#but overall i want to include every pokemon

[shinypokemonshowdown]

So, are you only doing select Pokémon, or are you seriously going to go through all 1020?

All 1020! Including gigantamax and mega pokemon! I think that makes it more than the 1020

There are some I excluded like all the unown forms [grouped into one entry], all the vivilon forms as well

Some entries even if they are technically the same pokemon got different spots like deerling/Sawsbuck

[pickles4nickles]

So I’ve been watching playthroughs of Yakuza games for a while now, but when I saw that the newest game takes place in Hawai’i, the place where I was born, raised, and have lived in for nearly 30 years now, I knew that this was something I had to have first-hand experience with and not let some guy tell me how to feel about it, to put it bluntly.

I went on a month and a half long journey to finish this game, so I sat around for a bit like

Jesus Christ I should write a review on it.

So if you’d like to read about 5k words on what I thought about The Video Game™, here you go.

Overall, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is a really really good game. However, as Hawai’i local it was kind of hard for me to turn my brain off to some of the cultural inaccuracies and as someone who tends to play smaller indie games, I clocked in about 110 hours on this and I burned out a little towards the end.

GAMEPLAY

Let’s get into Gameplay first because I think I have the most positive thoughts about it. If you haven’t heard my thoughts about Pokemon lately, it mostly boils down to “It’s the only RPG I’ve really been playing in recent years and the gameplay has been very watered down and I yearn for a decent PvE experience.” This game definitely scratched that itch in more ways than one.

Infinite Wealth’s turn-based combat system revolves around positioning. Some moves have an AoE of either a straight line or a circle. Positioning a character next to an ally will proc a combo move with them and positioning them near items will proc an item attack where you can beat a guy to death with a traffic cone or something.

The job system is robust. Every character starts off with a default class- Ichiban’s is Hero, an all-rounder that can pretty much do anything; characters like Nanba and Eric (I know the game calls him Tomi or Tomizawa, but I’m not the game and “Fuckin’ Eric” sounds way better than “Fuckin’ Tomi”) are magic-oriented, so they’re basically wizards by default. You can change their class to other jobs (Desperado is my favorite because it’s basically gun mage), which unlocks new skills as you level them up. You can also change jobs as much as you want and skills carry over between them, so there’s a bit of moveset mixing and matching that makes my brain feel good.

Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, (the Yakuza devs, which we’re just gonna abbreviate to RGG from here on out) have always been REALLY good at asset reuse (again, I cast a dirty look to Game Freak). They’ll make a whole-ass map of a region and reuse that same map for several games down the line. Not only do you spend a significant time in Ijincho again and not only do you go to Kamurocho for little bit… AGAIN, but there are two… what I can only call “macro” games that have the best asset reuse I’ve seen in, like, maybe anything ever.

DONDOKO ISLAND

Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth comes with a whole-ass Animal Crossing clone that’s also kind of The Sims called Dondoko Island. In this, you rehab an island that’s being used as a dump for some trash pirates (no, seriously, they’re actually pirates, yar har and everything) back into a five star resort. There’s a whole-ass crafting system where you go around the island, harvesting resources, to build furniture and facilities, which include whole-ass buildings which have appeared in past Yakuza games. The crafting system is GREATLY improved over Animal Crossing: New Horizon in that you can skip the goddamn animation and craft multiple of the same items at once. You don’t even have to have all the materials in your inventory, it’ll take it from your storage. Placing items in the world is also in an overhead view and the only grievance I have with the system is that placing paths is really weird and you can only place a limited number of them. But overall, Nintendo, was it really that hard to put into the video game. Why did you make AC:NH disrespect my time in that way?

Once the island has been cleaned up enough, you can start inviting guests over, which all have their own set of preferences for the vibe of your island (rustic, pop, sleazy, etc), their lodging quality, and how much of the island’s flora and fauna (and minerals, I guess??) you’ve discovered.

I really really liked Dondoko Island because who am I to say no to a management mini/macro game with decoration elements. I mostly really appreciate that it doesn’t waste your time. I wanna say I finished it in like less than 20 hours… which is not short for a game within a game (actually, that’s insane for a game within a game), but for a game of this genre, it’s pretty short.

There’s also an entire separate mini-island that further helps you with efficiently running your island by passively collecting resources over time and just being a general stockpile of bugs and fish to catch. But I can’t talk about this part without talking about…

SUJIMON

A returning character voiced by Keith Silverstein in the English dub – yes, that Keith Silverstein, who voices Masayoshi Shido of Persona 5 and Zhongli of The Genshin Impact™ is a professor who documents the behavior of weird and often hostile middle aged men, called Sujimon. When Ichiban goes to Hawai’i, he asks him to also document the native Sujimon there as there’s a prominent Sujimon scene there. Mans wasn’t kidding as there is an underground, more or less ilicit Sujimon fight club called The Sujimon League with its own Elite Four called The Discrete Four.

In the previous game, Sujimon was just your bestiary (literally called the Sujidex), but now it’s a whole-ass game, which I can mostly only describe as simplified Yokai Watch, but a glorified card game. Just so we’re not here for forever talking about middle-aged men cockfights… because I can talk about the mechanics and inner workings of middle-aged men cockfights for a hot minute, Sujimon League basically operates on a 3v3, with an additional bench of 3, rock-paper-scissors kind of system. You’ll need strong Sujimon to get through this macro game and you’ll recruit new guys through four ways- through random fights on the map, through literal Pokemon GO raids, through a gacha system, and through combining Sujimon of the same type into stronger Sujimon (don’t think too hard about that one). I had a LOT of fun with this and, again, it scratched an itch I’ve had for a while. Almost all of the Sujimon are just guys you’ll fight in-game, so, again, an excellent use of asset reuse.

Sujimon smoothly integrates into Dondoko Island in a way that makes Palworld look even more balls-less than it already is. You know that little island I was talking about a few paragraphs back? That’s Dondoko Farm. You can put your Sujimon to work on it! As you’re running around on Dondoko Island, letting it consume your life, your Sujimon will grow crops, scrounge around for resources, and earn some cash for you. The island also has some resources to help with Sujimon League by leveling them up with a small investment of some dondoko bucks and your time, but also a Pokemon-Amie type mini-mini game that helps strengthen the friendship of your current Sujimon team.

Yes.

This game lets you pet-

The sweaty, weirdo middle-aged men.

Don’t think about it too hard.

Especially don’t think about it too hard when you have a Sujimon on your team that uses Xander Mobus’ voice clips.

Anyway, there’s also another minigame called Sicko Snap, which is basically Pokemon Snap with Sujimon. It’s a good one, too.

STORY

I guess… the best way I’d explain my feelings on Infinite Wealth’s story is

Objectively, this is an okay story. Like, it’s par for the course for a Yakuza game. I have a lot of personal grievances with this plot which I’ll fully unsheathe my blade for in the next section, but for now I’ll just say… this game is basically Hawaii Five-O crammed into a Yakuza game and that was an emotional rollercoaster ride that I’m not sure I enjoyed.

Like a Dragon’s main theme is “Even if you hit rock bottom, it’s never too late to get back up again” and that’s something I hold near and dear to my heart.

They have used this theme to my benefit and to my dismay as this also apparently means it’s never too late for ~*Romance*~ which, sure, yeah, okay, true, but did it have to be Ichiban and Saeko?

I’m trying to give the game the benefit of the doubt because… to me, it’s mostly one-sided (as in, like, Saeko’s willing to give him a chance, but isn’t as crazy for Ichiban as he is for her) and, like, dude is allowed to have a crush. But from what I have seen… because I never got around to finishing her Drink Link (I was gonna but I’m like really burned out on the game), they kinda strap C4 to the Bechdel Test and raze a village to the ground with it when it comes to Saeko’s character arc because most of her dialogue and interactions are about The Incident with Ichiban, which sucks because she had more character than just a romance interest for the protagonist in the previous game. If you’re also REALLY not into this plot point like I am, the story DOES NOT let you forget that this indeed happened as it seems to be a plot thread that might continue into the next game as well.

