#but I know way more blazblue than I should

[aquasharkpencilmark]

I just think she’s neat

[guiltygearconfessions]

More Guilty Gear fans should try engaging with Blazblue’s universe earnestly. There’s a really big gap in the way ArcSys does their writing and design for Guilty Gear and it’s called, “We lost the rights to make Guilty Gear for a bit.” So, during that time they made Blazblue instead! It’s not entirely the same, but you definitely get the vibe they were made by the same groups of people. The ongoing development of Blazblue sort of relates to Guilty Gear’s development as a series too! I know it’s really easy to be like, haha Blazblue sucks <insert dunk on Mori> or something, but I honestly feel that it’s a very sincere series in the same way GG is.

More important than that (more relevant), is that you get a sense of how the series arrived at the point it’s at now, in contrast to the classic Guilty Gear games from before they lost the rights. Basically, I’m saying that engaging with Blazblue can deepen the way you engage with Guilty Gear. Plus, it might take off some of the weird stink Guilty Gear fans have on the subject of BB (I was going to talk about that but my optimism won over my frustration).

Even if you can’t bring yourself to do that, the soundtrack is still worth looking into. I think it’s some of Daisuke’s best work, even though it’s more experimental and straying away from Guilty Gear’s more hard rock theming.

-

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

Silver Swarovski rings from the BlazBlue 10th Anniversary Celebration

Sold for ¥13,000 or roughly $90 (USD)

Released in 2019. As of now, the rings are no longer being manufactured and are presumably unavailable anywhere online.

Swarovski crystals are made of a material known as lead glass, largely made of quartz sand. From what I can tell, all of the gems featured in these rings are made of the same primary material, colored differently. I'll be analyzing the colors of the gems below.

Disclaimer; I am NOT at ALL studied in gems or jewelry, so this is yet another lesson I'm learning because of BlazBlue. As a beginner relying on an online-search crash-course, I may mess up the information I'm trying to share. If anyone here knows more about gems and can offer their thoughts, I would love to hear them!

Ragna = Light Siam

Light Siam is often ascribed to particular rubies or garnets, describing their vibrant reds. The color is associated with passion, energy, and strength- some of Ragna's prominent character traits! They're also said to suggest a fiery personality, again fitting for our dear Bloodedge.

Some of the gemstone guides I read while researching this claimed that an integral note of the Siam color is the blue undertone of the gem. As one blog described, without the that blue, "they just aren't Siam the way Siam should be!" I don't think I'm well trained enough to see the difference, but I thought this was a really cool connection to Ragna's relationship with the Azure.

Hazama = Fern Green

The Fern Green we see in Hazama's crystal is also sometimes used to describe certain variant of Quartz. The color is considered quite classy, and is often paired in a piece with Light Siam gems. It's considered a nice transitional color between the Peridot we see assigned to Noel, and the Emerald assigned to Terumi.

Professionals also ascribe themes of renewal, calmness, and prosperity to the color. At first glance this seems a little too peaceful for who Hazama is under the surface, but I think it captures where he differs from Terumi well.

Hibiki = Purple Velvet

Unlike the previous two colors that are associated with particular gemstones, I can't find any instance of Purple Velvet being used to describe a well known gem. Instead, it's framed in opposition to the well known Amethyst, described as being notably darker, with a more blue undertone than the red you see in Amethyst.

The color is set to give a sense of elegance, sophistication, and poise to the pieces it features in. As with any purple shade, it's highly suggestive of nobility.

Some websites suggest pairing it specifically with Fern Green, an interesting note as we see Hibiki and Hazama framed against one another in Central Fiction.

Terumi = Emerald

Emerald is one of the four precious stones. Made of the mineral Beryl, the gem itself is considerably fragile and prone to breaking. Glass canon, anyone?

Though Terumi's gem here isn't a real emerald, but more crystal, like the others. Still, I find it interesting that out of all ten characters, only he and Nu make it into that exclusive precious gem category. It's also quite fitting that Terumi's gem is a fake passing itself off as something else, isn't it?

Like the gem that is its namesake, the color Emerald symbolizes power, intensity, and confidence.

Jin = Majestic Blue

Majestic Blue is a color sometimes likened to deep seas or raging rivers, but most often, it's described as capturing the night sky. The color chosen for our Duodecim heir is a popular choice for more formal or even luxury items. It's said to represent themes of strength, nobility, and dignity. Some reviewers suggest pairing it with Emerald.

As strange as it sounds to someone outside the jewelry community (me) this color, Majestic Blue, was actually a new invention by Swarovski in 2019, the year these anniversary rings were produced! It's the youngest color in the set! At the time of release, it was the most visually striking blue in Swarovski's entire lineup.

Mai = Fuchsia

Swarovski's Fuschia is a pink with blue undertones, echoing Mai's genderqueer identity- she now stands proudly as a woman, but her identity as a man is still a cherished part of her at the root of who she is today.

These gems are popular in the the fashion industry, particularly for women. The hue is considered energetic and exciting, described as bright, bold, and striking. Though Mai still has her moments of doubt, I feel these words describe her true self well. For me, they really bring her playstyle to mind too.

The color is named after the Fuschia plant and its flowers- the names seen in Mai's moveset also carry a floral theme. Suggested pairs include the Light Sapphire we'll later see in Nu's gem and the Majestic Blue featured in Jin's.

Celica = Tangerine

Tangerine was probably the most difficult color for me to research. I looked through several articles, and most people had nothing to say about the color itself. The only thing people talked about was that it was being discontinued by Swarovski. I... guess that's fitting for Ms. Chrono Phantasma?

After a lot of looking, I was finally able to find some reviewers discussing the color itself. Tangerine is a color that brings warmth to the pieces it features in, and is suggested to be paired with Jin's Majestic Blue, among other colors. It was considered a gorgeous and bright color that some reviewers said had an understated depth that paired wonderfully with other stones. It was a strong pick for spring designs.

Noel = Peridot

Peridot is another example of a crystal color named after a specific gemstone. True Peridot is made of the mineral Olivine, and is distinct as one of the few gemstones that can only be found in a single color. It is sometimes mistakenly identified as the same gemstone as Emerald, though the two are entirely distinct.

The Peridot color is widely popular in design work, featured in a number of different scenes, from the typical fashion scene to being surprisingly and distinctly popular in dance costume designs.

The color is considered strongly unique. It's said to carry themes of tranquility and balance, as well as connotations of renewal and growth.

Nu-13 = Light Sapphire

Light Sapphire takes its name from the precious gem Sapphire, made of the mineral Corundum. Though most famously blue, it naturally occurs in a variety of colors, including the yellow we may associate with Lambda and the purple we may associate with Gamma. While often used in fashion and jewelry, they also feature in a lot of electronic goods, such as infrared optical components, electronic wafers, and certain integrated circuits. They have a lot of practical uses!

Of course, Nu's gem is no sapphire- it only takes inspiration from the color. It doesn't even match the gem's natural shades. As a color, Light Sapphire is considered soft and delicate, reminiscent of Nu's true state under all the violent mania that both Noel and Ragna call attention to at various points in the series. This is an interesting contrast to its namesake gem, as Sapphire is considerably hard and durable.

The light color is suggestive of clear, breezy days and sunny skies. It is often featured in jewelry alongside Aquamarine, Es's color.

Es = Aquamarine

Like Terumi's Emerald, true Aquamarine is made up of the mineral Beryl. Interestingly, it is unique in the distinction of not only being its own gem, but also being used as a descriptor for the colors of other gems; Aquamarine Emerald, Aquamarine Sapphire, and Aquamarine Chrysolite (Peridot) are all common terms to used by gemologists to reference specific variants of their distinctive gems.

As a color, Aquamarine is suggestive of deep oceans, not unlike the Boundary. It's said to be soft and delicate, like Es's appearance, but charming with a brisk sense of clarity. Some say it has a soothing effect, calming one's mind and their emotions.

