursue it. Q: Has anyone considered modular ("kit") frames? A: We have considered it, but it didn't seem shippable. Seemed scope-scary.

Q: Are you, Rebb, personally happy with the way movement works at this very moment? A: Are you asking pre- or post- sticky corners? Q: Post. Also is Soulframe taking from the movement in Warframe? Geoff: Soulfame is very much in the opposite direction of Warframe, movement-wise. Rebb: I always thought it'd be fun to explore wall running in Warframe. But other than that, I love it. I think it's the best movement system in the third person games space. Every other game I play I try and bullet jump and aim glide. Questioner agrees.

Soulframe question I used to catch up on my above notes

Q: If you could go on a date with a warframe, which one?… me, it's Grendel. Ben: what would you do on that date? Questioner: just eat :) Geoff: Excalibur? (Rebb: that's very Raphael-coded of you. Little Baldur's Gate reference for you) Mag: Probably Valkyr. Rebb: why choose? All of them >:) Ben: pick one for me. Rebb: Mirage. Ben: What would I do? Rebb: Circus act. You are the circus.

Q: What was your favourite part of developing 1999, and Ben, what was your favourite part of voicing Arthur? A: Some stuff we haven't announced yet. As with most characters I play, there's something lovable about him despite his rough exterior… rough but he's nice about it. He's gonna do something to you, but he's gonna kiss you afterward. Rebb: I think it's quite sacred to introduce protoframes like this. We're being quite sacred about it (it's not Mag and Excal, it's Aoi and Arthur). Ben: The ways in which you're exploring that dynamic is very cool, and very 90s.

Q: Rebb, what are the things that plague you? A: My plagues are supported by the development team. I'm not alone; whenever I have an ailment, I have someone that to help support me with it. Geoff: I've genuinely never seen someone care so much. He gets teary. \*audience cheers as REBB DESERVES\* Same asker: when is my girl Titania getting buffed? A: Controversial question, she's pretty strong. I could see Tribute receiving some QOL to be easier to use (some Tribute). But those dex pixia, they do kill.

Q in a Warframe sweater with a Warframe backpack!: Which NPC would you be most likely to be besties with? Ben: Fibonacci Rebb: We love you Neil! Ben: If you don't have a cranky fish as a friend, what are you doing. Megan: I love Ordis :) especially little trash can ordis Rebb: you better say Lotus, Geoff >:) Geoff: Lotus. Rebb: Hard not to love Little Duck. We'd be besties for sure, drinking in the back room.

Q: if Teshin can have his head crushed and come back, what about Veso? A: He died a hero, I'm sorry.

Q: When can we get points to Dante his brother? A: ??? audience member yells out "VIRGIL!" Rebb: \*laughs\* maybe the bike is Virgil (This is a devil may cry reference)

Q: clan to clan interaction? Haven't had that since solar rails? A: Ok so in the urn we have squad link.. \*laugh\* We are trying to do more clan events. They work for by the book tasks. There's opportunity there we haven't explored. No leaderboards. I'll try to do more.

Q: I'm curious how you develop characters as a Warframe team. I've noticed a lot of references to mythology. A: it's a library of devs that have passions. The team is just really diverse and loves really cool shit. The amount of inspiration we get to name things thematically, we have touched lore I didn't know existed. When it comes to Warframes, we're still looking at old Keith Thompson drawings… he's built different.

Q: I'm sorry to take you back in the morgue. Void keys. Will there be a return to the old void and endless missions? A: We're not in the morgue here, we're in ICU. Visiting hours are open. I loved the old voidkey system. We did a soft tease with Dagath keys, it had wins and losses… There were user experience problems. But it's not totally dead. The omnia fissures are kind of that vibe. You can bring any relic to an omnia fissure and just haul ass.

Q: Can we get a toggle for Protea's visor? A: The rigging artist working on it talked about it. Maybe. You're right, it would be nice.

Q: Fashion frame question. Have you considered a DE color palette, like, Megan's greatest hits? A: That sounds like a great idea :) We're doing it.

Q: Are we ever going to see new necramechs? A: I hate saying probably not. No new ones in 1999 at least. We're touching up the ones we have before we go to the morgue, and grab a skull, to make a a new one. Sorry

Q holding a Clem plushie: when more Clem??? A: We'll see. Clem holds a special place in our heart. He's not in the morgue, I promise.

Q: I've been coerced into asking a question on behalf of someone who's not here. He's made it clear if I don't get a satisfactory answer I won't see my family again. Are there any plans to look at spawn rates for loot and reactants? A: I'm gonna keep talking until you can get your family out safely, I'm filibustering. There's performance issues, we want to get safe on all platforms. The worst offenders we can probably fix. We can increase reactant drop rates. Loot rates is harder to solve.

Q: if you have Drifter selected, can you use drifter melee? A: We thought it was important to keep drifter melee in duviri, but… why not? We could try. Drifters can't mod though. It's not impossible, but it'd take some time.

Q: Warframe being predominantly PVE, has there been talk of collaboration among clans? A: I implied it with the other question, but a social benefit would be great. I'd love to see you make friends with other clans

Thanks to the DE team for your hard work <3 supporting us for 11 years!

visual assets are either my own stream screenshots or from DE's devstream overview

[underspacegame]

Patch 1.37.0 for Underspace is now live!

Hello starchasers! Did you have a good The Game Awards? Did you see that trailer without any gameplay? Yeah that sure was a trailer. Did your favorite game lose? My cat's favorite game lost and now he's overcome with despair.

I'm sorry to the both of you, but maybe you should play better games, like Underspace.

Anyway, this is possibly our last patch for the year, and it's a good one. All our patches are good, mind you.

Update Highlights

There's a lot of new little QoL things here, most of these requested features. Whose procrastinating on doing the big milestone update? Not this guy, no sir. Anyway we've made rare skill reset items that can be used now. These aren't replacing the NPCs that can also reset your skills, it's just another option on top of that.