Needless to say, I don’t ship it, and I don’t get to block tags and just walk away from this one.

The game also kinda keeps nudging at, “Hehe, Chitose’s pretty cute too, right?” to which I say

Yes I understand she’s of legal age but she’s only like 21 AT MOST and Ichiban’s like 40-something you stop with that.

It doesn’t feel like Ichiban really had a character arc in this… unless you count “proposing on the first date” to “saying I love you on a redo and then being weird about it again” as character growth. He went to Hawai’i, had some shenanigans, found mom, got backstabbed again, fought the cult (which I’ll be really salty about in the next section), went back home to help Eiji’s character arc. This isn’t a bad thing, it’s just… Ichiban went on another adventure. And it was ok. I think maybe the game was sizing him up to, again, take Kiryu’s place and be The Hero, but… we already did that already? And I’m not even sure if the game was able to complete that message by the end of the game.

Kiryu probably got the most character development out of this game and talking this over with my friend Andrew, he brought up that it kinda wasn’t fair that this is supposed to be Ichiban’s game, but he had to share half of it with Kiryu. And I agree. His sections were also really hard to get into if you haven’t been a longtime fan. Again, I have a decent amount of Yakuza knowledge, but with Kiryu’s memories, a LOT of it went over my head.  It seems like RGG’s been trying to retire him as a protagonist for like three games now and MAYBE this time they’ll actually do it after this victory lap they’ve given him. But he did learn that “my friends are my power” and “never ever give up, you still have time to do better.” And you know what, that’s rad.

As far as the villains go, just, I dunno, they’re fine? Ebina and Eiji are very “okay bitch, stay mad, then,” and it’s. Fine? My only complaint is that Ebina’s arc felt like it was under-seasoned before they put it in the oven to cook and they could’ve peppered it on a little earlier in the game or something. Bryce’s entire deal I may have taken a little too personally, but that’s for later. Dwight was literally just Danny Trejo doing a villain role and I have absolutely no qualms with it. He was fun to watch.

The supporting cast was fun as always. Eric I hated at first, but he grew on me in the same way that, like, I’d bully a friend. Chitose I also kinda hated at first, was very sus of, but then she had a character arc that was pretty good. The Yokohama gang didn’t really have character arcs to them, but they were still fun to hang out with nonetheless. We got to learn a little bit more about Seonhee and she’s really fun. Both her and Zhao, who is my favorite for several reasons, are really really fun characters as they are both crime bosses (former, in Zhao’s case) who are BIG FUCKING WEIRDOS and I love them for it.

Joongi Han becomes a party member WAY too late in my opinion that, in a way, he’s technically an optional party member, or at least like getting a Dratini right before the Pokemon League in Gold/Silver/Crystal. He had some fun character moments, but felt kinda like an afterthought.

But also, ain’t no way he got his Hawai’i clothes at Hilo Hattie. There’s no way.

To wrap up my thoughts on the main story, I’d just like to say: the plot point that they sailed to Japan on a little tugboat in a handful of hours as opposed to WEEKS is peak Hawaii Five-O vibes and it infuriates me, but everyone kept telling me “it’s okay, the coast guard picked them up, like, halfway” and I will sit down and not start a fistfight over it. And just. That was the vibe of the game for me. Just… alternating between a J-Drama and Hawaii Five-O.

I don’t really have much to say about the substories except that they’re either almost Oscar-worthy material or they’re a snoozefest that I just tabbed through. I can really only think of three substories off the top of my head that were EXCELLENT, though - Nancy and Olivia, the artificial snow quest (THIS ONE IS EMOTIONAL WHIPLASH), and the traveling aquarium one. The rest I mostly just tabbed through because they were just……. Eh. But I think I’m okay with that since we have Sujimon and Dondoko to make up for it.

THE CULTURAL GRIEVANCES

So as I type this section out, I run my hands over my face to remind myself and say

This is a game that takes place in Hawai’i from a Japanese perspective, written primarily for a Japanese audience and I assume that certain things may come from a place of ignorance, but not maliciousness.

Hey Tumblr.

I want you to read that first bolded sentence again.

Because I know how you guys are with reading comprehension.

But that being said, as a Hawai’i-born Chinese person, there’s quite a lot about the Hawai’i cultural aspects of this game that I have problems with. If you wanna see me roast this game, you can stick around, but if not… Here is your chance to bail.

I’ve tried my best to write this in a way where I look at the thing that pissed me off and ask myself,  “Am I taking this too seriously or do I actually have a problem with it?” and write more or less objectively, but some of it might still come off as overly caustic. Just. I tried.

And after a deep breath,

Ho brah,

We go.

WHAT IS HAWAIIAN CULTURE, ANYWAY?

To start off, I’m not sure if RGG knows the difference between being a Hawai’i local and actually being of Hawaiian blood…? The game mentions at the very beginning that Akane is half-Japanese… and half-Hawaiian, which makes Ichiban one-fourth Hawaiian, which makes ME kinda… squint. Like, we’d need to know more about Akane’s backstory, but if you know anything about indigenous cultures, finding someone who’s half native is HARD nowadays. Akane also looks pretty light skinned for someone who’s allegedly half-Japanese, half-Hawaiian but that’s just my tiny nitpick?

I’m also… not sure what kinda research RGG did on Hawaiian last names because some of the ones I see on random enemies are kinda… 

Who is that

What is that

I have never seen anyone named that in my entire life

Sure, my worldview is a little shut in, but, no, what IS that?

Mililani is not a last name, that’s a neighborhood, why’s she Lani Mililani?

WHAT IS THAT?

The pidgin in the game is also there, but… small kine hit or miss. For those of you who don’t know, pidgin is Hawai’i’s creole, which came from a bunch of cultures who don’t speak the same language eventually falling into a kitbashed language system that works for everyone. Looking at the VA listing in the credits, they did hire some local people (they have Hawaiian names) and some of the VO performances work really well like Obispo in the restaurant side story and the cab driver dialogue that ONLY comes up in the Japanese audio version of the game for some reason. Others… are… hm (I don’t know what’s going on with Jeff the taco truck guy). I feel like the voice director got the intonation on the line reads down pretty well, but on the localization side, the syntax and grammar are a little off. Pidgin tends to come off as “broken english,” but it’s technically not since it’s its own language system with its own rules. So you have a lot of line reads that are in the right inflection, but the way it’s written is wrong for pidgin dialogue.

And it just doesn’t sound 100% right to me.

There’s also some… small pronunciation nitpicks that I have. Ukulele is pronounced the white way - it’s not Yooka-Laylee like the Chameleon and Bat, it’s ook-oo-leh-leh like Tapu Lele, the Pokemon. Some characters pronounce Hawai’i as huh-why and not ha-wuh-ee, which is more right (it’s SUPPOSED to be ha-vai-ee but I’m not native Hawaiian and this is kind of an axolotl situation so, y’know).

But shout-outs to the “Whatchu lookin’ at?” line guy.

Because that one is just, no notes, perfect.

NOTHING CAN BE NORMAL, I GUESS

Something that rubbed me the wrong way in this game is the mystification of a culture that’s foreign to you, that is, taking a culture that’s not yours and describing or representing it in such a way that it sounds so deviant and hard to comprehend compared to the one you’re used to. Think of that one tweet where someone describes hamburgers like a white person would describe asian fruit.

There's the lei substory where the girl needs to make a lei with blue plumerias (which does not exist by the way) because there’s an urban legend that if you give a blue plumeria lei to someone, it’s a way of confessing your true love. Lei are just… things you give as, like, a “congrats!” kind of a thing. Or if you wanna be touristy about it, a “welcome!” kind of gift. There’s nothing mystical about it, most grocery stores stock a few that you can just pick up, grab and go style. 

