#and that means that a certain section of the co-op doesn’t like me

[nope-body]

.

[z-1-wolfe]

Parhelion Headcanons (sir this is all for you) @greenbeany

Putting 'em under the cut because they got very long O.O

I- the gnome is Neon I take no criticism. They are often good-natured souls with a more mischievous side, and if that doesn’t describe Neon I’m not sure what does. Playful, funny, good intentions, that my good Bean is our lovable cat personified. Okay Parhelion dnd au with gnome Neon please /j.

I AM SMACKING THE GUN OUT OF YOUR HANDS [runs into a glass wall] dammit,, guess I gotta talk now

I- oh no,, time to fail the exam I guess (turns all your head canons upside down)

Okay they do sleep yes they do. Actually that’s a lie only Ciel sleeps, the other two are insomniacs. Ciel has all of her day to day life planned out to the minute, so she heads to bed at a certain time and wakes up at a certain time, the other two are more of a “we’ll sleep when we’re tired” kinda duo. Unfortunately due to Ilia’s night terrors and Neon’s ADHD they almost never rest. No they do not sleep in a SANE bed, ha why would they have a bed? They sleep in a hammock all tangled up with each other. It’s hard to tell what order they sleep in when they kinda curl into each other. They do not use a duvet, why have a duvet when Neon is a space heater? There are no pillows on the hammock X). OKAY THEIR ROOM, THIS I GOT, it’s a funky mess that is somehow organized thanks to Ciel. Ilia doesn’t own a lot in general but it was her life’s dream to paint her bedroom rainbow so guess what they have now. The other two are too soft and they supported her efforts and they love her despite her poor design sense XD.

I- why closet ASDFG I mean— No they do not share a closet they all have completely different fashion sense and if that was all in one place people would be genuinely terrified. But since they’re broke they had to make do with one walk in closet that they partitioned off into sections. YES THEY DO HAVE MATCHING OUTFITS THEY ARE SO CUTE LIKE THAT. They tend to be like those cute couple outfits with a few variations to match their own personal style. But their favorite matching outfit are these duck hoodies they own courtesy of once again Ilia living out her childhood dreams. No they don’t own many outfits because like I mentioned earlier they are broke x). Hmm thinking about each other’s styles… Ilia think both of her girlfriends have great taste, she loves the well, neon of Neon, and the prim and properness of Ciel. Neon just doesn’t care XD. And Ciel is just, she’s just standing there wishing she could help their fashion sense, but she holds back because “It does suit them in an odd way.” Ciel gets the most compliments on her style hands down, she looks organized and you can bet she saves money to buy outfits that actually accentuate her cuteness. They don’t wear makeup no time for that (in which you learn Z has little to no knowledge in how to apply makeup and doesn’t know how to answer that question)

OH OKAY I LOVE VIDDY GAMES. Ciel likes real-time strategy games because she’s insane and that’s literally all she knows in life thanks to being raised in an upper class family in Atlas. Neon likes open world games, something something she likes the chance for adventure and determining one’s fate for themself. Ilia has never once played a video game until after she defected from the White Fang but I can see her playing something light like Stardew Valley, low stakes kinda games. Hmm, they might play Animal Crossing together? Since it has aspects they all enjoy. They each have an individual switch (Ilia has a coral switch lite) and one shared PC. Okay game with most hours, maybe Minecraft? They still haven’t beat the enderdragon because Neon keeps getting distracted XD. Neon is the bomb at party games though, you can bet she has a perfect score on all the songs in Just Dance. Ciel is a sharpshooter, god knows who taught her how to shoot like that. The biggest splatoon fan is unfortunately not Neon it is Ilia, she loves all the colors in the game ^^. But she and Neon have wracked up quite a few hours in co-op.

Uhhh books!! Ilia likes fanfics :) it’s unfortunately one of the only ways for her to see positive representation of herself. Neon for some reason reads Epics?? Like her favorite is the Epic of Gilgamesh what is up with that?? Ciel reads webtoons :), she reads enough serious stuff for school work and such, she likes to just kick back and relax after all that. Yes they have schedules reading time courtesy of Ciel :). Uhh, they relax by baking together. None of them had many chances to indulge in sweets while growing up so they make full use of their time now. ?? SPOON?? Cuddle hours happen on a whim, the one thing that Ciel can never schedule because she never knows when it’ll occur. They relax the most in the kitchen x) because that’s where they bake, it’s not unusual to find Neon asleep on the counter while she waits for their sweets to rise. They read in the light, Neon is afraid that by reading in the dark that they’ll all ruin their eyesight. Ciel likes the sunrise because she’s up the earliest and is the only one to see it, the other two prefer sunset because that’s usually when their day is about to begin XD.

Favorite spot for dates! The park ^^, they like to go on picnic dates with all their baked goods. There is no plan, usually one of them will randomly pull the other two out of the house because they haven’t touched grass in a while XD. There are no ideas, they share one braincell and they spend too much time doting on each other to use it. Uhm favorite movie genre,,, they like comedy movies :). Their favorite place to eat is this tiny store on the corner of their street that makes mean gyros, they heccin’ love them. Coping with horror, Ilia is desensitized to horror because of the things she’s seen in life, Neon treats it like a game because she knows it’s not real, Ciel, is okay with it, but she gets shook more easily than the other two and they often have to reassure her. No they do not like theme parks, there are too many people around for Ilia and Ciel and Neon respects their boundaries so they tend to go to more quiet places. Uhm heights, Ciel is used to heights because she’s friends with Penny and woah can that girl toss her in the air like she’s a couple of grapes. Ilia doesn’t mind heights but she would prefer to have her feet on the ground. Neon loves the ground so damn much if it leaves her she will cry because man she can’t roller-skate in the air can she, what will she do if the ground is suddenly gone? They like evening dates because it’s normally the only time all three of them are awake enough for it XD. They end a night by sleeping I am not quite sure if there are other ways to end it lmao. They absolutely despise Neon’s roller skating dates but they love how excited she gets about them so they end up becoming as good as professional roller skaters because the smile on Neon’s face when they join her is dazzling.

I am slowly going insane. Yes each girl has a hobby I sure hope they do. Ilia knits, Ciel paints, and Neon writes. I would like to imagine that Ciel would try to schedule time for their hobbies she ends up giving up because all their sleep schedules are wack. Designated chef is Neon (probably made food for FNKI back in atlas), designated driver is Ilia (I mean I like to imagine she stole cars and stuff in the White Fang XD), designated decorator for stuff is normally Ciel though Neon does try to hijack a few of her plans occasionally, designated shopper is Ciel because the other two have no concept of Saving money, and they all work together to clean :). They don’t work together, they believe in keeping their work life and home life separate to prevent their feelings from getting in the way. They do not have pets, none of them have the energy or responsibility to do that, but Ilia did once bring a moose home one day for some reason.

I am nomming on your arm sir. Ilia and Neon get along with Penny surprisingly well, though I do think Ilia would get along with Weiss better? Ruby and Weiss look at Ciel and see a beacon arc Weiss and more or less adopt her despite Ciel being older than the two of them. They might like.. play board games together? Like some of those more team based board games I can’t think of anything off the top of my head, may the best polycule win. I cannot see them in a cuddle puddle to be honest ajcnjsanjs I am so sorry— hmm Ruby and Neon do not know the meaning of formal, as far as they are concerned these are their girlfriend’s friends and that means that by extension these are their friends. Weiss would like nothing to do with Neon after Neon insults Yang during the Vytal festival but she begrudgingly goes on outings with her and hey, now they’re make up buddies for some reason. The parhelion gals take the fs gals to the gyro place they like :). Parhelion gang Is a lot more vocal on their dates because their love language happens to be words of affirmation while the fs gang’s happen to be physical touch. Both polycules are very very affectionate though I will die on this hill.

DARN IT TUMBLR ONLY LETS ME HAVE 10 IMAGES PER POST THIS IS FINE IT WAS JUST ONE MORE PROMPT DARN IT

(Parhelion angst! How do Neon and Ciel react to the news about the dust mine? How do they find out about Ilia getting expelled? Do they find out about the white fang? Is there any faunus stigma afterwards? How does Ciel react to people bullying her Faunus GFS? Does Neon talk to Ciel much after? Do they ever reunite? Does Neon attempt to help Ciel while she grieves Penny? Where the fuck is Ciel now? Is Neon still alive? Does Ilia ever think about them? Does Blake know about them from Ilia?)

BUDDY I CAME TO THE LAST ASK AND NOW ONLY DID I REALIZE YOU MEANT PARHELION BACK WHEN THEY WHERE IN BEACON THIS WHOLE TIME I’M CRYING. (This ask is answered under the assumption that they are already dating back in Atlas Academy) Ciel is fiercely protective of her girlfriends, though people only know that Neon is a Faunus because Ilia masks her traits during her time at the academy. Neon and Ciel are horrified about the news about the dust mines. They know that Ilia is a Faunus and that her parents were working there so they rush to see her as soon as possible. But they’re too late,,, Ilia’s already been expelled for attacking her fellow students. They don’t hear from Ilia for a few years after that and the two slowly drift apart, each blaming the other for not getting to Ilia soon enough. They don’t find out about the White Fang until they reunite with Ilia unfortunately, but they feel sad that Ilia had felt that they only way for her to get revenge for her parents was by joining a militant group (I’m working under the assumption that Sienna only took control of the White Fang shortly before Ilia joined). When Neon learns that Penny didn’t make it after the Fall of Beacon she hesitantly reaches out to Ciel for the first time in a year, and she does try to help. But for Ciel it’s blow after heccin’ blow and she pushes Neon away in a rage. Ciel leaves the Academy after that and goes rogue, working as a huntsman without a license for the poorer parts of remnant. Ilia is unaware of all this drama during the Beacon arc. The next time she hears of any news is during the Fall of Atlas, and she’s scared, scared because she’s still recovering and she just heard Ruby announce to the world that Remnant is under attack, and oh my gosh her ex girlfriends live in Atlas. Neon makes it out alive, though not entirely in one piece, she now has a prosthetic leg. Ilia is the first person to see her, it’s a tearful reunion and they haven’t fully made up yet, but hey it’s a work in progress, now they just have to find out where Ciel is, but when they do they’ll BOTH be there to greet her. Blake has no idea who the fuck Ciel and Neon are lmao, Ilia never told her anything about her past romances when she was in the White Fang.

Oh gosh I think that's it-- And that is it thank you for listening to me ramble about Parhelion you get a juice box for making it this far. Sir I am sincerely sorry for turning your ship upside down please forgive me.

[fishpuncher]

Reviewing Resident Evil games I’ve played for fun

I bought the Resident Evil 2 remake in April of last year and since then I’ve become a fan of the franchise, so I figured I’d do a little review of all the RE games I’ve played listed in sort of release order (remakes taking place of originals)

Resident Evil 1 Remake (2003)

The third RE game I played after the 2 remake and 7, so my introduction to the older games/originals. Honestly a lot of fun, it took me a while to get used to the fixed cameras and the controls (I used the updated alternate controls, not tank) and I never really mastered it but the game is super good. Great puzzles, great atmosphere, and it still looks pretty great 18 years later. The story is also good and isn’t particularly convoluted like some of the later games get lmao

Resident Evil 2 Remake (2019)

The first RE game I played, and what got me hooked on the franchise. I never played the original so I have nothing to compare it to, but this game is almost perfect imo. The puzzles are good, the environments are amazing, and the characters are likable. Mr. X is terrifying (at least in my first playthrough, he’s a lot less scary in subsequent playthroughs) and his chase music is phenomenal. Overall I can’t recommend this game enough.

Resident Evil 3 Remake (2020)

Pretty much everything I said about 2 is applicable to this one as well. Jill and Carlos are great characters and I only wish we got more of them. I know people say that the remake is way shorter and cut-down than the original, but I haven’t played it so I don’t have that frame of reference. As a standalone game, it’s extremely good and the final boss fight is extremely badass.

Resident Evil - Code: Veronica X (2000)

My introduction to tank controls. The game is extremely good, and I’m enjoying it immensely. It can be quite punishing if you forget certain items or don’t conserve your ammo, as I’ve read about players getting to the final boss and having to restart the game because they didn’t bring an item that the game doesn’t even tell you to bring. Luckily I’m an item hoarder in these games, as I’d already grabbed the item before I couldn’t go back for it. The puzzles are good as always, if not confusing as I’m forgetful and have to look up where new items go as I don’t want to spend an hour searching every wall in the game. My main complaint is the sniper battle halfway through the game, as the hitbox for it just seems random more than anything. I love that we get more of Chris too. His casual “Hey” after being thrown by an explosion just kills me. Steve is whiny though and kind of the worst.

Resident Evil 0 (2002)

Pretty okay game, but one that I can’t really recommend. The partner system was pretty good, and made for some amazing puzzles/gameplay at times (getting split up at the beginning and then getting split up in a castle-ish area later). I thought both of those were great uses of the partner switching and more than justify it. However, the reason I can’t recommend this game is almost entirely due to the way you’re supposed to handle items. I play the RE games like a hoarder, every single item goes in the chest. Except this game doesn’t have a chest. You have two inventories with only six or eight (I don’t remember) slots each, and no item boxes. Instead, you can drop items on the ground and pick them up again later. For a hoarder like me, that means a whole lot of backtracking when you advance to the next area. Another annoying thing was the final two boss fights, as they were confusing for my simple brain since one of them is legit just shooting them until they die, but there’s never any indication that you’re affecting it, so I’m running around the room looking for something else that will kill him. In the final fight, it’s the same thing, except the game makes a point of showing you certain parts of the room that are obviously interactable, so I immediately run to those. Only those aren’t used until the second phase of the fight. I like Rebecca and Billy though, and hope that they’ll return at some point.

Resident Evil 4 (2005)

Very fun game, the over the shoulder is a welcome respite from the fixed cameras of 1 and 0, even if it is still tank controls. Leon is very quippy and I’m not a huge fan of his constantly hitting on the woman on the radio, but he’s an entertaining protagonist for sure. Escorting Ashley through most of the game isn’t that bad, as you can have her hide sometimes, or she’s pretty decent at taking care of herself (though I definitely accidentally killed her a few times oops). I thought Ashley was like 15 for the entire game so her asking Leon if he wanted to fuck at the end of the game absolutely floored me (though I’m still not a fan of that unnecessary comment honestly). My main complaint is that I was playing the Steam version at 60fps, but QTEs just do not work at that framerate, so I had to lower it to 30fps just to get through certain parts of the game (I did that minecart section like five times). Overall a great game, though I wouldn’t say it’s the best in the series, as many do.

Resident Evil 5 (2009)

People say this one is bad, but it’s such a blast playing co-op with a friend. I didn’t have to deal with the AI partner, so I can’t talk about that, but this is such a good co-op game. Getting to a spot where you both need to interact with it and mashing the button so Chris yells “SHEVA SHEVA HURRY COME ON HURRY SHEVA” over and over is always funny and always annoying when you’re on the receiving end. I still don’t really get the story and how Umbrella and BSAA are related or anything, but the gameplay is super fun, I highly recommend this one if you’ve got someone to play with. Although, we did have to install some files in order to play online co-op, but it’s a pretty simple process.

Resident Evil: Revelations (2012)

This one is rough, as I got halfway through it before I got bored and quit. The game introduces Raymond as a bad guy pointing his gun at you, then there’s a flashback and his backstory is “guy silently standing in corner of room.” Back in present day, five minutes after being introduced as a bad guy, he’s helping you out. Jessica isn’t that bad but her character design is incredibly awful. The first minor thing is when she’s on a mission with Chris in snowy mountains and she’s wearing pounds of makeup. Then later they have her in a wetsuit but some hair is outside of it??? I guess so you know she’s a sexy woman. Plus her wetsuit is literally missing a leg. It leaves her left leg completely bare. The dialogue regarding her is sexist too. Overall, the gameplay is very meh and the plot is kind of dumb, even for RE.

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017)

My second RE game to play, but probably the first one I watched. This game is amazing and I highly recommend it. The first person makes the setting much scarier, and it lets you relate to Ethan and immerse yourself more. I like that Ethan is just Some Guy with no training, he just walks his way through this whole mess like a champ. The boss fights are great and the characters are so memorable. Not to mention the DLCs for the game are wonderful: playing a fucked up version of 21 and then fighting goop monsters hand to hand are seriously fun.

