#but it’s important for me to make the distinction

[ddarker-dreams]

lock's otome game recs

i received some asks indicating an interest in a compilation of my favorite otome games, so i decided to go for it!! i've played about fourteen otome games, but of those fourteen, only these six left a lasting impression on me. there are still some that i intend to check out, so the rankings may update in the future. i'll give a very general overview of each game and how i'd score the categories that i find the most important in an otome game — the heroine, story, art, enjoyability, along with the characters i liked the most.

number 6 - piofiore fated memories.

heroine: 6/10 story: 6.5/10 characters: 7/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 8/10 favorite characters: dante (ishikawa kaito), nicola (kimura ryouhei) and yang (okamoto nobuhiko)

this game centers around the heroine, with the default name liliana adornato, who finds herself entangled in the politics of the region's three most prominent crime organizations. the game has an italian backdrop and iirc, takes place in the 1930s.

the overarching narrative, while it has its fair share of intrigue, isn't the game's strongest point. it's the interactions with the characters themselves that made the game feel worthwhile. each love interest has more to them than what meets the eye, so it's satisfying to watch the relationship between them and the heroine develop.

the heroine takes a passive role throughout much of the game, events sorta just happen to her. still, she has a kind disposition that makes her likable and doesn't make stupid decisions that has you wanting to fling your console across the room. her characterization changes slightly depending on the route. for instance, without getting into spoilers, she's more assertive throughout yang's route. the resulting dynamic made yang's route the most memorable, even if he's my third favorite character from the bunch.

what feels unique to this game is the effort put into the bad endings. in most visual novels, bad endings can feel like gimmicks. you make one or two wrong decisions and you're rewarded with a few paragraphs. the downward spiral of the characters in the bad endings are decently fleshed out and you can see how they arrived at this 'worst' version of themselves. they're suitably dark and it shouldn't come as a surprise that i enjoyed them because of that 😭

then there's the art. it's stunning, the details in each CG are mindboggling. the heroine gets to wear a variety of pretty outfits which is something i like to see. even in the story's weaker moments, a stunning CG would pop up that had me forgiving everything. i still glance through the gallery to this day.

number five - cupid parasite.

heroine: 9.5/10 story: 7/10 characters: 7/10 art: 9/10 enjoyability: 9/10 favorite characters: ryuki keisaiin (junya enoki) & gill lovecraft (kimura ryouhei)

iconic. showstopping. a little bit camp.

cupid parasite stars one of my favorite heroines, lynette. she works as a bridal advisor whose ambition is to ensure everyone finds their soulmate. in actuality, she's the goddess cupid, who left her post in celestia to better understand humanity and create lasting pairs. she's a delight to play as.

this game's presentation and overall aesthetic is the most distinct from any otome game i've played. aside from the presentation, the story itself is unlike any of the others on this list. when it comes to romance, i typically prefer them to be dark and mature. this game opts for a more lighthearted approach. it vacillates between being a romcom and dipping into the absurdist genre. there were times i was literally left speechless (glances at gill's route)... but it makes for an entertaining experience. the game's plenty funny as well.

personally, i enjoyed the more grounded moments when the mythological elements remained in the background. because of this, the true ending doesn't do it for me as much as they do in other games. as with anything, this is a personal preference though. i liked all of the routes and found the game handles the development of each love interest well. we're introduced to these men at their most pathetic and get to help them become a little more well-adjusted. lowering the cringe meter, if you will. it makes their growth all the most satisfying as the narrative progresses.

number four - even if tempest.

heroine: 9/10 story: 8.5/10 characters: 8/10 art: 6/10 enjoyability: 9/10 favorite characters: the heroine herself, tyril i lister (noriaki sugiyama), crius castlerock (makoto furukawa) and lucien neuschburn (kaito ishikawa)

right from the get-go, this game's premise had me hooked. it features the heroine, anastasia (<3!), who leads an incredibly tragic life. she's bestowed the ability to reverse time following each of her deaths and uses this to unravel a mess of mysteries the world's setting is tangled in.

this game is absolutely anastasia's story. without spoiling anything, i loved the approach they took with the time rewinding ability. how it's incorporated is unique to an otome game, which they take full advantage of to amplify the tragic romances. on that note, the romance itself occasionally takes a backseat to the narrative as a whole. personally, i didn't mind this in the moment, since i found the story so interesting. in retrospect, i do wish that we got more moments between the heroine and each love interest, especially in the true ending.