[gear-project]

Annon-Guy: I hope you don't take offense, but how come humanity can suck sometimes in regards to artificial life?

Like in the world of BlazBlue, humans literally had a part in destroying the world because of the stupid Prime Field War, because they don't like the Prime Fields gaining sentience and wanting to be seen as equals. Yet humans denied them and while I understand Clavis wanted to give humans an equal edge, he really should have tried to indicate a compromise for both sides. And this prejudice sadly carried over to Naoto's world/possibility and Es' world/possibility due to how Kiiro and Es' lines of Prime Fields were treated.

And while human fear towards Gears was justified, before Dizzy proved those fears wrong by protecting Illyria, even people like I-No and Raymond were awful toward Gears and those similar to them.

To be fair, humanity isn't fully judgmental as the heroes in both Guilty Gear, BlazBlue, XBLAZE and Bloodedge Experience are accepting than the villains and standard civilians.

First of all, you shouldn't easily take offense of it because it's fictional as a setting. Secondly we don't know the full story behind the Prime Field War, only mostly what started it.

Also, Humans tend to reject things that aren't... well... "Human" so to speak. We fear what we don't fully understand.

It's not so much that we do this because we hate everything we've never come across... it's a survival instinct to us to protect ourselves from the unknown.

Even for fears that ARE justified (like weapons of mass destruction), there's still a utilitarian amount of basic knowledge on these things (i.e. use what you got in an emergency, even if they are deadly weapons, because it'll save your life). Also, in the case of Gears, Mankind's greatest fears involve sacrificing large amounts of their own for small amounts of gains (they used Gears as a way of reducing that loss).

It's also the reason Americans chose a Nuclear Weapon to end World War II: because we didn't WANT to invade Japan and have a huge massacre on both sides... Of course, it's hard to justify war to begin with, but ending war is more important than starting it, wouldn't you think so?

For the Prime Fields, they were forced in to an unwinnable situation and had no choice but to fight back on their own terms. Even then, they still didn't fully win the outcome... it's because they maintained SOME of the aftermath that Ragna was able to put an end to most of the conflict years later.

[nkn0va]

I'd like to request some litchi relationship hcs possibly with a reader that gets hurt a lot and ends up at her clinic.

BLAZBLUE ASK LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOOO

Holy fuck I ended up making this a long ass post for just one character, Jesus Christ. Blazblue just does that to me I guess lmao, especially since it's my first post for it. Hope you enjoy, this was a ton of fun to do.

Obviously for the sake of this ask, Litchi didn't have any romantic attraction to Roy. She's trying to save a friend from a horrific fate.

Litchi Faye-Ling

-The two of you first met when Litchi joined Sector Seven, you were working under Kokonoe just like her and Roy, but instead of a scientist working in the lab like them you were one of the professor's field agents.

-Just like everyone else you quickly started picking up on Roy going insane. Then the whole ordeal happened when he fell into the Boundary, came out as...whatever the fuck that thing was, and Litchi soon left. She really didn't want to leave you, but she felt as if she needed to go save Roy.

-As much as it hurt, you respected her wishes, and the two of you promised to see each other again someday.

-Fast forward to after the Ikaruga Civil War ended, and you're out doing field work for Kokonoe in Kagutsuchi. You're confronted by some NOL officers that tell you a level D alert has been enacted in the city due to rumors of the criminal known as the Grim Reaper being here and that you're to leave immediately.

-Naturally you stand your ground. You're on a mission for Kokonoe and frankly you don't wanna find out the consequences of failing. A battle inevitably breaks out, you barely manage to get out of that shitshow, though not without a healthy dose of wounds.

-You honestly have no idea where you are at this point, however you see a building nearby that looks like a clinic. Seeing nowhere else to go, you take the liberty of inviting yourself in, holding your side in an attempt to hold back the bleeding.

-Imagine the surprise on both yours and Litchi's faces when you come through the door. Once the shock subsides it quickly turns into confusion and then worry once she sees the state you're in.

-You're probably out of commission for at least a couple weeks, and once Litchi makes sure you're not going to die, the anxiety calms down. It's been quite a while since you two last saw each other, so you have a good time catching up. What has Litchi been doing since she left? How'd she end up here starting a clinic while following Roy? How are Tager and Kokonoe doing?

-Soon you're deemed healed enough to leave, however being a field agent for someone like Kokonoe of all people it's only a matter of time before you find yourself trudging back to the small clinic out in Orient Town.

-With each passing visit Litchi only worries more and more for you. Eventually old feelings start to resurface and she realizes exactly where this worry stems from.

-One day you get a bit too brash and come back with particularly bad injuries, ones that could've potentially been fatal. you barely make through the door of clinic before passing out. Upon finally waking up you receive a pretty good scolding from the doctor about you needing to be more careful. Is it just you or does there seem to be a small hint of color on her face...?

-Once she finally calms down you confront her about it. It was really a simple question of her seeming more worried than usual, yet it's enough to make her freeze up. Eventually she knows she can't hide the truth anymore, and finally reveals what she's been feeling ever since your days at Sector Seven together.

-Being taken aback that such a kind, smart, and drop-dead gorgeous woman felt that way about you, you are more than happy to return her affections.

-Being a doctor, Litchi naturally feels the urge to take care of you. There may or may not be some naughty thoughts going through both your heads about a "thorough examination" lmao.

-This is the kind of woman you should wish to have. Being as stubborn as she is in saving Roy, that kind of loyalty will naturally be extended to her partner. She will risk it all for you if it means keeping you safe. You will not find a more dedicated and loyal partner than her.

-A relationship with her would be...a work in progress. There's a fair bit of emotional baggage on her part especially due to her mission in saving Roy. Though having known Roy yourself you're more than willing to help out in anyway you can. Whether that's through your field expertise, helping her test out some new method you might find of pulling someone out of the Boundary, trying to squeeze whatever info you can from Kokonoe without revealing your intentions, or just in general acting as emotional support You're there for her just as much as she is for you when it matters.

-Overall, a relationship with Litchi is extremely fulfilling in every possible way as long as both of you put in the work, and I mean every possible way. I'll leave that part up to your imagination...

[solradguy]

testament was already out as nb before they became a gear right?

I don't think there's enough evidence to support it either way, unfortunately. Their pre-Gear lore is just one step above being a bullet pointed list... Until Strive, even in Japanese, they used masculine pronouns to refer to them though. It's possible Testament could have been questioning before then or that Daisuke viewed them as nonbinary but just didn't know the terminology for it until more recently. Something that supports this is that Testament was included in both the male and female character polls in the back of the ASW 25th Anniversary Official Character Collection book (published Oct. 24, 2013).

They placed 23rd in the female character poll between Es and Kokonoe from Blazblue:

And 33rd on the male character poll between Potemkin and Carl Clover (Blazblue):

Daisuke's caption on one of the Testament illustrations in the Artworks of GGX 2000-2007 art book also suggests nonbinary/agender/genderfluid identities might have been something Daisuke was trying to place but possibly didn't know already existed or what terminology to use. I don't have the original Japanese text for this digitized, unfortunately, because I worked on this book before I started keeping records of the source text... Here's the translation I did of it though:

Testament is a character I would like to portray androgynously in a more honest way than Bridget. I wanted to make this character more feminine. Although my drawing skills are not up to the task, he has a beauty that women would be envious of. So, Testament’s design should lean more towards “beautiful” than “effeminate.” I would like to emphasize this inhuman beauty in future illustrations.

The "he" here was 彼 (kare) which can be used in a gender neutral way, but not in this context, especially since masculine pronouns had been used for Testament outside of this caption in the same—and previous—time periods.

That said, Testament is without a doubt nonbinary now and I think this intentional "vagueness" surrounding their gender going all the way back to Missing Link (in 1998!) is really interesting. If we had been given a piece of (canon) side media that gave Testament more "downtime," it makes me wonder if their previous gender identity would have been explored in a more concrete way than these hints given in polls and art book captions.