Resident Evil Village (2021)

The most recent RE game and quite possibly the best. Village combines the first person perspective of 7 and the inventory system of 4, making an incredible game. The four lords all have such different environments and it makes for such good variety. My favorite one was the Silent Hill-esque house with the dolls, as scary as it was. The Duke is a fun character and I love that he’s part of the story. Chris’s section at the end turns the game into Call of Duty but it’s a fun massacre through the village, easily destroying enemies that have troubled you all game. Overall one of my favorite RE games.

[dourpeep]

Seeing people complaining about the lack of anniversary rewards is getting so tiring. The game's ratings dropped to like 2 on Google play, all comment sections of official accounts are full of complaints. I know and understand that people are upset but it's just so so tiring to the point where I unfollowed most accounts that aren't related to fanart or fanfiction because of all that negativity

I personally spent (a little) money on the game so I get where p2w players come from but idk. I saw that we didn't get anything and moved on pretty quickly. Maybe that's just me, idk

Maybe you have a different view on this and if so, I'd like to hear it

Sorry for ranting in your inbox

hehe no need to apologize because I have quite a bit to say myself nodnod

Read if you like, don't if you don't--this is just my opinions and stuff based off my experience knowing Eastern gatcha games as well as talking about using a 5* vs 4* of the same build + slot

This got kinda long ehe-

Like really long.

Anyway

My turn for a Hot Take (tm)

Yeah I understand this--I've been feeling so drained and my enjoyment of the game and writing has diminished immensely because all I see everywhere is just that.

I understand that the event rewards suck but at the same time? I realize how gacha aren't really popular here in the West--and I have seen a lot of comparison between Genshin and Cookie Run but they're also two entirely different genres despite both being gacha. Not to mention that Cookie Run is fast at first until you get to around uhh Kingdom lvl 37~~ and you're stuck and can't go forward because things cost too many materials or your cookies aren't strong enough even though you have several stars on your team consisting of epics built as optimally as possible-

So the maintenance rewards for Cookie Run have been the only significant amount of gems I've been getting for a few weeks now compared to when I first started and could do 10 roll after 10 roll.

Also also, Cookie Run is PvP (arena, guilds, etc). Being able to get more rolls is absolutely a gamechanger. If you can't get a good defense cookie or healer cookie, you're fucked.

So!! That's why Cookie Run is more generous with rolls. You're not going to want to keep fighting other people in the Arena or doing Guild stuff if they don't add in those generous rewards.

On the other hand, Genshin Impact is an open world rpg w/ co-op (note, co-op doesn't count as pvp because you're collaborating) where you can build pretty much any of the characters to be viable (dps/vampire Barbara is one major example, Noelle is a guarantee roll character for that beginner's banner and she can easily be built to be a tank/healer/dps to fill whatever slot you desire)

So they're not going to be incredibly generous w/ rewards because the characters you have--meta or not--don't really effect your ability to play the game (unless we're talking spiral abyss which really is considered endgame anyway) when you're able to get at least one character of each element for free I mean, you start out with traveler who can be anemo, geo, or electro once you get to the respective places, Amber, Kaeya, Lisa, Barbara (iirc, you need to get to rank 20?), Xiangling (complete spiral abyss floor 3), and Noelle (reduced cost 10roll w/ guaranteed Noelle).

Which would be one of each element and a variety of one of the 5 weapon types nodnod.

Time to talk about builds and why it's not necessary to have a 5* unlike in other gatcha games like Cookie Run (again, a kingdoms builder) before going back to the anniversary stuff

But continuing, like Eula is considered a fantastic 5* character who features a kit that is based around her being a physical damage character. My sibling, C, has her built and she does some insane damage.

On the other hand, I have Xinyan built as a physical dps and if you were to compare their damage?

With crit, C's Eula deals 9k to 14k with Skyward Pride (5* claymore w/ energy recharge substat). With crit, my Xinyan deals 8k to 13k with Song of Broken Pines (5* claymore w/ phys substat) OR 7k to 10k with Prototype Archaic (4* craftable claymore w/ attack substat).

Both C and I agree that they're pretty evenly-matched in the sense of damage output.

We have similar builds focusing on physical damage, however, C's Eula uses 4pc Pale Flame and my Xinyan uses 2pc Bloodstained, 2pc Pale Flame (both have the 25% phys damage bonus for the 2pc). It's also good to note that both their Eula and my Xinyan have a physical dmg % cup.

So just by stacking up more phys on Xinyan, you get a physical dps (with some elemental support capabilities due to her E and Q) you can easily make her deal consistent, reliable damage that is comparable to a fully built Eula. Ofc, I'm sacrificing Xinyan's shield, but since she's built to be a physical dps, it doesn't matter anyway.

Another thing is Zhongli is an incredible shield support. His shield?? Absolutely insane because it's based off his hps. Guess who else has a hp-based shield and heals??? Diona. Another incredibly good support 4* with a shield and healing would be Noelle!

But with Diona, specifically since I did kinda cover over Noelle already, she can easily be built along with her shield having over 100% uptime (like how Zhongli has over 100% uptime). The fact that Diona is also a healer definitely is a perk too.

Ofc the difference with this is that Zhongli can be built as a burst support/dps while Diona is not. But the point isn't that--the point is that you don't need a 5* shield support to have a good, reliable shield support.

But regardless of 4* or 5*, to get a viable character, you need to build them well. So if your character isn't doing satisfactory damage, you just have to take a quick peek at what artifacts they're running and fix as needed!

Another thing--

Talking about the rewards and stuff for the anniversary-

Generally, gatcha games aren't really that generous with rewards and instead usually have some sort of event. In this case, I'm pretty sure that Moonchase is considered a part of the anniversary which is why it's giving so many rewards- just the primos from the first day alone with the chests and quest was enough for two rolls (40 chests * 5 primos each + 60 from the quest and a few that I forgot where they come from but are from the event) as well as the 4* Luxurious Sea Lord claymore.

Before you say that it's shitty for them to make a festival into the anniversary event, I'm certain that people would complain if the anniversary rewards were just a little more than the 10x fates and stuff and that's it because it'd feel like they're skipping over the anniversary entirely. (keep in mind, festivals don't normally give this much stuff in terms of primogems from what we've experienced so far--they're mainly focused on the free event weapon you can get and build like with Festering Desire, Windborne Ode, Dodoco Tales)

Also companies love taking advantage of festivals to make an event bigger + more fleshed out. It'd be otherwise kinda boring to have to just log in every day for a week (not to mention, not everyone does that) and encourages players to play to get rewards.

yeah, that's supposed to work in their favor because they want to keep interest.

So the fact that there's a lot of backlash on everything going on is tiring and also?? I want to make the point that they'll only listen to so much. Getting heard is important, but there will be a point where Mihoyo will just stop listening to the players entirely because all they're getting is a constant barrage of "this event is the worst" "no one likes that character" "(insert character) when???" "okay but where's (blank) rerun?" pasted over the forums, discord, twitter, facebook, instagram--

You can't keep demanding more while also talking shit constantly about the new stuff added because then they'll just not add those new stuff because we (general) seem to never be satisfied.

Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if they end up just cutting Genshin Impact as a loss entirely if this continues as it has and gets even worse.

But I digress.

Anyway, I agree that it sucks that the daily login rewards for the anniversary are just cut and pasted from the Lantern Rite, but as someone who's played a lot of gatcha games, it's pretty much the standard.

Have a daily sign in for rewards and a big event featuring a ton of stuff you can get instead of having an 'official' anniversary event.

I'm sure there's a lot I'm missing because it's not coming to mind, but yeah. These are my general thoughts on what's happening with the discourse.

[xb-squaredx]

B-Squared’s Top 10 Games of 2020

I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that having something to distract me from the genuine horrors unleashed during 2020 was vital to staying alive, and for me that means a lot of video games! I played…a lot of games last year, but I spent a lot of time playing older games, so I didn’t get a chance to check out a lot of high-profile games that launched this year. Still, I do want to shine a light on the games that managed to resonate with me even a little bit, that somehow managed to launch this year. So let’s get to it!

#10 – No Straight Roads

Rarely have I been struck by a single trailer for a game like I was for No Straight Roads. Produced by industry veterans under a new studio, this is a rare game that’s not quite an indie game from a studio full of newbies, but it’s also not produced with the same kind of budget and resources of a Triple-A project. What do we call this? A Double-A game? Single-A? Regardless, I have to give the team at Metronomik some props for delivering a super stylish game in the midst of a very challenging year. No Straight Roads is a rhythm-based action game where two up-and-coming musicians fight to bring back Rock and Roll to the people of Vinyl City. I absolutely adore this game’s presentation, with each major boss being visually unique and having their own feel that compliments the music they bring to battle. There’s some real energy in these animations with character designs that ooze personality, and being a game about music the soundtrack is great! All that being said though, I have to admit I wasn’t a huge fan of the gameplay when all was said and done. It leans way more on the rhythm side of the equation than I was hoping for, and the action felt very shallow. The fixed camera made some phases of some fights a real problem, and the Switch verison, which I played, is plagued with a lot of issues that really brought the game down for me. If the game interests you at all, give it a shot on PC or PS4; I hear those versions are a lot better. Still, I liked the potential I saw in this game and in this studio, so I can only hope they did well enough to continue on. This definitely feels like the kind of passion project that deserves more recognition.

#9 – Streets of Rage 4

OK, so full disclosure: I didn’t grow up with 2D beat-em-ups. I missed out on all of the greats of the genre back in the day. No Final Fight, no River City Ransom, no Double Dragon, and definitely no Streets of Rage. In more recent years I have tried to dip my toe in the genre, as I did in 2019 with River City Girls. However, I came away from that game a bit disappointed by the overall gameplay and wondered if 2D beat-em-ups were for me. Seeing so much praise heaped onto Streets of Rage 4 had me curious, so I knew I had to try it, if only to broaden my experience in the genre. In many ways, this game is the perfect sequel to a franchise that hasn’t seen any signs of new life in years. It retains what made the series beloved with satisfying combat and challenge, but with a modern touch. The overall art style of the game and music work out pretty well, and I found the act of comboing enemies to be really satisfying. It really doesn’t overstay its welcome either, which is very appreciated in an age of endless timesinks. I also struggled a fair bit with the game, even on Normal, and well after some patches that seemed designed for more casual fans like me. Had this game not had online co-op as an option, I don’t know if I could have beaten the final levels. So my time with this game was pretty rough but despite that I can still see this was a game made with care, and if this game DOES do something for you, there’s plenty of reasons to keep playing on higher difficulties, unlocking more characters and even playing online with friends. Let me put it this way; I’m not all that sure I like the genre and I still liked this game, so I think that counts for something!

#8 – The Wonderful 101: Remastered

…this one is kind of cheating, I’ll admit! I had a lot of trouble thinking up ten games that really stood out to me this year, honestly. That said, I’ll definitely use loopholes to plug one of my favorite games from years ago. Seven years ago, PlatinumGames launched The Wonderful 101 on the ill-fated Wii U, where it bombed harder than just about anything on the system. For those that gave the game a shot, however, they were quick to discover a deep, complex, and charming action game that plays like nothing else out there. Controlling a team of 100 heroes at once, players form weapons out of the various Wonderful One’s bodies, smacking around giant robots and aliens far larger than them with the power of teamwork! How could you not love that, right?! Now, years later, PlatinumGames is aiming to become more independent and their first act was launching a Kickstarter as a way to get this game on newer platforms. While we may never know why Nintendo gave Platinum their blessing to release this game on non-Nintendo platforms (being as this is still, as far as I know, a Nintendo-owned IP), I’m just glad more people can have access to one of the most unique action games I’ve ever touched.

To sell it another way, this game combines the overall aesthetic of Viewtiful Joe with the shape-drawing action of Okami but with a bit of Bayonetta flair on the side. Basically, this is the culmination of everything director Hideki Kamiya has ever worked on. The Remastered version fixes some issues present from the game’s original release, and while I do think they could have gone a bit further with some changes, it is likely the best way to play the game for many. All those sections that made heavy use of the Wii U GamePad are a tad awkward though, but that held true even back on the Wii U anyway…d-don’t worry so much about that, though! I’d still recommend this game to anyone looking for the type of over-the-top action that only Platinum (and occasionally Capcom) can provide! So please consider joining the Wonderful Ones and Unite Up!

#7 – Paper Mario: The Origami King

Discourse around the Paper Mario series is…more than a little rough, honestly! Many fans have been quite vocal about not liking the direction the series has been heading with the last few games, but I went into The Origami King with an open mind and ended up really enjoying the game for the most part! What the game lacked in a developed storyline, it made up for with some really strong character moments and memorable setpieces. Bobby and Olivia are among my favorite partners in ANY of the Mario RPGs, easily, and the entirety of the Great Sea section of the game was a really fun adventure. I love the highly-detailed paper-crafted enemies and locales, and the soundtrack really didn’t have to go as hard as it did. While the battles against common enemies didn’t quite click with me, the boss battles throughout the game constantly surprised me with interesting twists on the ring-based combat and are a real highlight for me. I know this game is pretty divisive amongst Paper Mario fans, but I think the franchise has a pretty bright future ahead of it!

#6 – DOOM Eternal

Fair warning here, but I haven’t quite managed to beat DOOM Eternal at the time of writing this, but what I’ve played so far tells me it definitely belongs here. I think Eternal is hands-down the most intense game I’ve played in a long time. It gets my blood pumping as I dash about, shooting and slicing through demons that are extremely eager to rip and tear me to pieces. I don’t play many shooters in general, so I knew I was going to be in for a rough time, but DOOM Eternal brings it to another level right away. In some respects, I don’t quite agree with various aspects of the core game design that makes the game harder than I think it needs to be at times. The scarcity of ammo, and thus the constant need to use the Chainsaw weapon in order to gain more ammo gets tiring, though that somewhat levels off as more weapons are acquired and players learn of more efficient ways to take out the hordes of Hell. The game’s fantastic soundtrack by Mick Gordon definitely elevates the experience, so it is a huge bummer knowing that he and ID Software had a falling out and he won’t be coming back. I really dig the game’s expansive levels and more focus being put on exploring every nook and cranny for secrets, and certain old-school touches like finding extra lives or cheat codes definitely makes the game feel like it was ripped out of a bygone era and given a modern paintjob at times. Doom is eternal, and with it, so is pulse-pounding shooting action!

#5 – Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition

Compared to the other re-release of an old game on this list, I think this particular title had a lot more time and care put into it…and it also happens to enhance one of my favorite games on Wii as a bonus! Xenoblade Chronicles on Wii was a game that almost passed me by but even years later, I still adored the characters and world it introduced, and I’ve been happy to see what started as game that was almost stuck in Japan eventually grow into a full franchise. I consider the first game to the best in the series, though it was held back by a few issues later games would iron out. Chief among the problems was the visuals, particularly the character models and…wow does ten years make a world of difference. The Definitive Edition does more than just clean up everyone’s faces, it also cleaned up the game’s cluttered UI, made it easier to track quests and materials for said quests, and added some fun optional challenge missions for veterans to tackle. The bow that adorns the top of this package, however, is the epilogue story Future Connected that serves to tie up some loose ends and gives a particular character some great closure. If you love massive worlds to explore, a compelling, at times over-the-top story, and a deep, rewarding combat system, I can’t recommend THIS version of THIS game enough. If you’re going to give the Xenoblade series a try, there’s no better place to start.

#4 – Ghost of Tsushima

When Ghost of Tsushima was first unveiled years ago, I didn’t exactly have a high opinion of it. It seemed like a game that put more emphasis on visuals over gameplay, and I was almost certain it would launch as a PS5 exclusive so why bother getting excited when I probably wasn’t going to be an early adopter of the system? To my great surprise, not only was this game confirmed for PS4, it wound up being one of the prettiest games on the platform and well-optimized to boot, even on my old slim PS4. Playing as lone samurai Jin Sakai, players try to repel the Mongel invasion of Japan, but are forced to adopt less-than-honorable tactics to take on this ruthless enemy. Usually when I play stealth games, I find myself frustrated. I feel weak, or limited, and often the games feel overly harsh. If you get caught once, game over and there’s little salvaging being seen. In Ghost of Tsushima however, there’s a great deal more care put into stealth, and at times I’d argue it’s almost too fun to pass up over the sword play. Very few missions in the game force you to go completely unseen, so stealth just because yet another tool rather than a limitation imposed on you.