there are more gameplay elements here as well. you have to conduct investigations, gather evidence, and apply what you've learned during these trial segments. when i first read about this, i thought it'd be a gimmick, but i liked playing through them. it incentivizes you to pay extra close attention to the world.

while i liked the narrative as a whole, i do wish we got more worldbuilding. there are hints of political subterfuge and religious oligarchy that, while touched upon, could've been leaned into more to give the setting a distinct feeling.

number three - olympia soiree

heroine: 8/10 story: 8/10 characters: 8/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 10/10 favorite characters: akaza (yoshitsugu matsuoka), himuka (shun horie), and yosuga (yuma uchida)

in olympia soirée, the eponymous heroine, olympia, lives in a society divided into castes based on colors. she is the last surviving member of a clan that can perform rituals to keep the sun aglow. this game is a lengthier title, i believe i clocked in around 25 ish hours (i don't use auto-play so that sheds some time). the story benefits from this, as olympia has rich worldbuilding and lore that's revealed throughout the route's progression.

we get to see the consequences of this caste system and olympia's growth as she becomes determined to realize a better future for the islands. this makes the heroine someone that you want to root for. personally, i'm a sucker for stories that center around a sheltered individual being forced to face the harsh realities of the world and maturing in their own way. this, paired with the struggles specific to this setting, make for a gripping backdrop for the character's routes. all the love interests have problems of their own that they need to address.

this is certainly a mature title, there's plenty of steamy scenes featuring gorgeous artwork. seriously... all the pretty CGs are absolute eye candy. i enjoyed the balance between the main narrative and the development of the romantic relationships, i don't remember ever feeling bored.

ironically enough, i think this is the darkest game from the bunch listed here, surpassing the game with actual horror elements. there's a whole litany of trigger warnings to be mindful of when going through the game's bad ends. they are, as the term suggests, Bad. not light or humorous in the slightest. the poor heroine goes through it. please be mindful of these more touchy subjects.

number two - 9 r.i.p

heroine: 8/10 story: 8/10 characters: 9/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 10/10 favorite characters: minami (nobuhiko okamoto), hibiki (shunichi toki), kureha (toshiki masuda), and koyo (ryota suzuki)

i was looking forward to the english localization of this game before it was even announced ... i'd been wanting an otome game with this vibe for ages. and it didn't disappoint! there are four different overarching story sections, with two characters each having their routes fall under them. this makes it difficult to give a summary since each route has a vastly different feel. some routes lean heavy into supernatural horror (such as hibiki and kureha), whereas others are just... supernatural (like with yukimaro and koharu).

the basic premise is that the main character, misa, is a high school girl burdened with her career survey. she's uncertain what she wants for the future and is being pressured by his mother to pursue a career in medicine. in one way or another, depending on the story section, she comes into contact with the afterlife and those who inhabit it.

i loved this game, i couldn't put it down. the routes that leaned heavy into horror were my favorites, which shouldn't be a surprise lol. i do feel some love interests were given preferential treatment of others, i wanted more from sena's storyline in particular, since he's voiced by one of my favorite VAs (tetsuya kakihara, the voice of scaramouche) 😭... apparently this game is receiving a fandisc, so hopefully they'll remedy that in the future.

minami stole the show for me. from what i've gauged online, he's a divisive character, you either find him grating or love him (like i do). i'm biased but i do think he has the most interesting and well-written story out of the love interests, i've played through it three times already. i just adored the dynamic between him and the heroine. he's petulant, selfish, and a bit immature, yet he goes to extremes for her as he realizes his unhinged feelings.

hibiki is a close second. the most yandere-coded of the bunch, he's soft-spoken and polite, but that exterior hides a creepy personality. like all of the characters in this game, there's a tragic element to him. i was worried about the role the heroine would play in helping him 'overcome' this, but i think they handled it well. it doesn't feel like the heroine's fixing him so much as she's helping him have a different perspective on certain events.

yeah i'm not normal about this game, i cannot recommend it enough. it would've taken the top slot if some of the routes were a bit more polished. i didn't care for yukimaro's at all, for example. routes like minami's, hibiki's, and koyo's more than make up for it though.

