#anyway! i'm glad i played it

[somethingwittyandweird]

Indivisible (2019), Or, Coming To Terms With Maybe Not Liking Everything About A Game

A couple days ago, I finished playing through Lab Zero’s Indivisible- a game that’s been on my backlog for some time. And in playing it, I had enough Capital T Thoughts that I felt I needed to write them out. This game gave me mixed feelings to a degree I’m not sure I’ve had before- while ultimately also providing the solution to that conundrum.

I’ll preface this by saying I’m not a nitpicky guy. Just the opposite, in fact- a piece of media has to do a lot noticeably wrong before I’ll feel like I have to comment on it. I’ve played a lot of games that are generally regarded as “not great” and still come off with largely positive opinions on them. I can acknowledge flaws or places where potential improvements could be felt, but generally if a game is even mostly good or fun, I’ll play it through, and consider it totally worth my time to have done so. 

When I first got my hands on this game, I was excited, it seemed like there was so much to like. And, getting into it, there absolutely was. The game’s visuals were the sort of treat that only a studio with as much character animation experience as Lab Zero could deliver on. (Their other major title, Skullgirls, is packed to the brim with nothing but the highest quality 2D animation.) Visually appealing character designs, vibrant environment designs, heck, there was even dynamic shading applied with objects in the environment. The combat gameplay, too, presented itself extremely well, offering a really satisfying blend of, again, Lab Zero’s previous fighting game experience translated into action RPG battle mechanics. I could feel the system encouraging setting up long combo strings by chaining together a huge variety of party attacks, and each new party member I recruited offered something cool and new for their playstyle. 

But, despite these great things about it, I sort of fell off Indivisible after a while, and didn’t pick it up again for what felt like years. And it was only on my endless quest to shovel away the backlog that I remembered I’d never seen the rest of this game and wanted to give it a try. And, though everything I remember liking was still intact… This playthrough was where the cracks showed and I understood a bit more about what subconsciously would have spurred me to set it down.

The thing is that there are a lot of aspects of the game that do nail that satisfying gamefeel. But there are aspects of the game that don’t, and I encountered them often enough that I couldn’t ignore them. I wandered lost for a while because I couldn’t dig up a good walkthrough online (not the game’s fault, but its low amount of discussion and exploration on the net is telling in and of itself). Then the map exploration started to feel less polished, navigating obstacles felt janky in ways that took me out of it (I got the sense this is where the developers were more out of their comfort zone compared to the aspects more aligned with their prior experience).  And then I found out that some of the playable characters didn’t have full movesets. And then there were indicators on the map that I again had to resort to searching on the net, only to find out that nothing was there and, though there had been plans to put something there, it was all but impossible for that to ever occur.

It wouldn’t be fair not to acknowledge that Indivisible was screwed pretty majorly by its circumstances. Controversy sprung up around the studio head of Lab Zero, which led to multiple resignations, failed negotiations, and ultimately the closure of the studio, ceasing development for this game. The game I held, the one with notable gaps in the content, wasn’t the devs’ final vision, but now it wouldn’t ever be. And that was, again, no fault of the game, but it felt bad nonetheless. And all of my problems, it seemed, were like that- whenever I kept coming back to the game, I’d be impressed anew by the things that shone about it, but then I’d put it back down again, not out of frustration or the conscious thought of “wow this part of the game makes me want to quit”, but just a generalized disappointment that things had turned out the way they had.

So, where did that leave me? I’d already decided it was worth finishing the game. I just didn’t know how to come to terms with being so mixed. Again, it’s so rare that I play a game and don’t come away with a generally positive experience- or else I try a game, quickly decide it’s not for me, and move on. There was enough that was good about Indivisible that I absolutely liked the game. I just couldn’t quite like it as much as I wanted to- as much as I was used to. Still, I chose to see it through. 

I’m glad I did.

The ending of Indivisible involves confronting the creator goddess Kala, who wants to destroy and remake the world. She views her creation as imperfect and wants to begin anew. But, in dissuading her, you point out that no cycle before has ever been perfect either- that even if she feels she failed to completely realize her vision, that flawed things are still valuable, still interesting, still worthwhile. And though I know this ending wasn’t written to be self-referential… that’s how it resonated with me as I watched it. 

I’d been struggling to put words to how I felt- did I like this game or not, if I had this many reservations? But the ending helped me reframe that question. I didn’t have to like the whole game in order to like the game. It was okay that some things didn’t feel polished, and that there were holes where some content should be. I didn’t have to tally up the game’s positives and the game’s negatives and then only allow myself to feel it was worthwhile if the game ended up in the black. The things that I enjoyed about Indivisible- the colorful character designs, the treat-for-the-eyes animation, the engaging battle mechanics- were worth the time I spent playing the game through.