Swordplay felt a bit less engaging against common enemies (typically just being Simon Says, switching to the appropriate stance for a given enemy), but the one-on-one duels throughout the game were fantastic and I almost wish the game was all about them instead. I can’t overstate how gorgeous this game is either, with a world that feels like it is breathing, as the wind whips through the tall grass, the moon penetrates fog overtaking a creepy forest, or seeing the smoke from an enemy camp wafting over the distance. Hands-down one of the best-looking games on the PS4, and I’m particularly happy that developer Sucker Punch managed to land a hit with a new IP, as those generally feel more risky as times go on. While I’d argue that Ghost of Tsushima doesn’t really redefine how open-world games should be designed, it is an extremely polished experience and manages to do it well, with plenty of opportunities to grow in a potential sequel.

#3 – Animal Crossing: New Horizons

If there’s any one game that people absolutely needed in 2020, it was Animal Crossing: New Horizons. While there are other games of this type, like Stardew Valley or the Harvest Moon (and later, Story of Seasons games), Animal Crossing is one of the few games that gets mainstream attention while simultaneously running counter to most mainstream gaming trends. No conflict, no combat, no overarching story really…just a game that lets you live your live, day by day on your own terms. I tried getting into the series before with New Leaf but just didn’t stick with it, but New Horizons launched at the perfect time in an imperfect world. Being able to escape the uncertainty and dread that enveloped the world as the pandemic spread for even a little while was a necessity, and thankfully New Horizons had plenty to do to keep idle hands busy. Changes like item crafting and eventually limited terraforming of your island paradise give players so much more agency in decorating their homes and building up something they can be proud of.

We all start as nothing but a small tent on a mostly-empty island, but seeing what people were able to do even in the first few weeks or so was nothing short of amazing. We need more unflinchingly wholesome games in the world, and I’m thankful for Animal Crossing for being there when we needed it, and considering how well it sold and how much post-launch content is expected to be added with time, it remains a sanctuary to return to even now. Just…please let us craft in bulk? Pretty please, Nintendo?

#2 – Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity

Last year, Nintendo released Astral Chain, a game that no one knew about before release, which was revealed and released with very little gaps between them. It was a game I didn’t know I wanted until it was presented to me, and that trend continues this year with Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. The first Hyrule Warriors was a fun, surprising spin-off of the main Legend of Zelda series, and Breath of the Wild was a fantastic game that shook up the core of the Zelda franchise, so in hindsight it really does seem like a no-brainer to combine the two into one package. Age of Calamity, for my tastes at least, cuts down on the repetition and overall stressful atmosphere of the first Hyrule Warriors and instead focused on fleshing out it’s core combat and crafting more creative main storyline missions. It helps that the game reimagines iconic locales from Breath of the Wild from before their destruction, and really makes you feel like you’re fighting through actual places rather than just a collection of random keeps that most Warriors games use.

Bringing in aspects like the Sheikiah Slate and Elemental Rods allows players to control the flow of combat more directly on top of letting them be more creative. Freeze enemies standing over water with the Cryonis rune or burn some grass with the Fire Rod to distract certain enemies, among many other things. Each playable character is also very distinct, even in cases where I could have forgiven the developers for reusing some attacks or traits. For one, Link has different movesets for his Sword and Shield, Spear, and Two-Handed weapons, but none of his attack overlap with the other Champions who use similar weapons. Some people might be put off with certain aspects of this game’s story and ultimately not everyone likes the overall structure of the Warriors spinoffs anyway, but for my part, Age of Calamity was one of the best surprises of the year, unveiled right at the end of the year in the nick of time. Of course, there was one game this year that surprised me more than any other.

#1 – Hades

I’ve known of Supergiant Games for quite a while and very recently began looking through their catalogue of games. They’re known for well-crafted narratives and satisfying combat, and yet when I first saw Hades when it was released in Early Access I was tepid on it. It didn’t look bad or anything, but it didn’t exactly blow me away and even now, I think a random screenshot or quick clip of the game might not do the game justice in explaining the appeal. I already wrote about the game at-length (as my only real non-retrospective blog post of the year, oops!), which you can read here if you want more in-depth praise, but to summarize…Hades is the total package for me.

Playing as Prince Zagreus your end-goal is to escape the puts of Hell, and more specifically get away from your overbearing father, Hades. It’s a rogue-lite, meaning you’re expected to finish the game in one shot and if you die you lose any upgrades you picked up along the way and have to start from scratch…to a point. Hades does allow you to keep a fair amount of items you pick up which can towards small, permanent upgrades or even gifts for various NPCs that can deepen your bond with them. Unlike most other games of this type too, the story constantly moves forward, even after death. The game is about dying over and over and then dusting yourself off to try again, all the while other characters remark on your progress or lack thereof. I grew to really enjoy this cast of characters, a fun spin on the Greek pantheon, paired with excellent voice acting for the entire cast. From the imposing, if somewhat sultry Megaera, to the nervous wreck that is the maid, Dusa, to the pompous ass Theseus, I looked forward to each new run just to learn more about this world and those within it. For once, death wasn’t really a punishment, but a reward, and just part of the process.

Of course, incredibly satisfying combat is ALSO part of the process and it just gets…addicting; muttering “one more run” over and over as you try out different weapons and boons, discovering what works well together and what doesn’t. While at first beating the game felt like it would never happen, I grew from my failures, adapted and eventually overcame. Multiple times. If you want the “full” Hades experience, this game can really demand a lot of time out of you but at the same time it stays fresh, so I can’t really complain. With new gameplay mechanics unlocking as time goes on, to the Pacts of Punishment players can trigger if they want a bit more challenge (or a lot more), Hades is that rare game that just keeps giving and giving. Before I knew it, I had dumped well over 50 hours into it, and I STILL need to get back to the game if I want that epilogue.

Compared to every other game that came out this year, Hades is the one game that grabbed me from moment one and would not let go until I hit credits. When I wasn’t playing this game, I was counting down the minutes until I could play it again, and let me tell you that is rare for me these days. At this point, Hades is clearly the breakthrough hit for Supergiant and I couldn’t be happier. The fact that this game got to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with industry titans at The Game Awards is kind of surreal, but I can’t think of many who deserve that recognition more. It helps that Supergiant is a studio that actually takes care of its employees, which is way rarer than it should be. I don’t mean to hype this game up like it’s the cure for COVID or anything, but I mean it with all my heart that this was the best game I played this year, and I’d recommend it in a heartbeat. I couldn’t stop talking about it for months after playing it, just ask my friends! So yeah, it’s pretty OK I guess.

CONCLUSION

I’m sure my Top 10 List looks a lot different from most out there, but that’s what’s great about games! So much variety and so much quality no matter where you look! Every year, without fail, there’s always at least a small handful of games that come out that I don’t get to, and try as I might I’ll never trim that backlog down. I want to keep playing games for as long as I can, trying out so many different experiences and seeing what this wonderful pastime can offer. For a good chunk of 2020 I was more than a little down, not just because of…you know, but a lot of games that were coming out weren’t appealing to me. That said, seeing as this was the year of shadow drops and announcing things at the last minute, I ended up loving a bunch of games I hadn’t already spend months hyping myself up for, which definitely helped to lift me up this year. Already, 2021 has a lot of titles I’m anticipating though, so it’s sure to be an exciting year.

Happy Gaming.

-B

[mister-lady]

how would they react to your games :Oo would any of them be backseat gamers? would they celebrate with you after a difficult win?? i wanna HEEAAAARRR!!! - 🍋

AAAAAAAAAA TYSSMM ILLYY💗💖💘💘💘💖💘💖💘💗💘💖💘💖💘💘💗💖💘💖💘💖💘💘💘💖💘💘💖💘💖💘💖💘💗💘💘💖💘💗💘💗💘💖💘💗💘💖💘💗💘💖💘💖💘💖💘💖💘💖💘💘💗💘💖💘💘💗 I LOV WRITING LITTLE THINGS LIKE THESE BMMBKBKGFKKF IVE DONE IT BEFORE A BUNCH BUT STOPPED AFTER A LITTKE BIT SO THANK YOU IM REALLY SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG TO ANSWER

Sorry this is really long tho mbmhmhngngnmgm. I'll be talking about how they act when i play botw just so its a bit simpler uwu

Roman: over hypes everything but its amazing bmgmkdkdf. Killing a fox for food? BoOM game beat!!! Beating one of the divine beasts? Best gamer ever 11/10 how do you do that with so much skill??!??? He occasionally backseat games but tries not too. He gets very into it and shouts a bunch and it hypes me up as well mbmbmgmr. He loves watching me play and gladly plays with if its co-OP. He tends to get very competitive about it and challenges and dares me to do many different things in the game like gliding a certain distance or trying to beat one of the really complicated shrines. He encourages me to try again if I fail and rewards me in kisses if i get past it. He likes to snuggle a lot when I play and makes a whole "set-up" which is really just a pile of pillows and blankets X3. He also loves shield surfing by a lot.

Logan: isn't chaotically big on gaming but he doesn't mind watching it while I play. I've tried getting him to play a few games sometimes and he's really good at things that require aim and timing but doesn't understand how human-like characters can survive taking hits from one of the divine beasts entities and other unrealistic things, though it's a game so he doesn't expect it to be anything realistic. He's normally quiet while a play but will give small praises and words of encouragement if I get past a tough part or don't think I can beat something. He likes to help me during troubling parts when I have them. I forgot what they were called but he loves the tasks with the little leaf mask guys that give you the golden drops mvmfkdkf. He lovesssssss doing the shrines.

Patton: "HEEY NONONONONO DONT KILL THAT DEER THERES PLENTY OF APPLES ON THE TREE" "But the apples dont give me enough health or any stat boosts!!!" "BUT THE POOR DEER" he doesn't like it when I have to hunt- or the majority of the fighting bits. He suggests I befriend the robots while they actively shoot at me and obviously that's not how the game works but it's really cute and innocent and I couldn't get mad at hiiimmmmmm. He loves when I climb mountains and get different views or doing side quests to help NPCs or riding the horses and such uwu. He likes cooking up different recipes even if it requires hunting to get some of the stuff for it. When I first showed him the leaf sword that blowed wind and how you could push around wooden sail boats and ride them he did that for the next hour and looked too happy for me to stop him hehe. He likes playing around with the tools as well like building the ice pillars or moving around the metal objects and such. Many many many dorky puns along the way and I love every one of them. Poor bby is scared of the divine beasts demons

Remus: the second, and I mean the very exact second he learned I could create fire in the game, he immediately begged me to go and burn everything in sight. I can't resist his puppy eyes and burnt a forest and several animals mghhgmgmggm. He loves shield surfing down really steep and long mountains and launching Link five thousand feet to his death. He cackles the whole time cause he's a dork. He likes watching me fight the different robots and the raid battles of the goblins. He loves testing out the different weapons especially the fire weapons that burn everything or the bomb arrows.

Janus: lowkey also enjoys murdering everything insight. He likes pushing the limit of Link's stamina and climbs up all the tall mountains and glides around as long as he can. He likes a lot of the side parts like sight viewing and exploring the different towns and buildings. He likes to shower me in praises while I'm playing. He occasionally asks if he can play and I let him and it's fun to watch him figure out the controls and try different attempts at things. A lot of the times and snuggle up to me in a position that stops me from playing the game properly so I have to give him affection and I love him a lot for it.

Virgil: if theres a slightest change in the music him immediately takes note. He also pays attention to the autosave cause he noticed it only saves when something bad is about to happen. He likes to take it easy and not have to worry about things like health or stamina and such so he enjoys focusing on the side quests or trying to cook up different recipes. He thinks the different types of arrows are cool and he also enjoys doing the little quests for the "leaf people" cause the quests are always fun and simple. He asks a lot of questions about the game and it's fun to answer them and tell him different bits about the game and such. He really enjoys watching me play though uwu.

Emile: He enjoys many aspects of the game but most of the games aren't really his taste, he mostly watches them cause he likes seeing how I play and the little bits of the game that I enjoy. He comments a lot on the game and stuff and really likes the story of it and collecting the lost memories for Link. The killing doesn't bother him too badly but it still bugs him a teeny bit. He loves that it's such a big map and exploring every little section of it. He lowkey isn't the best at games especially ones that require fighting so he's always amazed when I do certain bits in the game that looked really challenging. Very bubbly the whole time and likes helping out and doing the quests for the NPCs. He loves all the different things you can do in botw and has trouble focusing on just one little bit about it. The divine beasts spook him a little but not too badly. He likes buying the different clothings and armor and riding around on the sand seals is one of his favorite parts about it

[helihi]

The Good, The Bad, and the Dirty: RWBY Vol 7 Ep 4

Thank you for renewing your Punch Jacques Club Membership, I cannot confirm or deny that you’ll accomplish your goal this season, but we’re family.

Overall rating of the chapter: 7.5/10 

*Spoilers Ahead*

The Good

To start off this chapter, we learn more about the true dynamics of the Ace Ops and, more importantly, about Atlas Academy. At Beacon, teams are chosen by interactions and collaborative efforts during a recorded test. Ozpin chose teams based on trust, leadership skills, and bonds. In Atlas, teams are chosen based on effectiveness. The students are not viewed as people or individuals, they are viewed as numbers.

In the previous episodes, there were a couple of things that didn’t quite sit well with me: Harriet’s original comment to Ruby regarding her Semblance felt more mean than playful, and the fact that Marrow was everyone’s punching bag. At first, you might think that this is just playful banter between friends, like Yang and Ruby referring to Jaune as Vomit Boy from time to time, however, that’s not true. Since Harriet declares that they are not friends, you may realize that they are not “picking on Marrow”, they are actively bullying him. There’s no complements thrown his way, there are no mutual laughter or apologies, it’s just drag after drag after drag.

I have the slight feeling that Marrow might consider them his friends, and that’s why he’s letting the comments slide. We should also consider that he is the only Faunus in the team, and although I believe their comments don’t come from a source of casual racism, but rather at pointing out the fact that he’s the most childish of them all, we should pin that for now.

I get Harriet, there’s a difference between co-workers and friends. Though some times you may befriend your co-workers, playful banter and after office outings don’t translate to friendship. I say this as someone who has worked for a big company. There were coworkers I genuinely befriended, and other who I was friendly after office hours, but never hung out with outside work parties or outings.

That being said, I find it hard that you wouldn’t bond with those whose life you’ve saved before, the same who’ve saved yours. Interestingly, when Yang inquires about this and gets dismissed by Harriet, you can see the way Blake reacts in the background. Have we bonded over trauma? Is that all that this is?

Let me be clear: people can bond over trauma, but at the same time, going through a lot of things with a person can show you sides of them you never noticed before, you see them in a different light. That being said, Team RWBY’s enemies haven’t been random people: Cinder killed Pyrrha, their friend; Emerald was someone they trusted; Mercury framed Yang in front of Remnant; Adam was Blake’s abusive ex and his goal to destroy Blake and Yang was personal. During the arcs these characters have gone through, they have grown as people as they faced death, obviously they are going to bond.

This may have been pure coincidence, but it’s interesting that an anti-bee section of the FNDM posed the idea that Yang and Blake’s relationship is based on mutual trauma. This claim is ridiculous because both of them cared about each other before the Fall of Beacon. The traumatic event made their relationship take a turn, and realize some things that they didn’t notice before or made things clearer for them. (On a side note, Asami realized she had feelings for Korra when she thought the avatar was going to die at the end of book 3). Sometimes certain situations change your perspective about things and people.

I want to note that Nora’s comedic relief landed perfectly, and Jaune’s sass was on point. Once again James is presented as someone trouble seeking the best outcome through the wrong means. That being said, Tyrian and Watts plan seem to be to overthrow him and generate chaos through political manipulation, and as someone who comes from a country with high levels of corruptions and suspicious murders, this is true real. Also, don’t think James is a good poor guy trying to be his best. He’s actively choosing one portion of the kingdom over the other and dooming certain populations.

Next stop is Jacques “Scumbag” Schnee making his first appearance in the volume. TBH it was about time. Given how the opening frames him, he had to show up soon. Just like I expected the moment he started bickering with Ironwood, he turned around and will now help Watts. At first, Jacques might have had power over Ironwood, but now he doesn’t, at least until he get his seat at “The Council”, which I’m expecting him to win.

As someone with an abusive parent, Jacques’s mannerisms make sense. The shift from his violent approach to a more manipulative one are common abusive tactics of an abusive person when in public or when their victim stands up to them. My parent used to be more physically abusive when I was a child, but when I grew taller and stronger, they switched to a psychological one since I could defend myself. In this case, Jacques was super close to striking Weiss again, but stopped the moment one of her true dads stepped in (Ironwood).

Jacques using Willow to guilt trip Weiss was dirty and awful, and once again adds on to my theory that she might be the Winter maiden. Thankfully, like Ruby promised, Team RBY is right beside her.