The entire game mechanic of “shaka to make friends” was so?? Like maybe after 8 hours into the Hawai’i map, I was like, okay, I’ll just… fine. I’ll accept it. But my god did I not appreciate it when Kson came up to me and was like “what’s a motherfucker gotta do around here to make some friends” and told me how FRIENDLY the Hawaiian people were and how you can just throw a shaka to make friends; while me, probably the saltiest, introverted Hawai’i local that throws stink-eye at tourists who can’t watch where they’re going, playing the video game on that day was like, “We don’t fucking do that, hello??” I don’t even know why we shaka?? Most people you ask that question will just be like “idk it’s the local thing, they do it at the end of the 5pm news on KHON2.”

There’s a substory in this game with a character named Nathan, but we were all calling him racist Alpharad because he kinda looks like him (ALPHARAD HIMSELF IS NOT RACIST OR IN THIS GAME I WANNA CLARIFY THAT) and he’s basically, like… a weeb. He’s recording what seems like a PBS special on Japanese tourists in Hawai’i, but he’s kind of a shitter about it. He makes Ichiban choose between local foods and cold-ass rice and becomes upset when he chooses kalua pork over the rice since it wasn’t The Japanese Option. It escalates to making Ichiban play darts with shuriken and when he loses, he tells him to “live up to his dishonor,” slides him a knife and board, and asks him if he wants to take a finger or hara-kiri. To which Ichiban goes “dude, I get you like Japanese culture, but you can’t treat people this way”

To which I look back at the game like

You clearly understand how this feels, so why are you doing this to Hawaiian culture?

Again, I understand that a lot of this game was written with maybe just ignorance, and not malice, and this isn’t really a call-out post to RGG or anything, but BOY…

Okay.

Now we get to my biggest gripe with this game.

PALEKANA CAN SUCK MY NUTS

I’m kinda disappointed in their choice to use a Hawaiian cult as a plot point. It’s not quite a native savages kind of a vibe, but… In the year of our lord 2024, I thought we would know better than to portray an indigenous religion as a bloodthirsty cult? I also don’t like how they’re conflating the Hawaiian religion with what’s more like a Christian/Catholic cult in this.

Palekana is portrayed as “cultists who worship a goddess who lives in a mystical land, forbidden only to her chosen and maybe one day we’ll be worthy of her blessings.” Hawaiian religion is… not… like that at all? They did get the part about “giving back to the community” correct as a part of Hawaiian culture is mālama ‘aina, meaning, you need to care for the land you live on, which is… reasonable? I guess the other basic idea of Hawaiian religion is that certain places, things, and times that are important, and you shouldn’t touch it unless you wanna fuck around and find out. But the game just kinda wildly overboils this.

Like, I don’t claim to be an expert, I’ve only scraped the basics from what I learned in school (a year’s worth of Hawaiiana lessons in middle school, a semester’s worth in college; went to a private Catholic school, took two world religion classes in college), but Palekana has a very Catholic European religion kind vibe instead of a Hawaiian one. And I really, really don’t like that the game conflates the two. The Palekana cultists wear hoods, which is a distinctly European thing (it’s too hot for hoods here!). The beaded necklaces also seem more like rosaries, which, again, very Catholic. The idea that a god-figure will save you is also a VERY Catholic idea. I’m also assuming the goddess Nele that they use in the game is an expy for Pele, which… okay, like, you can do that with locations. Ala Moana Shopping Center represented as Anaconda Mall in the game hurts me a lot, but… to change up the name of the most prominent deity in Hawaiian religion is like

Dude, I’m not Hawaiian, but I know better than to shit on Pele?

Maybe I’m taking this a little too seriously, but it comes off as a little(??) disrespectful.

To give them the benefit of the doubt, maybe RGG wrote this plot point in this way to be like, well, they’re the villains, so we’ll write them so hyperbolically evil and wrong so people won’t mistake that for the actual culture? But my gut reaction is that they’re only writing from what they’ve seen in the movies and they wanted to make a story like that.

This was my least favorite part of the plot because not only does the cult aspect feel like it’s in bad taste, but it’s SO MUCH of the story and you REALLY can’t get away from it.

Alright. So now that I’ve aired that out of my system, I’m finally capping off this section with the part of the game that hit the closest to me and that is

CHINESE IN HAWAI’I

Listen. Again.

This is a story about Hawai’i, written by a Japanese team, for a Japanese audience.

Yakuza is a series that often talks about the racial conflict between the Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans. And I don’t expect them to portray any of these groups in anything more than a neutral light in this game about Gang Crime.

But ohhhhh my gooooood did they get the Chinatown section so wroooooooong.

Right off the bat, the big glaring problem I have with this game is. All the guys speak Mandarin. I think they might just be reusing voice clips from Yakuza 7, which, sure, fine, I understand that video games are hard to make and expensive.

In Hawai’i, like, real-world Hawai’i, not the bizzaro Hawai’i this game takes place in, we’re definitely starting to see more Mandarin-speaking immigrants show up, but most of the town speaks Cantonese.

Most of the people here a generation or two above me come from Guangdong or Hong Kong, which are Cantonese-speaking areas. It’s an entirely different dialect that’s really only been represented in small bits in media I’m familiar with, like in Jackie Chan Adventures (the uncle’s chant is basically “no more ghosts, get out of here” in Cantonese) and Digimon Tamers (“Moumentai” is “it’s okay/don’t worry about it” in Cantonese), and it seems really hard to get VAs that speak it, so I’m not… really that mad about it.

BUT. Then there’s Wong Tou.

Wong is the Cantonese pronunciation of 黄 , Huang or Hwang in Mandarin.

So like… clearly they knew?? But?? Decided not to go all in on it??

(And then Daniel Dae Kim is his face model and I just??? Bro’s Korean, hello?????)

And then there’s the name of Wong Tou’s gang. The Ganzhe.

Which is a stupid name.

The Chinese dictionary gives me 甘蔗 which translates to sugarcane, which. I get it. The plantation times. The Chinese and the Japanese and the Filipinos and the Portuguese and whatever all used to work on the cane plantations.

…But you’re out here calling your BIG KNIFE GANG “Sugarcane??”

My guy, you could start a reggae band with that name instead.

SPEAKING OF REGGAE-

No one knows how to pronounce Ganzhe properly besides Eric’s VA apparently? All the other VAs pronounce the gan closer to “van” when it’s supposed to be more like a “gone.”

Yes. That’s right.

Ganzhe is pronounced more like ganja.

You know.

The Marajuanas™

I’m a Hawai’i-born Chinese, first-generation local on my mom’s side and third-gen local on my dad’s. I grew up in Chinatown, so this was a section of the game that was near and dear to my heart. So I THINK and HOPE you’d understand my frustration to see that work needed to be done on the representation of my culture in this game. It was definitely a little fun to see my hometown modeled in this game- they got Maunakea Marketplace and Keikaulike Mall down pretty accurately and some of the motifs on the buildings made me do a double take because they were so familiar to me. BUT, man, this cultural aspect of the game needed A LOT of work.

SO TO FINALLY CLOSE THIS OUT

Japanese people love Hawai'i a lot.

I think Japanese people love Hawai'i more than Hawai'i locals do.

But as for portraying it accurately, I understand that no one can do it as well as a local islander can. Did I personally think they did the best they could?

………………ehh

Like, if you turn your brain off, it's fine??

If you turn your brain off and not let Palekana get to you, this game is fine.

It can be a little campy.

It can be a little Hollywood.

It can be a little Disneyland.

And despite my four pages of bitching about it, at the end of the day. It is fine.