It’s not a game I’ll sing the praises of until the end of time. And it objectively sucks that it will never be the game it could have been if the devs had been allowed to see it to completion. But it’s still a game that has a lot going for it, whose merits are worthy of praise. I’m happy I decided to go back and finish it out. 

[mikesbasementbeets]

Sometimes I think it's just scary to open up like that. To say how you really feel. Especially to people you care about the most. Because what if... what if they don't like the truth? // Sometimes people don’t really say what they’re really thinking. But, you capture the right moment… it says more. // I didn't say it. // You didn't have to.

[remake of my very first gifset one year later]

[deoidesign]

when your main characters start dating after years of writing so they finally get to be like this

[flickering-nightfall]

[navree]

Incorrect, the fact that Biden has dropped out and a candidate with history of supporting medicare for all and being more receptive to a ceasefire in the I/P conflict has made me go from "I cannot morally support the Democratic nominee" to "I am voting for the Democratic nominee despite the fact she isn't perfect in every respect." I'm really happy this played out. The Dems for the most part abandoned the old Obama platform and it feels like its possible an actual progressive agenda could come to pass in my lifetime.

Kamala 2024!

If you weren't going to vote Democratic in this election before Biden dropped out you're a dorkass loser who does not care about any of the issues you're yammering about here and also a fundamentally bad person, and I hope you get run over by a bus.

But you got one thing right in all of this gibberish, Kamala 2024.

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

thinking about how mulder loves to get scully a gift, usually terribly heartfelt, even if disguised as something flippant:

the superbowl vhs tape he brings her when she wakes up from her coma in one breath (and her deadpan "i knew there was a reason to live")

tickets for a football game to watch together in irresistible

bringing her flowers to the hospital in memento mori (he lies, saying he stole them from a guy with broken legs to make her laugh)

the birthday keychain in tempus fugit (and when she finds a meaning to it, he claims "i just thought it was a pretty cool keychain")

that is a man who is always thinking about her.

[lunarharp]

played dragon age 2...just simple scribbles

[dawnthefluffyduck]

Crazy issues that come up when a character is written a little too well

[bumblingbabooshka]

I hate when Chakotay is watered down to be Janeway's yes man because their disagreements are actually very interesting. [A lot of rambling analysis of this debate in particular below]

Chakotay in Parallax is very interesting in that he has to navigate a lot of different dynamics. Balance a lot of plates while being watched keenly by everyone around him. Immediately preceding this scene we see him ask B'Elanna for her opinion on the bridge - both as a chance to show her knowledge in his bid to make her chief engineer (because she wouldn't get a chance to otherwise as Janeway has clearly indicated that at this point she views B'Elanna as a troublemaker who won't be considered for the position) and because he just thinks she's a better engineer than Carey and wants the best possible chance of them succeeding. Janeway sees this as unacceptable. Carey is the chief engineer and so he should be called and Chakotay NOT asking for his opinion is an insult to Carey, Janeway, and might make the crew doubt Chakotay (and by extension the Maquis') loyalty to the Starfleet crew.

At this point it seems that to Janeway integration ["They're not your people"] means the path of least resistance, specifically tailored towards the Starfleet crew. She wants Chakotay by her side to keep the Maquis crew calm but also seems unwilling to consider them for important positions aboard the ship. Though she says that the Maquis are not Chakotay's people, not his crew, she certainly doesn't seem to consider them hers [Compare this to later instances where she stresses 'our' crew, here she simply says they aren't Chakotay's: Whose crew are they? Are they crew at all?]. This less leaves the impression of "We need to be a cohesive team" and more "You're not in charge here." She essentially accuses Chakotay of playing favorites. In her mind Chakotay's actions are not conducive to integrating the crews which would (again, in her mind) mean the Maquis being docile and accepting, obedient and content - not making trouble for the Starfleet crew. Chakotay counters Janeway's accusation with one of his own: That he IS trying to integrate them into the crew but her not allowing the Maquis any opportunity to prove themselves or succeed, not showing any trust in any of them (except, implicitly at this point, him) is making things difficult. At this point the Maquis crew are ready to mutiny on his word at any time. He knows this for a fact. Aside from that looming threat (the threat being that tensions are high and if nothing changes and they remain high there might be a mutiny even without his word) - Chakotay knows these people and trusts them. Though Starfleet and Janeway think of the Maquis as a violent bunch of criminal terrorists, Chakotay and a good number of the Maquis joined because they believed in the cause they were fighting for. These are people Chakotay knows WILL fight fiercely for what they believe in and conversely, AGAINST what they perceive as injustice. Even if they're not in the majority - they're used to picking fights which seem impossible to win. At this point Janeway admits that she ISN'T making it easy for Chakotay to integrate the Maquis - specifically talking about practical concerns; how she doesn't feel she can let Maquis crew have roles of importance on the ship because they lack the ability to hold them. "They don't have the discipline, they don't have the training," - asserting that they just aren't prepared for any such roles and it doesn't have to do with them being Maquis specifically. Ostensibly, she's treating them as she might treat anyone unqualified for the job.