I've also added a way to define a controller override for controller presets. Again, not sure how crazy this'll get. There's a reason the game screams MOUSE AND KEYBOARD RECOMMENDED every chance it gets.

There's new UI stuff now too, such as star system descriptions displaying known stations and any active bounties.

Finally, on the subject of new models, Shadowspear now has better models for his weakpoints and the Loco Star finally has a proper cab fit for an engineer. Not a conductor. Conductors don't drive the train. You should know this by now.

And lots of other things. This is honestly a pretty featurefilled little patch, so check out the full notes.

Changelog is as follows:

NEW FEATURES

Added door sounds to animated opening doors.

Added lots of intermediary quests between campaign missions that tell you to go get stronger or wait a bit, to help teach players about the concept of delayed gratification.

Added attacks to big kill and structure demolition… structures. You know what I mean.

Added new skill reset items, single use objects that let you reset your skills anywhere. They’re rare drops from wrecks, quests, or able to be crafted at endgame levels for a high cost.

Added a controller preset override, which allows you to specify a pre-existing layout for any controller plugged in. Not sure how crazy this’ll get, I don’t use controllers.

The Loco Star now has its own cockpit model.

Star system descriptions now display known stations and current bounties.

Amaron will now appear as a potential starchaser ally after finishing Off Track.

Creon will now appear as a potential starchaser ally.

CHANGES AND REBALANCES

You can now individually clear or reset specific keys.

Increased the number of missions that can be offered at any given time.

Keypad animations are much faster now.

Redid the lighting on many Washer stations to better fit the atmosphere of the faction in question.

Redid details in Oldjarri Church.

Changed the weakspots for Shadowspear to be more visible rings and adjusted the hitbox for them.

Player achievement text now tracks the number of storm hazards you’ve seen and is slightly more readable.

Campaign missions now count the same as completed random missions in code.

Increased the speed and mining rate of all mining drones, and removed their energy degeneration.

Changed some scenery in smuggling stations.

Reduced the spawn distance of some storm hazards.

Assassination missions will no longer be offered if the player is not at least neutral with the shake down faction in question and if the faction in question is able to spawn in the star system.

Rampage missions no longer require enemies to be killed in the same system where the mission was taken.

Changed certain faction mission offerings.

FIXES

Fixed issue where the cycle weapon group button wouldn’t work.

Fixed issue where Brute Innovation would spawn the item too close to the player.

Fixed issue where quest finales could be interrupted by things like pirates, gods, car warranty scams, etc.

Fixed issue where keypad sounds were too quiet and mixed up.

Fixed issue where email login UIs couldn’t be tabbed through.

Fixed flickering lights in customization hangars.

Fixed various flickering lights in places.

Fixed bartender NPCs that weren’t tending bars.

Fixed issue where Rust Drones had bad hitboxes.

Fixed issue where Rust Beams could hit your detection sphere.

Fixed issue where mission 15 dialogue could close prematurely

Fixed text culling issues in the Ijuni fighter cockpit.

Fixed issue where some menus could be accessed even when the game was paused.

Fixed issue where Ancient Secrets would pop up too early.

[quaddmgd]

so i played soul reaver 1 remastered up to the Sarafan Tomb and i really enjoy the visual changes and QOL features added.

new models look great and and at times terrifying when they have to. i love that some of them got granted some semblance of facial animation. i liked the facial animations of tr remastered more, but anything is much better than what we had on PS1.

i like the texture work much better than disjointed hd textures of tr remastered; here it feels more like just playing a new port of soul reaver (kinda like the dreamcast version but on a much greater scale) instead of an hd texture mod (most of which suck for such old games).

overall there are less noticeable visual changes than tr remastered thanks to the original soul reaver's lighting. it still does look great no matter which graphics you choose, but remastered looks give you also better player shadows and some dynamic lighting from the reaver and other stuff that should give off light.

both new (beautiful) map and compass are fun to look at and give locations the much needed spacial context without having to remember blood omen's map (or playing bo in general). i imagine they are helpful for new players, but i can't tell for sure since i kinda moved around from memory.

i LOVE the brand-new day-night cycle. corrupted nosgoth at night looks even gloomier than i imagined. at first i thought it wasn't that noticeable, but it turned out i just hadn't reached the night yet. one small gripe - it can make platforming very hard due to no light sources around the map. idk if it really needs to be fixed since i only played through one night so far but yeah. maybe give raziel an optional light aura like of an angel he is... idk we'll see.

as of now i only found a few minor issues, which is not a lot compared to what tr fans found in their respective remasters. first of all the lighting issues are non-existent here since the game uses its original lighting. the skybox after emerging outside for the first time gets messed up in one place due to weird mountain geometry, raziel's new model once obscured the original camera framing for a second and in a few liminal spaces the camera goes haywire as the game takes a second-long stutter - something that wasn't there in the original release.

overall it's worth every penny and i love it. i love that i can call it a definitive way to play soul reaver. i can finally recommend these games to people that don't have older hardware or don't know how/like to use emulators.

i only skimmed through bonus content and haven't played the lost levels yet, so i'm hyped to do that. i've seen some familiar art and names in the fanart section, though, and it made me smile.

and since, like tr, both games run on their original engines i was hoping for the file structure to be as open as back then and i'm not disappointed! can't overstate how great this is for data mining and modding.

i'm so happy that legacy of kain is back and i can only hope for it to stay that way, especially with the dead shall rise and other projects on the way. i really hope to see defiance getting remastered one day, maybe with some new gameplay QOL features, possibly alongside both blood omen 1 and 2 as a new remaster package. without it i doubt we'll get a direct sequel that would finally finish the story after it was left on a cliffhanger 21 years ago.