Blake is ready to kill him, and Yang is processing how awful the man is. Ruby is utterly confused at his attitude. Following this, we find that Winter was siting for him to leave before showing up. She looks around to confirm that he’s no longer there, and Weiss points out “Winter, it’s nice for you to finally show up”. Just like I've talked about before, while Weiss got out of the abusive environment and found a real family (Team RWBY), Winter escaped Jacques by joining the military. James Ironwood is only missing one Schnee child to adopt, and we’ll get to that soon enough.

All our kids are now huntsmen! Congrats! Just like they say, the licenses feel hollow after all they’ve been through, and TBH I agree. It also shows progress for the characters, specially Yang who had the most superficial goal out of the 4 Team RWBY members. Regardless of that, it’s nice to see the goof around, take pics, and eat cake. Something I thought it was adorable is how Winter interacts with Penny: she’s so caring and nice. I love them.

We got a really good moment between Ruby and Qrow, and some background on Summer. The DC comics have helped us understand Summer a little bit ore, but this confirms that she was a brat (hell ye). Apparently, her last mission was a “Summer mission”. I really need those Team STRQ flashbacks. I bet Raven know more than we think.

I also think it’s important that Qrow pointed out how Ruby is not Oz since she doesn’t keep the secret to herself. I think certain conditions should be met to be open about Salems existence, especially considering current circumstances.

Jaune offering to protect little children is the most Jaune thing ever, never change boy.

Lastly, Watts finds an ally: the douchbag who married into the Schnee name. That small interaction with Whitley and Jacques might be a small sign of foreshadowing him having a reception arc. His father doesn’t trust him to invite his heir into the meeting, and he treats his son rudely. Whitley looks genuinely dejected.

Watts faked his death, that might be an indication why Ironwood doesn’t have a clear suspect yet. Now, he’s part of the Asshole Mustache club.

Anyways, next episode it looks like we’re going to meet Robyn. The sheep faunus and the tattooed guy next to her might have been part of her team.

The Bad

Those quick animations for cheap comedic effect have started getting kinda annoying. I wish they didn’t overuse them ass much.

The Dirty

Where’s Klein.

--

Final Rating: 7.5/10. Good, but not above expectations.

A.N.: Alost 18 mins, keeping up with the consistent episode length, congrats!

[bearpillowmonster]

KH: MOM Review (Gameplay)

Every Kingdom Hearts game feels different. It's always innovating and always adding new types of gameplay. This is no exception. Rhythm minigames are no stranger to the Kingdom Hearts series but a whole game based on it is new.

I don't play a lot of rhythm games but I have played the infamous Atlantica section in Kingdom Hearts 2 as well as the Symphony of Sorcery in Dream Drop Distance and the Ice Cream Beat of Birth By Sleep, Guitar Hero and I'll even throw in the Honeybee Inn rhythm game in FFVII Remake. Out of all of those, Atlantica has been my favorite, that's right, I actually didn't mind it.

Now this system is entirely different than any of those, at least to me. It's definitely the most complex though but just hold on because I know how the word 'complex' can be triggering for a game, I just mean in comparison to the others is all. It's not a DDR right, left, up or down. So without further ado...(Nonspoiler for this part, it’s just gameplay)

This game begins with a stage. You're thrown into it without any notice, there were things that I didn't grasp until near the end of the stage, luckily it doesn't count towards a score yet, and after it is the tutorial but that's just the opening so if you're clueless and want to be prepared, I would say to try out the demo, I didn't even realize how much it helped me until I played the actual game. 

I wanted to say at just how friendly this game is to newcomers, it's literally all laid out for you. Nomura came out with HD remasters and collections of the previous games then a recap of the franchise on YouTube then put it IN Kingdom Hearts 3 and people still complained because they don't know the story and are too lazy to play the other games. Now Nomura's packed it all into one whole game to sum it up, explained from the perspective of Kairi herself so that you're still entertained while catching up. If there was ever an easy path to get into Kingdom Hearts, this is the answer. If I hear complaining about it from this point forward, I will be pissed. Now, as you can see, I didn't make it to story yet but that's not entirely what I'm talking about. All the buttons and functions are the same as a regular game, you basically have it all but the different keyblades (well you can collect them but not use them because they're cards). You can play as casually as you want, a song here and there. There are even options for a shuffle and sort function if you want to just jump to track selection but you'll need to unlock them individually in World Tour first. This may sound complicated but that's where the clean and accessible the menu comes in, I have to give props for that.

You're on a set track, it runs on its own, does its own thing except when you're gliding which is just moving left and right to collect notes. You use the normal KH abilities to your advantage because some enemies will be high in the air so you need to jump and slash at the same time but you can't just button mash any more, there's timing involved now. Once you get used to the gameplay, it's quite enjoyable, you may even get a song that you hit every note, my first one was 'Another Side', the first try too, I didn't hit all excellent though.

How do party members work? Well let's say you have Sora, Donald, and Goofy in a party. You have 3 buttons you can press to attack, Sora's the only one that can jump and the only one that can use the reaction commands so you need to pay attention to all three because there could be enemies on the floor and in the sky at the same time. The one thing I will say is a little bit of a complaint and that's that it doesn't tell you which buttons to press except on specific stages, it just has the symbols, I guess that's what makes it more combat oriented but it's definitely different and a little bit harder. But I guess it gets to be muscle memory, after a while. If you already know the themes, it gets easier for you to manage because you focus more on what you hear and less on what you see, that's how I started getting better with timing. I experimented with pretty much everything I could think of so I tried it with low volume and found that I missed a whole lot more because I couldn't hear it, which might be obvious because it's a rhythm game, but it just goes to show how important sound is. I even tried using headphones, I suppose that's up to you, it definitely made the music clearer but my performance was about the same. 

What do songs net you other than progress? Well you get materials. Also similar to KHUX, you get crafting materials except these ones you can use for potions and stuff, I did a potionless run because I didn’t feel the need (but I also didn’t do it all proud either) but I used a few summons and item boosts just for fun. You can also craft cards, which are really just for looks to see in the Museum after you finish one of the memory dives (which I'll get into) but the way you get the cards, grinds my gears because it's gacha, you craft them and it's a surprise what you're going to get...so it's essentially a loot box that you don't pay money for?? What the-

(notice how it says KH2 or Days at the bottom, you don’t even know. Of course I have Writhing Shards rn but that’s because I beat the game and didn’t open a whole lot of keyblade cards but the memory and scene ones are the annoying ones for me)

You don't even have to "finish" the song, just get it most of the way before you die then you'll still get credit and still get a ranking, just no exp. Now, there are also stars, stars are from 'missions' for each stage, if you play KHUX, it’s kind of like how it says “get this amount of Lux” or “use this type of medal” or “don’t use continue” so most stars are just “get this many points” and you need to collect enough stars to get to the next area. With that, so long as you have enough stars, you don’t “have” to play every stage, just like regular Kingdom Hearts and skipping worlds, I did though, just for sport, except Let it Go, just for spite. I could see plenty of fans going after those A+++ Proud Performer 3-Star rankings, I can't wait to see the hype it generates, same with the co-op.  

They went all out when they didn't have to. The Museum is where everything is collected, so all the cards you collect and craft. You can also just play the song on its own without gameplay through the Museum, so if you want headphones to just chill, it's really nice. You can also play the cutscenes and memory dives on their own without the gameplay. There are "feats" or missions such as finishing a certain number of songs, like Nook Miles or the ones they had in Re:Mind. You can collect profile pictures for your co-op or versus account, mine is Simba (even though I don’t really use it). But the co-op can get pretty intense as you can “sabotage” each other, which seems similar to a Smash or Mario Kart match, adding that much more to the gameplay.

A few more complaints, one is that certain enemies from a stage, (say, the Wyverns) won't have the same attacks as the other stages, sometimes they'll have it so that you jump to hit them and sometimes they'll just have them take a normal hit without the jump so you can't memorize what each enemy requires (there are too many to really do that anyway). The other thing is more just opinion based, particular enemies such as Large Bodies tend to carry a weight so you need to hit them more than once even if its just one enemy. How it does this is that you hit it and then the enemy gets knocked back as your next note so you hit them again. There were definitely times where I struggled because I knew I was hitting the buttons but nothing was happening, I would guess timing was the problem in some of those cases but the indicators can be difficult to keep track of because it has to be “just right”. I think even just a line on the floor to tell when you’re supposed to hit would be a major help but in a way, I feel like that’s on purpose. Also, in the Museum, you can view all the cards EXCEPT the Keyblades which is pretty shotty if you ask me, what's the point in grinding to get my favorite Rumbling Rose, if I can't even look at it properly?

(also new names for some keyblades (this is a zoom-in))

There will be a lot of things happening at once which can be daunting, I do appreciate that they included the easy, standard, and proud modes though. Keep in mind, each of those are used for individual songs, not playthroughs so if you want to change, go ahead, at least as far as World Tour goes. On top of that, there are different modes that also gauge at how good you are (to use on the track selection). There's the basic mode which I already explained, then there's the one button mode which should be self explanatory, and then there's the performer mode which is quite a lot to put on your plate all at once because on top of normal gameplay, you're adding new buttons and things in the middle of your attacks, I would probably only recommend that after you've got a decent amount of experience because I tried it day 1 and it seems like you would need a good understanding of the game and to be on the same wavelength before even attempting it. You can view a playthrough of each stage called a "demo" which is the little play symbol button next to the "play" button, it shows you how you should be playing to get an A+++ rank and giving you a heads up of what's to come, all excellent all the time. On top of that, when I was playing Xenoblade, one thing I proposed was flicking the analog stick in a certain direction for each move, that’s present here in the form of bosses and memory dives but if you want it to, you can go into the menu to enable it for regular gameplay. You'll find out if you want it on the very first stage, again, I would only recommend it after a lot of experience.

Your characters level up but it mainly just has to do with HP so you don’t die so easily but at the same time, you have potions so I don’t see much of a point for normal gameplay. All three of the party members only have one health bar, so leveling does come in handy for the bosses. However, I don't understand how each party member has a different level, maybe it's just based on the amount of notes you hit with that character but it's kind of weird because I don't think it matters. Even on the team selection part of the play screen, it has one compilitive level so why would they be different on the menu?

For bosses, you only encounter a few. If it were me, I would've made one per game but it is what it is. You don't worry about jumping anymore, it's just holding the attack button down instead and the amount of "dodge" notes that you hit will work in your defense whenever the boss attacks. Once the dodge section is over, it actually tells you how you did with the dodging section. The first time I ever did it, it said "Oh No." it has a sense of humor, it took me a while to nail those ones you hold down which is odd because I rock the gliding sections most of the time. 

There's only one more type of gameplay type I can think of, memory dives. It's similar to a boss but you're flying and there's a scene playing in the background, also some of the directional notes will have doubles, so you need to point the analog stick in different directions which is as difficult as can be because you have to use BOTH analog sticks (took me forever just to figure that out). You 'mainly' gain the memory dives from crafting which is a bit odd but you unlock the recipes and items as you go through World Tour and then play them separately in Track Selection, until you get to KH3 at least. 

Keep in mind that I played the demo on both PS4 and Switch and compared the two, my performance was about the same, though I will say this. With Switch, you can take it on the go and just do a few levels here and there as well as remove the joy-cons. The thing about that is that I feel the need to shake the joy-cons but there's no function that uses that in the game, I really wish there was though. And those directional ‘slide’ notes have to be way easier on PlayStation because the analog sticks are right next to each other.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Disruption for Thee, But Not for Me

http://locusmag.com/2019/01/cory-doctorow-disruption-for-thee-but-not-for-me/

The Silicon Valley gospel of “disruption” has descended into caricature, but, at its core, there are some sound tactics buried beneath the self-serving bullshit. A lot of our systems and institutions are corrupt, bloated, and infested with cream-skimming rentiers who add nothing and take so much.

Take taxis: there is nothing good about the idea that cab drivers and cab passengers meet each other by random chance, with the drivers aimlessly circling traffic-clogged roads while passengers brave the curb lane to frantically wave at them. Add to that the toxic practice of licensing cabs by creating “taxi medallions” that allow businesspeople (like erstwhile Trump bagman Michael Cohen) to corner the market on these licenses and lease them to drivers, creaming off the bulk of the profits in the process, leaving drivers with barely enough to survive.

So enter Uber, an app that allows drivers and passengers to find each other extremely efficiently, that gives drivers realtime intelligence about places where fares are going begging, and which bankrupts the rent-seeking medallion speculators almost overnight.

Of course, Uber also eliminates safety checks for drivers (and allows them to illegally discriminate against people with disabilities, people of color, and other marginalized groups); it used predatory pricing (where each ride is subsidized by deep-pocketed, market-cornering execs) to crush potential competitors, and games the regulatory and tax system.

Uber (and its Peter-Thiel-backed rival Lyft) are not good companies. They’re not forces for good. But the system they killed? Also not good.

In 2016, the City of Austin played a game of high-stakes chicken with Uber and Lyft. Austin cab drivers have to get fingerprinted as part of a criminal records check, and Austin wanted Uber and Lyft drivers to go through the same process.

Uber and Lyft violently objected to this. They said it would add a needless barrier to entry that would depress the supply of drivers, and privately, they confessed their fear that giving in to any regulation, anywhere, would open the door to regulation everywhere. They wanted to establish a reputation for being such dirty fighters that no city would even try to put rules on them.

(Notably, Uber and Lyft did not make any arguments about criminal background checks perpetuating America’s racially unjust “justice system” in which people of color are systematically overpoliced and then railroaded into guilty pleas.)

Austin wasn’t intimidated. They enacted the rule, and Uber and Lyft simply exited the city, leaving Austin without any rideshare at all. All the drivers and passengers who’d come to rely on Lyft and Uber were out of luck.

But the drivers were undaunted. They formed a co-operative and in months, they had cloned the Uber app and launched a new business called Ride Austin, which is exactly like Uber: literally the same drivers, driving the same cars, and charging the same prices. But it’s also completely different from Uber: the drivers own this company through a worker-owned co-op. They take home 25% more per ride than they made when they were driving for Uber. Uber and Lyft drivers commute into Austin from as far away as San Antonio just to drive for Ride. That’s how much better driving for a worker co-op is.

I remember when the term “platform cooperativism” was first bandied about to describe this kind of thing. I was at a small, invitational tech conference where nerds, investors, activists, lawyers, SF writers and other technologically oriented types were gathered. I was on a panel about these platform co-ops and I said that I thought Uber would be really easy to replace with a co-op: the riders and the drivers valued the service, not the logo on the app, and plenty of people were happy about the convenience of Uber but unhappy about the creepy, rapacious nature of the company behind it.

An investor in the audience stood up to tell me how full of shit I was: I had no idea just how complicated Uber’s app and infrastructure were, and there was no way a bunch of grubby drivers would ever be able to match its expert coding and administration.

He was so wrong.

But there’s another, better argument against this kind of platform cooperativism: “discovery costs.” I first hailed a Ride car at South By Southwest, not long after Lyft and Uber had exited the city, and everyone going to the festival had been repeatedly warned that they would have to download the Ride app to get around the city (Austin’s taxi fleet hasn’t been up to the SXSW crowds for more than a decade, and never less so than now, having been crippled by Uber and Lyft).

So I was prepared. When I land in another city, the first app I try when I need to get around is Lyft, then Uber (Uber was a godsend in Shanghai, where we were repeatedly cheated by regular cab drivers, but where the Uber app kept everything aboveboard). Some or all of these cities might have co-op rideshares, but there’s no easy way to know about it, and without passengers, there’s no incentive for the drivers to drive for the co-ops, so even when you do try to hail a co-op, there won’t be any drivers available.

Lyft and Uber have moved back into Austin, and their drivers get fingerprinted. I just got my speaker-info package from SXSW for the 2019 festival, and the advice to download Ride before touching down is no longer the top of the checklist. I imagine that most of the attendees at SXSW will be getting around with Uber and Lyft, and 25% of the money they spend will go to those companies’ shareholders, not to the drivers.

But imagine a disruptive app that disrupted the disrupters.

Imagine if I could install a version of Ride (call it Meta-Uber) that knew about all the driver co-ops in the world. When I landed, I’d page a car with Uber or Lyft, but once a driver accepted the hail, my Meta-Uber app would signal the driver’s phone and ask, “Do you have a driver co-op app on your phone?” If the driver and I both had the co-op app, our apps would cancel the Uber reservation and re-book the trip with Meta-Uber.