Chakotay maintains that some of them, like B'Elanna, have the ability to be trained - challenging her point by saying that IF they're trained there's no reason for any Maquis member NOT to be given a more prominent role on the ship. He isn't suggesting they just unqualified people important jobs. If the problem is that they aren't trained, let's train them. These people have the ability to succeed if you give them the tools they need and a fair chance, he insists. Janeway then switches gears and her argument becomes not "The Maquis are untrained so they can't be given those jobs" but "The Maquis crew are unworthy of those jobs when compared to Starfleet personnel" saying that it'll cause insult and upset among the Starfleet crew if any member of the Maquis were to be promoted above them. Again, her idea of integration is based more on Maquis subservience to the Starfleet crew than it is the two crews working together. (Not that I believe she looks at it that way, it's just where her 'path of least resistance' leads) - though she accuses Chakotay of being too focused on "his" crew, she is admitting here that she believes her real crew are the Starfleet officers aboard, not the Maquis. She also admits here that the system she wishes to maintain (and is asking Chakotay to enforce) is one where there will ostensibly never be any chance of a Maquis crew member being promoted because no Maquis crew member will ever be more qualified, more worthy, than a member of Starfleet. We can see how it'd be difficult for Chakotay to convince his crew to remain calm under these circumstances. There's also Tuvok's behavior toward him at the beginning of the episode where the Vulcan nearly goes over Chakotay's head and when he doesn't do so (as Chakotay reminds him that HE'S the superior officer, the First Officer in fact,) Tuvok acts as if him backing down (partially) and conceding (partially) to Chakotay's authority is a favor to Chakotay.

Tuvok in this conversation is downright insubordinate to Chakotay. Despite Chakotay being the first officer, he doesn't take what he says seriously, argues that his own opinion on what should be done should be followed rather than Chakotay's, lectures the first officer about his conduct, and then almost seems to threaten him with a report. In Starfleet's rigidly hierarchical rules, acting like this to a superior officer (ESPECIALLY the first officer) wouldn't be tolerated and Tuvok knows this perfectly well. He isn't a rebellious character and clearly in other episodes adheres to these Starfleet hierarchies and codes of conduct very strictly. He values them highly. But Chakotay, a Maquis, shouldn't be First Officer. Why should he be given respect for a title he didn't earn? [Affirming Janeway's argument about how Starfleet officers won't be eager to follow a Maquis senior officer] Even though Chakotay tells Tuvok off for it ["I don't have to explain myself to you"] he doesn't threaten to put Tuvok on report or explicitly mention his insubordination. It's unclear if this is Chakotay's personality or if he just doesn't feel he CAN do that. Tuvok is one of the three most senior officers aboard and very close to Janeway. Chakotay has to think of the optics of any situation at all times - we see seconds after this conversation that rumors have already started swirling around B'Elanna being relegated to quarters that've fanned the flames of mutiny. Though we know Tuvok has personal reasons for behaving the way he does toward Chakotay (which he later admits), I really don't think it'd be out of the ordinary for this to be how most Starfleet personnel would treat the Maquis if they weren't outright hostile: Like they're only pretend crewmen. To a lesser extent we even see this with Janeway: In the following staff meeting, she clearly doesn't consider B'Elanna a viable option when Chakotay brings her up and almost ignores the suggestion entirely.