So with that, I’ve hit like ten full pages on this Google Doc. Despite half of this review being me complaining about what they got wrong about Hawai’i culture in this game, I liked it a lot! When the game didn't have me strapped down for an episode of a J-drama or Hawaii Five-O, I liked running around town, fighting guys, making other guys fight other guys, and managing a resort island. If anything, this game actually motivated me a little to make more local-themed stuff, because as I notice people getting older, there’s less and less people to correctly preserve highly specific culture stuff like this. So a lot of that responsibility falls on me, y’know?

Thank you for making it to the end of this review! I know it was a lot. I don’t know what happened. I do recommend this game, but I ask that you do NOT finish the game with the takeaway that you have learned everything there is to know about Hawai’i.

I’ll fight you with a lawn chair (in Minecraft, for the FBI agent reading this) if you do that.

Other than that, I think you’ll have a lot of fun but also take your time because this game is, like, a 100 hour commitment. Not Persona 5 Royal long, but a commitment nonetheless.

[shovelbug]

can you do liko interacting with introvert gn reader, who has ability to understand pokemon language? Imagine how liko happen to saw reader sternly train their two pokemon like an experience trainer, before taking a break. Friede mention they're the mysterious member of the group, since they join them on the day before he got hired by liko's mother, hinting 1. Reader knew there might be mystery connection with liko's pendant, which is spot on. 2. Reader knew the name of every pokemon and their entrydex. 3. They seems immune to brainwash and life draining force. Other clues liko gets are shows that reader seems to be ordinary sensitive trainer with curious side

how interesting! I hope you like it, i tried my best to include everything you requested!

(Platonic!) Liko and Introvert!GN! Reader who can understand pokemon

You've always been more of a quiet type, keeping mostly to yourself and your pokemon.

it's thanks to that nature that over time you accumulated knowledge of all sorts of pokemon, learning to understand them and their feelings.

spending so much time with your team allowed you to communicate with them in a way you hadn't before; you could understand them perfectly.

your slight precognition was also a result of that!

having sensed a big mystery on the cusp of unfolding, you found your way to the Brave Asagi with the help of your pokemon, and met the Rising Volt Tacklers.

Since that day, you were one of them. The call from a woman named Lucca and her request for the RVT to protect her daughter came not long after.

Much like Dot, you mainly stay in your room, only coming out to train your pokemon or help in a pinch.

Because of that, when she realizes you're out on the wing deck with your pokemon, she wants to take the chance to observe! She hasn't interacted with you much.

It doesn't take you too long to notice her though, and Liko worries she's been intrusive.

Instead, you greet her by saying "...Your Sprigatito says it loves you very much. You're a lucky trainer, to have such a pokemon as your partner."

Huh? HUH????

Liko isn't sure she heard you right. Did you just say Sprigatito spoke?

You explain to her your situation, and she's amazed!

"Wow... to understand your pokemon like that... I can't imagine. It must be really helpful."

Knowing her interest in understanding a pokemon's feelings, you offer your help when she needs it, which she hesitantly accepts!

You actually get along pretty well, seeing as both of you are more introverted.

Often quietly both doing your own thing in the other's presence.

Overall, Liko's just happy she got to know you a little better!

[infinitebrians]

Favorite Games of 2023 Part Final: Pokemon Crystal Clear Clown Edition

Pokemon Crystal Clear is a romhack for the Gameboy Color game that mainly advertises itself as Pokemon Crystal modified so now it is entirely playable as a free roaming open world. Clown Edition is just what I called the rom of the game after creating and injecting a pokemon trainer sprite sheet into the game so I can play as my own character, Clown. I played the whole game on my New 3ds XL, it took a quite a bit of effort to get this exact version of the game working on my 3ds. It was incredibly worth it, this is not just my favorite game, but favorite 'game experience', and even easily my new pick for all time favorite pokemon game in the series.

The game itself was fun and a refreshing new way to experience a pokemon game but the overall experience of getting the game working on a hacked 3ds and playing with my own created sprites was in itself a very fun bit of hobby work. It has revived my love for playing older games on real hardware, something that I have found myself continuing to do this year. Also, seeing my own art in the game and said art feel cohesive with the world ruled and I want to experience that more in some other way. This game made me more into pokemon than I have felt with official releases in a pretty long while, and I even liked my time playing Scarlet. I loved playing on a handheld, I loved seeing the really well made art from gen 2, and I loved being able to put a bit of myself into the game as well.

Apologies for how rambley this gets, I really liked the game but still somehow found it hard to really organize my thoughts on why exactly.

I wanted to revisit this hack after briefly trying it in 2018 because of this excellent Hazel video (https://youtu.be/96YimpRHQHs). The video details various life stories while talking about favorite locations in the games getting me to think about my own favorite spots in the games and where I was personally at the time. The video also got me to start realizing that Porygon might be one of my favorite pokemon in the series and caused me to make drawings of them that I'm still quite fond of. This then made me recall Crystal Clear which contains a feature of surprisingly deep character customization including a wide selection of possible starter picks one of which being Porygon. So, compelled by the allure of having a fun adventure with a cyber duck, I picked up my hacked 3ds and started the game again.

Crystal Clear is a game that allowed for me to be even more creative about how to approach building my team and creating my own adventure out of playing pokemon. It's not for everyone, it wasn't even for me the first time I tried this game back in 2018. Crystal Clear definitely lends itself much more to the idea of creating your own fun than typical linear pokemon games where if you're not interested in that more free form exploration, the game would feel aimless. I even felt this when starting this playthrough, but the goal of pokedex completion was what encouraged to explore and discover Crystal Clear's world. The game was always surprising me in both the number of quality of life features it provided as well as fun new areas to explore or to better make the world more connected. Over time, the game felt more at home to me from getting more familiar with locations and developing a new sense of fondness for several towns in Johto I frequented. The change from a linear progression to that open ended one gave me a better sense of the world and towns had a bit more life to them as places felt more inviting to hang around in.

I love this game's implementation of the pokedex. It has been designed so it will display just about every piece of information about a pokemon, where to find them, when they evolve, what moves they learn, and so on. While the presentation is definitely clunky due to having to have all of that information on a GBC screen, I found this such an invaluable tool to have in game that for the first time in the entire pokemon series I was heavily making use of the in game pokedex for its intended purpose. Being able to look up relevant information for pokemon all entirely in game without having to have a phone/computer nearby with bulbapedia open all the time is just greatly appreciated. While the desire to keep some mystery around pokemon and how they evolve or what moves they'll learn can be part of the fun with the series, I think I just prefer being able to tell quickly if this is a stone evolution pokemon or not.

This was the first time I ever completed a pokedex in any pokemon game, something I've always wanted to do but never fully committed to the whole process. This is because of my own laziness toward how challenging that always was in proper releases due to so many pokemon being obscured behind multiple games and others being locked behind real world timed events. That or the fact that later games in the series just outright make the the act of getting a truly complete pokedex feel almost impossible. Instead, I finally accomplished a completed pokedex in a romhack that was made to make that sort of challenge feel reasonable with modified drop pools and changed events so everything within that one game is catchable. While now possible, I still found myself challenged with a game world spanning adventure of looking behind every rock, tree, and patch of grass to find every funny little guy I could. One particular memory was me spending maybe a week insisting on finding a dragonite in an encounter to catch which has a 1% chance of happening rather than spending the time leveling and evolving one instead. A very, very long process of hitting a tree over and over but made hilarious when later repeating the process for a tyranitar, another 1% chance encounter rate, was done in minutes. It was really fun having a plan ahead with how I was going to get every pokemon, constantly using expshare and other things to level guys to get them to evolve while try catching other guys. The ultimate reward of that certificate is still a pretty hilariously small, though I still kind of want to figure out a way to print mine out.

What made this game so special to me was simply just adding Clown to it. A simple change that was a surprisingly complicated process of getting a crash course on how GBC color palettes and size limitations worked and getting my hacked 3ds up to date on its software. Creating the various Clown sprite drawings was fun, I always liked working in those sorts of strict limitations. Then finally getting the injection to work and seeing my own art in game on real hardware felt surreal, something in this handheld game console I've had forever, on a game I loved for years has something I made in it. Even the process of getting all of this working, as tedious as it was moving game saves and getting color values just right, made this whole experience more special to me.