That way, we could piggyback on the installed base of Uber and Lyft cars, the billions they’ve poured into getting rideshare services legalized in cities around the world, the marketing billions they’ve spent making us all accustomed to the idea of rideshare services.

This Meta-Uber service would allow for a graceful transition from the shareholder-owned rideshares to worker co-ops. When you needed a car, you’d get one, without having to solve the chicken-and-egg problem of no drivers because there are no passengers because there are no drivers. One fare at a time, we could cannibalize Lyft and Uber into the poorhouse.

The billions they’ve spent to establish “first-mover advantages” wouldn’t be unscalable stone walls around their business: they’d be immovable stone weights around their necks. Lyft and Uber would have multi-billion-dollar capital overhangs that their investors would expect to recoup, while the co-ops that nimbly leapt over Uber and Lyft would not have any such burden.

Could we do this?

Yes. Technically, this isn’t all that challenging. Create a service where drivers and passengers’ devices all register unique, per-ride codes, have the Meta-Uber check to see if the driver’s device has just posted a unique code that matches yours, and then use the built-in ride-cancelation tool that’s already incorporated into Uber and Lyft to tear down the old reservation and re-create it with Meta-Uber.

What about legal impediments, though?

That’s where the trouble starts. Tech law is a minefield of overly broad, superannuated rules that have been systematically distorted by companies that used “disruption” to batter their way into old industries, but now use these laws to shield themselves from any pressure from upstarts to seek to disrupt them.

First is the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, passed in 1986 in part to assuage Ronald Reagan’s panic after seeing the movie Wargames (I am not making this up). CFAA is nominally an anti-computer-intrusion statute, which criminalizes “exceeding your authorization” on a computer that doesn’t belong to you. Even when it passed, more than 40 years ago, technologically clued-in scholars and practicioners warned that this was way too broadly defined, and that someday we might see this rule used to felonize normal activities involving computers we owned, because the computers would have to talk to a server to accomplish part of their work, and the server’s owner could use onerous “user agreements” and “terms of service” to define our authorization. If this became widespread, then these licenses could take on the force of criminal law, and violating them could become a jailable offense.

40 years later, those fears are vindicated: CFAA is used to threaten, intimidate, sue, and even jail people engaged in otherwise perfectly lawful activity, merely because they have violated some term of service on the way. The metastasis of terms of service into sprawling novellas of impenetrable legalese has created a world where anything you do to frustrate the commercial ambitions of digital monopolists is a potential criminal offense.

Then there’s Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, a Bill Clinton bill that creates a felony for “bypassing an effective means of access control” (AKA Digital Rights Management or DRM) for copyrighted works. Twenty years ago, the proponents for this bill argued that it would be used to safeguard certain marginal commercial technologies: under DMCA 1201, it would be illegal to bypass the region controls on a DVD player, allowing movie studios to force you to buy your DVDs in the same place where you bought the player – it would also allow Sega to force you to buy your Dreamcast games on CDs that came from official Sega pressing plants, rather than direct from the games’ authors, ensuring that Sega would always get a share of the revenues from the sale of games you played on your console.

Again, experts warned Congress that DMCA 1201 was way too broad and would be ripe for abuse, as software crept into more systems. Again, the experts were right. Today, DRM is used to force people with artificial pancreases to buy proprietary insulin and people with inkjet printers to buy proprietary ink; it’s used by car manufacturers and phone manufacturers to control who can make parts for their products and who can service them; it’s found in voting machines, tractors, thermostats, virtually every device with software, and it has no connection with copyright enforcement. Rather, it is used for “business model enforcement,” to ensure that disruptive, but legal, ways of using a product or service are made illegal – from refilling your printer’s ink cartridge to getting your car or phone serviced by an independent neighborhood repair shop.

Together, the CFAA and DMCA have given digital businesses access to a shadowy legal doctrine that was never written by Congress but is nevertheless routinely enforced by the courts: Felony Contempt of Business-Model.

The CFAA and DMCA 1201 have been carefully distorted into defensive, anti-disruption shields that are only available to digital businesses. Taxi medallion owners can’t use the CFAA and DMCA 1201 to keep Uber and Lyft out of their cities.

But Uber and Lyft could use these legal tools to keep Meta-Uber out of their bottom lines. Uber and Lyft have lengthy terms-of-service that set out the rules under which you are authorized to communicate with Uber and Lyft’s servers. These terms of service prohibit using their servers to locate drivers for any purpose other than booking a ride. They certainly don’t permit you to locate a driver and then cancel the booking and re-book with a co-op app.

And Uber and Lyft’s apps are encrypted on your phone, so to reverse-engineer them, you’d have to decrypt them (probably by capturing an image of their decrypted code while it was running in a virtual phone simulated on a desktop computer). Decrypting an app without permission is “bypassing an effective means of access control” for a copyrighted work (the app is made up of copyrighted code).

Uber and Lyft can use DMCA 1201 to stop you from figuring out how to use them to locate co-op drivers, and they can use the CFAA to stop you from flipping your booking from Uber to Meta-Uber.

There are a hundred other Metas we can imagine: a Meta-Amazon that places your order with the nearest indy bookstore instead; a Meta-OpenTable that redirects your booking to a co-op booking tool.

Every single one of these co-ops would disrupt a digital monopolist who came to power preaching the gospel of disruption. Every single one of those digital monopolists would switch to the aggrieved bleats of a bewildered incumbent apex predator snarling and twisted impotently as its flesh was rent by a thousand tiny bites from swarms of fast-moving, highly evolved successors.

But we never get to bring those lumbering relics down, not so long as felony contempt-of-business-model is still in play in America. Until then, disruption will always be for thee and never for me.

[badlydrawndrawnings]

I feel the flames on my fire...burning with rage with what they done to ***.

But at least the episode is out!

https://mobile.twitter.com/Any193/status/1144000492894326784

Brought to you by the person who subbed Proof of Justice, we have the Magical Valentine Day Special! I admit that they found a solution by extending the length to thirty minutes, so that’s good. Still doesn’t make up that it’s feels rush All I brought up before the cut is valid, but to get into the greater detail and opinions (and in no particular order)...

Ann(e): Her pigtails almost look...strange in the 1st person POV

Futaba: I can’t skate either, so we have something in common. 

Chihaya:...the POV makes me realize all the forehead memes shouldn’t have target Haru (I mean, they shouldn’t even target Chihaya, but my goodness! I never realize it until now!)

Hifumi: I remember this one time on a certain image board, and they were talking Kamen Rider Fourze (the latest episode aired). Now, the characters were at a pool, and someone commented it was recognizable. It was a pool used in...adult films, and like, everyone had a field day over it. So I ask, jokingly, was it that pool (not likely).

Kawakami: I bet she regretted doing the cutesy voice again.

Haru: Her section is very cute and wholesome, and compare that to her picture...lol

Tae: Damn she really went after Joker! I feel a bit disturb.

Makoto: It’s going to be awkward if they do break up in the future because that lock is going to be there forever (probably not, the lock I mean).

Ohya: Joker can make the excuse she’s drunk enough to not realize who she’s kissing (look, even Ohya had to do a second glance before making her move).

Ryuji: Does this ending means Ryuji is worthy of Joker’s grace sorry I had to get the meme in. Now, it’s interesting that Ryuji’s section isn’t in 1st person POV. It starts off at it, but switches to the regular 3rd person POV as soon as possible. I assumed, based off the ending of Ryuji’s section, Joker most likely decided to hang out with Ryuji to avoid get caught cheating by one of his many girlfriends (urg!). Unless...Hm, it is possible that, maybe...Joker thought he is worthy of Ryuji’s grace sorry I had to it one more time  I just saw it with my own eyes last night I can’t believe it’s a real thing.

Harem/Getting Caught: To think that all the girls saw through the window instead and realize the truth. This ending makes it seems Joker panic with his dialogue choices and pick the worse option (Morgana was already side eyeing at the sight, and Joker saying that was just ‘dude you just agreed to have a second death experience’). Needless to say, you kind of deserve it, Joker.

SAE: ...I know people like her, and yes, in that sense, but no way would Sae do this with someone...what, at least ~10 years younger than her! Heck, I don’t like that all the adults are options (Chihaya is a strange case since I think she’s the youngest of all the adults), but Sae showing up in this really bothers me! 

Sae treated Goro as a regular kid and took him to conveyor belt sushi for goodness sake! Now, as Sae makes the same offer to Joker, I thought she was just lonely and wanted a new friend since Goro is MIA (don’t tell me Goro would that guy and agree to go to the opera with her to sprout some fun opera facts). However, while Sae’s section doesn’t end with cut off kiss, they were holding hands, but the implication is clear: they’re dating. Going with her behavior with what we know with Goro, and putting her canon Co-Op/Confidant into consideration, this is really, really, out of character. Unless they make her romance-able in Royal, it makes me wonder if they’re rework it include such option and make it believable (I know game files had voice clips hitting to this by making her optional, so...) because I sure as hell can’t see Sae doing this the way their canon relationship is and what I seen. 

[thomasroach]

Outward Review – A Rough Adventure

The post Outward Review – A Rough Adventure appeared first on Fextralife.

The following post is this author’s opinion and does not reflect the thoughts and feelings of Fextralife as a whole nor the individual content creators associated with the site. Any link that goes outside of Fextralife are owned by their respective authors.

Can you defy the bitter cold, brutal heat, and ravenous monsters that all desire your death? Outward is an RPG that doesn’t hold your hand in the slightest, as you make your way through an open-world filled with adventure and death. Only with careful preparation will you survive the dangers of this world.

Outward Review – A Rough Adventure

Genre: Survival RPG Developed by: Nine Dots Studio Published by: Deep Silver Release date: 26 Mar 2019 Platforms: PC (Reviewed), XBOX One, PS4 Website: https://www.ninedotsstudio.com/outward Price at time of review: $39.99

Outward Features

Play solo or coop in local or online modes

Dynamic defeat scenarios that react to your context

Constant auto-saving means there’s no turning back

Ritualistic, step-by-step approach to spellcasting

Constant auto-saving means you must live with your decisions

Encounter dynamic defeat scenarios

A unique experience with every playthrough

An immersive exploration experience

Creatures will be harder to beat in co-op mode

Single-player, online co-op and local co-op with split screen

Story and Setting

Outward starts you off indebted to your tribe, a debt in which you must try to repay.  In an effort to clear the amount you owe, you embark on an ill-fated voyage to try and earn enough to pay it off. Of course the ship runs aground, leaving you with almost no money and a crowd of angry villagers demanding payment. From here on out, the game opens up into three distinct main quest lines, with a small variety of sidequests you can participate in. Sounds like a good setup, but it is not executed well in my opinion.

This is a good friend, or so I’m told

You are tossed into this town and told someone in your family did something bad, you’re again told this one person is a close friend, you’re told that you are a part of this tribe. Due to the way the story is told, none of this is given adequate time to develop. I’ve poked at one of the main quest lines out of a feeling of professional obligation and I still have no real drive to pursue it. This is fine though as Outward does not advertise itself as a game with an in-depth story, rather the focus is on the story that you make for yourself.

Even with that though, things fall a little flat as I can tell the devs put a fair amount of work into this world, but very little of it comes across to the player. Very few NPCs will talk with you, and many of them are just shopkeepers that have just add a little bit of flavored text.  If there’s books or other written lore entries in this game, I haven’t found them yet. There are ruins scattered throughout the game, but so far I’ve not found much inside any of them so far. To be fair, this is a very slow paced game and I’ve not gotten too deep into the more dangerous ruins, so there might be more if you venture further in. That being said, it’s not very excusable that I’m still so clueless on the world given the amount of time I have spent playing.

And thus starts the legend of the Bird Lady

Gameplay

In my original draft, this section was turning into a small novel as there are a lot of mechanics in this game but two things made me stream-line this section. Firstly, if the mechanics of this game aren’t going to interest you, the Cliff Notes version is all you really need to read.

Secondly, if the mechanics of this are your cup of tea, then all you’ll want to read is the Cliff Notes version. See, a lot of this game is about exploration, discovery, and the story that you create. Going through the game and making decisions based on imperfect knowledge is a major part of what makes this game unique. There is a tutorial, and it is a must for this game, but you’ll really be short-changing yourself if you go in with a complete understanding of the mechanics. This is the same for most things in this title, for some this will sound like heaven and for some it will sound like a complete waste of time.

Avatar customization is limited, but it has a purple hair option so it’s all good.

At its core, this is an action-RPG, while there are plenty of side mechanics, the main thrust is exploring dungeons and beating down the bad guys and monsters. After administering the beat downs you will loot all of their stuff, maybe find an upgrade or two, sell the rest, and move onto the next group of walking loot.

Combat

This brings me to my major criticism of the game, and one that I think will be the proverbial straw for many gamers. The combat is not fun as it is clunky, unresponsive, and it is difficult to use the flashier more complex spells if you’re playing solo. After the most difficult fights have ended, I don’t feel like I achieved a victory, rather I just feel like I cheesed the AI. I honestly can’t tell if this is the result of inexperience or if it was a deliberate design choice. Either way, combat really needs to be better given how much of it you’ll be doing.

As for the rest of the mechanics I’ll just skim over them. Survival is a big aspect of this game, with hot and cold weather, hunger, thirst, and the need for sleep. It might sound like a bother, but the game does a good job of encouraging you naturally to keep track of all your bars. As long as you are mindful, you won’t get in trouble.

That being said, the UI to convey some of the information is lacking. For example as you take damage, you recive ‘burnt health’ which reduces your max HP until you either eat specific foods, drink a potion, or sleep. However, the UI really isn’t very clear on this and I died several times before I figured out what that slightly different color red meant on my health circle.

I mean it’s obvious in hindsight, but it did take a few deaths to figure it out

Death

Speaking of death, you don’t really ‘die’ in this game. If you lose all your health, you’ll pass-out instead. This will cost you one day (which can be a major problem for some quests) and you’ll wake up in a context sensitive situation. This can either be fun, an annoyance, or a really bad situation since the time might have caused some food to rot, which means you can’t eat to get rid of that hunger status, as well as your max HP and stamina is also now reduced. It is certainly an interesting way to handle death, I’ll give the developers that. Something to be aware of is that because you can’t ever die, the game does not allow you to save. There is only one auto-save for your character, and the game is saving almost constantly. Don’t count on ALT-F4 to bail you out of a bad choice either.

Character Progression

Character progression is mostly done by getting new gear, you don’t level up in this game, though you can gain new skills. Some skills are free, some cost silver, and a few require you to spend one of your three skill points to unlock. While skills help, your gear is everything here. Getting a new piece of armor or a better weapon drastically effects how well you do in combat. This also means in certain situations you can lose all your advancement because all your gear gets taken, needless to say that really stings. Though it is always possible to get your stuff back, however it might be pose a big challenge, but as far as I can tell nothing gets destroyed unless you sell it to a merchant and their inventory resets.

Multiplayer/Co-op

Multiplayer is potentially a big bonus here as not only does it have online drop-in drop-out gameplay, but it has split screen co-op as well. I didn’t get to test this feature a lot but from what little I did test out multiplayer worked well. It does seem to make the combat an order of magnitude easier though, which could be a concern. To me this is a non-feature since I don’t have anyone in my house I can play with and I’m not all that interested in playing with random people, but I can see how others would love the ability to play an RPG like this with a friend.

Crafting

Finally, there is quite the crafting system to explore here. There are no skill points here, you either have the materials to make something or you don’t. There are recipes but you don’t get to read them before crafting, If you look it up on a wiki (or in some cases just take an educated guess) you can craft the item and the recipe will be added to your journal. While you can craft weapons and armor, you’ll mostly be crafting adventuring supplies such as fire rags and potions. Cooking is a major crafting area as well and is very well integrated into the other systems. Different dishes have different bonuses, with more complex dishes providing additional bonuses.

Audio and Visual

There is honestly not much to say here, the visuals are to put it simply, functional. Occasionally you’ll come across some interesting monster designs and much of the gear you can equip is unique in design, but most of the terrain and architecture is very plain looking. There’s also tons of small, tiny errors in the terrain with the occasional prop that just looks out of place such as the giant rib cages that look like they’re made of plastic.

This does not look like weather-aged bone

Another thing about the visuals that ties in with gameplay is lighting. When it’s supposed to be dark, it is dark. Running out of light in a dungeon is not good situation to be in. While this sounds like an interesting mechanic, it really doesn’t work well when you are outside. If you’ve lived your life in the city, you really don’t realize how dark the great outdoors gets. As someone who does a significant amount of camping in his life trust me, this games gets moonless nights perfectly, which ultimately means you can’t see a darn thing. This makes outdoor navigation a massive pain, even if you have a lantern.