It also, again, leaves Chakotay in an impossible position. If he doesn't protect and fight for the Maquis crew, they won't ever be considered a true part of the crew and dissatisfaction will likely spread among them. Dissatisfaction which the Starfleet crew will then use to further label the Maquis as insubordinate, uncontrollable, unfit. Not to mention that if he doesn't advocate for them, he might lose their trust. However, if he DOES try to help the Maquis crew advance the Starfleet crew will view this as 'favoritism' and will further distrust him, won't respect the people he puts forth as worthy. Janeway seems to be intent on not advocating for any of the Maquis crew and also seems unwilling to ask that the Starfleet crew grant leniency. She implies that the Maquis crew need to learn to get in line and keep quiet and it seems almost like [we must remember the optics] she has Chakotay as the only Maquis in a position of power to facilitate that. Chakotay recognizes and pushes against that, saying that he won't just be her token Maquis - there only so she can point to him and say "See? We don't discriminate against the Maquis here." effectively a tool used to shut down any arguments of unfair treatment and a tool to quell the Maquis if any talk of mutiny DOES arise. In this model, Janeway can just tell Chakotay to calm them down and they'll listen because they trust him. She also doesn't have to really listen to anything he says: A token First Officer has no authority; his words don't hold weight. [Chakotay isn't Maquis anymore, they aren't his crew anymore - ok. What is he then? What are they? Nothing, without respect.] This plan seems untenable, as much as Janeway frames it as sensible: "I can't make it easy, Commander. Surely you can understand that," and alternatives as impossible "How am I supposed to ask them to accept a Maquis as their superior officer just because circumstances have forced us together?" - in the long run, how would this be sustainable? In any power structure, you cannot expect a group of people you're unwilling to grant trust or agency to obediently follow you forever. This proposed form of 'integration' in which the Maquis are kept on the bottom rung and told intermittently to stay there quietly by the only one of them granted permission to stand at the top would never be sustainable - especially with a group like the Maquis who again, were founded on the belief that its members should fight against inequity and are already on the verge of mutiny.

I specifically find the statement "How am I supposed to ask them to accept a Maquis as their superior officer just because circumstances have forced us together?" to be interesting because personally I'd say that being forced together for the rest of almost everyone's natural life is a pretty good reason to ask people to adapt and Janeway does understand this but only applies it to the Maquis - the Maquis are the ones who have to adapt, not Starfleet. The only thing the Starfleet crew have to do is tolerate their presence on board.

At this point Janeway again claims that if Chakotay can show her a 'qualified' Maquis candidate she'll consider them. I believe this is true but we already know that Janeway's standards for qualification will likely not fit the vast majority of the Maquis and Chakotay ignores the claim in favor of putting forth B'Elanna again, firmly. Janeway predictably dismisses her as unqualified and Chakotay disagrees, arguing that he knows her. He's worked with her. He KNOWS that B'Elanna can excel at the job even if she doesn't meet Starfleet/Janeway's qualifications. He doesn't value those qualifications over what he's observed about her - just as he didn't value Carey's title over what he knew about the gap between his and B'Elanna's abilities. Then, Chakotay switches gears. He admits that Janeway's right - he does view the Maquis as his crew but that's because Janeway (almost self admittingly) doesn't and if he doesn't, who will they have? [What kind of captain, kind of man, would he be?] "You're going to have to give them more authority if you want their loyalty." "Theirs or yours, Commander?" Janeway frames Chakotay's words pointing out the flaws in this plan which I outlined earlier, as almost a threat (if she doesn't have Chakotay's loyalty it'll most definitely mean mutiny). Chakotay asserts that it wasn't a threat, he's only trying to help by telling her how the Maquis crew will react to what she's telling him. "I'm sorry you can't see that" - not an apology for what he said but that she isn't willing to budge, not willing to listen to him and acknowledge that she might be as biased towards her crew as he is towards his. Chakotay is trying his best to acclimate his crew but if Janeway isn't willing to do the same, to talk to her people as he's talking to his, then this will not end well and that isn't a threat. It's just the reality of the situation. He then asks permission to leave, showing he is willing to observe Starfleet protocol (just as when he asked permission to speak freely), and Janeway lets him go, exhaling at the intensity of their debate when alone in her ready room.

[littledesertfox]

Last weekend I came across a WW2 documentary on TV which I hadn't known before. It included this clip of an old propaganda film from 1942 (probably was part of the Wochenschau though I'm not 100% certain), which I wanted to share because you can hear Rommel speaking in it!

I don't know how many recordings of him that include sound are preserved/were made in the first place, but I feel like it's not a whole lot or at least they are hard to find. I've never seen this specific one before despite always looking for video recordings of him. I like how his Swabian dialect is always coming through a little bit :) His chief of staff (and good friend) Fritz Bayerlein has a cameo here as well, he's the officer standing behind Rommel on his right side and looking over his shoulder. Günter Halm, the young soldier who's being awarded the Knight's Cross here, was the youngest member of the Afrikakorps to receive this decoration.