[thephantombelow]

brief bluesky thoughts

actually gave bluesky a proper look because every look I have gave it so far has just been a "man this is just twitter but again what is the point" and closed it so went in with the intention of actually trying to see what is different

Bluesky is, UI wise, fundamentally the same as Twitter, however, it is like, just different enough that it has its merits. The fact it is not Twitter is good enough for most people but that has never been enough for me as like Twitter's UI sucks ass, it has to be that and then more to be worth it.

Bluesky, upon a further examination, has surprised me as clearly they have added quite a bit to it / I just have not looked at it well enough as there are numerous QoL features for the user that are fairly decent. For one, block lists are just... built-in to the site. So are follow lists! This is soooo nice. Very quickly I saw someone built a list of every AI/NFT account out there and I can just say I want to block everyone on this list and every time someone gets added to the list I have them blocked. Nice! This rocks. Seems like the increased the character limit to 300 at some point too? Not too sure why it exists, to be frank, that said, but it is fine, small indie social media or what have you. On the note of the follow lists thing though, a lot of it has to be done by the users, which is an bit of a compromise but probably better than the site itself doing this. It is a unique approach to how you have to deal with this site, but it works. I can't think of anything better, and it works anyway, so not bad.

A lack of trending tab and seemingly fewer amounts of algorithm bullshit than other sites is interesting and promising. My quick scroll through, following accounts that I like, following friends from other sites, etc., has shown like... No posts I dislike yet. Interesting. No overly negative posts, seems like. I can't tell yet whether this is a bit from the user base or if it is something different about the way the site itself is designed. Maybe a bit of both. Seems like there are a lot of users have practically been begging people to be normal, so probably seems like a bit from the users. A lack of trending tab is based, also.

Also on the topic of odd user based things that give some level of QoL, there are labels. Massive fuckass big lists that just you have to scroll through to find the thing that applies to you, but it works. It works well but does have that problem of being controlled by users, so can be a little scuffed at times. Very good and nice their backend allows for just liking posts from account adds a label if an account has been set up correctly though. Seems like Bluesky's backend is quite extensive on that bit. Any issues about this bit are created by the users of the label systems not Bluesky though, ie delays from liking a post to a label being added aren't from Bluesky's backend being slow but from the user who created the lists' system being slow.

I am a bit interested how exactly they are going to monetize it as there apparently is no ads and the most they got is selling domains which is a good short term solution but the site is growing fairly rapidly. I am assuming they are just going to sell user info, because of course, but like outside of that what long term monetization do they have? Is it going to be another Cohost situation or is this going to be a site that truly is *different*, somehow. I have my doubts how long the site is going to last, but then again we have been saying that about this hell site for years now, so who knows. This is the one bit I am scared about.

Are these features worth it though? Eh. Probably. Seems the fact is people are actually using the site now, which is cool. I hope it stays popular as a replacement, and the shitheads of Twitter instead go either to here (lol), to Reddit, or like, idk man, Threads? Do people use that app? Seemed like it got a big boost on the Google Play Store, anyway, so idk man. Probably some shitheads did. Seems like there is not that many weird right-wing weird fuckheads on Bluesky anyway, and the general userbase is like, weirdly normal or least not annoying about it.

I hope it goes places, man. I think the current state of social media is very fucky with there just being like... TikTok, Instagram, sort of Twitter but not really it is on fire, so now sort of Bluesky, and the rest of the sites are also on fire in different ways and that sucks. There are no healthy sites right now that can be counted as social media so probably at least one more that actually has an user base is a good thing. I have been begging people to use Tumblr but no one wants to and hey, the CEO of this site is having an Elon tier meltdown as we speak and getting sued by like 8 different groups and sueing 7 as well. There is like a 60% chance this site actually dies this time for real this time I swear so having a site that might also die in a year or two because it has no funding but at least seems *fine* is nice.

Better than fucking using Reddit, at least.

[bewildered-angel]

QoL features

Hello!

The next update I will put out will be a bunch of Quality of Life improvements to the current game. There's quite a few things that can be smoothed over or polished!

Below I'll list all the things I'm considering. Now that isn't to say I'll do all of them! Some of them might turn out to be unnecessary or prohibitively difficult/time-consuming to accomplish. But I want your opinions about them, and I also want to hear what QoL features you would like to see in the game! 

These are supposed to be improvements to the already existing game, mostly changes in UI. I don't have to time right now to add big new features and mechanics.

Here's what I'm thinking about:

Keyboard Input - This is a popular request to be able to play the game solely by keyboard

Highlight Common Element Previews - I want to indicate to the player what Common Elements are covered by the characters they have selected when picking a stage

Improve Map Navigation - Click and drag can be kind of a chore over long distances, I want other options for moving the map

Characters on the Start Menu - I haven't updated this in a long time! I want everybody there!

Options for sorting characters - I want to sort them by level up cost, weight, favorite food, and abilities

Smarter Map default location - Right now the game just focuses on the earliest incomplete level when you return to the map screen, this is a pain to deal with if you're retrying an old level for better times or in a branched area

Improve font - The 1 and the 7 look too much like each other in the current font!

Better Indication of cooldown and KO - Right now these are indicated by shading the character portrait, which I don't think is clear enough!

Some way to review the information about stats - Right now this is a tutorial message that only shows up the first time you go to level up. If you miss it the first time, you're outta luck!

Increase the multiplier for favorite food? - I'm really on the fence about this one. If the multiplier was bumped up to say, 4x, that would speed up the game and reward picking characters particularly well suited for each level. But that also punishes using your favorite characters if they're sub-optimal.

Bestiary? - For checking monster stats! Maybe? Another one I'm not sure about.

Preview the exact rooms/monsters? - Sometimes the Common Element display doesn't give you a good idea of what's really going on. Maybe when you're retrying a level it tells you exactly what you'll face?

Buff Armor? - Right now Armor just isn't as exciting as the other support abilities! Maybe all I need to do is double or triple the value?

See Best Crew Along with Best Time in Level Select - So you don't have to remember what the best party comp for each stage is!