[dangan-kagura]

Why I Don't Like Street Fighter

After seeing this new trailer for Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, I knew that it was time for me to write this. I know I’ve written about something like this before, but now I’m including more of it.

See, even though I’m a fan of the fighting game genre, I do have particular tastes. Out of the most popular fighting game franchises out there, I’m not big on Street Fighter.

Street Fighter IV was my introduction to that series. At the time, I didn’t really get the big deal about it, nor did I understand the hype most people at the time had when it came out in 2009. And unfortunately, when I decided to try the game out, it must’ve been a bad first impression.

Let me tell you that the opening to the game is no good. The theme song was just… what, unbearable to listen to? Well, it’s been like over 15 years since the game came out, but when I first played the game, I skipped the intro since the theme song wasn’t cool enough to listen to, and I thought that maybe they didn’t have to go so far as to make a really long intro for a game that I failed to see the big deal about, because once I got to the gameplay, that’s where things felt like a mess.

Street Fighter IV felt like a really slow and sluggish fighting game.

I think that maybe since I was still a little new to understanding how 2D fighting games are played, I had a hard time trying to input certain commands. Namely the charging commands. I could barely get Chun-Li, Vega and Bison to do any special moves, I just had to rely on using heavy punches and heavy kicks multiple times to clear their story modes. Not to mention, the tutorial menu for commands was too small and wasn't specific enough. It didn’t say anything about doing a fireball special move with the entire control stick.

My bad opinion about Street Fighter IV led me to think that this has to be one of the worst fighting games and the world is too blind to realize this.

It also led me to believe that Capcom should not have made Super Street Fighter IV, because if Street Fighter IV felt like a piece of shit game, there should be no reason people should play SSF4, it could be an even crappier game. Shit, it also led me to think that Capcom should not have made Marvel vs Capcom 3, because again, it would feel like a slow, sluggish, and broken fighting game.

But I will admit to this, there were a few, only a few, things about Street Fighter IV that I thought were interesting. The EX specials concept was interesting, performing a special by pressing two of the same types of punches and kicks. The problem however was that at the time, all my favorite fighting games like Tekken, Soul Calibur, and KOF were all 4 button fighting games, and since I play these games on console, I just stick with using X, ⬜, ◯ and △. Street Fighter is a six button fighting game, so I wasn't used to using the shoulder buttons, I just swapped the medium attacks with the heavy attacks since I figured they’d work the same way in KOF. Anyway, the EX specials concept I figured was cool and thought how cool it would be if KOF got to feature that, and they did with The King of Fighters XIII which at the time I thought was a more interesting 2D fighting game than SSF4. The brave edge attacks in Soul Calibur V & VI are also based off EX specials.

Also, Street Fighter IV had a feature where you can select which characters can speak English and which ones can speak Japanese. It was a little interesting, and it reminded me of how half of the cast of Virtua Fighter speak English and the other half Japanese. However, the anime cutscenes ruin this since those cutscenes won’t use this feature. In fact, I couldn’t really picture Street Fighter being an anime game series. Maybe it’s because all the anime games I’m used to have a certain moe (MOH-ae) theme to them. Guilty Gear and Blazblue felt like they had moe themes, but there was nothing moe about Street Fighter.

Now let’s just ahead to 2013. That was when Capcom vs SNK 2 came out on the PS3 via the PS3’s online store. While I was against the idea of Street Fighter having a crossover with Tekken, I thought that KOF was a better crossover. The game was fun at first, but it has its moments where it makes no sense to me. The final bosses are random, with two of them being so super powerful, I couldn’t clear the game fighting them. And the AI for characters like Vega was bad, he always blocks your attacks even on the easiest difficulty.

As the years went by after that, I got fed up from seeing everyone obsessed with Capcom. Things like…

Mega Man and Ryu in Super Smash Bros.

The crossover with Professor Layton and Ace Attorney

Akuma in Tekken 7

The Resident Evil film series (which sucks btw)

I think after playing Capcom vs SNK 2, it gave me the impression that Capcom doesn’t do a good job at making fighting games. I'll say it again that I was concerned that Marvel vs Capcom 3 would also be a piece of shit fighting game if it was gonna play the same way Street Fighter IV plays. Yet, everyone loves those games, which puts me in the minority.

I later got the impression that Capcom was sold out and only cares about getting rich and not actually caring about the quality of their games.

Here's what I mean by that. The same year Street Fighter IV came out, a Street Fighter movie centered on Chun-Li came out. It wasn't that well received of a movie from what I remember, and let me tell you that I come from a generation where I've been told that live action movies based on video games are never good. The only reason they made such a movie was to promote Street Fighter IV's release. Did they really have to make a redicous movie to promote a game that I didn't like?

Not just that, but also the Resident Evil film series. Just as Street Fighter got a movie to promote Street Fighter IV's release, the 5th Resident Evil movie came out to promote Resident Evil 6's release. Knowing that there's a lot of hate surrounding that film series, why did Capcom think it was okay for Hollywood to make such a movie? I don't need to mention that the first two Resident Evil movies are among Roger Ebert's most hated list, which consists of some of the most poorly received movies that have their place as being titled as the worst films ever. Most surprisingly to me, Resident Evil 6 ended up getting hated by fans.

Despite what I have to say, the world seems to love Street Fighter. Pop cultures like Wreck It Ralph, Ready Player One, Gravity Falls, Shazaam, Neptunia, and even Danganronpa have their moments of Street Fighter references.

Granted that Gonta Gokuhara is one of my favorite Danganronpa characters, I can probably let this slide.

The truth is, if I had to pick the number 1 best fighting game series, I’d pick Tekken.

Why? Because to me, playing Tekken wasn’t any different from playing Metal Gear Solid. As a teenager, not only did I take interest in PlayStation only games at the time, I wanted to lump Tekken with some of the biggest AAA games out there, like Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil, and Final Fantasy. Yet when Tekken 6 was being made, I read comments that everyone was gonna play Shit Fucker 4 instead. Some of them were probably trying to lump Street Fighter with those big three games mentioned. But I couldn't see Street Fighter as being on their level of popularity. I admit it, I could list a bunch of fighting games at the time that I think are better, Tekken 6, Soul Calibur IV, Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Heck, I'm perfectly fine with playing Castlevania Judgement. Compared to them, Street Fighter IV just didn’t sit well with me.

Due to my jealousy and perhaps hatred for Capcom’s popularity, it led me to boycott not only their games, but also boycott Tekken 7 and Super Smash Bros. and I don't think it made a difference.

To this day, I’ve never played Tekken 7 and don’t even have a clue what the plot is or what the character endings are. And what’s worse is that the trailer for Akuma’s guest appearance made it look like it was gonna be canon, and I only just found out that it apparently is canon. Fucking hell man! It even pisses me off to know that the arcade at my mall doesn’t have Tekken 8, yet they have Shit Fucker 6. I just can’t picture Capcom being number 1. To me, they’re more like, what, the bottom 20?

But let’s talk a little more about me being annoyed by Capcom’s popularity. Even though Tekken 8 doesn’t have guest characters (for now) what annoys me is when I play online and fight against someone’s custom character who’s dressed like Leon Kennedy from Resident Evil. Seriously, I think I’ve lost count on how many people I’ve fought against dressed like that. It shows that...

The only reason people love Capcom so much doesn’t have anything to do with Street Fighter, it’s because of all the money Capcom is making for all the Resident Evil 4 ports that have been made.

Why? Because Resident Evil is a fucking horror game and everyone is a fucking horror nerd who don’t even give a shit about poorly made horror movies and games!