[inexplicably-spookified]

i like this game a reasonable amount

[winepresswrath]

Darla/Angelus is also great because the show has a competing designated OTP and they exist to serve as contrast and hateful competition to THE ship. they are soulless monsters even by the standards of soulless monsters, they literally make the other soulless monsters go "yikes... your relationship seems not good maybe." but they love each other so fucking much. the writers can't help it. they are constantly trying to find their way back to each other. the way she hits him over a head with a shovel and leaves him to an angry mob while he tries to say he doesn't mind dying if it's with her AND the way they coo about it to each other afterwards. the way she takes him back against her better judgement because she missed him so so much but then kicks him out again later because he still can't be who she needs him to be. that's just how they say i love you.

[pineapplefulfillseveryneed]

Sparkstember day 27: Annette ✨

[tomaturtles]

I've beaten Frontiers twice and it's still not enough

[gingermintpepper]

❄️

For you!!

❄️Share a snippet from a WIP of your choosing. 

Oough, thank you very much for participating!! I thought a lot about what I should offer and eventually settled on this snippet from my very self indulgent Apollo/Evadne work teehee: 

“So you returned.” 

The stranger laughs, “As have you.”

Lo, he sits on the edge of the riverbank, his smooth, even-coloured ankles submerged in the cool water, the fabric of his skirt folded up above his knees. Somehow, the stranger’s gotten even more beautiful since she last saw him; gone are his loose, lovely curls which lay amaranth kisses onto his shoulders and neck, now they are bound atop his head and adorned with many petalled flowers. Likewise, his already flawless face now shines with the faint gloss of cosmetics. A deep blue colour stains his lips and the corners of his eyes. It matches the splendour of his blue skirt, makes her triply assured that this stranger is no mere man, but some visiting prince or king passing through. It is the only reason one such as him would ever willingly spend time with a creature like her. 

Evadne clutches her veil tight as she stands beside him, makes certain that there is no way for a sudden wind to worry her cloth and reveal her shame. The stranger’s skin is so gorgeous, rich like a polished gem and just as smooth as its surface. Evadne’s never known a man so hairless! But then, the stranger has surely never known a woman like her either. 

“Are you just going to laze about the edge today?” she says. They’re idle words, spoken just so she stops moping about when she’s got perfectly good company at hand. Gods alone know when she’ll ever have such a thing again. “It’s sweltering today, you’ll feel greater relief if you stick more than your toes into the water, sir.” 

He laughs again, soft and calm. A quiet wind bustles over the water’s surface, he raises a fine-fingered hand to brace against the breeze. The silver bangles looped about his wrist make a melodious clatter as they settle one atop the other around the broad flesh of his arm. “I’ve no intention of disturbing you again. Just as I promised, your river is yours once more.” 

His voice is just so… magical. Like music, or birdsong. Like some pleasant thing Evadne wishes she could hear forever. “I already told you, I am no nymph, good sir.” The very idea is just as ridiculous as the first time he said such a thing. As if a nymph’s spring would ever be so pitiful. As if Evadne would ever be allowed in the same waters as a lovely nymph! “I’m merely a maiden who wishes to bathe in peace. That is all I ever was.” 

“Is that so?” Those calm eyes appraise her then, dark gaze roaming over each part of her fabric covered body ‘til Evadne is warm in the cheeks and hot all over. “When we were together last, you surely were— “

“W-What about you?” Evadne can hardly think past the heat in her face, the pounding of her stupid heart in her chest. 

Miraculously, the stranger stops. “What about me?” 

She squeezes her eyes shut, too shamed to even look at him when she speaks, “You praise my beauty when you have never even seen my face, but certainly with a face like yours, you must be a son of Desire or Beauty?”

The sweet wind blows. The river softly babbles on. Evadne slowly pries her eyes open and meets the grinning face of the stranger, beryl-bright eyes positively aglow with humour.

“You find me that good-looking, hm?” 

She takes a step back, hands covering her eyes over her veil so she doesn’t have to look at the mess she created, “Maybe not quite that handsome— “

“‘A son of the Beauty’, was it? Such high praise. I’ll treasure it always.” 

“Please forget such foolish words at once, sir!"

[forestlovesyou]

I got hit by a huge wave of nostalgia and fell back into the Undertale rabbithole and I just couldn't resist the urge to make a Handplates skeleton lore accurate oc who I am pretty proud of ngl :] adawd