Common Elements Display Needs to Prioritize Damage Type (Weapon, Magic, Etc) over Food Type - Damage type is just more relevant!

What do you think about these changes? What other changes would you like to see?

[ask-obt]

A question for Woo. Would you enjoy an explorers DX getting revealed on the upcoming Pokemon Day?

// if this hypothetical proposes that this sort of explorers DX would be almost exactly the same in execution to rescue DX then I'd have to say................ no..............

before you bring out the pitchforks, let me explain myself. anyone who attends my streams or catches me in the wild in discord servers knows that I don't really like how the 3d games look. it's not as much a debate on "does pixel art or 3d models look better", but more "which style does chunsoft handle better", which I can sum up how I feel about in one screenshot

which is to say, my main problem with the 3D games is that the charm kinda got sucked straight out of them. it's true that pixel sprites have limitations- it's why we have portraits to more easily convey how characters are feeling, and your brain can fill in any missing details. but with 3D games, every aspect is able to be rendered out, and if you aren't going 100% all in, it's a lot more easy for the intended emotions to fall through. we have the ability to have pokemon emote like this now,

so why on earth is this the range that we're stuck with for PMD?

the simplest answer I can think of is that chunsoft is trying to apply the same strategy they used with sprites onto 3D models... which I think could work in theory, but not in the way they're applying it. as is, they don't have the models emote much and rely on portraits to carry the intended emotion through. the models also have some of the most stiff rigging I've seen in any game to date. I'm sure it has something to do with hardware limitations, but if that's the case I don't see why they couldn't create something that would fit their needs better like pokemon rumble's low poly models. well I know the answer is that they don't wanna actually render new 3D models for a PMD game and just use the library of models they got from gamefreak, but I like to think something like XY or ORAS's overworld models would make for a nicer looking game.

one pet peeve of mine is seeing folks praise DX for its unique look, which I think is true for the backgrounds!... but not really the models. I don't think putting an outline and paper texture overlay on the models is particularly revolutionary. it's a good direction to start, but far from peak aesthetic.

other problems I have with DX are how the main hub areas look (the grass for pokemon square is so blown out I have to play the game with lowered saturation and a darkened screen), and how the general UI looks in the dungeons. idk if it's because I'm neurodivergent or if it's just a "me" thing, but there's so much useless information being thrown at me at all times in a dungeon that it makes it really hard to focus on what's happening

I imagine this is mostly a side effect of losing the dual screen ability on the switch and I don't really have a proposed solution, but at least removing the text bubbles that come up every single time you get attacked or use a move would be a good start. maybe just save those for critical hits or smth idk, I don't really need to hear every single thought that comes out of my team.

I also think accessibility features like the auto-dungeon crawl feature are nice for those who want it, but it does feel a little overpowered by (seemingly) knowing exactly where the stairs are in a dungeon, which can take the exploration aspect out of playing the game. I'd also like the ability to disable that feature in a menu since I tend to misclick sometimes and accidentally activate things lmao

I just kinda tore into DX, but there are a few things I do like about it. the gummi system is vastly improved first of all (thank god I can stop grinding for one million gummis), and I think the dungeon environments are some of the best to come out of the series. I also think the models wearing scarves is super cute, I loved it in Super and am glad it made a return here. I'm sure there are other QOL features I'd like in theory but I kinda... didn't get very far in the game due to the aforementioned graphical and UI issues that felt like actual sandpaper to my brain.

if there was an explorers DX, I actually think one fun direction the series could take is something like pokemon cafe remix or paper mario, which is still the energy of a 2D game just using nice looking art assets instead of sprites. I just think a PMD game that looks like this could be really cute and charming...

and it'd probably be closer to chunsoft's wheelhouse since it'd take notes from how they put the sprite games together! just wishful thinking though. my current crack theory is that rescue DX was just to test the waters for how popular PMD still is and maybe to test out the engine on switch before releasing an original game, a la let's go pikachu/eevee to sword/shield. I doubt they'll make an explorers remake.

[curejiraiya]

Thinking about it, fashion dreamer would have been a FANTASTIC $10 game. We're in the time of crazy inflation so really $25. I could see a greedy company pricing it at $35. Any more thought and it's just not worth it.

I love fashion dreamer, but there's not a lot of content. What is there is fun, but in like Style Savvy even without the story you'd still get to do characters hair and makeup and nails and pick out bags for them and scarves and bracelets and give them a WHOLE look. In fashion dreamer you JUST give them outfits.

The scoring system in fashion dreamer IS REALLY bad like it's not at all clear what counts for what category. Which is frustrating when it was crystal clear in style savvy.

The UI is clunky.

WTF were they thinking with "Type A" and "Type B"???? I'm not the only one to complain about this. But seriously it was done so poorly. It's clearly just men and women but late in development someone said "fuck make it gender inclusive". but they didn't change anything but the wording used. Ideally they would have not had types at all. But if they wanted to keep types they needed to make two versions of every item when modeling them. Some misinformed people are saying this isn't possible or is more work. But news flash, every item in this game was made from scratch. It was THEIR CHOICE to make completely separate items during modeling. They very well could have had their employees make two versions of each piece. Someone on the directors board didn't want it that way. Yeah they can't change it NOW but it's frustrating that they're pretending to be inclusive when it's very clear that from the games launch this wasn't in its design.

The game lags when you get more items, but also encourages you to get as many items as possible, but also has a 5000 item cap because of the lag.

I hate the online component lol I wasn't expecting this to be a 100% social game where you're missing content if you're not online ig. I just do notttttt want to interact with strangers in a game like this.

At the same time customers are currently pissed because the first event broke the servers so they took it down and it's been weeks and it's not back up. IMO limited events in a full price game like this is FUCKED, but they're ALSO online mode exclusive (that's so fucked!) so I can't even access the content.