number one - collar x malice

heroine: 10/10 story: 10/10 characters: 10/10 art: 10/10 enjoyability: 10/10 favorite characters: takeru sasazuka (daisuke namikawa), kei okazaki (yuki kaji), and aiji yanagi (masakazu morita)

the holy grail. the otome games that died for our sins. this isn't just a good otome game, it's an excellent story, with a very human cast, commentary on issues like the nature of crime, and you're left wanting to solve the various mysterious as much as the heroine does. speaking of the heroine, miss hoshino ichika is my all-time favorite heroine. she's clever, resolute, compassionate, and you can't help but fall in love with her a little yourself 😭😭

i'm not sure if this makes sense, but the world feels very... full? you get this sense that ichika exists outside just interacting with the love interests. she has her career, friends, and her younger brother that act as more than passing NPCs. the writers ensured all the characters with portraits are given some level of depth. i left caring about more characters than the heroine and love interests.

each route is dedicated to working through a certain case, which keeps the story intriguing as you progress. finally, all of the little hints that have been littered throughout coalesce into the 'true' route, where questions you've had since the first chapter are given satisfactory conclusions. at the same time, you're left wondering about a few things, such as the complete philosophy of the main antagonist.

ichika's relationship with each of the love interests develops alongside the case they're investigating, which almost always have connections or parallels to the LI's past. this helped ground them in reality and flesh them out into dynamic characters. you come to care deeply about them alongside ichika. the romance feels earned and doesn't come on too fast, which some otome games suffer from.

if you like otome games and haven't played collar x malice yet, i fully recommend it!!!!!!!! it's the strongest title from what i've played so far.

[xxknockoutxx]

The beginning

𝙎𝙮𝙣: 𝙃𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙜𝙪𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙮.

𝙋𝙖𝙞𝙧��𝙣𝙜𝙨: 𝘿𝙖𝙗𝙞(𝙏𝙤𝙪𝙮𝙖 𝙏𝙤𝙙𝙤𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙞) 𝙭 !𝙑𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙚𝙢 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧.

𝙒𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: cursing, screeching nomus and yeah

𝘼/𝙣: this fic is really old and I just never finished it. Lol.

Moments like these are meant to be cherished. Sitting in your boyfriend's lap as he starts fights with all the League members for no reason. Still sitting there with a smirk on his face and a proud hand over your thigh.

Eventually the topic transitions from arguments about whatever into Beginnings rather how everybody met each other. Now the topic comes up.

"How did you guys meet?" Toga asks, looking at dabi with curious and intrusive eyes.

"Uhhhh..." He cocks his head and rubs his chin in a thinking position. The amount of time he put in was a little too long for your liking.

You were shooting mad glares at dabi because why the fuck is it taking so long for him to respond? It shouldn't be that hard to remember something so important.

"Go on, tell her, we're allllll awaiting your response" you say while shooting his sarcastic look.

"I'm getting to it, doll" He says while desperately searching through his mental library for that distinct 'One day' he could feel those glares burning holes in his face and he can see toga's smirk in the corner of his eyes. The things he would do to smack the hell out of that girl.

"Wowww, how are you even lower than my lowest expectations" you cross your arms and move off his lap and find solace in Twice's and Compress' comfort.

"But that was like 2 years ago! My bad that I've had too many near death experiences to remember when I met one person!"

The whole fucking league: Wowwwww....

"The fuck are y'all wowing about!?"

You take a deep breath before looking at Toga.

"I'll tell you. It was kinda weird because I was different a long time ago..."

"This is all your fucking fault Dabi"

"How the fuck is this my fault!?"

"I'm not the one who left their spot to get a beer and look at some women!"

"Ohhh...."

Wonderful when a mission goes WRONG right? Being tied up and gun point in front of a whole bunch of facility members.

"Can you pretty please tie me up away from them.. They're hurting my ears!" Toga shouted at the guard that stood before her, clearly unfazed by her begging.

A loud crash in the next room got all of the guards attention and they basically forgot about the league.

"Oh thank the heavens above, maybe compress used his Spidey Sense and figured up that we're fucking held captive!" Shigaraki was still throwing daggers at dabi not even caring for toga at this point.

"Shiggy, if I hear another word out of your dry ass mouth I swear I will make sure I'm not the only piece of burnt b-!"

A huge wave of blood splashed them, even making Toga flustered. A cloaked figure walked past them so briefly that it looked like they were fazing in and out of reality. Were they really just here to steal? Not even concerned that they have Japan's greatest villains in the palm of their hand?