I did not doctor this screen shot at all

Audio is a bit of a mixed bag as the actual songs aren’t bad, and SFX are serviceable, but whatever system they are using for dynamic music is a bit wonky. I’ll be on my 17th trip back to town to sell off the two swords I looted and suddenly the music will swell into this epic score, usually spooking me a bit in the process. The voice acting is a bit off as well. It really does feel like they just went around the office and said “Hey, you’re not doing anything. Go get into the sound booth!” I really don’t think you’ll miss much by muting the sound and listening to your own stuff, but it won’t hurt the ears to leave their stuff on either.

Replayability

OK this might be a bit of a controversial view point, but I feel this game has very limited replayability. As I mentioned in the gameplay section, the vast majority of your adventuring effectiveness is in your gear. True, there is the choice of using magic or not, and which of the skill trees you wish to max out, but honestly you’ll probably have a favorite combat style that you’ll want to stick with. The only real reason to replay the game will be to experience all three faction story lines, since once you join a faction, you’re locked out of the others.

As I’ve already stated though, I don’t feel the main quest lines aren’t all that compelling. Certainly not enough for me to want to redo the game from the start. I really feel that whether or not you want to replay this game is going to hang on both how compelling you find the three factions vs how much the gameplay annoys you.

Pricepoint

So despite that fact that I just roasted Outward for a perceived lack of replayability, I still feel this game is a good buy. Assuming again, the mechanics sound like your cup of tea. Due to the pacing and the size of the world, this is going to take you a solid 30-40 hours to finish one of the main quest lines.  It might take you a little less time for additional playthroughs, but not much so for a $40 game, that’s not bad at all.  The devs give an estimate of 40-80 hours to fully experience the game, and I can see someone easily spending 60+ hours in this game if the mechanics happen to click with them. Toss in the fun you can have with a friend or random people on the internet, and Outward will really give you your money’s worth.

Final Thoughts

If I could give this game two scores I would. This game has a target audience and for them this is easily a 7.5, maybe even an eight. For the average gamer looking for a neat RPG experience to tide them over until Elder Scrolls 6 or Cyperpunk 2077 it would not even come close to that. Very slow pacing, unexplained mechanics, removal of modern systems, clunky combat, all of this adds up to an experience that the average gamer is probably not going to enjoy.

But if you are in that target group, those looking for an RPG that absolutely does not hold your hand and allows you to get hopelessly lost if you don’t pay attention, and will rip you a new one if you mess up, then this game is for you hands down. In the end though, I do need to choose a single score, and I’m going to go with the one I think will reflect the experience most people will have with this game.

If you enjoyed this review be sure to read more with our latest thoughts on action shinobi Sekiro Review: Shinobis Die Many Times. Or you can check out what we thought about CD Projekt Red’s upcoming sci-fi action RPG in Cyberpunk 2077 Preview: When Fallout Meets Blade Runner.

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[paulinegill89]

missouri life insurance

BEST ANSWER: Try this site where you can compare quotes from different companies :insurancequotesonline.xyz

missouri life insurance

missouri life insurance is more affordable compared to other states. With only a few dollars less per year, it’s one of the most affordable life insurance options on the market. It’s also the most reliable. Your premiums can go up when you cancel your policy. If you need life insurance, you’re going to want to cancel your whole life insurance policy. It’s a good idea to cancel it so that it has a low death benefit. If that sounds like you, you should know that every life insurance company will tell you that you may need to cancel and can’t do so. But you can stop paying the premiums. Your insurer is going to decide on what time period you need to stop paying your life insurance. It’s very important to cancel your whole life insurance policy. You can only cancel a portion of it, or you could be charged for the full. missouri life insurance If you are age 65 or older, there will be a benefit to enroll in term life insurance before it expires. You may be eligible to enroll in a 20-year term policy before it expires, but that won t save you money. What does it all mean for you? You can buy life insurance in many ways. It can be tailored to meet a specific need. For one, it s a good idea to consider coverage for final expenses. These are things that we ll usually cover separately. For another, many people use life insurance coverage to pay off debts they couldn t otherwise pay. Life insurance can also provide your spouse with more than the current monthly income. You should also consider an investment in adding a life insurance policy to your retirement. This can pay off any future mortgages you have. If you need additional assistance, you may be able to . It may be easier to start directly through our website. We ll always have something in the post. missouri life insurance company is the best for seniors, but you can often find a decent company in the market when you do some of the questions. In this case, we recommend Independent Insurance Agents. Your insurance agent will help you find the best policy for just the right amount for the coverage that your loved ones deserve. The best way to learn about all the different options is to just read through the questions carefully. When you read through your search of life insurance quotes, you will come across numerous types of life insurance. These life insurance companies include: Insurance Company Policy Type Monthly premiums after deductible Total benefits (after deductible) Company pays policy owner at face value (without premiums) Total policy value for premium paid Total benefits (after deductible)  Secured by US Bank - P.O. Box 53386 USBA Life Insurance Company 1001 Life Insurance Company, Houston, TX, is a financial services and investment brand. The company was incorporated in 1909-.

How do I sign up to take the Missouri insurance exam and where is it given?

How do I sign up to take the Missouri insurance exam and where is it given? First, I have a boyfriend who works in the insurance industry. I had pre-existing medical problems in the past and he wanted to try to get me to get in a better spot. I did this but they offered an option to sign up to the lab and I would receive a quote for the exam at no additional cost. After the test, which is the next morning, my bill changes and I have to cancel the bill from the insurance company and this is not okay. There are several bad reviews online of the clinic because of the pricing I have to pay for all of the tests and medications being covered with insurance. So, I don’t need to call the insurance company. Second, in most places where you are having to pay for testing, and it is paid, you will have insurance coverage on your insurance plan and they are required to pay a certain percentage of that (like 20%). That will be called what is called a ‘no.

Will I have adequate time to complete the Missouri insurance test?

Will I have adequate time to complete the Missouri insurance test? Can I borrow your car for over 5 years in a rental car for under 6 days a week? You will need to verify that you already have auto insurance. If you aren’t, you may be required to buy an auto insurance policy on it for the duration of your stay. I need proof of insurance on a vehicle. Can I get insurance on a van or motor home? Can you borrow the car and drive it through the school zone? I want insurance for my son. Can I buy proof of insurance? I have a son who has good grades and has recently gotten his license. Does he need an SR-22 or non-owners insurance? It depends. His insurance is in effect when he returns his vehicle to the U.S., but his insurance company can’t cancel that policy because his son doesn’t have his own car insurance anymore. Instead, his son is listed as “co-op” on the policy; the insurance company.

Unfortunately, there are no postings for Life Insurance in Missour jobs on ZipRecruiter at this time, but here are some popular searches in your area.

Unfortunately, there are no postings for Life Insurance in Missour jobs on ZipRecruiter at this time, but here are some popular searches in your area. Also, it seems like most life insurance companies in the US have good people, including young people and disabled young people with families. The insurance is available for a fixed price, but it can often be more expensive than what you would pay in a comparable comparable term life insurance policy. It’s important to be sure that you are shopping for a good way to save on a decent term life insurance policy. You’ll want to look at a good life insurance company before you commit to a deal. It’s likely that the insurer will provide a low-cost plan but be sure to find out which discounts are available to you. For those who purchase life insurance coverage, the best way to do this is to compare the price of the policy to other policies or to simply pay an online premium. Your options will be limited and it might get expensive to get life insurance. However, if you want to try and purchase an affordable policy for your children, it may be a.

How many questions are on the Missouri insurance exam?

How many questions are on the Missouri insurance exam? You can take the Missouri Insurance Information Institute s . The course is written on a . We have done the entire Missouri Insurance Application. Is there anything you’d like to know? Here’s what you need to know to take the Missouri insurance exam. Why is it important? You will be required to take your MFIAT to get a ! What is the minimum level of insurance for 2018? It has been estimated that there are around a 15% chance in the worst that will happen to you during the years that you are taking the insurance exam! Why I need to take an exam? The fact that this is the state that is currently looking at all of the statistics and what have been going on in the state is the reason that the state is looking at more and more problems and this is by far the most important thing for any information on the Missouri insurance exam. What is the best insurance carriers ? The insurance carriers.

Is the Missouri insurance exam still given by the “paper and pencil” method?

Is the Missouri insurance exam still given by the “paper and pencil” method? The only way you will be able to understand it is by using a paper and pencil method. I had to take the exam at the end of the day to prove I am not just a high-risk driving driver.  So if I did not take a paper and pencil method that would not be reliable in the future. Thanks! I am 18 years old in good health . My insurance policy will cover the cost of my car . I have a loan from the dealership for $250,000. Is this what I will be able to afford? I am 22 years old next year. My insurance will cover the cost of my loan. This loan is for my car, not mine. I am paying for insurance through the bank I live in. I have a large house loan on a car that is not worth nearly the value of the vehicle. We both live in the same state. Would this make me more of a risk to insure or insure my loan? I have a car loan for 1.

What kind of questions do they put on the Missouri insurance test?

What kind of questions do they put on the Missouri insurance test? Where is the next-door neighbor if people don’t have insurance? How much would people pay for auto and home/auto insurance? We know our Missouri auto insurance tests will be done in a room in the city of Omaha…you will have to do it. The Missouri insurance exam in this article takes about 15 minutes to complete, and we will be at that point the insurance professional will walk you through all of the questions that will be asked. First, we will start with all questions that must be answered by you and then ask if you like your questions answered by you. This section includes information about each of the questions that are to include information about each of the questions, and a schedule for you to complete all of them in order to request some information from our firm. The following portion of each exam is filled out by a private insurance professional. When is all done? After the questions have been completed and for approval, a private insurance professional.

What is the best test prep method for the Missouri insurance exam?

What is the best test prep method for the Missouri insurance exam? Read on for more information, videos, tools and best test prep companies we recommend. Test Prep — Our Test Prep Network and our Test Prep company offer free mobile exam prep. This is really important that we have to call before we do so you know what test preparation for test prep you can save! If you test a test, the test prep provider may be your best option. You might not realize that you have to get your test driving certificate in order to test on the road, but this cost might be worth the financial cost. Your car insurance quote is free to you and the test rental will be free of charge. To determine how much will you get after testing on the road, here’s the best test prep providers by type of insurance cover, where you qualify and how much you will save on your insurance: Take a look at the following table to get an idea of the insurance industry and find the best test prep companies you can. Allstate also offers test prep programs where you.

General Insurance License Exam Information (Video)

General Insurance License Exam Information (Video) What You Can Can Can Can Find Insurance Companies That May Provide Your Insurance Plans If the coverage of life begins to exceed the life insurance policies of the individual, the individual should contact an independent consultant. An attorney is not bound to a different type of insurance plan. That said, when the individual or group wishes to obtain insurance, there are several different benefits of seeking an attorney to counsel the individual and to recommend appropriate treatment for the individual and for that specific policy. In general, your insurance policy may be the individual’s only viable recourse against a claim for compensation. In addition, in cases of intentional misrepresentations on the part of the individual, insurance companies may be liable to pay the claimant damages. The following are a few examples of an insurance plan and a fee for your consultation as an authorized authorized underwriting professional: Dates of the liability are announced, or a document obtained by the insurance claimant confirming fault. In a case of falsification, it is a.

What insurance exams are given in Missouri and what do they cost?

What insurance exams are given in Missouri and what do they cost? The cost of attending an insurance exam may also be a little higher than the average. However, if you are in good health, and choose to go with no-exam health insurance, you will receive the appropriate discounts! All of our insurance exams are free. Whether you are looking for auto, home, RV, bicycle, boat, umbrella, flood, or renters insurance, we can help get you the best fit for coverage. Enter some information and we can help you fill out your test form and we can also help you find auto insurance companies, homeowners, or commercial insurance. Insurance Exams are a way for insurance companies to show their consumers a wide variety of policies for different parts of the year or the landscape that may be out of your control? With our online application, you receive personalized service from one of our licensed insurance agents that can assist in the following:  We can also provide you with the same quotes for other policies, but we offer it very differently.

What insurance exams are given in Missouri and what do they cost?

What insurance exams are given in Missouri and what do they cost? Let me explain. For those of you that are interested in taking the Missouri insurance exam I have been doing a lot and it’s been quite a few times. In this process you’ve come to the realization that insurance is a financial decision for the individual and all the businesses that operate out there. What does that mean for you? Do insurance policies cover you and your wife and your parents? Do they pay? Did they offer you the option to add coverage? Well, what does that mean for you? There are things that you could do under the health insurance or life insurance policies. In some ways of a few of these scenarios, the health insurance is a very good idea when you’re trying to put this process in place that can prevent you from getting into any kind of trouble if you do end up in an accident. I work with a group of really great people and I’d like to have one of my questions. We had a great experience getting.

[zydrateacademy]

Review: Destiny 2

It took me a while to compile enough thoughts for a proper review, and to find time to actually begin writing because I’ve been far too busy actually playing it. This will come with a minor disclaimer or two. First, I haven’t played the first game. It was on console and I’ve been on PC for a long time. Secondly, I may mention a lot of other game comparisons and there’s a reason for that. This game feels like it borrows some of the best parts of other games and stitched them together to make something great. I can’t really comment on the game’s previous story, but I hear from most players that there wasn’t much of one. Somehow I feel that this is hyperbole on their part because you can’t really have a game without a story. Even team shooters like Overwatch shoehorn some lore within their dialog or various external material. All the same, I’ve gathered that a giant alien ball gave a large portion of the Earth population immortality topped with magical powers. Not exaggerating, I have literally heard the word “magic” be used in what seems to be a Sci Fi adventure. The game proper starts off with a full on assault from an enemy faction that only had a tertiary presence in the first game. They win pretty swiftly and kick you off a tower. Your guardian loses their “light” powers and must traverse the first forty-five minutes or so of the game without the ability to resurrect. Of course that is of limited value as checkpoints are still a thing so feel free to die if you don’t quite have a handle on the gunplay.

The campaign is stated to be around six hours long and that’s fairly accurate. It felt incredibly short and it was surprising to learn about this sun-destroying device that the Red Legion created. Funny enough, that’s actually the halfway point and the exact moment where the story becomes less interesting. Before that, you hop between planets to “get the band back together”, essentially. You collect the various class leaders across the system, each with their own unique problems that you solve and get back together to help lead the push against the guys who took everyone’s light. After that, it’s a generic doomsday device that you must disable, and the campaign missions themselves feel a bit padded at times. You’re often assigned to disable something, only for it to not work so you must go destroy something else two more times before the thing actually works. The old school trope of “You cannot thwart stage one” is in full effect here folks, and you’ll likely predict what will happen to the big bad Ghaul himself long before you actually see it. Weak story aside, the gunplay is some of the best feeling in a first person shooter I’ve had in a while. At first glance the game looks and feels like a less irritating version of Borderlands, a franchise of which I love anyway like a slowly improving problem child. Enemies have large health bars and every hit you land, magical floating numbers pop up signifying your damage. Ultimately these numbers mean very little because max level players can play with level three’s and nobody can really one-shot anything except for the basics. There’s some strange autobalancing coding going on in the background, but it still manages to make sure that anyone can play with their friends regardless of people’s gear level. This includes the fact that max level players will constantly get tokens and can break down lesser gear for yet another type of turn-in token. There’s always a reason to do things and I find that it’s a great mechanic. 

The story is mostly just an excuse to get you to maximum level and have access to the tower. After that, the full game unlocks to you which is common MMO fare. It lets you dip your toes in some player-versus-player but after you beat the campaign, every planet and game mode will have a set of challenges and milestones for you to work towards and continually get your item level up, also known as a “Gearscore” if you’re a veteran of WoW. Ultimately this is where the game shines and where I typically have the most fun, because it essentially becomes a first person sandbox. No, there’s not really an open world and there’s not much to explore unless you’re hunting for Lost Sectors, secret sections of the map that typically have yield chests with better loot that will only unlock when you defeat the local miniboss. They’re a lot of fun. Each planet has this sort of “hub” area that you’ll find a few other players running around in. I figure they’re instanced with a likely player cap because I’ve never seen more than a few at a time. At most I think I saw about seven other people joining in on a public event with me, one of my favorite features of the game. Public Events are not a new concept in recent gaming history. The earliest comparison I can personally think of is Rift (2011), but I think they started dipping into MMO’s a year or so before that. It’s as it sounds, in hub areas these events will trigger down from a five minute timer to allow other people gather and prepare and it will spawn a moderately difficult boss or objective based event. They’re typically too difficult for me to solo but I’m sure other, better players can manage. By completing optional objectives you can help upgrade every event to “heroic”, which yields a lot more experience and a bit more loot. You might have to research or simply take cues from other players and see what you have to do, but if you see people shooting at that ship circling the area or slamming on this random device in the middle of the firefight - That’s probably why. Those side challenges I mentioned can be a bit fickle sometimes. Sometimes they’ll require you to kill enemies with a certain weapon or a certain way that doesn’t necessarily to cater to my playstyle. One in PvP once wanted me to make a few kills with a subclass I never used and thus had no upgrade points put into. I never got that challenges because, as per the game’s meta, there’s certain gun types or subclasses people just don’t use in certain modes. For example, nobody ever really uses the Hunter’s “Nightstalker” subclass in PvP because it’s a sort of crowd control that’s useful against several clustered enemies. In PvP that almost never happens and it would be too easy for actual players to escape the little orb that the Hunter created. 