It kinda seems like the reason it's not back is because staff went on Christmas break. If so ..... ooof

ALSO items from the event are fucking SINGLE USE. ?????????? this is a paid game what the fuck. Why are their single use anything? Why are events time limited? If you buy the game late you'll never get these items despite PAYING for them.

I wasn't really expecting much from the updates but really we should treat them like they don't exist. The first one just had two QOL features that should have been at launch. And with that in mind this is not a full priced game. It's not worth more than $25. This isn't the first time we've gotten a shallow, unfinished, and presumablypresumably rushed game from marvelous. and it probably won't be the last. I officially do not trust that team whatsoever. I doubt synsophia provided anything for the game other than the fashion itself, and maybe the NPCs, because the rest of it doesn't feel like their product in the way style savvy or PriMagi arcade does. I wish they didn't partner with them.

Like obviously me and everyone else wishes this was a style savvy game instead. But even without that, I wish this game had more soul. I also wished it felt finished? The actual gameplay loop feels finished but the UI does not. Not having all of the basic sort functions from Style Savvy (color / Item type / style) makes the game feel like a beta test. I stopped playing because someone will ask for red shoes and I have to scroll for 45 seconds to find them while I watch everything slowly pop in.

The removal of money and buying items in quantities is a blow to depth too, because in Style Savvy someone would ask for a cool shirt and you have to hope you still have one in stock. Meanwhile in fashion dreamer this is only a problem for the first hour before you have enough of everything.

Like style savvy had more AND had a story. frustrating. Again I don't mind no story, I get that that's better for modern audiences. But they lost me because of lack of depth everywhere else. ugh

I don't hate this game! I think it's a cute small play once a week or once a month pickup for 2 minutes game. But that's NOT how it's priced. I also think they're REALLY REALLY REALLY fumbling how they're handling events. If they wanted to handle events the way they are right now they game needed to be free to play.

[eziojensenthe3rd]

Midnight Gaming: Serious Tooning

So last night I played Serious Sam 2 past midnight, checked socials later to find.... nothing notable to report. Welp no news segment today.

So when I did my post on the serious sam games for midnight gaming, I felt a bit bad about how I felt about Serious Sam. I know the games are good when you're facing off against tons of enemies but at times, depending on the difficulty, it can either be slow to build up to that momentum with some difficulty spikes now and then or just downright malicious with enemy spawns. And then theres BFE which is just downright bad. So I decided last night to try and delve a bit more into serious sam and try to lock in to a game in the series that i've felt uneasy going close before: Serious Sam 2, a game that repelled me before because of its cartoony aesthetic.

So I decided to install the game on my steam deck, load it up and had trouble with the graphic settings. Trying to change the resolution ends with me having a black screen and needing to exit the game, I turn off settings like bloom and lens glare because they suck and of course, turn the dialogue and subtitles all off. Yeah similar to Borderlands 3, you can turn off the annoying dialogue which in my previous attempts at SS2 I didnt think to do. As a result I only got maybe halfway through the first world before quitting and never touching it again.

So heres the thing, I may or may not have seen this and forgot about it but apparently in 2021, Serious Sam 2 got an update which added a lot of features, starting a new game will present you with options to change the enemy amounts, allow for combo weapons, sprinting and to enable a radar. This is important because this made playing SS2 a lot more enjoyable this time around. Dual wielding any combination of weapons you want is one of those ideas that make you wonder why they didnt do it more often. Usually its just the pistols that can be dual wield, the vr titles let you do that while SS4 has it locked behind skills. Being able to fire a rocket launcher in one hand with a double barrel in the other for close encounters feels like the most ideal way to play serious sam, combine that with the grenade hotkey which is original to SS2 and you can effectively have three weapons at once.

That radar that was included in the update is also just a nice quality of life, showing enemies on the radar so you dont have to scan the enviroment for them. Wheres that screaming bomber running from? Right there on the radar pal. I actually ended up getting much further into SS2 this time around compared to my previous attempts, got to the asian stereotype planet before I called it for the night and I felt pretty satisfied. Before I said the cartoony vibes didnt vibe well with me but thinking on it, it actually does fit with the chaos of the Serious Sam series, the colourful hordes of enemies exploding in a color of death, what other genre works better than the one thats most associated with slapstick violence. The main issue was that the dialogue and cutscenes were trying to go for a saturday morning vibe with corny jokes that seem more geared towards children, in a game that contains a lot of over the top violence and gore. Speaking of cutscenes, for some reason the cutscenes played in two windows both overlayed with a green and purple hue. Since i've mostly been skipping them, its not that big of a deal.

So yeah, Serious Sam 2, a very unappealing game for its cartoony look, has now become one of my favourite serious sam games thanks to that update. Its kinda sad that the reception to this led to croteam abandoning any notion of doing any similar to it, in favour of the prequels but now I want a game that matches the chaos of 2 but without the corny attempts at humor, maybe aim for something like the saints row series? Infact, The Next Encounter was kinda like that.

All in all, i'm sorry Serious Sam 2, you were a lot better than I gave you credit, all it required was a few qol features and changes to break through the surface to what was great about you. Like a durian fruit, stench like hell but a taste like heaven. And for you reading this, maybe consider giving it a go too.

Croteam please bring The Next Encounter back. Remaster it or put up a port come on.

Thats all for today, thank you all for reading. Feel free to leave some feedback or game suggestions. Anons are currently on.