The figure disappeared and the rope cut by itself or rather by a dagger that ended up in the rope somehow...

After they got back to the base dabi got chewed out pretty good by the league and was sent on his own on a solo mission as maybe apology or to earn the leagues trust but truthfully it was just to get him as far away from shiggy as possible.

"So annoying... Send me on a fuckin' mission like I'm your little minion n' shit"

He mocked shiggy and his scratchy voice. "Look for supercharged Nomu, blah blah blah" The audacity of him to kick ME out. I'm fucking Dabi I don't care if he thinks he's my boss, I swear I'm gonna slap the shit out of him when I see him again...

His thoughts raced, so caught up in his chanting he didn't notice the approaching thundering stomps. Oh shit... That's a...— NOMU!

"Yeah get the fuck out of here, now..." *He runs off the building he was on and through the woods trying to find a short cut to a place he could have more battleground.

Turns out that super charged nomu are faster than a dude who runs in heeled boots and smokes 20 cigarettes a day. So yeah... He got stuck. But don't worry because that same mysterious figure from earlier jumps in and saves his ass again!

Before he could even notice himself slightly above the ground he's launched into a tree, facing the nightmarish monster that was just following him.

"Who the hell are you?"

"I'm gonna drop you from this tree and let it demolish your body"

"Understandable, have a nice day, do as you wish."

A group of trees collapsed on the Nomu causing it to scream and bleed. Dabi looked almost starstruck as he admired the sight before. The gust of air knocked off the figures hood revealing that they were in fact female.

Damnnnn mama was the only thing he was thinking in that empty head. Right as he was about to run his way back home he was being held up.

"So you're with the league of losers?"

"Eh close enough" He shrugged

In a matter of seconds dabi had a burning hot blade pressed against his throat. Wow kinky much? He thought. But nevertheless and he complied out of his own boredom

"Take me to your base now!"

"Okay" He didn't mind, he'll just lure you back to the base, to his specific room, and thennnnn after an extended 'talking' session he'll kill you and return the league in a great mood!

Well, that didn't happen and that's how you guys met.

[cozymochi]

Okay gen question, how are you so good at anatomy? like I know its a mix of years of practice and experience. Mayhaps you can spare some tips on how ppl can improve theirs? Always looking forward to your works btw! Even the scribbles you think aren't decent are always such a nice treat to see <3

It being drilled into my system years ago in a drawing class specifically for that 😭 Then a character design class the next semester that added on top of it. BUT FOR CARTOONSSSSS (I have not accomplished anything in my life to utilize any of this.)

My main point of knowledge reference is this book though (OMG FREE INTERNET ARCHIVE PDF? Yes. Though I personally have a physical copy.) We didn’t really read the walls of text so much as just practiced the proportion stuff in the early pages ad-nauseam and some skeletons (not hyper detailed ones just making sure bones were where they should be). Tho admittedly I’ve been neglecting any studying. (This book came out in 1943 brrgh) DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I HAD TO DRAW THIS DIAGRAM? MORE THAN ANY PERSON SHOULD.

But hey, it works. I still sometimes end up referring back to it if I think I’m sucking (disclaimer: i think this often )

As far as I’ve come to know, how something looks visually doesn’t matter so much long as basic proportions are correct. Cuz even people without trained eyes for this sorta thing can recognize when something is proportionately wrong. Like, I guess on you know where everything is supposed to go, you can kinda do anything from there?? I think. It translated well when we were drawing real people who were not the “ideal” presented, and when moving to more stylized stuff with their own rules in a completely different course. So what if that leg doesnt look exactly like u think a leg looks anatomically— IS THE KNEE IN THE CORRECT SPOT? Yes? Then u did it.

Also that eyes are in the center of the face. Not the nose. JUMPSCARE!!!

Aaaa, this isn’t really an interesting answer. If I ever figured out better streaming outside if private discords I could probably make my points better rather than pulling a “here’s a textbook, figure it out” CUZ ITS LIKE. ITS OVERWHELMING WITHOUT A GUIDE AND 😭😭😭

I don’t know. I don’t think I have “anatomy” correct, just “proportions.” Cuz I wouldn’t be able to tell you what something is, just where something goes. Which… I think is a little more important and also a distinction I don’t really see anyone making in drawing.