There’s also a multitude of gun types, all with their varying clip sizes, fire rates, and range capabilities that are more useful in one mode than the other, so this typically encourages you to keep a certain ‘collection’ of things depending on what you’re playing. So far I’ve only talked about challenges and public events. I’ve found it hard to talk about what and first because there’s a lot to the game to chew through between the various updates the game will inevitably have. Of this writing, the game’s first expansion has already been announced for the fifth of December which will likely bring a whole new set of milestones, strikes, missions and most importantly, loot. I’ll try to get through some of the fun stuff you can get a hold of at the endgame which mercifully doesn’t take long to get to. Strikes are basically just dungeons from other fantasy based MMO’s. There’s not a lot to say about them, they’re ten to twenty minute encounters with a variety of bosses and mechanics you need to figure out. My least favorite so far is this Fallen boss who will constantly disappear after just a few hits and spawn these electrified robots that will limit your movement and now allow you to jump at all (and there’s a LOT of jumping in this game). They’ll also constantly damage you because of course they will. It reminds me of a survival game to be honest.

There’s the Crucible, Destiny’s name for PvP combat. It’s run of the mill PvP with your usual zone controls, team deathmatch and even a mode that’s reminiscent of Call of Duty’s “kill confirmed” mode where you only get points by picking up a sigil from a fallen enemy; Or else let their allies pick them up and get denied the score. I enjoy it and I can sometimes get rewards from it even by losing. I’m currently working on an exotic weapon quest where you have to dismantle rare or better scout rifles, which the crucible rewarded me with one just for losing. So hey, progress! There’s also something called “Nightfalls”, which remind me of “Heroic dungeons” from World of Warcraft, but are actually more comparable to Starcraft 2′s mutator mode in their Co-Op. Every week it changes, typically with some kind of timer mechanic to make sure your team is at their most optimal. On our first week, in addition to the timer, all of our skills recharges what seemed to be five times faster. So the mutations are not always there to hurt us. Naturally it gives much better loot than their more basic versions and can be incredibly intense. Myself and two buddies from my gaming community managed to kill the boss of one with a mere four seconds left on the timer. Our first ever Nightfall, to boot. I alluded earlier to the fact that there’s tokens you get from a variety of activities. This mostly gives incentive for high level players to continue playing, as you can turn these tokens in to a variety of faction leaders for engrams (a fancy word for “loot boxes”) that typically level with you so they’re usually good to grind out.

And yes, there is a grind here to a certain degree. There’s a sort of soft cap to gear levels, I found it a crawl to get past the 260-265 hump but then slingshot past it on the game’s second week with a new rollout of milestones that wanted me to play several crucible games, complete five challenges out in the world, and a few other things. Each of them gave me 269′s and 271′s and helped me gear up a bit. At a certain point it becomes advantageous to roll multiple characters so you can do all of this more than once, padding the gameplay and turning it into a grind. There is a bit of fatigue once you hit that soft cap I will admit but it’s typically relieved by playing with friends. This goes with any multiplayer game, true enough. As mentioned I can continue playing missions with newer players, hunt for public events, or toss my scrub ass into the unforgiving ring of failure that is Crucible and I’ll always get something for my trouble. There’s never not anything to do. All this time I’ve actually forgotten to talk about how really damn pretty the game is, to boot. Most of my settings are on maximum with the sole exception of my textures, which have to be medium as to not stress my unfortunately low about of VRAM. I’ve had people smarter than me try to explain why exceeding it matters but regardless, the game is still one of the best looking things in my entire library.

There’s a lot of chatter about microtransactions in the industry lately. Yes, they are present here in the form of “Bright” engrams, which can be acquired in two ways. Obviously you can buy “Silver” which acts as a separate currency for Bright engrams. The other way is, as a level 20 you will get one per ‘level up’ as you continue to play. The flow of such is pretty slow and I typically only get one or two a day (If I’m actively playing my main Hunter) as opposed to dropping ten dollars and getting five immediately. They typically contain cosmetics, some more practical than others like faster speederbikes that will help you traverse stretches of land on planets with a bit more ease. They’re the primary source of the shinier ��shaders”, or armor dyes. You can get shaders out of basic chests and other loot boxes but shaders do have “rarity” like any gear does and I don’t think I’ve gotten some of the better looking ones through more basic means. Still, the microtransaction craze does speak to a seedier part of the industry and I will admit the “It’s just cosmetic!” argument doesn’t quite hold up, but I’ll leave that for the individual to decide. I’ve already purchased some silver twice now, but that’s my prerogative. I’ll just say that the game never, not once, beats me over the head with “BUY SOME OF THIS AND YOUR LIFE WILL BE MORE COMPLETE”. They better not, after I spent the full hundred dollars to begin with. In conclusion, the game feels like the most refined collection of a dozen games I could name, like the world’s cleanest zombie. Borderlands, The Division, World of Warcraft, Rift. The gameplay constantly reminds me of other games but is the absolute best version of all of them. The gunplay will keep me coming back as I do occasionally itch for an ironsight shooter but all the current ones I have are boring or have dead communities with long matchmaking. A large portion of my gaming community is playing so I can typically play at my own pace, or get others to join me if I feel like I want my objectives to go a little quicker than usual. There’s plenty to do and it’s all up to me to figure out what I want to prioritize when I log in. For a game with this much in it, it can only improve with more content.

[nyrator]

also I beat Mario Odyssey this morning and by beat I mean the final boss

spoilers under cut of opinions of stuff

so yeah ended up enjoying it more than when I first did once I shook the Hat in Time mechanics from my muscle memory (A Hat in Time is still a game I enjoyed better but this game definitely itches my love of collectathon games)

At just over 600 Moons (which I still call stars), got every star possible before the final boss I believe, then yeah. About 9400 coins by the end, all of which I spent on clothing (I have them all unlocked as well as the Dark and Darker Sides of the Moon, but haven’t been to them yet)

Some worlds were ehh, some were nice, most Moons/Coins I managed to find by myself, but after a point when I only had like a small handful left I’d always look at a guide for the general location (I refused to spend money on Toad for some reason and didn’t realize Amiibo would also do that), a lot of times I was always missing some obvious set of three purple coins somewhere near the beginning/end. Some were obvious, some were downright dirty.

So yeah, bosses were pretty easy (though I did die a bunch due to dumb stuff but yeah, patterns were easy). Was disappointed in the Final Bowser fight being the exact same as the Cloud fight, which was only hard until I realized the timing of the hit-block-dodge-attack thing in the third phase, and going into the final fight with that knowledge made it a joke. For some reason, I did not expect to Capture Bowser (to be fair it was pretty obvious I just don’t think ahead in these kinds of games), that was fun and the music was nice.

The ending was amusing, Mario about to kiss Peach, Bowser gets up and punches him in the face, then they fight on the moon for her affection with flowers, and she just steals Mario’s ship and leaves them both behind (Mario gets on of course but poor Bowser you gotta like Bowser)

Spent all morning just enjoying the Mushroom Kingdom (ALSO SO HAPPY THE SHOP HAD A WALUIGI COSTUME, “It’s barely used!” was a great description, I’m full on Waluigi from now on except for the Moons that require outfits, before that I was Painter’s Hat+Resort outfit)

also I should go back and finish Mario 64 someday, it’s that game I only played at neighbor’s house because no nintendo consoles until GameCube.

things I didn’t like was a lot of the instant death stuff (which mostly is just me needing to get good but still), the minigame second moons (mostly just painful slog but I guess reasonable), and the awkwardness of the controls. I still don’t know how to move around properly without pressing the wrong button (aka usually ground pounding instead of diving/long jumping), and yeah AHiT has got the whole complicated jumps programmed into me so I keep trying to backflip-throw cap-dive onto it kind of combos and they usually end up being button mashing that almost works but I lose control and they fail (notably my original solution to getting a Moon in Luncheon, where I put two Goombas together, got a Hammer Bro, jumped on the Goombas, jumped out of the Hammer Bro, threw my cap at the wall, jumped on it, and tried reaching the platform above). I almost had it my first try but I jumped the wrong direction and missed the platform, and every future attempt failed (then I realized cannons unlocked and you just shoot yourself over it and land on it)

But yeah, overalll...

Cap Kingdom- Small, but best aesthetic and music, favorite world I think, just wish it had more to it.

Cascade Kingdom- Okay/10. Basic green starting world, not much to say, not a fan of jungle/dinosaur aesthetics personally

Sand Kingdom- Kingdom that got me feeling the game, spent a looot of time exploring it, even though it was just a desert. It had sheep and that was nice, one of the better worlds for sure.

Lake Kingdom- Worst Kingdom in the game, so disappointing after Sand Kingdom. I figured it’d be a half world because of the split path thing, but then Wooded absolutely blew it out of the water (no pun intended), but yeah, tiny, mostly just swimming a small area, and could’ve easily been combined with the other water world.

Wooded Kingdom- One of the better worlds, also had the best music as well in certain sections (not as enjoyable as Cap but still great). Main complaint is that bottom layer of the woods, though I might’ve missed a beat of dialogue that explained it, since I had no idea it was there without a guide (especially since I’ve died several times falling off the side trying to do certain platforming on spinning wheels near the secret garden). I liked the extendo guys though.

Cloud Kingdom- Just a boss world from what I saw.

Lost Kingdom- Hooo boy, this is when it started to get a little frustrating, but not too bad. Caterpillars were fun, probably best capture thing. Too much poison/10, poison is awful and instant death.

Metro Kingdom- Mannn that Sim language. Was enjoyable, definitely a weird aesthetic clash (which is intentionally most of the game but still), and also Mario in a tank in a stormy city under siege is something I never expected from a Mario game. Though it also had my least favorite minigame so far... jump rope. By some miracle I got to 103 and never again.

Snow Kingdom- Small, basic, overworld was nice but average. The racing second round was hell.

Seaside Kingdom- Up there, definitely much better than Lake Kingdom and should’ve been combined with it, but mannn it is just hard to explore all that water and probably the one I used a guide the most with because of how many small missable things I missed (though only three coins, right in the sea in a depression near the volley ball court). Also, volley ball was hell as well, just not as hell as jump rope.

Luncheon Kingdom- this was a painful kingdom. A lot of this was just me “okay I’m done get me out of this pink lava hell hole”, at first it was okay to explore but after the midboss it was ehhh. Also too bright and shiny.

Ruined Kingdom- unexpected/10. Just another boss world, but mann seeing a Skyrim-esque dragon in a Mario game attacking you like the FFIX scene with Kuja against Brahne was definitely a thing. The boss refight just adding ice physics and different shaped lightning that’s hard to avoid on ice was very blehh.

Bowser’s Kingdom- ... completely unexpected/10. Did not expect a Japanese castle setting, but I enjoyed the change of pace and loved how it was still treated as a travel destination in game. Birds were fun but very painful on certain segments with metal bouncing you backwards. Felt like more of a classic 3D Mario world too (or Galaxy/3D World anyway), with the separated platforms and linearity and stuff.

Moon Kingdom- It’s the moon. Pretty bland with empty space jumping, no idea how much I missed on here but I got every Moon on the list up to like, the one on the support beams in the chapel, so yeah. Also the one moon on the cannon is like the one moon I felt was super unfair to find but oh welll, thank you guide.

Mushroom Kingdom- Great throwback level, fun little area with tons to explore, that 2D Mario section with the fading 2D segments can go to hell though- Specifically, that area with the rotating segments because using a control stick to 2D platform and having it alternate between “holding right will keep you moving clockwise” and “stick moves in the direction you’re moving, aka if you’re on the left side, you have to press Up to go right/clockwise”. I’ve died on that more than I should have and it was bluh.

in short Cap is the best and Lake is the worst

also yeah

this game has a Waluigi costume

so far I went back and got all the Moons in Cap (except the Art one) and Cascade, the races I feel are going to be a nightmare soon but yeah. Also worried about how much money grind I might have to do to get all the outfits (they all seem doable since there’s like five pieces left for me to get I think, the Gold/Metal sets and the Skeleton, but the freaking Skeleton outfit is 9999 and that’ll be the thing that kills the completionist in me)

speaking of completionist, no idea how to feel about buying moons or if there’s a limit, but there doesn’t seem to be so hm

ALSO I LOVE HOW PEACH HAS DIFFERENT OUTFITS IN HER JOURNEYS TO THE KINGDOMS, her Cap outfit was fantastic and I hope she’s still there/is able to wear it because it is a very nice outfit good job being fashionable Peach

also I have to wonder still

where is Luigi

is he on the dark(er) side(s) of the Moon

I will find out myself once I collect everything and hit up the dark side segmentss

also once I’m done with everything I’m going to get a friend to co-op with me and see how bad the co-op is because I can’t imagine how it works

[shintorikhazumi]

Teachers and Brass Bands Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Sensei?!, Reina, The girl with the trumpet and Asuka, Goddess of the euphonium

Disclaimer: I don't even think i need this if everyone knows i don't own nothing, anything

A/N: I reread before posting to put spacing between scenes... and I saw how bad I am... wow... It feels like here are so many holes everywhere, thoughts are unexplained and strewn about... WOW. Good luck me and all those who read?

Will you enjoy?

Enjoy?

Oh, and this will be the only speedy update here :P... I’ll probably update it weekly or after longer periods of time... welp, Go?

Oh! And thank you @youcansuckmycobra @mrs-kagari @emutant @taki-sensei and @melphis-amekia for reblogging ^_^ I appreciate it, and to all those who liked it.

Enjoy.

~Shintori Khazumi

Teachers and Brass Bands

Chapter 1: Sensei?!, Reina, The girl with the trumpet and Asuka, Goddess of the euphonium

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

The door to the room slid open, Taki entering and cleared his throat to address the entire population.

"Ehemm… students, your attention please, I would like you all to meet someone." He motioned to the figure hiding behind the door, to come in.

Kumiko walked in, feeling the pressure as if a million eyes were staring at her. The room was filled with awkward silence as the only sound that resounded was that of her footsteps.

Once Kumiko had reached the front, she heard someone ask a question. "Taki sensei…" the young man said. "…Transfer student?"

"Pffffft… aha…" Taki did his best to hold in his amusement and tried to stay professional in front of his students. 'transfer student.' "T-trans… he said you're a…"

"Don't you dare laugh, Taki." Kumiko sent a cold look at him, pinching him on his side.

"Taki?" The students looked at Kumiko, the girl who just called their teacher so… what's-the-word, with no respect whatsoever. "Oi transfer student, we don't know how it went for you at your old school, but show a little respect for your teachers!" the boy from earlier exclaimed, not liking how Kumiko addressed their teacher.

"Yeah!" Almost everyone chorused, some too uninterested to join in.

"You sure are loved, Taki…" Kumiko whispered.

"Um… guys actually…" Taki tried to insert, but he was ultimately ignored.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, getting' all cocky since you're a transfer student and all."

"Yeah!" Kumiko felt a vein pop in annoyance. These kids… so far they haven't been making a very good impression on Kumiko. 'I hope you can make up for this blunder with your talent' she thought. 'and what are you guys? Short tempered kids?'

"Guys!" Taki tried again but was shot down. "This is getting out of hand… and here I was only supposed to introduce Kumiko…" Taki covered his face with his hand.

"Even we- who didn't have any plans, goals or dreams for the future, a pathetic bunch- were helped by him, so…"

"Guys listen to me!" Taki tried again getting slightly annoyed. Sure he knew that most Kitauji students had a short fuse, but still… this feels like an overly dramatic plot that shouldn't have gone like this because it feels awkward…

"… the least you could do is respect him!"