[charmcoindied]

also maybe i'm just biased because i grew up with darkness but i feel like some of the extra features in sky are kind of...extraneous? i don't see the point of lookalike items (which i've only encountered like twice) and the secret bazaar also feels kind of silly because all of its features outside of grab bags are things you can already accomplish with orbs/other items.

that being said there is a LOT of extra content in this game like the special episodes (have not touched these yet!) and everything added to the postgame story and whatnot that definitely makes sky worth picking up over time/darkness as well as some qol changes like held items not getting unequipped and the game telling you if you already recruited a pokemon or not but a couple things just make me go "why did you add this"

[william-s-churros]

painful definitive edition thoughts from one playthrough lol

i mean its lisa, so am i gonna complain that much? the campfire conversations are a nice touch, but they're so sporadic and im not sure how to trigger them so i wasted a lot of time and resources trying to get the damn things to happen. as for the rest of the game tho, it really is pretty much exactly the same, just with an added layer of frustration to get bonus content thats like. fine i guess. the terry convo is obviously very charming and sweet but its kinda like i feel like the trailer/promo material kinda overpromised this feature lmfao

SPEAKING of overpromising... i was really hoping for more enemies lmfao.... area 3 has always felt extremely unbalanced to me and i was kinda hoping like. something would be done about that, but it wasnt, so whatever. i do feel like im the promo stuff it was stated there would be more battles but perhaps i just misunderstood?

anyways, its lisa! obviously i had fun playing it. i was just kind of hoping it would be like... harder.... or like maybe had an even harder mode than pain mode... outside of savescumming to bring back guys who died in battle and falling off a cliff once, i think i only game overed during battle once? i dont give brad joy and i usually play one-armed, tho i have beaten it armless and even then i still didnt struggle as much as i hoped i would... oh how i miss the highs of being killed by the mens hair club like 5 times before getting into the proper groove of things and the rush of finally defeating them... i guess this is just what happens when youve played a video game like 20 times.... you git gud as they say. sometimes i really appreciate the ability to stunlock (for ex, when fighting an enemy with permadeath moves lol) but sometimes being able to do that really detracts from the challenge ykwim?

who knows, tho. theres probably some kind of fanmod for masochists like me out there and maybe i should look for it. most of the ones i have seen as qol mods that make painmode easier which is basically the opposite of what i want lmfao.

anyways, all in all-- its lisa! most of the character information i got from campfire conversations is extremely compatible with my own headcanons already too so lmao. its validating i suppose! but its kind of on me i think for hyping it up in my own head. i am curious to see what becomes of this fandom as more people play this game this way.

ive heard theres a secret ending if you get all the companions that im gonna try for next. maybe its all worth it... we'll see.

also i still gotta play joyful! i do wonder if a lot of the changes made were to joyful bc that game felt like such an afterthought in many ways lmfao. we'll see igss! im probs gonna keep replaying these games forever because i love them, but yeah. i guess i was expecting more lmfao. but i still liked it! and im excited to try and get other things, but i do sort of feel like like easter-eggy character interactions is cheap in terms of replay value for me anyway, maybe id feel differently if i were still at that stage with the game that i found the battles really challenging and stuff, idk, lmfao

OH EDIT; super appreciated the toning down if not outright omission of the antiblackness in the original game, altho the american indian stuff was still pretty stereotypes, tho im not entirely sure what you could do abt that besides a complete overhaul of the blood moon area lol

[manonamora-if]

Retrospective 2022 (4)

Last post, I promise!

After looking back in the past, time to look forward!

Going back to the super cool infographic I made, there's still a lot. BUT, I will try to follow a resolution this year:

Get things off my desk and shelf it for good.

I honestly have too many working projects on my hands, too many "completed" projects I should finish (or give a nice send off like I did for Meeting the Parents). So this will be my goal for this year: finish and shelf as many projects as I can.

To this, I was tempted to add and not starting any new ones. But knowing myself, that's not something that I can realistically promise. With a couple of jams and comps I had planned on participating/hoped to take part since last year, I have a feeling there will be a few additions to the game pile by the end of the year. Will this be a terrible idea? 100%. Will that stop me from trying to squeeze a few jams/comps? Nope. Not at all. I have no self control...

With that announced, the more detailed expectations/schedule with no date below the cut.

OH! and continue to do word crimes :P

The "list" should be the planned arrangement (first to last) for the year. Unless I get bored and change my mind. Because, let's be honest, that's what my brain does best...

I won't give any timeline, because I can't keep it and I can't seem to be able to predict how much time all this work will take me. Maybe I'll be quick, maybe I won't. But I'll announce the release/updates about a week or two in advance.

P-Rix - Space Trucker

What I had been working on during the End-of-Year Holidays was editing the missing content and code it. This will include opening the world to the player and introducing new mechanics (technically already coded but missing the flavour text).

Since the UI is currently static, playing it on mobile is not advised. It will be a headache, but that needs to be done. Also needed: more QoL settings (animation toggle, timer/typewriter amount etc...).

On this blog, expect an actual shareable Intro Post with all relevant links/features sometimes... *shrugs*

La Petite Mort

Because of the 4h time constraint of the EctoComp, I wasn't able to include all rooms I wanted to include. You were supposed to explore the whole house/garden and not the current available rooms/space, and interact more with other NPCs. A proper/more-than-one-line ending was drafted too. The journal would get crossed off then a task was completed, and you'd get some codex/diary when finding some stuff about the Grandma.

So that's the plan on the addition (with some quick UI edits for the Dialog boxes). And the English translation to go along (because you should all be able to experience this fun puzzle/quest bit.

Oh! and an actual Intro Post as well.

Goncharov Escapes!

Made quickly and not edited before posting, Gonchy needs a bit of TLC. I also want it to fit the whole vibe I'm going for with all my projects (the logo/manonamora presents/etc...).

And a French translation (because I can/want to share my games in different languages). Since there are like 4k words total, it might not take me too long. When I get to it.

Exquisite Cadaver

Planned already for the last semester, but didn't get to it (yay writer's block!). Well not completely. I did open my file during the autumn, but didn't write more than a handful of words. The main issue with this project is that all rounds have an ending (distinct from the other endings) which have not yet been written or drafted (unlike the actual rounds). So I am left with 15-20 workable/potentially playable rounds but no endings. And, stubborn as I am, I don't want to upload a round without its linked ending.

So writing, editing, coding, writing, editing, coding, etc...

Maybe a complete release this year? Big Question Mark on it.