Though, as much as I wanna be helpful in a more effective way, it’s really really really hard for me to articulate how anyone could improve theirs if I don’t know what the alleged problem areas are 😭 I find all this stuff to be case by case. I kind of do better if i can directly point things out and offer info from there instead of blank slate tips. If I ever figure out streaming outside of private discords it would probably be easier (literally doesnt own a functional up to date enough computer)

I guess focus less on “anatomy” and focus more on proportions since that does more of the heavy lifting? Unless ur a med student, then you probably should focus on anatomy

someone could die because you couldnt identify their coccyx

OKAY THATS IT THANKS AND SORRY

[worldisahouseonfire]

i may not have the best words for this, but also: looking for someone to 'blame' for someone being Autistic kind of prefigures the way the Autistic person is as being A Bad Thing Someone Did, right?

like if we're looking for someone to blame, we're never looking for someone to blame for something that just *is*. there's not a big giant research quest to figure out who's to blame for water being wet, or gravity or mosquitos existing, right? generally people either conclude that science or religion is at the core of it and call it a day, but don't donate exorbitant funding and research effort to cure the world of physics or take reality into protective services from the gods.

i also notice a distinct lack of discussions around who's to blame for things like sunrise, or tea, or puppies, or cake. why would we? sometimes the sunrise is annoying because it means a day has arrived full of stuff we don't want to deal with. sometimes tea is too hot, too cold, or over-steeped. often puppies pee on and chew shit. and sometimes cake is too rich or full of things we don't like or pose health risks.

i don't know if any of these metaphors make sense, but: getting caught up in blaming people or things for autism, or trying to fix the source, isn't really dealing with the reality. it's subtly reinforcing the idea that someone needs to be blamed, like a problem with the underlying assumptions & first principles that needs to be talked about.

your mileage may vary, of course. but it feels like something important for me to write about.

“I’ve read a lot about how psychodynamic theories blame and harm parents by attributing autism to emotional disturbance. They don’t harm the parents nearly as much as they harm the victim when they say a child chooses to be autistic.”

—

Jim Sinclair

Just another note on the way parents are always put at the middle of everything.  To the point even autistic people don’t realize that the refrigerator mother theories actually had at their core the idea that autistic people choose to be and remain autistic (as a reaction to our parents, supposedly, but still it’s described as our choice, and I’ve read this stuff firsthand, as well as experienced it at the hands of some really fucked up therapists).  

And that if we are just coaxed to join the rest of the world, or coaxed into loving people, or coaxed into whatever the therapist wants us to do, then we’ll stop being autistic anymore.  And that if we can’t stop being autistic  (which none of us can but some of us can fake, and for every one who manages to fake it they claim a victory) then it’s our own fault and we can be punished for this.  Because it’s all a choice.  On our part.  But I forgot, blaming the parents is the main tragedy here.

Actually, I think it’s horrible that parents were and in some places continue to be blamed for making their children autistic.  My family experienced this firsthand (straight out of Frances Tustin), I couldn’t not see it as a horrible tragedy.  

I just think it’s also horrible that autistic people – who can’t get away from being autistic and can’t get away from disturbing professionals as easily as our parents could – are actually the ones being blamed for our own autism, and nobody bothers to chronicle the results of that ongoing tragedy because they’re too busy remembering how bad it was/is to be our parents in the places/times when that was believed.  

And remember there continue to be to this day people who believe the refrigerator mother theory, including in the USA, and there are still people who see autism as a childhood psychosis, so this stuff is not gone.  Things like this don’t instantly disappear, they just gradually fade out.  Very gradually.  There are still, right now, autistic people being blamed for being autistic, and parents being blamed for making us want to be autistic.  Right now.  But never forget that autistic people are at the center of the whole thing, not just our parents.

Also, remember that even in places where the refrigerator mother theory is truly gone, it’s been replaced with refrigerator autistics.  As in, they’ve stopped blaming our “cold, unfeeling” mothers for making us “want to be” autistic, but now we’re the “cold, unfeeling” ones who lack empathy, love, and all human warmth.  And that’s considered scientifically accurate even though it’s nonsense (and there’s plenty of actual science showing it’s nonsense).