*Ahem* Granted that Resident Evil 4 is a great game, it just wasn’t fun to play anymore. It really annoys me when gaming sites make coverage for all the lousy Resident Evil spinoffs that are made every year. I once wrote that I didn't take interest in Resident Evil 6, thinking that Resident Evil 5 was gonna be the series finale and a sequel wouldn't make sense. On the brightside, I have read that Resident Evil 6 wasn't well received. Is it because the game feels less like a horror game and more like your typical action game? Is it in any way similar to the live action film series? I remember IGN's review of RE5 where they thought the game had more of a Gears of War experience. Despite was everyone had to say about RE6, Capcom later made Retarded Evil 7.

Heck, I would probably go in a rage if I found out that Capcom was making Resident Evil 8. I admit it that I live in denial of the existence of Street Fighter V & VI and also in denial of the existence of Resident Evil 7, Mega Man 11, and Devil May Cry 5. Ask me about those games and I’ll be all like, “Nope. Doesn’t exist. No such thing. I don’t believe it.”

But I can’t lie to myself forever and it was bound to happen.

The new Fatal Fury game is gonna have Ken and Chun-Li as guest characters and I’m not excited about it. Ironic, because I do see KOF and Street Fighter as good rivals and even thought that a crossover game with the cast of Street Fighter IV and KOF XIII would be interesting to see. The problem is not only did I not like SF4, but I’m in the minority that prefers KOF as my favorite 2D fighting game series.

Is that okay to say? Is it okay to also say I prefer Battlefield over Call of Duty because I think Battlefield has better storytelling and doesn’t have a string of controversies like Call of Duty? Is it any different from saying I prefer Bleach over Naruto because I think Bleach is cool looking and Naruto just looks childish? Is it different from saying I have no preference when it comes to Coke or Pepsi? Or how about saying I prefer Limp Bizkit over Linkin Park because I believe Limp Bizkit is what true nu metal should sound like and Linkin Park is just sold out to Michael Bay.

But I will admit to this. I did enjoy Fighting EX Layer.

While it uses the same 6 button layout as with Street Fighter, I feel like it’s a game that has everything Street Fighter needs to be a better series. Fighting EX Layer plays faster, doesn’t go over the top with things like a long intro with a bad theme song, and also has a feature where you can input commands without doing it the old fashioned way (I hope that makes sense). It was only after playing it that I found out that its developers Arika also developed the Street Fighter EX games, and I probably thought, “Okay, this is better than what Street Fighter is like”. But the only reason I played Fighting EX Layer is because Terry Bogard is the game’s guest character. While he is fun to play as, the unfortunate part is that his ending makes a Street Fighter reference.

And there is actually a fighting game I like that is, in a sense, kinda like what Street Fighter IV was like, the 2019 Samurai Shodown game. If I had played it as a teenager, I would probably think that it feels like it has the same slow and sluggish feeling SF4 had. I don’t know… I probably liked it since it didn’t feel any different from playing KOF XIV. And unfortunately, playing it didn’t change how I feel about SF4. What exactly was Capcom's objective with that game? Make a modern fighting game the plays more like an early 90s fighting game? Kinda sounds like the objective with Mega Man 9.

As I mentioned, to this day, I’m still boycotting Capcom and games with Capcom characters. Heck, I've never even played Senran Kagura Peach Ball all because the game opens up with Haruka making a fucking Shit Fucker 5 reference! But with this new Fatal Fury game coming out, that could sadly make the boycott list too. No way am I gonna enjoy the game if I have to deal with Street Fighter characters being in the game, and I’ll be fucking pissed if SNK made it canon. Even though I like Fighting EX Layer and the 2019 Samurai Shodown game, playing those games won’t be enough for me to give Street Fighter another chance. If I ever did play a modern Street Fighter game and found out that it plays the same way Street Fighter IV plays instead of how KOF XV is played, that’s just gonna piss me off. At this point, it’s too late to start over.

And I’ll be fucking pissed out of my mind if Akuma fucking returns for Tekken 8.

[broken-clover]

1, 6, 7, 9, & 10 for BlazBlue under the choose violence game?

Ohh, that's a lot! This should be...fun.

the character everyone gets wrong

Tbh I could name like a third of the roster but I'll just go with Ragna for the obvious choice. I legitimately don't get how so many people get him wrong despite the fact that he's the main character. Yes he has a lot of the trademarks of the Cool Edgy Protagonist (tm) including the name but I feel like it's pretty easy if you look at just a little bit of canon to see that he straight up just doesn't know how to do a lot of interpersonal interactions but he still means well and cares a lot and is a bit of a dork who just puts on an edgy face.

6. which ship fans are the most annoying?

I can't really point to anyone in particular because I've only ever directly interacted with a few but just on principle I'm gonna go with the incest shippers because if you're straight up knowingly writing incest and treating it like it's hot you're just not a person I ever want to be around in any capacity because I simply do not understand how you view the world in such a way

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

Thankfully I was not around during the series' early days so I did not experience the obnoxiousness of the Hazama memes and he's just my little pathetic pet bastard hamster now. But if I was there back in the day I'm sure I would loathe him a lot more

Was never much a fan of Rachel in general but man fandom does not do a very good job of changing my mind

9. worst part of canon

*gestures vaguely at all of Centralfiction*

10. worst part of fanon

Just the general sentiment that if the fan content isn't making porn of the female characters it's crossovers with Ragna as the only tie to it being Blazblue. For a series with so many playable characters I'm just flummoxed how so many of them just don't have much for them even after so much time. For a while Blazblue was more popular than Guilty Gear but in a way did that really mean much given what we got?

[kuradoberijam]

2. 4. 13. 17. and 24. for blazblue and/or k for the choose violence ask?

2.  a compelling argument for why your fave would never top or bottom

This one’s hard for me because most people just take turns but I do think Jin is absolutely a pillow princess, not because he’s lazy or selfish but because he has no clue what to do and probably most often lets his partner take the lead because he genuinely didn’t think he’d get this far. This dude is probably touch repulsed and demisexual (totally not projecting in some way haha) do you really think he’s going to know what to do?

4. what was the last straw that made you finally block that annoying person?

Recently had to block someone in the K Project fandom who insinuated that K project would be more interesting as a psychological thriller where Shiro has an evil alter. Google is free and I don’t think I need to explain the harm caused by years of evil alter rep that systems have been complaining about for decades.

13. worst blorboficiation

Hmm. Not sure about this one. I had to look up what Blorbofication was and I am no more informed now than I was when I started.

 17. there should be more of this type of fic art

I will answer blazblue for this one I would kill for there to be more comics art wise and fic wise I am begging for literally anything that delves into character study or “how would this character react if this thing happened to them” I feel like a lot of content now is just horny content unless you’re actively looking for something else and it makes me kind of frustrated.

24. topic that brings up the most rancid discourse

Holy fucking shit I’m so tired of Mikototsu vs Mikorei ship wars. I literally could not give less than two shits. Different strokes for different folks no need to bite each other’s heads off.

[kyrodo]

My biggest limiting factor is the company I am surrounded with. I'm close to some very nice people. Red in his own way even though he is hyper stressed almost 24/7 for one reason or another and always seems to be mad about something. Work related, family related, motivation/productivity related, sometimes from me not doing enough at home or making more efforts to engage in projects with him or go outside, financial fears, life fears, future fears, etc. He is naturally stressed and traumatized from Utah for different reasons than mine and he's had to work a lot harder trying to keep a career and get into one.

That said, thematically and interactive personality wise, I'm a bit limited. Because I'm used to more pleasant overall people like Kay, like Omi, like Belle, or Marcus, or Red, or Freedy and Shadetail, or Kelchan. I'm not around people that tend to be a bit more hostile, spiky, fucky, street smart punk memes and such. A few of them do like horror stuff like Kay or especially Marcus as mentioned during our interaction but even with him he's had a very interesting history of exes and high school experience well outside what my comfort zone was, or 4chan and all that, he still has a comfortable aura when your around him. He has a clear idea of how things should be and maintains it. And before twitter that is what my social realm was. The roleplaying at Redwall. My furry friends that I know together with Red, Freedy Shadetail and Kelchan who converges on both, and my sister.