Something I figured while playing this as well as also from now having also played Dragon Warrior 1+2 and also currently Final Fantasy 5, I really love playing things on a handheld. Playing games on a handheld device has been so much more compelling of a thing to me than ever than playing on a proper TV/computer. The aspect of being able to just let the console sit on my desk and simply open and close it when interested made the feeling of investing myself into a game so much easier to approach. I want to just keep playing more old games on a handheld now, I'm already planning on other games to play and how I should definitely hack my Vita. My friends keep tempting me with one of those emulator handhelds and I don't even need one but they look really cool though.

I have so much respect for people who make fan works, hacks, and other unofficial projects it has been just amazing to see passion projects happen all the time in the gaming community. Playing this romhack that's been a years long, ongoing project in two different eras (2018 and then again in 2023) of it's existence has only further cemented my admiration. People wanting to be creative and open about their love for this form of art is such a wonderful thing to behold. These moments of creative passion being shared to everyone feels so important, reminding that the projects with the biggest budgets and names are not the end all be all of the medium, despite their desperation to be so. Thank you so much for wanting to share such lovely things with the world.

[revive-the-fandom]

Seems like my choice of worst dragon is out! (It was the Cavern Crasher. Cool name, horrible sleazy beast, like what even in the). What's yours?

i didn't include either fury in the previous bracket bc i knew toothless would body every other species and honestly ive seen that happen before so i dont care to see it again

however, i have included both in this bracket bc i would love to see the light fury be crowned as worst. i dont know if that will actually happen bc i think as a fandom we're quite good at picking apart the little things... i still want to see the light fury lose

i hate its beluga whale face and tiny inbred ankles and glitter scales and every "female" trait they could force on that god forsaken thing. for a movie that went all out of realistic environments and sand particles and hyper detailed scale colouring they really just went "whats gonna sell as a plushie best?" and called it good enough

im going at this with a focus on design but as someone with an art degree (that im not ever even gonna use now??? let me grieve) thats whats standing out to me. and not everyone is gonna judge based on appearances bc i purposefully left that door open so we could judge these dragons overall instead of specific traits.

but while we're on the topic

hard agree on the cavern crasher. like admittedly its not a bad design, its just gross af and i avoid looking at the screen when it turns up bc it does actually turn my stomach a bit. "mucus" is bad enough without splashing it on everything & adding squirting sounds..

i hate the knock off pokemon types too, so shadow wings, triple strykes, sandbusters, shellfire also kinda fits that, submaripper, buffalord is a bit nebulous but also fits. im probably forgetting a few. grim gnashers are weirdo looking things but it felt more like the designers tried on those things.

mostly i hate the things that dont look like they have the potential to be real. like i can see any other dragon getting adapted to an irl performance pretty well but how in tf would you deal with a shadow wing? thats straight up a pokemon (derogatory).

[hutaoscoffinn]

hello 1) i love your rika stuff you write her SO well i have read them all several times 2) do you have any fluffy rika x fem!reader cuddling headcanons? i cannot figure if she's the big spoon or if she deceptively appears like the big spoon but actually is the little spoon lol

also i may come back so here's an emoji to note me by hehe 🍑

thank u for sharing ur writing with us sending u lots of love 💕

AWW this is so sweet thank you so much and ahh yes Rika cuddling headcanons I have so many of those.

Warnings: none, this is wholesome cuddle content, very soft, tooth rottenly sweet, sweeter than an entire bakery, some suggestive themes such as aftercare and post-sex cuddles

Character: Rika from Pokemon

Requests: OPEN

★ Rika is incredibly and I mean incredibly cuddly with you

★ as soon as she gets home from work the first thing she wants to do is fall right into your arms and be pampered

★ in this moments when she’s tired from running around the league all day she wants to be the little spoon or to just lay on your chest

★ she loves when you start playing with her hair in these moments, taking out her ponytail and carding your fingers through the strands

★ use your nails a bit and massage and lightly scratch at her scalp and she might just start purring like a cat, she loves your touch that much

★ post-work Rika is simply a Rika that wants to be pampered with love

★ however, typically Rika will actually be the big spoon

★ every other time you two cuddle Rika will the one curled around you, holding you close and pressing kisses against your shoulder and neck

★ this especially happens at night where she prefers to be the one spooning you or to have your head on her chest so that she can pamper you

★ Rika is a very giving lover and she loves to shower you with all of her attention and affection when she gets a moment

★ your nighttime routine consists of Rika giving you kisses all over as you prepare for bed and then guiding you into her waiting arms, holding you close to her as she smothers you with affection

★ she always rubs your back or plays with your hair or rubs circles into your hips with her fingers

★ she just loves lulling you to sleep with her touch before falling asleep herself

★ this loving and caring cuddly side of Rika also comes out in your post-sex cuddles

★ Rika knows how rough and intense she can be during your sessions so she is always incredibly attentive and loving with the aftercare she gives you

★ of course, this includes her cuddling

★ she is always making sure you are comfortable and warm in her arms, having a fluffy blanket over your body as she holds you tight

★ Rika will press several kisses along your cheeks, nose, and forehead as she cuddles you, her eyes searching you for any sign of discomfort so that she can sooth that discomfort immediately

★ overall cuddles with Rika are incredibly sweet and loving and just meant for pampering each other and showing your affections

Reblogs are always appreciated <3

[oldsweetchildomeow]

Reviewing GG character design part #1 GG 1998 Axl

I chose him first because he's the best char obviously.

Hear me out. Character design is not meant to be appealing to all viewers, they are meant to tell you about the character. If it end up being appealing to you, it's for a personal reason. FGs will, obviously, try to be as appealing as possible with their character menu for you to choose the most appetizing because they need money from your horniness and devotion. But despite all that capitalism mindset, the idea is always to explore the origin, personality, preferences and such, from the respective character.

I will try to separate it into some sections that are relevant, such as: 1. What does it tell about their personality (in Axl's case, British) 2. Is it visually appealing to some extend? (a bit more personal from an artistic pov) 3. Is it actually PRACTICAL realistically speaking? (a bit more logical from a "would anyone actually use this to fight?) and etc.

I was actually considering putting every GG game in this post, but it would take way too long and be boring to read, I think.

GG 1998

This design is quite interesting and pleasant. I see that many of us, Axlettes (this sound literally like a pokemon name, but I will stick to that for serious reasons) seem to like this one.

What does it tell you about Axl?

He's British.

just kidding. Actually... not entirely. He has that damned flag on his boots' tip, and it's a detail that really does tell you where he is from, specially in a game where you won't hear him s'peakin like di's mate. I'm not including his stage bg of course, but exclusively what you can tell by simply looking at him. He wears some grunge/punk-like bracelets, which makes him look like... well, a punk. The bandana he wears, his choice of weapon, his torn sleeves, and even the fact that his eyebrows aren't visible, gives you the impression of someone dangerous, someone you would easily see on a gang. I wouldn't be surprised if anyone who just started this game, and had just seen him, would fear him somehow. To some extend, he gives me the same energy as Billy Kane from the Fatal Fury/KOF series (they are both British and zoners and do the cat emoji smirk).

Is it visually appealing overall?

Short answer: Yes, it is. He wears a short jacket that has the same color as his shorts. That's very, very pleasant to watch, due to the harmony it presents. It gets even better when both pieces are torn at the ends. And to continue this harmonic idea, his boots are the same color as his gloves, and the details on his boots are red like his bandana. It's a never ending cycle of good usage of colors. The only considerably random color choice is that the bracelets have blueish spikes on in-game sprites, but it matches both the blue are of the flag on his boot, and the jeans colored clothing he wears. Although...