[ghouljams]

heya ghoul! feel free to ignore this if it’s too personal, but you’ve mentioned having a partner (i think? my apologies if im wrong). i guess my question is: does your partner know about your hard kinks? as you might have guessed from the fact that im on your blog i really like some hard kinks but i cant imagine how i would ever broach that with a future partner. if they do, how did that conversation go?

—signed, a chronically shy and single but still kinky anon

I do have a partner! Mr. Ghoul is lovely and an absolute darling to date. He's a good boy.

Just ripping the bandaid off: yeah he knows about the kinks I want to play with.

Notice I said "want to play with" and not "all my kinks." He does know about pretty much all my kinks even the hard ones but I like to make the distinction with him what I actually want to try out and what is just fantasy.

Talking about kink with my partner is actually super embarrassing for me lol I'm always so nervous he's going to think I'm weird but he always just asks questions about what parts I like and if I'd wanna try it out some time. Honestly it's easier talking about the hard kinks than the relatively vanilla ones. Also we don't overlap with our kinks and Mr. Ghoul is not that kinky, which is honestly? Great.

Being able to make a space in conversation of "I just want to talk about this I'm not asking to act on it right now" makes talking about kink way easier. And the fact that we don't overlap much means there's not a "let's do that right now" threat to talking about kink. We can actually sit and talk about what we're into and how we want to execute it.

Honestly talking about hard kink with your partner and having them ask questions really helps you get to the bottom of "which parts do I actually want to try?" When I broached cnc with my partner he asked if I wanted him to "rape" me and I sort of had to sit and be like "actually I just want you to chase me and pin me down" so we do that. It can be embarrassing to talk about but it's also important, and you really do just sorta have to rip the bandaid off while talking about sex.

Idk it's not always sexy talking about kink, sometimes you're just talking about it.

[femmesandhoney]

I've seen some people say they think the women of From aren't well written and it just shocks me like how are you watching the show that has Tabitha, Julie, Sara, Donna, Kristi, and Fatima and think wow these are badly written and boring characters. The show makes all these characters so distinct and varied and honestly it's always a breath of fresh air watching these women be portrayed in this show, they feel real. You watch the show, and you're like sucked in the world so easily because the actresses are phenomenal along with the fact all these women are so believable and have a lot of depth or narrative importance. It's a character driven show, if these women weren't well written, the show would have bombed from the get-go.

[boxwinebaddie]

this is my formal apology to teri for constantly turning her dms into my philosophical soap box for my sermons. also everyone has to know that i am…feral abt cartman. and that he is so much more than just a ��bad guy’ char.

[askoverlordvox]

"Depends on how you define my 'endeavors'." He waggles his brows and chuckles, unable to resist the little joke. "They support me in their own ways. Jenn works for me as part of my research and development team- she's got a creative mind. Plus, she's... kinder, more compassionate- she reins in my more violent or extreme impulses. Zestial, well, he's got a lot of his own stuff going on at present but he... steadies me. Challenges me to be a better man, to slow down and think, to be more exacting with my actions. He's also a great conversationalist; getting to talk to him and listen to his voice relaxes me." Vox pours more of the sake and drinks it, snagging more of the sashimi. "Alastor, on the other hand, matches me step-for-step. Pushes me to innovate, to find solutions, to keep trying- he trades barbs with me like we're boxers in a ring but he's there to kiss it and make it better at the end- don't tell him I said that. The Radio Demon has a reputation to uphold." He chuckles. "And Angel is... my safe place. We have such big public personas that we can just... drop around each other. It's hard, though. It's when we're quietest that we end up saying the most important shit, because we're still at the point where we talk around things by default."

Vox sits back in his chair as he chews on his latest bite, contemplating. "Al won't want to go near a sex club- not his scene. Jenn would probably be too embarrassed to entertain the idea. Zestial might go for curiosity's sake and Angel would probably think visiting would be a cute date night activity. Al and Jenn visit me at work all the time, though, and Zestial occasionally. Angel hasn't and that's fair- even if it's not the tower, the branding hasn't changed, and there's history there. I get that." He looks at Lilin. "While I care for them all, they're very unique people. My partners are distinctive jewels in Hell's crown. So, you might see some more than others but don't take that to mean I favor one over the other. The one thing they all share in common is that indominable spark in their souls, that tenacious fire that drives them forward, through good times and bad- I find it... irresistable."