And none of them as far as I'm aware are the type to harass people. None of them are the type to engage in mind games and mental warfare. I'm sure Marcus has had his moments he likes to be funny but we don't generally troll or go after people or attack anyone. And that much should be clear by now. My world is different from yours. Reading likes, retweeting things at someone, reading subtext too hard, you are the first for me to ever do that with. I might have made some subtle spiky things towards Kay a couple times, especially immediately before we interacted that weren't so subtle, and to a much lesser degree before then which you never saw cause I deleted all my tweets at one point. But nobody I knew besides maybe Omi was particularly social media savvy, and even now with all the people I know on vrchat now, I think only wolfang particularly spends any real time on bsky or twitter.

So you were completely new territory, because I used to be the only person who was active on twitter out of the people I know. Ironing out my thoughts, shouting things to the open world, cause I didn't have the following or engagement to care about what I posted even despite using it more than everybody else. And Omi's in her own social universe from knowing way too many people from local furmeets and cons and commissioning endless amounts of art. I never had an active mutual who interacts with me before I met you.

And for a time afterwards there was Enternodecs and veralycaon both of which I soured for one reason or another and dropped off my timeline cause I was subtexting too hard trying to get some new mutual engagement going cause of the one I failed. And then Lawrence I admired much more quietly. And I eased off trying to have an active mutual on any social media platform. Cause that's just not where I make friends. It's like League of Legends. How I was the only one playing it out of everybody I know and the few people that did like Red's friend balloontoes had maybe 5-10% of my hours spent on it. And that's not the only case where I was the only one playing something. I keep finding all these niche games that nobody I know is also playing or playing as much and that's why I never seem to make friends. Imagine practicing so hard at blazblue when nobody you know that stuck around plays fighting games.

I always wish the people I knew were closer to what I do. Shared more of my interests, more of my games, more of things I would watch, using social media without pissing each other off, etc. Or even just someone who actually wants to go to furry events unlike Red who doesn't like crowds, or the lights at raves, or gets exhausted after dancing for 5 minutes. I always feel like I never know the right people. I know a lot of nice people just not anyone like me. And maybe that's why I get so desperate with wanting to connect with someone, at least before vrchat. Cause nobody I know has all the things I need from them. Nobody I know wants to play 24/7 aram with me, or play blazblue with me, or watch a bunch of anime they haven't fully researched instead of a bunch of random youtube videos. And as far as energy goes, Lupy at least shares the same level of energy, perhaps lower than Choskey who has way too much energy or none at all when he talks and makes a lot of overexcited interactions I can't follow up on.

I'm happy with all the new people I met and how well I vibe with them compared to you, but I'm unhappy that I still haven't met anyone who truly matches me. And it feels like I never will. It feels like my needs are too niche when they really shouldn't be, I'm just not in the communities where I might find someone who is. Cause there are certain things I don't like to play online with randos, which is most games, and ironically the only pvp game that doesn't stress me out is League. But everybody else besides Choskey anyway absolutely hates the game. And Choskey is too harsh on me opinion wise when we play. I need time to settle in, I don't play assassins like I should, I'm used to playing aram where farm doesn't matter, and it's always 5v5 and you generally go in to win or die, I don't like the other game modes. Unfortunately very few people play league the same way I do. And I want someone to be soft on me, or say nothing at all, because it's going to take me a week or two to get back into the swing of things, and I play best when people aren't backseating me. I don't mind a pointer here and there, Choskey used to play competitively and he is not soft, and full of opinions which is exactly what I don't want. So we don't play league together. Where as if it was someone like Kelchan, or someone like Shine or Lupy who's more collaboration focused and more being on the same wave length focused, there wouldn't be an issue. The enjoyment would be from doing something together without trying to min max it. I myself might say things like don't run to the bushes in the center at the start of every aram game, or try to get close range with anyone when your team is not ready to engage, but that's pretty much it. With my personality I don't come off as harsh, at least with anyone other than Ronnie and his friends in backwater areas like this, especially not vocally. My voice is too relaxed to be stressful in most cases.

But yeah... I wish there was someone who was more like me. More laid back. Serious where it counts. Interactive when they need to be. Easy to respond to without getting on their bad side. And more interested in the things I care about.

[mystech-master]

It is the birthday of the man I have sworn to defend to the ends of the Earth

Not because I find him funny or inspiring or cool even, it's because of what his story means.

I mentioned it before, but Blazblue has made me question a lot of things. Like, "How much should being family be an excuse for shitty behavior?" and stuff like that.

I have a lot of OP Ragna AU stuff and I will share some of them now

It basically involves my OP!OC dragging him across the multiverse all while slowly deconstructing and questioning his worldview, with the aid of Ragna meeting people who care about him as himself and not how he serves/leases them. All with an upgraded Azure Grimoire that allows him to absorb other powers from the various universes. All so he can figure out what he wants to do with his life, and return to his world w/o the risk of being the central fiction and causing time loop BS.

The worlds are basically whatever franchise I think fits. While Shows like Naruto and One Piece I don't know much about and I usually pick my friend's brain about them they have plenty of cool powers to borrow from but they may also not be good for reconstructing Ragna's mindset. Western shows like Gravity Falls and Steven Universe however might have that kind of character introspection that would get me to this point. I imagined him going to the world of Fairy Tail and having him gain Black God Slayer Magic (Like Sting's White Dragon Slayer Magic which allows him to gain power from consuming anything white) to be a bit more expansive than just Shadow God Slayer Magic. Plus adding Black Beast power would make the Black God's Bellow (Their roar attack) to "Black beast's Bellow" for some alternative appeal. Going to the Naruto world would involve him learning to manifest the Black Beast's power in a way similar to the Chakra Modes Naruto has, etc. Not every world grants new powers some of them would give new ideas with how to utilize the new powers.

The other/older idea was a rewrite/continuation of BBTAG where Ragna gets Shadow and Void powers and that creates a Superpowered Evil Side who starts to think that his friends and family suck after getting new friendships from the other worlds but the crossing over post -CF is kind of the idea I've stuck with for so long.

I'm not exactly trying to break him into going evil (although there are a lot of mental breakdowns and a P5-style Palace in my idea) but I am hitting a stone wall. The big issue I have is "Can I imagine the rest of the Blazblue cast changing for Ragna?" Not just having Noel cry about it, or them pulling an "I will fight for you b/c you are family, even though you kind of suck" with Jin, or "Because Rachel may love him that makes her tsundere attitude fine".

I just don't like the idea of friendships where they do nothing but argue and insult one another unless some dramatic shit is going on. Ragna enduring all this BS for people who treat him like a joke at best and a monster at worst isn't inspiring or cool it is sad.

You guys can yell at me all you want about how I am essentially breaking the character into something he isn't. But I don't care, that's kind of the point.

Sorry if this was all over the place but I HAD to post something for Ragna's B-Day and this idea is kind of the big Ragna thing on my mind recently.

[symtarus]

Top 10 Characters

Tagged by @hwecqi. Took me a while to get around to. Theres no particular order, and a hundred that could go on the list so Ill just go with who comes to mind.

Rules: Name your top ten favorite characters from ten different fandoms / things, then tag ten different people.

10. Vergil - Devil May Cry

9. Leo - Guilty Gear

8. Marie - Persona

7. Viral - Gurren Lagann

6. Sasaki Kojirou - Fate

5. Ian Malcolm - Jurassic Park

4. Gouda Takeo - Ore Monogatari

3. Makise Kurisu - Steins;Gate

2. Bardock - Dragonball

1. Saejima Taiga - Yakuza

This probably makes the types of characters that tend to be my favorite pretty obvious. I'm not tagging anyone, but if you want to do this by all means go ahead.

[rex101111]

i now step back upon my “taokaka should have been the main character of blazblue” soapbox (though truthfully i never leave it housing prices are surprisingly reasonable on hills you choose to die on) to give another reason as to why her being the MC would have been really fun.