Here you can see that on the art they are white, like they were supposed to. It's normal to change when in-game due to pixel reasons, but either way. Now, with that picture from just above in mind, I wanted to say that it's very nice detail from his belt having a skull (he's sooo fire dude wow), which compliments the grunge concept of his one-arm spiky bracelet. His sickle matches the spikes very nicely too, but the best part of all that is the gap between his short jacket and his shorts. They just compliment in a very satisfactory parameter, not making it entirely blueish, but just enough for it to match nicely (it's kind of hard to explain it, but when I keep repeating this over and over on the next reviews it will make more sense).

But what I'm trying to say is this.

Just see how nicely the colors were placed on his design. It just follows a very perfect cycle. I KNOW my friends tend to think i'm out of my fucking mind because of how perfectionist I'm about those little things but it's so amazing really.

Is it actually PRACTICAL to fight with that figurine?

Mostly, yes. I do think so. Despite the fact that high boots really do bother you when you do complex movements with them, I wear them a lot and even when walking sometimes it bothers me, I can't even imagine fighting. But it's just a minor detail, they aren't even high enough to actually be some nuisance. His short clothes make it easier to move, despite being jeans. But it's a nice choice, you can actually fight with that in general and still look cool.

THIS is not practical at all. At some point everyone will see your boobs and it's not nice. But if he wants to be a whore...

Overall

Masterpiece, beautiful and functional. It's something someone like him would wear really, specially from his epoch and all. And I want to kiss Ishiwatari's mouth

[waywardstation]

With PLA being announced for Masters people want Warden Ingo to show up.

Honestly I want that too but I was just thinking. Warden Ingo being able to meet the Pasio Subway Twins is definitely going to be very interesting.

After being a bit confused at first I think they would openly accept him as an unofficial "triplet" giving him love and kindness but I feel like that meeting these two would cause all kinds of memories to resurface and the wish and need to get to his Emmet.

He would remember what he was missing back in Hisui and his determination to get back where he came from is only getting stronger. (Someone had pointed out his Alpha battle quotes.) He’s already determined but this would make it even more determined.

I also think he would be a little sad meeting the Pasio twins. Knowing that his Emmet is all alone. (It wouldn’t be tackled like this since Masters is a very positive game but still) he will get a lot of comfort from both of Ingo and Emmet then. Just like that one comic.

But theoretically Warden Ingo would have a good chance to get home from Pasio thanks to Hoopa.

I am conflicted about DeNa possibly touching this narrative about Warden Ingo, if they choose to include him.

I play pokemon masters entirely for the the sync pairs and getting to collect my favorites; I’m not tied up in story, because honestly the stories don’t ever really have much weight to them and nothing significant ever comes from them (and why would it? Pokemas is not built for restructuring itself around arcs and narrative changes. It’s overall static, so nothing significant comes from its stories).

My discord summed it up much better than I could, but this is why I’m kind of concerned to see if DeNa decides to do anything narratively. There would just be nothing of substance/it may be sort of glossed over, or unresolved.

But as you said, one thing that DeNa does do is make sure none of its narratives end on a depressing note. They either end positively, or imply positivity after the story. So that does bring me some relief.

I just know if Warden Ingo is introduced as a unit, he is narratively stuck there, unable to leave Pasio. We could either get him as a unit and keep him on the island, or he’s introduced in the story events and we get him back to his timeline, but we don’t get him as a unit because of this. (Or a mix of both honestly, DeNa could do whatever they want, but it feels broken to do that)

ALTHOUGH! Your concept of warden Ingo being out of place yet still accepted by Emmet is indeed bittersweet. But perhaps it could be remedied if in-game they have a narrative where Pasio’s Ingo goes missing, implying this is the same Ingo, and he’s been brought back right where he’s supposed to be. Though, then that might cause continuity issues with subway boss unit Ingo…

Unsure, I’m just getting very ahead of myself and thinking about every possibility because I am worried how it will be handed if Warden Ingo does actually show up ^^;

[relicsongmel]

Tell me the Pokémon music thoughts??? :000

TWO whole Pokemon music asks WOOHOO!!!!! These past few days I’ve been on a kick of listening to Scarlet and Violet’s OST and downloading my faves (since I wanted to wait until the DLC had been released and then play through it fully before doing so) and it might be one of my favorite soundtracks to date. That being said here are the tracks I’m currently the most feral about:

Battle! (Team Star Boss)

The loop for this one is almost SIX MINUTES LONG which is a smart choice for how long and difficult some of these fights tend to be—and it’s six minutes of pure unadulterated musical goodness. Obviously the killer synths and guitars are a highlight here, but what really makes this theme (and the rest of the Team Star themes) special is how the harsh instrumentation is contrasted with sections containing emotional melodies and harmonies that give a sense of determination and hope—which fits in with Team Star’s storyline as former victims of bullying and doing their best to persevere in spite of that. All their themes are also composed by one of their bosses in-universe which is a fun lore detail (shoutout to my boy Giacomo I love him <3)

South Province

This one basically functions as the theme of the Paldea Region—this leitmotif (composed by our beloved Toby Fox) appears a LOT in various places within the soundtrack, particularly in cutscenes. It’s a great theme for exploring out and about in the game’s open world, and the sunny A major is a great key choice which is always a win in my book. I’m also a big fan of the piano version that plays while you’re walking in the overworld (as opposed to using your mount Koraidon/Miraidon) as well as the beautiful arrangement used at the end of the main story (if I had a nickel for every time a piano theme at the end of a Pokemon game made me cry I’d have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot but it’s weird that it happened twice).

Showdown! (Champion Kieran)

I haven’t had a lot of time to get myself acquainted with much of the DLC soundtrack, but I wanted to include at least one in this list because there’s a lot of quality stuff worth shouting out. This is the last of Kieran’s three battle themes (technically there’s four but the final one isn’t a full battle and is mostly comprised of Terapagos’ motif as opposed to his own so I’m omitting it here) and there’s an interesting transformation that happens across each of them—it starts out mostly with traditional instrumentation and only mild chromaticism (which almost all battle themes have at least a little of) but transforms into something harsher by adding electric guitars/synths and more dissonant, darker harmonies (this one makes heavy use of Phrygian and Locrian elements—Phrygian is a mode that’s very similar to the minor scale but uses a flat 2nd scale degree, so for a piece in E minor like this one that would mean using an F natural as opposed to an F#. Locrian is the same as Phrygian but with a flat 5 added as well, meaning B♭ as opposed to B natural. These flat notes serve to darken the overall sound), which corresponds to Kieran’s arc of becoming bitter and resentful as he suffers repeated losses at the hands of the player. I’m also tickled by the fact that his battle themes are all in E minor which is the softest and gentlest minor to my ears—you can hide under those edgy guitars all you want Kieran but we all know you’re still baby :3

Area Zero

And we’ve saved the best for last because this is hands down my FAVORITE theme from this game; it’s not even a contest. I have such a vivid memory of playing through Scarlet for the first time a year ago and being incredibly intrigued about what was hiding in the massive crater at the region’s center (I tried flying/leaping in with Koraidon and lurking outside the Zero Gate yelling “LET ME INNNN” more times than I can count lmao)—and I was not at all disappointed when I got there because this is straight up one of the prettiest areas in the whole game. However. HOWEVER. NOTHING could have possibly prepared me for the breathtakingly beautiful music that accompanies this place—I remember stopping in my tracks as soon as I heard that low brass kick in, and then the chanting. Oh my lord the CHANTING. Honestly I was sold right then and there but WE’RE STILL NOT DONE MAKING THE MUSIC OF THE GODS BECAUSE SWEET MOTHER MARY THAT SYNTH????? TOOK ME THE FUCK OUT—I lose my everliving shit at anything even resembling an erhu in music because its voice-like timbre is so…raw and emotional in a way I really don’t know how to describe; all I know is it rocks me to my core to the point that I have to watch my breathing when I listen to a piece that has one lest I start hyperventilating (because it’s powerful enough to literally induce a physiological response out of me). Needless to say I was frozen in place for at LEAST ten minutes just to take it all in; that initial experience was utterly magical and I wish more than anything I could go back in time to live that feeling again.