He finishes off the bottle of sake and sets it aside, his grin sharp. "So, tell me... how often does a succubi decide to strike out on her own and directly challenge her former boss in his own area of expertise?"

Well, well, Vox… fancy running into you here.

(( @lustinlilin ))

My reputation does precede me but I’m… having a bit of trouble placing the face, my dear. You certainly look familiar.

[asleepinawell]

me wearily opening twitter: please show me just one nice thing for once

twitter: baldur's gate 3 lets you fuck a bear

me: you know what? good enough

[fizzytoo]

[sysig]

Those wacky skeletons ♥ (Patreon)

[zemothethirteenth]

"I do have a very distinct style," he agreed, smiling to himself before leaning back against Bucky and laughing quietly. "Yes, your free will and memories are rather distinctly important," he agreed.

Tilting his head back to rest it against Bucky's shoulder, he sighed softly. "Mm, maybe I'll make you kiss the bruises better later," he teased quietly, resting his hands over Bucky's. "Or maybe you can just keep holding me close until dinner's ready, hm?"

@thecoldsoldiers

“Mm, far more memorable than anyone else apparently.” Bucky chuckled, letting go of Zemo to take over gently doing up the clasps of the necklace. “I agree with you though, I much prefer to have my own free will and memories.” He let his hands drop to Zemo’s waist once the necklace was back in place.

“I’m sorry for any bruises you have. I didn’t exactly think when grabbing you.” He ran his thumbs along Zemo’s sides gently.

>> @zemothethirteenth

[sad-leon]

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Continuation of This Post

KoFi || Patreon

[astronicht]

Apparently there are people out there saying D&D is easy to learn and I’m here to tell you: the first time I tried to learn it I slept with the DM instead in some sort of instinctive escape from the difficulty of learning D&D. In retrospect this DM hookup could have been a good gentle place to figure out that I’m not into sleeping with men, but I was so distracted by not doing basic addition for fun that it took me another 7+ years to discover lesbianism. To be clear I think D&D is great! It is especially great when I just sit in the background (or on someone’s lap again I guess, for old time’s sake) drinking a beer and working on a paper. I just would not call it easy to learn, exactly. I should note that it probably helps if you have any motivation whatsoever.

[iridescent-serpent]

Been playing Alien vs Predator (the 2010 game) which has been quite a lot of fun! (Xenomorph campaign is Criminally short). Ended up doing some doodles of my Yautja campaign in particular (so mild spoilers!)

First up are the quick phone doodles:

First one is from the boss battle, mostly making fun of the goofy ass animation the xeno does after it loses some health.

Second one is me talking about the 2 infinite enemy wave areas, as it was Not obvious to me they were infinite waves till after 5 solid minutes of xeno pummeling.

Third is just how Easy it is to miss a marine after I kill the initial majority. I swear I’d kill one, look around and not find any more. Then 5 seconds later I hear NPC marine lines and get shot at.

Fourth is simply a “what do I look like out of pov” doodle. Just think it’d be funny if yautja command views the player as the equivalent of a toddler given too much power but is doing their given job well enough that they’re just not gonna stop it.

(Also a bonus one as a friend of mine misread the xeno’s hiss noise of the second one as kiss instead)

(Did 2 versions bc i forgot what mask the original doodle had lol)

And finally a more serious colored doodle! In particular this one is about the Single human NPC I left alive on purpose (kinda). Effectively what happened is since the dude was non-hostile I instead looked for the insta-kill option [E] that pops up, however it Didn’t pop up for this guy and at the moment I just kinda forgot I could claw-punch the guy and went “welp! guess he lives!”

[imjustaf444keriguess]

okay, im gonna react to each of these separately, if i miss any important details in any of the studies or sources feel free to correct me. also at times i use just DID to refer to traumagenic and disordered systemhood, but note that i count the OSDD1 presentations and any similar complex dissociative disorder with self-presentations / plurality the same as DID in this post.

the first one seems to talk about dissociation in general, and how it presents over many dissociative disorders. it mentions a "trauma model" and a "taxon model" vaguely, and then goes to talk about dissociative disorders exclusively after. this doesn't prove or disprove possible non-pathological forms of plurality and systemhood, and i can't tell if they're on the side of "it's solely dissociation" or if it's a "we believe there's two different kinds of dissociation" here