Specifically, she would have been the fighting game equivalent of Kirby. Allow me to explain.

Alright, so the biggest thing about Kirby games is that the lore is surprisingly deep and dark and full of ancient evils and long dead heroes and wish granting living stars and all that junk, while Kirby himself remains blissfully oblivious to all of it.

The reason being that he’s a basically good hearted kid with a relatively simple view of the world who is, coincidentally, the latest, and possibly last, in a long long line of super powerful warriors. So he just sees a bunch of jerks who steal his cake or wreck his house or make his friends sad so he just saddles up to make ‘em quit it. And he does make ‘em quit it. Every single time.  

And because he always makes ‘em quit it he continues to be his happy jolly oblivious self, while he makes the lives of the people around him better just by being positive and friendly. He’s surrounded by people more serious or selfish than him, but they all defer to and trust in him because he’s proven himself, over and over, as a good and capable person. He’s their friend, Kirby, he’ll find a way to sort this all out just fine.

There’s a bunch of similarities between Tao and Kirby; they’re both big eaters, neither of them have any clue about the wider lore of their setting (Kirby because he’s a naïve kid and Tao because she’s naïve but also...kinda dumb), both of them are a part of a lineage of great warriors (Kirby is a Star Warrior while Tao is the clone of Jubei, one of the Six Heroes who fought the Black Beast), and both of them take a relaxed view on life.

If Tao had been the main character of Blazblue; the story would have shaken out something like so: Taokaka goes out from her village to find a way to get money to buy food. She meets Ragna, who she remembers from a wanted poster, and goes to fight him for that money. Problem; she’s hungry, so she forgets that first thing and says that if she beats him he has to buy her food. 

Ragna is like, “alright fine whatever, weird cat...”, because this is just this random weird cat girl he can beat her just fine. And than she beats him. Trounces him, really, and he can only lay on his back in disbelief. While the cat girl cheers about her victory and impending meal, Ragna can only think that that beating was...oddly familiar.

He buys her food, cause he promised and he doesn’t want to get beat up by the cat girl again, and she’s really happy about it. Really happy. Oddly happy, They finish and he leaves...and the cat follows him.

“...you got your food, what else do you want?”

“Huh? Waddya mean Good Guy? Tao wants to hang out with Tao’s friend!”

And so Taokaka hangs out with her friend. And suddenly she has to deal with a bunch of weirdos trying to fight her friend, so she steps in every time and gets them to quit it. NOL officers, Noel, Jin, all the way to Nu. She just beats them all up because they keep trying to hurt her friend and nobody hurts Taokaka’s friends.

Just, imagine she gets to Hazama/Terumi, and he takes off his hat and does his laugh and he goes on this big speech about his plan and AMATERASU and all that anime villain shit...and Taokaka just scratches the top of her head befuddled and asks “...sooo, Tao didn’t get most of that, but are you saying you’re the reason Good Guy is grumpy and sad all the time?”

And Terumi can only really blink at her slowly and go, “heh, you know what? Yeah, that’s basically the gist of it.”

And Taokaka nods cheerfully, “Okay! Tao gets it!”

And than she beats him up. Beats the absolute shit out of him. And Terumi is a mix of rage, panic, and terror. Because this is like fighting Jubei. No, this is like fighting Jubei if he had no regard for his own physical well being or for the integrity of his environment and was somehow both utterly stupid and completely mental.

And this repeats for every major villain in Blazblue. All the other Arcade Modes have each character struggle against their inner demons and these cruel villains, while the Canon Story is Tao’s Eventful Afternoon where she meets a bunch of weird guys, befriends them, and then meets a big scary nightmarish villain who she beats up with her big puffy sleeves (full of knives) until they quit trying to hurt her friends.

It would have been rad, is all I’m saying.   

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

With Entropy Effect's Early Access version releasing in just a few hours, I wanted to go over some of what we've learned from trailers, reviews, and sneak peaks that hasn't come up while I was analyzing the character spotlights.

Of course, do take time to note that I am writing this before even the early access version has dropped. What I discuss here may prove inaccurate to the game we'll get tonight, or the full release we'll see in the future.

Let's just have a little fun with some last minute speculation and analysis!

The gameplay visuals that we've seen so far have looked absolutely gorgeous. I love the character models and the way that battles turn into a light show. I'm a very simple creature, I can always be pleased with some colored lights. The environments and battle effects also look great- this game has very strong art direction. I mean, look at this!

Which really surprised me, and still confuses me, when compared to the artwork they've chosen to use as the face of the game.

Yeah, unfortunately we're gonna start this post with a little negativity, but it should be the last of it, so please be patient.

Or feel free to skip this rant, if you'd like to keep your coverage positive, or just read about what we know about the gameplay itself.

But seriously. What is this key visual. This is just the Central Fiction character select artwork!

Okay, correction; it's the Central Fiction artwork for most of the characters. Poor Hibiki doesn't even get his character select artwork, he's left as the odd man out with his CF story mode battle sprite.

And then there's Es! What did they do to Es!? I don't know enough about graphic design to be able to tell what happened here, but something about her face looks like they tossed her art, and only hers, through some kind of AI filter. She's been weirdly smoothed out and she looks way paler, and more gray, than the rest of the line up. This straight up hurts to look at.

For the first few months after Entropy Effect's announcement, I thought the game was fanmade, because all the key visuals they were pumping out were (and, thus far, still are) made up of the basic official art that appears as the first images when you do a google search of the characters.

How did this get greenlit? They really couldn't afford to pay an artist? I can't even say "they couldn't afford to hire and artist" because, looking at the gameplay, clearly they did! They hired some very good artists! Why not write one more paycheck to get some cover art out of the incredible talent they already have on board?

Okay, okay, SaltFest is over. Coping and seething have been reigned in. Let's get into the fun stuff.

Trailers so far have indicated that the story of Entropy Effect is original, with no clear connection to that of the BlazBlue series- although it seems to share a significant amount of thematic elements with BlazBlue.

The story looks kind of cyberpunk, revolving around a world filled with these little robot guys. Our main character seems to be called "ACER," though whether that's their name, a descriptor, or a title, there's no way to tell- at least, for a few more hours. Sources claim that, similar to BlazBlue's story, there are themes of a looping existence, looming destruction, and fighting to ensure the very existence of a future.

Something that stood out to me in trailers, but I haven't seen spoken about anywhere, are these things called "Phenomena Fragments." They seem to showcase scenes from the lives of human figures in this gray dust-like particle effect.

If I had to make any guesses, I'd say this looks like a post-humanity story, with our ACER using the BlazBlue cast within some kind of simulation.

One thing we do know is that the word 'Entropy' in the title will be integral to the plot, as some cutscene dialogue warns of an "Entropy Shoreline" that may threaten to bring an end to the world our protagonist lives in. The robotic inhabitants of this world also seem to have some kind of god figure, though not all of them believe in it.

Those who have played the game say that Entropy works as a mechanic in the game that increases the difficulty of the run as it builds. I'm interested to see how it plays into the story...!

The full truth of the story will remain a mystery, at least for another hour, but all reviews that have spoken of it so far have been very positive.

Now let's move on to take a look at some of the gameplay!

I saw this screen a while back, with what looks to be 30 available places for characters. At first, I assumed this meant that the game would have 30 different playable characters- I mistook this for a character select screen. Keyword being mistook.

Instead, it looks like the 30 slots on this screen are to save up to 30 builds from previous runs. We see the same screen again here, with two different versions of Lambda saved on it, and the other characters in different positions than the one above. As I'll discuss later in the post, previous runs of the game will be used to pass on certain skills to your next character at the start of a new run. So this screen will probably end up looking different for all players!

The real character selection screen loops, so there's no way to know how many characters will appear in the final version. However, the company has confirmed that there will be more than the seven we'll see in the Early Access version.