But that very long preface aside, there are a couple other things about this piece worth noting—the first being that E♭ minor is an IMMACULATE key choice in my opinion. In my synesthesia it primarily represents what I call “the crushing black weight of despair,” but it also functions very nicely in any intense, high-stakes situation, which fits beautifully with the circumstances surrounding Area Zero in-game. It’s a walled garden filled with invasive wildlife from the distant past/future that poses an imminent threat to Paldea’s ecosystem should they find a means of escaping to the outside; in fact, we learn from the professor that some species have already managed to do so. I also quite like how the instrumentation is vastly different from every other piece of music you’ll hear in Paldea’s overworld, which has primarily been orchestral arrangements up to this point—but here, it’s a blend of primal and futuristic sounds that perfectly captures the collision of the present and the past/future. So yeah if you couldn’t tell I am so so so so unhinged about everything this theme represents and I fully expect to be just as mentally unwell about it YEARS down the line (because believe me, I’ve certainly got the track record for it).

Scarlet and Violet’s music is just so so good—and again, obligatory “this is just the tip of the iceberg that is everything I love about this soundtrack” but I hope you enjoyed my insights into what makes this music so special!

[ninjakk]

I don’t know your opinion on bottom lwj (maybe you like it or have no problem with it) I personally hate it with a burning passion, not even from fetishized point of view. But because it literally goes against how the character is in canon. Regardless, I usually just block that tag in ao3, but now i come back to tumblr after not logging in like almost a year and one of the first things i see is a freaking fan art of JC supposedly doing LWJ (is not shown explicitly) and WWX looking and being supportive and i just wanted to throw up. Literally felt like someone hit me with a pokemon psychic attack, i of course blocked the account and the bottom lwj tag here (something I didn’t even think i had to do) but i still can’t erase that image out of my brain so i had to rant to someone. Since you seem like someone really nice and you’re always amazing when answering asks here i am. If this ask makes you uncomfortable please feel completely free to delete it and forget it.

Hello Anon!

Aww, well thank you 😙 that's very sweet of you to say.

So firstly, before I tell you my opinion - I actually know the image you are referring to and I did the exact same thing when the post assaulted my eyes. I mean, everyone has their ships but come on! WX and JC?! No thanks.

As for your question, I have no majorly strong opinion on bottomji. I have read a few fanfics that have worked out alright. Mostly YLLZ era WWX meets extremely horny and willing 'self-sacrificing' virgin LWJ 'taking one for the team' - which were quite funny. But overall I do find it a little strange, because by making LWJ 'bottomji' people tend to make WX somewhat out of character one way or the other.

The reason I do not have a particularly strong opinion on LWJ being the bottom, is because it's kind of implied in the extras that they may well have done such things during their very active and passionate sex life already.

Seeing that he’d nearly hit his limit, Wei Wuxian laughed heartily and kissed his lips. “Er-gege, what haven’t we done? Why are you still so shy?”

7S translations - From Dawn Till Dusk extra

To me, the above certainly implies they've done a lot more than we have witnessed and switching would certainly come into that.

Also, I actually think LWJ would do anything for WWX, if he should ask. Including switching things up every now and then if his dear husband wished.

Overall, I don't think LWJ switching positions on occasion is necessarily out of character, if done properly and the fanfic authors stay true to how the characters actually are and would react during such acts. For example, LWJ still being the more dominant one out of the pair. Just because he's bottoming doesn't mean he's suddenly going to be submissive.

That being said, the image you and I saw is of course just completely out of character! JC is homophobic for a start! It just wouldn't happen. Ever. Even if JC was interested in some strange alternative universe. WX just wouldn't! I'm also convinced that WX would not want to, nor be willing to engage in sex with anyone else, even a threesome or some voyeuristic partner swap - or whatever the hell that image was?!

Wangxian are too wrapped up in each other, too completely obsessed with each other for anything else. Not to mention LWJ would drink so much vinegar he would pickle! And I don't think WWX would fare much better, LWJ is his and I don't think he'd be willing to share either!

I can understand why you might find it a bit odd seeing the roles switched around, but I do think it's something that could possibly be an occasional occurrence in canon because of the lines I mentioned above. Though I do love their dynamic in the novel and that is definitely what I prefer. Overall, we all have different preferences and opinions I guess ☺️

Finally, my dear anon...please go and read your favourite fanfic or browse through some gorgeous Wangxian art to cleanse yourself of the image which assaulted your senses. It's what I did and I feel much better now lol!

Hope you have a lovely day 🥰

[mamamittens]

Fic Check Up

I just spent several hours doing a little check up of where I am with all 10 of my ongoing fics currently. If you know of another fic that's unfinished, please tell me. I have legitimately forgotten it at this point since I literally filtered my own fics on AO3 to see what was still in progress.

No, plot bunnies I've rambled about don't count. This list would have taken days if that was the case.

I started with a list, what universe it was, and then three basic questions. Really assessing how I feel about these fics in terms of where they are, where I want them to be, and if I even want them to be at this point.

If you like any of these fics, especially if it appears I don't, do not take it personally. In fact, you can just tell me what you love about the fic in question. Oftentimes, I find myself inspired to write more when I feel as though there is something new worth loving about a fic. Or just that someone also vibes with my freak lol, it's a weird, messy thing. Inspiration. Wish I was dedicated to that grind enough to not need this list, but unfortunately these are all self-indulgent and subject to my capricious moods.

In order of most recently updated to least.

The Woods are Lovely, Dark and Deep

Universe?

Pokémon Sword/Shield

How far along is it?

Still in the first part, the tournament. Currently plan to have it run until the end of Sword/Shield content where Feo is sent to Paldea where the next fic will be. About maybe four arcs total?

Can you expect an update in the future?

Well, it rather depends because of how I’m writing Pokemon battles, honestly. With a lot more detail and planning, a technically short scene (a single pokemon battle) may span multiple chapters as I have to plot out every single move and consequence. I have a vague idea of how I want the rest of this fight to go at least. Not sure how many of the battles I’ll cover so thoroughly, so if you enjoy the battles as I’m writing them, do let me know so I can weigh the effort it takes to plot them out when they’re not strictly plot-necessary and overall enjoyment.

Are you still in love with this story?

I think I’m more in love with the sequel I thought I could cheat my way into, but I am enjoying the build up. Once I manage to finish and start the real story I wanted to write, it’s going to be great.

Lay Down New Tracks

Universe?

Pokémon Black/White (past in Pokémon Red/Green/Blue/Yellow)

How far along is it?

Still in the start where Fin is establishing her attempt at getting back into battling. Currently plan on three arcs? Depends on if I include Ingo’s foray into Arceus Legends. Four then. One arc will run in the background as the backstory for Fin and their tragic past in increments.

Can you expect an update in the future?

I’ve actually already started the next chapter, which will cover lightly some legal issues with going to a public venue for someone who’s already kinda famous in their own right. Not sure about directly after that. I’ve only lightly plotted this one out.

Are you still in love with this story?

Yeah, though perhaps not madly, I enjoy writing characters who have fallen on hard times finding their way to happiness. The silly moments I have planned and the idea that even after severe loss we can find love and fulfillment is alluring.

A Lone Melody

Universe?

One Piece

How far along is it?

About the end of the first arc/beginning of the second arc. I plan on about three in total? Arlong regaining custody will be the second arc officially leading through her life with him until the fall of Arlong Park.

Can you expect an update in the future?

Well, I have a pretty decent plot outline for this fic but my motivation for it is kinda iffy at best to be honest. I didn’t spend nearly as long falling in love with the story I wanted to tell as I did my other fics, though that clearly isn’t a shining indication of success in churning out chapters. And that’s assuming I stick with what I have planned. It’s a mixed bag, basically.