ALSO: that is when the whole game is done, I would want to try and port it into French. There are some HUGE challenges (gendered languages/adjectives going before OR after the noun/etc...), but it's something I'd want to take a crack at. BUT, that's like super future. Next year or year after that timeline-wise.

The Trials and Tribulations of Edward Harcourt

Chapter 3 coming when the edits are done. The ball is in MelS's court, but we are in the final round of editing (after more back and forth than the other chapters, we kept bickering about some sentences).

Any further update is dependent on MelS and the free time he has. Chapter 3 may be the only update this year, or maybe we'll have a couple more after it. We will seeeee...

The Thick Table Tavern

Now we are really going into the maybe territory. This would be dependent on the time/energy because there are a lot of things in there that either need fixing, re-coding, adding. Because this was always a large project, it won't be something easy to get off my desk (unlike the ones above).

BUT, if the stars align and ladida...

Addition to the story would come only in form of storylets (like the ones currently in the game) and other events (like the Brom shenanigan). Ideally, I would want to add the recurrent NPCs, but the 14-day story would need some/a lot of re-organising.

Opening the possibility of playing the full 14 days or creating a way to spend the coins earned.

Achievements!

Fixing/Balancing the mixing elements

More stuff that is written on a paper at home somewhere in a drawer...

I know some of you would want this to be ported for mobile, but I don't think it would be realistic considering the Bar Gameplay/UI. I might take a crack at it, but don't hold your breath for that one.

Crimson Rose & White Lily

The I really want to update this but words are not coming out project. The I definitely went over my head with this one project. But also the I promise this is not abandoned project. After updating the story 3 times last year (with the last one getting a long edit/re-write), I've had a hard time continuing/going back to the story itself.

If I can't get Scene 5 out this year (which is probable, it looks to be chunky), I would like to try to get one small variation out at least (the Scene 2 secret forking or the Harbour afternoon). Even that, I can't promise it happening. All dependent on the above projects.

Honestly, my only hope is being able to start writing more than 10 words on the document at this point... Maybe even if it is just a prompt.

SugarCube Template

Obviously this is coming back! Creating weird templates is really fun. And I want to create more shapes (like maybe a circle/oval?) with the page.

There's that promised Space/Sci-Fi one that are still not here (my SeedComp! entry will probably become that, but in a more simple form, and mobile accessible).

Since I've been working on adding more accessibility in my projects (hopefully it actually works for people), I've been wondering if having a basic Settings/Accessibility Macro Template could be useful to people. Like a Copy-Paste for the JavaScrip/CSS for Font Change, Toggle for Animation/Notification, Theme Change, KeyBinding. I might even try to get through the Audio macros once and for all and create a volume slider/mute button. If there are other options I should take into consideration, let me know!

SPS Iron Hammer

That's a super long reach. I would actually be amazed if I make some progress on this project honestly. Especially if I finish the ones above. The only reason I would start the re-writes of SPS IH without having completed the projects above would be because I threw the whole schedule out the window. I am trying not to do that.

Long story short on what is planned:

Puzzles!

More day-to-day job stuff (with more interactivity for each)

A nicer Codex page and functioning stats bars.

Mysteries :o

A brawl.

And more :P

Other

Didn't I just say I'd try not to be involved in Jams/Comps this year? Welp I lied.

There's the @seedcomp-if that I am involved with. Round 2 which is starting soon and last until March 1st. Since I released a seed for the first round, I do want to make a small 5-10min entry for the second one (think Gonchy size/style).

Having done that, I am kind of interested in organising smaller Jams (à-la Fortnight Fiction during the height of Covid or the Sci-Fi Twine one last month). I'll wait until the SeedComp is further ongoing, maybe somewhere in March to plop something. Probably with a word count/time limit.

Also, the @if-confessions's box is still open. Feel free to drop something! It's all anonymous :) It's been fun to get stuff and add to The Discourse TM. Would be nice to get more positive/happy ones tho...

And finally, #coding support is still a thing. Still ongoing. Still down to make tutorials, even for small/basic stuff. Just drop an ask with your question!

I missed answering coding questions...

That should be it? A lot planned, a lot of things I hope to achieve, a lot I will prob not do because I decided to just do jams this year :P Who knows!

2023 is going to be fun!

Last note: I should try to play a few more games/WIPs, and write some reviews...

[wildcatofgreen]

🌻🌻🌻

new ask game send me a 🌻 and ill just tell you whatever the fuck i want

((1. after using the new post editor vs the old post editor and switching back and forth between them on my blogs, i gotta say! old post editor fucks

((though the new post editor has a TON of QoL changes that elevator to more of an equal status ((like, being able to tell when a special thing like italics starts and stops is a fucking amazing feature and i wish it was on the old post editor ((or being able to edit tags, or being able to make text BIG or BIGGER, or things like that

((but running with the old post editor for a while on the qkd blog has brought about some really funny/interesting bits!

((this gimmick is really fun. it feels like ive been running the blog for months but its only been less than one. i love that blog

((2. speaking of--if things havent been obvious so far, then lemme say it outright right now ((i am going through the entirety of poppy's story on that blog, pre-poppy to... an ending, of sorts ((which means events will just sort of happen over there, in slight congruence to when they happened in poppy. such aaaaaaaaas

((this whole thing! in fact, it's happening in a thread right now~.

((at the end of arcs/events i plan on tagging all of the previous posts that took place in that event as like... a relevant tag, so that i might chrono them and maybe my things can be read as a sort of story. this is... going to be a pain. but! i am incredibly committed to all of this now. i am excited. things are going to fucking happen.

((uh, sorry for all the kit-blog talk. i am just kind of. really excited for that blog! i have this base guideline already set for me to follow and i get to explore how this MF goes through the entirety of what-we-know in poppy. including somee other things that are at play because of the nature of just. knowing more than my characters know

((having characters like lila and chicadino just making funni appearances this early into the story is just so much fun you dont even know.