A fist suddenly banged loudly on the wall catching everyone's attention. "Everyone! Take seat. NOW." Taki said in a commanding tone. 'was I always this loved?'

"Yes sir." They all replied in fear and took seat as Taki beckoned Kumiko to stand nearer beside him.

Taki cleared his throat once more. "Everyone, I would like you to meet Oumae Kumiko. She'll be joining us for the rest of the school year and hopefully in the following years to come. Be kind to her, kay?" He eyed each and every person then turns to Kumiko mouthing to her 'your turn'.

Kumiko nods and turns to her audience, bowing before beginning. "Hi. I'm Oumae Kumiko and due to certain arrangements …" She glares at Taki for a bit as she emphasizes the word. "… I'll be joining you. It's nice to meet you." Kumiko bows again.

Everyone is still annoyed with her and just sends her glares and cold stares.

"Now, now everyone can't we all just be friends?" A girl- in her third year, Kumiko deduced- stood up and told everyone. Turning to Kumiko, she introduced herself. "Hi. I am Ogasawara Haruka, the club president. It's very ni- It is a pleasure to meet you as well." Kumiko shook her head, but couldn't stop thinking 'Why did she correct herself?'.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something flash and the next thing she knew, another student was tickling her. "Ah… hahaha… s-stop! W-wait ahahah s-stop! help meeee!" Kumiko laughed out loud.

"Ohoho? So the transfer student is ticklish,huh?" A girl with glasses laughed along with the gasping Kumiko.

"Asuka!" Haruka cried. "Stop that!"

"Eh? But it's fun!" The said girl replied, unrelenting.

"T-Taki… H-help…" Kumiko managed to breathe out.

"Oh!" Taki put his fist to his palm. "I forgot to tell you guys this but…" Everyone turned their attention to him

"But?"

"Kumiko here is actually your new teacher who will be taking turns with me in teaching your English and music classes, as well as being the assistant advisor of the band!" Taki informed them happily while clapping his hands together.

"Eh?" Everyone was quiet. Asuka had stopped tickling the helpless Kumiko.

"EHHHH?!"

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

The next few moments of Kumiko's life, she found them very embarrassing and awkward. 'Almost' all the members of the band had knelt before her and apologized. It had been about ten minutes since Taki revealed that she was actually a teacher. 'He should have said it earlier then we all would've avoided this misunderstanding.

"Guys… I already said it was ok, didn't I" Kumiko looked away from the pleading eyes and puppy faces- or was it pleading faces and puppy eyes?- of her students.

'Students, huh?' Kumiko smiled warmly at that thought.

"Alright you lot, it's time for practice!" Kumiko said in a faux-stern voice. "Show me what you can do." She commanded.

The students lifted their heads from the floor and looked at Kumiko to which she gave them a bright smile. "Do your best."

"Y-yes!"

In all her fifteen-going sixteen- years of listening to classical music, Kumiko never thought that it could make her feel anything but relaxation and peace, that is, until now.

"Stop, stop, stop!" She said frustrated. It was probably the tenth time they had stopped in the last six minutes and thirty-two seconds. She was stressed, frustrated, irritated, annoyed, slightly mad, the keyword being slightly- but not at her students, rather at the music- yet also felt pity for the students, All the things that classical music shouldn't make you feel.

"Hah… I can't believe this… Takiiii…." Kumiko whined childishly at her friend, forgetting she was still in front of her students.

'So cute…'

"Anyway," Taki cleared his throat." Seeing how Kumiko-sensei-"

"Sensei?" Kumiko felt weird being addressed in such a way.

"-is reacting, we will divide into sectionals. Kumiko-sensei will watch over the Bass and Trumpet sections. Is that okay with everyone?"

"Yes!"

"yes…"

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

The stare off seemed to be going on forever, but Kumiko's uncontrolled commenting broke off the silence.

"Natsuki?!" She exclaimed, surprised that her co-worker, not to mention friend from her part-time job, went to school where she was going to teach. 'Though I guess we're no longer co-workers since I quit.'

"Kumiko… what…"

"You know each other?" A short haired girl sitting beside Kumiko asked. They were about to do introductions as the section gathered, but as Natsuki approached, Kumiko was pleasantly surprised.

"Y-yeah sort of…" Silence ensued once more.

"So…" Kumiko began.

"So…?" Attentive stares were thrown at Kumiko.

"You're the bass section, huh?" Her statement was met with silence.

"How 'bout introducing yourselves to me?" It was more of a question than anything for Kumiko. These people just continued to stare at her. "Guys?"

"Oh! Yes, sure… sure." Said a little blond with curly hair. "Sorry about that. I'm Kawashima-"

"Sapphire." The short-haired brunette beside Kumiko interrupted.

"I told you to call me Midori!" The girl fumed, though her little rant was only outright adorable. "Anyway," She said calming down. "Kawashima Midori on Contrabass." She finished her introduction.

"Contrabass? You?" Kumiko quickly covered her mouth. "S-sorry. I didn't mean it in an offending way." She apologized.

"It's okay, sensei!" The girl replied cheerily.

"Sensei…" Kumiko muttered. Somehow, she just couldn't get used to being called that.

"Gotou Takuya, I play tuba and this is Nagase Riko, also on tuba." The only male in the section spoke, gesturing to the third year tuba player beside him.

"It's nice to meet you." She smiled at Kumiko.

"Nice to meet you too." Kumiko replied. "Now… who's next?"

"Ah! Me! Me! Katou Hazuki on the tuba, just call me Hazuki, sensei." The girl with shining eyes who had been sitting beside Kumiko from the start introduced herself.

"S-sensei again…" Kumiko hung her head low. "Next?" Without looking up, she felt a strange presence behind her and shot op from her seat, successfully hitting her head against someone's jaw.

"Ouch~ Sensei… that hurt, you know!"

'A beauty' was all Kumiko could think of. The girl she just hit with her head was a real beau- wait.

"Ah! You're the one who tickled me!" Kumiko pointed accusingly at the glasses wearing female.

"HI! Asuka here, the goddess of the euphonium!" She bowed dramatically.

"And your last name?" Kumiko asked, not wanting to call this person who invaded her personal space, by her first name.

"Asuka's fine."

"Nah, I'd prefer to stay formal rather than casual." Kumiko replied.

"Even if you call Taki-sensei so familiarly?"

"We've been friends for a long time, so it doesn't count, also I don't use his first name.." Kumiko replied not missing a beat.

"Aww… still."

"Fine-"

"Yey!"

"-Next please."

"Huh? Don't ignore me Kumiko-sensei~!"

"What." Kumiko said coldly.

"Wah… sensei can be scary if she wants to." Natsuki commented, seemingly uninterested in the conversation.

"No need to sarcastically praise me for my nonexistent abilities, Natsuki. Not that my abilities are nonexistent." Kumiko replied, but then looked at the girl expectantly.

"What?" She seemed to have noticed Kumiko's eyes on her. "I don't need to introduce myself to you anymore since you already know me."

"Formalities Natsuki, Formalities." Kumiko told her. The girl in question, sighed.

"Hah… fine. Nakagawa Natsuki, euphonium. Me and Kumiko used to do part-time work together at this café and that's how we met." She introduced, answering the unspoken question as well.

"Ah." Everyone else commented dryly.

"Oh and Sensei…" Natsuki said, laying heavy emphasis on the word sensei.

"Hai?"

"Asuka-senpai's last name is Tanaka."

"Thank you Natsuki." Kumiko bowed solemnly.

"Natsuki-chan! Why?!" Asuka cried. "Anyway, now that formalities are done..." She recovered, much too fast for Kumiko's liking. "Let's practice." Kumiko just stared. How this normally eccentric girl could do a total one-eighty into an actually serious person was too good to be true.

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

"I'm dreaming, right?"

"Huh?"

The practice went on for a few minutes and Kumiko picked up on a few things. Firstly, Hazuki was a total beginner, but could turn out good with a little coaching. Natsuki seemed to be uninterested, but the talent was there, just that she needed to practice. Sapph- Midori was surprisingly excellent on contrabass, Gotou and Riko were good enough, but could do better and…

"You weren't kidding when you said you were the goddess of the euphonium." Kumiko blurted out after listening to Asuka's flawless performance. Quickly replacing her shock with a smile she congratulated them for at least an on-par performance with regular band members of prestigious schools for people who just started practicing. "Good job."

"Heh… I personally think we could have done better though." Asuka said

'I do agree with that.' Kumiko thought.

"And yes, I wasn't kidding about being amazing!" Asuka laughed returning to her annoying state, as Kumiko labeled her.

"At least you make up for your personality with your talent." Kumiko sighed tiredly, realizing it was about time she went to check on the trumpets. "Well, I'll be going now." She stood up to leave but was stopped by Asuka.

"Sensei… how 'bout you give us a sample first of how you play. I mean, you must have been assigned to the bass section because you could play something in it, right?" Asuka said. "I mean, normally, Taki-sensei would just let me take care of it. So, what do you play? Contrabass? Tuba? Euphonium?"

Kumiko didn't turn back. "Maybe some other time, Tanaka-san." Kumiko closed the door behind her.

"Asuka… you pushed a little too far on a sensitive subject." Natsuki stated, staring out the window.

"What? Why do you say that?" She asked innocently.

"Here." Natsuki threw a magazine she got from her bag at Asuka who caught it swiftly. "Turn to page fifty, on the special article, well not that you'd need to. It's on the front page anyway." Natsuki said without looking away from the window. It had started to rain.

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

Kumiko walked briskly down the halls, slightly irritated though she did not know why. 'Is it because she reminded me of my past?' Kumiko shook her head. "I thought I had gotten over that."

"Gotten over what, sensei?"

"Gah!" Kumiko jumped at the sound of the voice.

"Sorry." Kumiko turned to see the source of the voice, her mouth turned agape and she stared openly, shamelessly. 'Now that's a beauty'

"Sensei?" Kumiko then realized that it was the girl who had plagued her mind that afternoon. Onyx hair, eyes the color of lilac.

"Hi." Kumiko muttered dumbly.

The girl tilted her head to the side in question. "Hi?"

"Ah! Um… Sorry about that I was just admiring how you looked and your fingers how they would look good if you held a trumpet and how it might sound awesome and…" Kumiko rambled.

"How did you know I played the trumpet?" The girl asked, not creeped out, rather she was interested.

"I didn't… lucky guess?" Kumiko replied, once more staring at the girl.

"Sensei, shall we go to the trumpets section? Actually, I was sent to get you." She told Kumiko as she grabbed her hand, not knowing the effect she had on her new teacher.

'She's- She's holding… we're holding hands! Not to mention her hand is so warm and soft and smooth and delicate to the touch and… and'

"Sensei, we're here." The girl dropped Kumiko's hand as she dropped out of her pleasant cloud nine.

"Ah, yeah."

They slid the door open and found all the members seated and one of them stood up to greet Kumiko.

"Hi, I'm Nakasaeko Kaori. The leader of the trumpet section. It's nice to meet you Oumae-sensei." Kumiko thought she was nice. This person gave off the feeling of being responsible and not to mention, seemed like the popular-with-kouhai type.

"It's nice to meet you too." Kumiko shook her hand.

Kaori introduced all the members and Kumiko found out the name of the girl who had caught her undivided attention. 'Kousaka Reina' Kumiko smiled as she thought of the name. 'Reina' Kumiko recalled a country where the word "REYNA"-though spelled differently, it was pronounced similarly- meant queen. 'How fitting. She's just like a queen. For me that is.' Kumiko blushed at her own thoughts.

(A/N: Of course "REYNA" is a Filipino word and it DOES mean queen in filipino. Teehee :P Anyway, clever, right? Okay I know it's not. No need to tell me it's not… I'm sorry I'm not a genius like Kumiko T-T Don't judge me! You don't know what my grades are like!)

"Anyway, sensei… can you please listen to our performance and give us a few tips for improvement?" Kaori smiled.

"Ah… yeah." Kumiko replied, remembering the actual reason on why she went there. "Please start."

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

After Kumiko had assessed each student on their playing as an individual and as a group, she began to give them tips.

"You there… umm… sorry I'm still not so familiar with your names. Can you follow this as the position of your mouth? I think the way you're blowing is hard." She approached the girl and helped her reposition her mouth. "Good. Now blow and play this section for me, will you?" Kumiko pointed to a certain part that she knew this girl had a problem with.

"Okay." Once she started playing, her eyes widened in surprise. After playing she turned to Kumiko and hugged her on impulse.

"Thank you sensei! That sounded way better than I thought it would."

"True, it sounded better." Kaori smiled at Kumiko in admiration. "Sensei could you give me tips as well? I want to play in these certain intervals more smoothly. Sometimes I notice that I break my flow."

"Ah yeah. For this, I think you should try…"

As Kumiko finished with each player, she felt a hand dragging her to the corner of the room. She turned to see a grinning Taki.

"So? How's it feel? You looked like a real teacher back there. Have you considered teaching them? You already seem pretty attached."

Kumiko blushed. She was having such a fun-fun? was that it? She was having a fun time? Doing something like this, things that reminded her of that scarring failure in the pa-

"You really do love music, Kumiko." Taki laughed good-naturedly.

Kumiko smiled back. "I guess I do."

"So? Will you teach them?"

"Sure. Though it wasn't because I was impressed of their talent, rather I feel compelled to help out your sorry butt, Taki." Kumiko said laughing at Taki's hurt look, but quickly quieted down as her eyes became downcast. "But Taki… earlier, someone asked me to play. I don't think I'm ready for that yet."

"Hmmm." Taki pondered for a bit. "You know, despite how they are, looking bored and uninterested with no drive, they- these kids really love music. Sooner or later, I think more students are going to ask you to play. You'll have to do that sooner or later." Taki told Kumiko quietly.

"Yeah." She replied as she kept looking at the students who were excitedly exercising the new techniques she taught them and played happily as they saw how they played and how it sounded so beautiful. Music truly was a beautifully scary thing. "I know."

"Well, I've finished up with the other sections, let's go back to ensemble." Taki told everyone.

"Yes!"

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

Walking back was no easy feat, especially for a very preoccupied Kumiko. Taki laughed at her expense as she bumped into a wall for the fifth time that afternoon.

"It's not funny…" Was all Kumiko could get out.

Upon arriving in the clubroom, everyone was seated and waiting for their teachers' instructions.

"Ok everyone, we'll do two rounds as a whole since it seems to be getting late and in a few minutes we will separate and go home." Taki announced. The band members complied and played their piece which sounded significantly better than earlier, in Kumiko's opinion.

'I guess they do have the talent.' Kumiko smiled proudly. 'Well I wouldn't expect any less from Taki and my students… MY students.' the word made Kumiko feel a bit embarrassed as she realized that she had acknowledged herself as something she denied so badly. 'I guess it isn't that bad.'

After the second round, everyone started fixing their things… Kumiko was about to head out until a student spoke up.

"Oumae-sensei!" He raised his hand, trying to get the girl's attention.

"Yes?" Kumiko asked, surprised to say the least that her student needed her for something.

"Question if you don't mind?" Kumiko nodded.

"Do you play any instruments?" He asked. Kumiko suddenly felt her hands and body go stiff. "Um sensei? I was asking-"

"I know, I heard." Kumiko said, words tight in her throat. There were just some things that she did not want to remember.

"Sensei!" Another asked "Can you give us a sample? We want to see you play, that is if you know how to." A female from across the room said.

Kumiko felt her left eye twitch and her body flinch when she saw them passing her a trumpet. That dreaded instrument that Kumiko left behind, though with Asuka looking at her in a funny way, she felt even more nervous.

"Don't be silly you guys." The glasses-girl spoke up. "Sensei here won't play the trumpet, she'll play this…" Asuka pulled out something from her bag and tossed it to Kumiko. A magazine. One that was issued several years ago. On the cover, it had the words "Fallen Genius Goddess of the Euphonium…"

"Oumae Kumiko"

"She plays the euphonium and is or at least she was the world's greatest euphonium player, isn't that right… sensei?" Asuka looked at Kumiko and she could've sworn she saw Natsuki mouth an 'I'm so sorry'. Kumiko smiled. She saw her vision shifting to the door and the next thing she knew, she wasn't even in the room anymore.

~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~0~

A/N: Ok so not good, huh? Sorry. This is old material, and I’m too occupied to redo it. Please review on what you think, thankiee… I need to do my assignments now so… toodles. Oh and if you don't get the end, Kumiko ran away. Sorry it felt rushed. :(

~Shintori Khazumi

[prince-giorno-blog]

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