The seven characters playable in early access Entropy Effect are Ragna, Noel, Hakumen, Lambda, Kokonoe, Hibiki, and Mai. The games animated trailer (which also looks great, I don't know what happened with the damn key visual) also shows us Jin and Taokaka, who will likely be made playable with the full version of the game. Considering Naoto is the face of the game's Twitter and YouTube accounts, I expect to see him in the final version as well.

As for characters appearing as enemies, Bang's NPC subordinates from BlazBlue's story mode have been shown to appear as generic enemies in certain stages, and both Arakune and Susano'o have appeared as bosses!

After selecting which character you want to play as, you're taken to the screen I mistook for character selection, where you can select two characters you've played as in previous runs, called "Evotypes" in the game. You can have your new character inherit abilities from them- the number of abilities you can inherit from your chosen characters seems to depend on how well you've been doing in your runs, as each run earns some kind of grade. This explains how we've been seeing characters using one another's abilities, such as Hibiki using Hakumen's lightning, in the trailers!

While playing, you earn points called "Potential," which can be used between stages to purchase new abilities. This seems to be where characters unlock their movesets from the BlazBlue fighting games.

There's also a second type of choice players can make as they develop their run. These are called "Tactics." Unlike the abilities unlocked by Potential that seem to be exclusive to characters unless chosen as inherited Evotypes, Tactics are universal and can be purchased for and used by any character.

In a video on his experience playing the game early, Twitch streamer Veedotme says the game rewards you for selecting Tactics you haven't used before, so consider trying out everything before you start picking favorites! Veedotme's review also clarified a lot of what I comment on in this post, so please check out his work!

Interviews claim that the game's early access version will have roughly 100 Potentials and roughly 200 Tactics to choose from, though there could be even more in the final version of the game.

It seems that the early access version will include 10 different stages, with 13 levels each, along with a few other modes of gameplay such as a challenge mode were the stage bosses become even more difficult. I've mentioned it already in other posts, but I like this 10 and 13 number theming, as both numbers have been pretty important to the BlazBlue franchise. It's another sign of serious attention to detail from the developers.

And, well, if I want to get this post out in time to be able to watch some of the first streams go live, I'll have to wrap it up now. Thank you for reading, and if you're interested, please share your own experience with the game in the coming days!

[gear-project]

Stating My Case

So, you want me to play XYZ fighting game and get good at it, knowing FULL WELL that my favorite fighting game is Guilty Gear and always will be so?

Convincing me to "get good" at anything is never a good way to start a conversation with me. In that respect, I am very much like Sol Badguy in that I hate "trying".

On the flipside, just because I hate trying doesn't mean I don't try anything… or that I am the type to never try at all.

I am best described as a player who goes at their own pace. I'm not going to treat fighting game wikis and frame data like it's the Word of God, nor am I going to immerse myself in such information for the benefit of others to eat me alive in a match.

In this day and age we have a term called "Tryhards" that describes people with an alpha personality who are proactive at "getting good" at games and are desperate for the "power" that skill grants them.

I'm here to tell you I'm not interested in any of that at all.

People might call the term "Tryhard" a Loser's Excuse or a Scrubquote, but let me just state that as someone who doesn't like trying that hard… I am still the Opposite of a Tryhard.

I exist, whether you want to accept that or not.

I don't play for tournaments, win records, stats, clout, or what have you.

If I play, it's for my own satisfaction, enjoyment, relaxation (yes, I said it, fighting games in a casual setting CAN be relaxing), and also personal improvement.

Was speaking with an old friend of mine who no longer even PLAYS fighting games anymore (even less of a Tryhard than myself), and he suggested I simply find people who are more "casually minded" to play against.

And I think that's correct.

To me, it was never about winning or losing… it was fundamentally about knowing what I was doing and getting better at what I could do… or better yet… just enjoying the characters at my disposal.

So going out of your way to try and "turn someone in to a pro" just because you yourself are HUNGRY for competition… it's not going to turn out the way you hope, I'm afraid.

Sorry to disappoint.

Or should I say, "glad" to disappoint?

Now, I get it… some players NEED fresh "meat"… but I think it's wrong to shove content down someone's throat just to force them to improve.

This is something that people can only choose of their own volition.

The FREE on Sol's belt buckle is there for a REASON. It's about FREEDOM.

That doesn't mean that I won't give stuff a try… or that I won't practice in my spare time.

But I'm not going to the latest tournament to prove my so-called worth or reputation. That's all temporary and illusory to me.

Good players don't always stay good… and bad players don't always stay bad.

Whether you prefer Melty Blood, BlazBlue, Mortal Kombat, Tekken, Street Fighter, or whatever floats your boat…

Just understand that the only boat its going to float is your own… don't try and inflate other peoples' balloons only to pop them with your own gaming experiences.

This is exactly why casual fights are all about experimentation and not conventional rules in traditional settings.

Heck, even just adding more rounds to a match will give people more freedom and leeway.

If you're fixated on being rigid though, you're not going to make many casual friends in the FG scene.

So please… let people go at their own pace. Don't force it. Let it be its own thing.

[themonotonysyndrome]

Guilt Eater

Part 4 of the ‘Successors of the Future’ is here! And yes, I will do my absolute best to squeeze in as much Blazblue reference in this series until I can’t! (I mean, that’s how I got the plot bunny for this series anyway~)

We’re moving the spotlights today to Malleus and Ace and a special guest! I thought it’ll be an interesting shift of perspective and change. Don’t worry, we’ll get right back to the kids in the next oneshot. 

As always, big thank you to @tri3tri for letting us expand her Second Wive AU. Hope you guys enjoy this oneshot. 

-

Time tend to leave its mark differently on each species. 

For creatures who only grew stronger with time while their bodies remain near immortal, the passing of time means nothing to the Fair Folks. Time is likened to the ocean; ancient yet full of wonders. 

For Malleus, however, time has not been kind to him. Not since his dear heart and children vanishes. 

Ever since then, there is an unspoken rule among the residents of the Castle of Thorns: the Queen’s family wing is forbidden to everyone but the King.

Even Lilia nod his head to the rule; even he has been walking on eggshells around their King. 

And the years had transformed the Queen’s domain into a catacomb. The rumpled beds, the toys littered in Princess Sherrie’s bedroom, the Queen’s favourite book on her study table - everything is left untouched with layered of dust and cobwebs covering every inch of the surfaces. 

Every evening, the King would stalk the empty halls and bedrooms like a ghost; constantly yearning to feel the memories that embedded on the walls. Once he did his duties as the King and beget the male heir that the court had been pushing, Malleus has been living in regret ever since. 

He should have known that his beautiful wife would attempt to escape during the night of his second wedding. He should have tightened the security not on his concubine, but to the Queen and their Princesses. He should have assured Renata and Sherrie that only their mother holds his heart and that Bellatrix is just a means to an end. 

He should have told them that he loves them. 

Regret and guilt are terrible poisons. It festered under your skin and twist your heart painfully. They plague your mind with ‘what if’s’ and ‘should have’s’ and Malleus have been carrying them ever since that night. 

Tonight, he lost hours inside Renata’s bedroom, just staring at her favourite doll that he bought for her. He still remembers how her eyes lit up and how sweet her smile was when he presented the doll to her; how she was so happy that she clings on him and the doll that day. Deeply amused, he humoured her and carried her in her arms the whole day. Malleus even brought her to his court session, regardless how it broke propriety. 

His every waking moments now drift to MC and their daughters. Where are they? Why couldn’t he find them no matter how many soldiers he dispatched across Twisted Wonderland, no matter how far his magic blanket the lands? Are his daughters healthy, happy? What are they currently doing now? Are they safe? Have they forgotten about him - 

The mirror on the vanity table shattered. Malleus releases the doll in his grip and struggle to calm himself down; his body curl inwards and his breaths erratic. The thought of his wife and children far away and happy from him nearly drove him crazy if it weren’t for Lilia’s quick and careful words of consolation.