The Trauma Model posits that dissociation is a psychobiological state or trait that functions as a protective response to traumatic or overwhelming experiences.4 Dissociation is most commonly conceptualized as a continuum from normal to pathological, with states of intense absorption, like spacing out while driving and missing an exit at one end, and severe dissociative disorders like DID at the other. Research supports an alternative: the Taxon Model positing two continua: normal and pathological dissociation.5 The latter comprises a distinct group of highly traumatized individuals—about 3.5% of the general population—who endorse a specific cluster of symptoms consistent with severe dissociative psychopathology such as DID.

i mentioned in my other reblog a quote from the authors of the TOSD saying that non-disordered multiplicity and dissociation (like that with mediums and hypnosis) is potentially possible and needs to be studied, so just saying that there's a trauma model of dissociation is like... yeah? there's clearly non-pathological form of dissociation too, though. depends on what you're classifying as dissociation thugh (like, is reading a novel dissociation?)

the next one is from "thepsychpractice.com", which is not really a resource i'd trust to be truly unbiased. it's also about DID only, not proving non-traumagenic plurality impossible. we also know it's possible to create alters and to influence them, and alters can change their internalized identity. they, in a sense, CAN choose their name, age, gender, etc. it's just not something another alter can change for that alter.

the next one is also from DID-research, which, again, is about DID. nothing on that page says anything about how non-traumagenic systems and plurals can't exist, it's just some med students large-carrd at the end of the day (a good and generally informative page about DID still, but not directly a source to say "non-traumagenic systems don't exist).

i don't have time to focus and watch a tiktok, trying to focus on an auditory input right now would probably make my brain explode, but i bet that user has a decently good summary for DID systems. tiktok is not a source to disprove endogenic systems though. the existence of DID systems and trauma-formed systems are also not proof against endogenic systems and endogenic plurality.

another .com site that seems to be summarizing DID for the laymen like the psych practice. beachsideteen.com is probably not made by the cutting-edge scientists, i'd guess. it does seem to agree with most average people on its facts and is against fakeclaiming, somewhat, but again it's not really a source that's debunking endogenic plurality.

it also uses integration instead of final fusion in its wording, which many people would say is wrong (as integration is just connecting the parts, final fusion is the full merging of parts, and functional multiplicity is still being separate "selves" while lowering the dissociation barriers between parts.

also, with tiktok and other social media platforms, different alters can switch in and choose to create videos and such. while this is not the same as the "switching on camera" trend they mentioned specifically, it is similar where people fakeclaim others for switching to create a video together as a system- which is entirely possible because alters can front, they can communicate, and they can have interests outside of the trauma (and they SHOULD, since life is not JUST trauma and even traumagenic alters deserve to be silly and have fun). that's not entirely related to the topic at hand, but is important to note. alters are ,at their core, still people (or at LEAST parts of a person), they still have the ability to want to feel joy and have fun. sometimes, they want to use tiktok to be silly and have fun. i don't get it because i hate tiktok but thats due to me hating tiktok, not all shortform video content creation.

yet another .com site (traumadissociation.com) that only talks about DID. it DOES mention maladaptive daydreaming, but that's a separate (proposed) disorder, and doesn't really relate to endogenic plurality's validity or not. it's the same as mentioning BPD and its similarities to some DID experiences,

this one is ALSO a .com site but seems to actually show a study(? paper?) talking about DID and its presentation. while my simple skimming through doens't show anything that says "multiple 'sentient' self states is only possible through trauma, it does show a pretty good perspective on DID systems and why they might form. i'll read this one better later, but i don't think it's good evidence to disprove endogenic plurality itself (again, the existemce of traumagenic plurality and DID systemhood is not evidence against the idea that non-traumagenic plurality and non DID systemhood can exist)

and... that's it. a few resources on DID specifically, and only two are "valid" sources. and, as far as i can read, the sources don't say that endogenic plurality is not possible, they're just talking about DID and dissociation in a pathological sense.

("valid' here as in "could be a source that i'd read that would prove endogenic plurality and systemhood impossible," as most or even all of these sources are good for DID specifically, and some are good for singlets to read at a glance or for some newly-diagnosed DID systems to read to understand their experience better and give words to their experiences)

if i missed any specific points in the first and last links that do have direct statements against endogenic (non-disordered / trauma-based) plurality, do point them out as well. i am human and could have missed something!

whoever changed the endogenic wiki page just know i love you and ur the best