((sidenote bonus thing but i really want chicadino to interact with @/fallen-symphony crew because like. he's a villain, with an outrageous lucky star at that. it'd be REALLY FUCKING FUN. i wanna do arthur interactions IN GENERAL, REALLY

((but alas. there is literally no conceivable way i could approach first about this without majorly breaking things and his knowledge on the world rn. his little birdy would not know about multiverse theory (yet).

((3. im thinking of like, making some slight changes on this blog? to save myself the sanity? but i dont know how. ((i aint stoppin' playing carol--i love this dumbass just as much as i love kit ((but man oh man i look at the amount of threads i have on here versus the amount i have on kit and its like

((well of course im over there more--i can actually count the things i have to do over there. and one of them finished! and another one has a finish line i can conceivably get to! cant say much for the other threads but im sure a finish line can be gotten.

((i do feel bad that activity has waned over here. again, carol has a lot of shit still happening and a lot of things i still havent properly addressed. the ideas are in my head, its just ((pen has to touch paper, y'know? that's it, that's all it is. i dont wanna take on new threads here because i get this anxiety that its just gonna stall me from actually doing things. i already have important threads that do need to get finished that i simply havent touched in like, weeks.

((maybe i just need to find these threads and hyper focus on them and then like, one or two more things. have something that can keep my sanity, well, sane. because otherwise it is going to be very hard for me to keep up things over here.

((i pray that this same issue doesnt occur on qkd. ive been thinking about implementing a thread cap of sorts, just so the overwhelming thing doesnt happen.

((still need to think about things tho. my mind is being RACKED as of current.))

[owlixx]

Mega Man Ideal Game (for me)

So, playing Mega Man 11 made me realize what my ideal Mega Man game looks like.

Basically: Mega Man Universe/Powered Up meets Halo: The Master Chief Collection

From Mega Man 11/Powered Up/Universe

Cutsey, chibi-ish, 2.5D art style

Lots of options for controls, playable characters, etc.

Maybe even just uses the MM11 engine

Double gear system as option (circle back later)

Opposite philosophy from the Legacy Collections - more about representing the old games rather than preserving

From Master Chief Collection (especially when it went to PC):

Unite the entire series under a single application

Start early access, adding one game at a time

Universal controls and settings

Introducing new levels of customization not seen before in original games

Singular hub the whole thing, universal features

Cross-game playlists (all ice levels back to back, that kind of thing)

Tons of leaderboards and achievements

Unique timed challenges

Incentives to play all the games in every style

So more specifically, I don't really need any more robot masters or plot. I feel like we have covered all the bases already. Instead, I want to see every Mega Man game rebuilt from the ground up in a unified engine. They could be sold as a la carte DLC, or perhaps in chunks of "season passes" with maybe 3 games coming out a year. Capcom already does something similar with their arcade collections. Just like those, I want tons of accessibility options and challenge modes across the board, universal screen filters, cute unlocks tied to achievements.

I would settle for something like the recent retro remakes that just redo the graphics but let you toggle with a button, but I'd prefer to have deeper QoL changes.

Specifically, my vision for this game hingers on encouraging players to replay these games over and over again with something a little different every time. Not just by offering achievements, but by offering a myriad of modes that don't actually require huge changes to implement, but make the games feel very different.

This is why I would want the games rebuilt in a new engine, almost like a map pack for Mega Man 11: so that we can add something like Roll as a playable character without having to hard code that into every single game. Admittedly, 7-8 and (hopefully included) MM&Bass are different enough to require some more work, but I think this isn't an impossible vision.

Again, here is just an example of what I am imagining: you go to boot up any of the Mega Man games, 1-11, and you are presented with an overwhelming grid of options, like:

Playable characters: Mega Man (with variants for his ability sets, maybe we can find a way to dynamically alter stage obstacles when he doesn't have slide, for example. Maybe that is asking too much, but the folks in the Metroid/Zelda randomizer communities seem to know a thing or two about stretching games to their limits without making them unplayable), Roll (again, just give her one tiny change like a double jump or altered buster to give her a totally different feel), Proto, Bass, Duo, maybe even X/Zero, maybe even Mega Man.EXE and Volnutt if we are getting crazy, or even potentially every single robot master like Powered Up does. Again, that would require reworking the stages, which wouldn't be manually feasible, but I am sure there is a way this could be accommodated. I would also love the ability to specifically go through each Mega Man game as a fully powered Mega Man from any other game, but again that demands reworking stages, especially ones like Sword Man that use earlier abilities.

Modes: hardcode in restricted modes like buster only, weakness only, no weakness, no charge shot, no slide, one hit, etc. as well as toggles for stuff like pits, spikes, higher health, etc. plus challenges like randomized weapons, reverse screen, time trials, boss rush, things like that.

Even just those two things alone could multiply to create a nearly unlimited amount of new replay value.

As for new QoL changes, I basically just want to see everything from Mega Man 11: hotswapping with buttons or right stick, new character model for each weapon, expanded tutorial, lots of difficulty options, auto shoot, auto charge, optional dedicated slide button, and I would love to see the option to bring the double gear system (or at least the speed gear in the form of a limited-use slowdown) in all the old games as an optional mode. Same with having the slide in 1-2, charge shot in 1-3, jetpack in earlier games, characters in games they shouldn't be in, etc.

TLDR: I want a unified remake of the Mega Man 1-10 in the MM11 engine.

I feel like The X series is too all-over-the-place to do this with, while the Zero and ZX games are too similar to be worth cross-pollinating this way, although again I would love to see X and Zero adapted to classic Mega Man, even if they end up being overpowered.

The other pitch for this game is basically to just...make Mega Man Universe and have it contain the official levels packed-in. Mario Maker has really proven how to do a AAA retro DIY game already, and so has the fangame Mega Man Maker as far as I can tell.

Alternatively, just make something like Power Fighters but include all 88 robot masters. That is still a hefty game, especially if you can build any kind of replay value in.