“They can’t hide forever, Malleus. Don’t ever give up, you hear me? And once we’ll find them, we’ll make sure her little escape routines are put to a stop. Permanently.”  

Lilia’s words are enough to ground him. For now. 

Malleus failed to assured his wife and daughters his love towards them, failed to show just how deep his convictions towards them are. The moment he finds any threads of their whereabouts, he’ll make sure to rectify that. 

And as the night made way for morning, Malleus forces himself to leave his daughter’s abandoned bedroom to prepare for another long, monotonous day. The only reason why he hasn’t delegate his duties to Lilia was because of his grandmother. His grandmother had come to visit on the eve of his second wedding and stayed when a frantic Silver announced MC and their children’s disappearance. If it weren’t for her, Malleus would’ve burned away his suit and transform into a dragon to search for them. While Lilia organise a search team with Silver and Sebek, his grandmother made sure he understood his duties as King once more. 

That was the first and last time he slept with Bellatrix before his thoughts and desire are consumed with the need to find his family. At that point, neither Lilia nor his grandmother could’ve stop him. 

The castle staffs and guards know to scattered when they see him step out of the Queen’s wing. The moment they heard the door creaked open, the room is empty. 

All but for one individual. 

“Good morning, Father!” 

Malleus stop his track. He tilts his head towards his heir, expressionless. Victor refused to be deterred by his Father’s gloomy aura yet he’s smart enough to carefully approach him. 

The king is stoic on the best days, frightening on his worst. 

“Will you be joining us for breakfast later? I heard from Grandfather Lilia that the kitchen staffs are planning to cook your favourites.” 

“I’ll be taking my meals in my office as usual.” Malleus reply and starts to walk away. 

Victor’s smile drop a little but he pressed on, jogging behind his father. In a rare burst of courage, the Prince grab Malleus’ hand. Surprisingly, Malleus stops walking. He stares at his hand before narrowing his eyes at Victor. 

“W-Would Father like a report of my recent academic progress? My tutors said that I’ve been doing well in my magic classes! O-Oh! I’ve also been diligently keeping up with my etiquette lessons.” Victor stutters out after he immediately let go of his Father’s hand. Feeling like he just committed a grave crime. 

“No need. Your tutors have been sending letters of your progress, daily.” 

“Oh... then would Father be willing to... to train me - ”

“I’m busy. Ask Lilia or any of your tutors.” And with that, Malleus refused to linger any longer, leaving Victor in the empty room. 

Crestfallen, Victor watch his Father go. Knowing that if he bothers him even more, it will just upset him and another storm would loom over the castle for the next few days. His expression immediately morph into a combination of anger and sadness as he stomps away before the staffs could return, not wanting them to see him vulnerable. 

As usual, Victor desperately hopes that one day his Father would finally acknowledge him as a son, not as his Prince. 

-

Time tend to leave its mark differently on each species.

For creatures with a set of years as flimsy as a lit candle’s flame, humans are creatures who bear the passing of time with a passionate vigor. Time is likened to fireworks; beautiful, bright but only for a short moment. 

For Ace, however, time is a constant remainder that he had failed his best friend. Being vulnerable in Night Raven College is a sure way to be taken advantage off and Ace is never known as anything but his brutal honestly, mischievous streaks and habits of getting himself (and others) into trouble. 

But when the headmaster announced that he couldn’t find MC anywhere the day after their senior’s graduation, was the moment that he, Deuce and Grim completely lose their composure. Deuce was too shocked to say anything while Ace couldn’t stop screaming alongside Grim. 

She couldn’t have just vanish! People don’t work like that! 

And even if she finally somehow found a way back to her world, she wouldn’t just leave without saying goodbye! 

Ace hated himself as that moment. If only he texted them the night before. Why didn’t he? They usually send stupid texts to one another! If only he kept a closer eye on them. If only she kept Grim close to her. 

For once, the headmaster drop all pretence. For once, his guilt laden answer and heavy sags of his shoulders are genuine. 

MC is gone and he has no idea how or why. But the three of them refused to gave up just like that. Ever since that day, they would do their best to figure out or research about MC’s fate. Jack and Epel, after finding out what happened, did their best to help out too. But days passed without any leads and with heavy hearts, they accepted that their friend is lost to them. 

That was not a good day. 

After Ace and Epel managed to pull Deuce and Jack away from one another (Deuce had completely lost it when the wolf boy reluctantly admit that maybe it was best to stop their research), strangely enough, it was Sebek who finally interjects. 

They need to accept that MC is gone. Even if they could never gain the closure that they desperately want, it’ll be no good to carry this sort of horrible guilt with them forever. With a long sigh, Sebek told them to find peace with it, even if it’s hard. 

Easier said than done. Even now that he’s already an adult and have a son, Ace still couldn’t help but wonder what happened to his friend. He hopes that wherever she is, MC is safe and happy. Anything other than that Ace couldn’t bear to think. 

Ace takes out his phone and checks the calendar app. The anniversary of MC’s disappearance is coming. Usually, Ace would cook MC’s favourite food in honour of her memory and over the years, he has gotten pretty good at it. Good enough that it also becomes his son’s favourite dish. 

Just as Ace was about to put down his phone and get ready to go out for lunch with his older brother, it suddenly rings.  

The name on his phone surprises him. His son rarely calls him ever since he got accepted to Night Raven College. Something about wanting some independence from his old man that Ace retaliates by ruffling his hair because of his boy’s cheekiness. 

Ace press the accept button with a grin, knowing that this is going to be good. “What’s up, kiddo? Finally admit that you miss your old man?” 

He expects a scoff, maybe a reluctant admittance, hell even his son’s rare bout of innocent honesty. What Ace didn’t expect however, is hearing his son’s frightened shriek.

“Dad! You knew a MC/S before right!? Please tell me you know what to do when she went batshit insane!” 

“Whoa, whoa, slow down! What are you talking about? I can barely hear you!” 

Ace impatiently wait while pressing the phone close to his ear as he hear his son rapidly talking to someone, shouting apologies and heavy breaths as if he’s currently running. 

“Oh Sweet Seven, ok, I think we managed to hide from her.” His son panted. “Yeah, so, I might have, uh accidentally threw my food tray all over this girl and she immediately went supernova. We barely managed to dodge her fireballs!” 

Suddenly, Ace felt his heart drop. “Girl? What girl? Night Raven College is an all-boys’ school.” He heard himself reply. Absentmindedly, his mind brought up the memories of his Entrance Ceremony, years ago. Of a girl that looked so lost in her robes as she stood in front of the Mirror of Darkness. 

“Renata MC/S. She’s the only girl that ended up a student here. I remembered that you had a friend with that surname so I thought she might be related.” 

At that moment, Ace choose to believe it. It’s way too coincidental for it not be. A girl that shares his lost best friend’s surname who also just happend to be the only girl to be accepted in Night Raven College? 

But what Ace doesn’t understand is his son’s comment about the girl throwing fireballs. MC doesn’t have magic. So what’s going on? 

“Hmm, I usually gave her some space before I apologised to her. And a little bribery never failed too.” Ace advised, recalling how MC reluctantly accepts the candy that he offered after he upsets her. 

“That’s not a bad idea, Dad! Will report back the result if I’m not scorched to death.” Ace’s son dryly answer. Some rustling noises and hush whispers can be heard through the phone before his kid ended the call. 

Ace is already calling Deuce’s number. He needs to know about this. 

-

I hope I managed to did Malleus and Ace justice in writing them! I’ll get better with writing the rest of the boys once their children are introduce. Because Renata needed friends/allies against Malleus after all~ 

Speaking of Victor, I was really nervous when I was writing him. Here, he’s not all haughty because deep down, all he want is some praises and love from a Father who only see him as something to appease his court. Not a son. Hope I managed to portray that properly! 

(Also, the name of Ace’s son and two others will be reveal in the next oneshot)