Are you still in love with this story?

I don’t think I ever got to fall in love with it to begin with. It barely feels like mine, to be honest, though I’ve definitely tried. Honestly, it feel like the original expectation of this story was the kind of story I could never really tell. I think I love the idea of a story about struggling with a mixed heritage and finding your own way between them. Having to let go of people who love you but can’t love you enough to let go of their own prejudice.

And what it feels like the many, many, many asks wanted was like, fifteen chapters of Goofy, Overly Attached Platonic Yandere Dad Arlong and Co get’s their teeth kicked in by cute crowdfunded OC. Which is fine, I could have done that through asks in bits and pieces, but a full blown fic like that? Not so much. Which kinda bums me out cause I only write and post for one of two reasons (both if I’m lucky). 1). I really love the story. And 2). Other people really love the story. And by all accounts, it doesn’t seem like anyone likes the story that much, they’re at best waiting for the Goofy, Overly Attached Platonic Yandere Dad Arlong ect. Ect. Bits. It’s odd. And kinda depressing.

How Our Seeds Grow

Universe?

One Piece

How far along is it?

Still the first part where the reader is officially with the Whitebeard crew. If I do a direct 1-1 on chapters with the first version “Oh, Sweet Child of Mine”, I’m 3/15 chapters in, AU ends not included since many of them are smuts.

Can you expect an update in the future?

Realistically, I already know what this next chapter will be but my motivation hasn’t been great for it. Or any of my current projects really. So… no idea.

Are you still in love with this story?

This story is a little odd cause it’s a rewrite-ish of another fic. I like it, but I’m not sure if I love it necessarily? In theory, this fic should be a walk in the park since every chapter is technically already written. And yet, I’m not even a third of the way through after months. I guess I just didn’t ride my own hype train hard enough while it lasted? Hard to say.

A Friend of Charlotte

Universe?

Security Breach

How far along is it?

Still in the establishing area, basically. Though I’m reaching the end of it. With the meet and greet section finishing after the first week of school. I believe I planned out three parts. The fall area, the winter break segment with a sleepover in the Daycare where things get really fucky, and then the summer where Gregory makes his grand appearance.

Can you expect an update in the future?

This is one I lowkey got a little stuck on but I might just do a little time jump past what I’m struggling to bridge on and just do small flashbacks for what’s in between. If so, I will have quite the funny cold opening for the next chapter.

Are you still in love with this story?

I like the backstory stuff I have planned that hasn’t shown up yet. I still love the fic in my head. Not really with a burning passion or anything, but this is probably one I’d genuinely cry about if I ended up deciding to drop it. I spent so long planning literally everything. It’s dark, its spooky, it’s got found family, and people who genuinely want to do their best. I love it to pieces, I just wish I didn’t choke so much when writing my fics.

Python Scramble

Universe?

Security Breach

How far along is it?

I think I’m at the end of the first part? I’ve set up a lot of stuff and kinda lost steam and how to bridge before the events of the game. But either it’s 1/3rd done or ½ done. Unclear.

Can you expect an update in the future?

Ah, yet another one I got through all the ‘honeymoon phase’ chapters out in rapid order only to stall before anything of serious plot substance. I’ll have to reread it all and consider how to just get over this hill. Hopefully, once I do that the rest will fall in line faster than what it has so far… which isn’t very fast at all.

Are you still in love with this story?

Same as the last one, really, which makes sense since I wrote and planned them around the same time. It’s got a lot of stuff I really love, though I’d be a little less upset to have to call it dead officially. Does seem a shame it’s sat so close to the ending for so long mostly because it feels like it should be longer but I genuinely don’t have much more to write for it before the climax.

Dreamcatcher

Universe?

Hollowknight

How far along is it?

I’d say maybe 1/4th? I wanted the halfway point to be her realizing who she’s actually looking for with the last part being basically the dream battles and discovering why she was there in the first place before battling the Radiance.

Can you expect an update in the future?

Oh boy, as one of my earlier fics, this one also suffers from first act hesitation. Where I’ve set up a lot of stuff but now am unsure how to carry through. A time skip, while a little infuriating given how much I originally envisioned a smooth transition, may be needed. Will need to seriously reassess and possibly after lessening my self-imposed load.

Are you still in love with this story?

Ah, needlessly dark backstories and hilarious present day shenanigans. I still love this story and I’m still genuinely excited about the dark twist that’s just waiting to be revealed. But I’m just unsure how to get there now. There’s a lot of weird shit between those two points I’d need to work out unfortunately.

But Seriously, What if?

Universe?

Undertale???

How far along is it?

Odd question since It’s a bunch of prompts. But I have 7 left undone so… I also don’t plan on taking anymore.

Can you expect an update in the future?

Yikes, I would not hold my breath. I keep hoping for the motivation to knock them all out but I also honestly forgot about this one until making this list. Big oof to me.

Are you still in love with this story?

I can barely remember this fic(?) on a good day, but it does feel like a promise to write these last prompts. I don’t like breaking promises. It would be pretty upsetting to officially throw in the towel.

Seeing Fire and Lionhearts in the Night

Universe?

Undertale

How far along is it?

I just checked it and it seems to be at the end of the first part. The second is the courting and the third will be the threat/climax.

Can you expect an update in the future?

Hey, have you ever read your own work and laughed with embarrassment? Yeah, that’s me. I forgot I seriously worked light BDSM themes into a courting system lmao, so that was a throat punch for sure. I’m not getting rid of it, but I will need to figure out how to actually write the romance I’ve set up and that’s already shot one fic dead. Did really like the background stuff I was doing though.

Are you still in love with this story?

Not exactly? Didn’t do nearly enough work with Iris and Grillby to sell the romance. I just liked the weird bartender dude and wanted to do something besides a Sans romance lol. Do like the background work I was going though. The idea is intriguing to me.

Monster I have Become

Universe?

Undertale

How far along is it?

Well, story wise I appeared to have more or less set up the final plot. I just didn’t know how to bridge it to the final set piece and, honestly, this is a problem I have often lol.

Can you expect an update in the future?

I forgot how fucking dark this one was, I won’t even lie to you guys. Like, seriously fucking dark. Jesus. Is it really my work if there’s not unexpectedly dark and horrific scenes out of nowhere? Seriously love the world building I was doing. Just really faltered on how to bridge the ‘fish out of water’ storyline and ‘horrific creation of man’ thing I had going on. Wasn’t expecting to reread the last few chapters and still love it so much though.

Are you still in love with this story?

I literally just re-read the last two chapters and have fallen in love with it all over again despite having forgotten what I’d written. God, my early fanfic era was so dark. I remember being so jazzed about all the work I was putting into the world building and setting things up. Having so much fun I choked near the ‘end’ cause I didn’t know how to make it all worth it in the end.

It has to end eventually, though. And I’ll probably be crying when it’s finished because of how much love I put into this fic going into it. It’s so weird and self-indulgent without lowkey being me working through my sexuality lmao, though it is definitely the start of me reckoning with my body issues. Ah, the desire to have a complete foreign body so I can actually justify not liking anything about myself physically while gaining cool ass traits impossible in my current self. Yeah, my early works were weird. But I can’t deny how passionate about the stories I was. And kinda still am, honestly.

[neoncityrain]

Stares at u with my big blank eyes which may not be understanding but are quite willing to listen

i could kiss yall

ok TECHNICALLY its not modding. this is rom editing. but like whatever its basically the same ok.

ive been using skytemple to make a custom pokemon mystery dungeon explorers of sky rom for myself for a while! its the same rom im using for my sky nuzlocke comic (and trust me, 90% of it is just making life harder for myself). the screenshot i used in the first page is actually an image from the rom!! theres also a whole discord channel for my sprite credits list but we arent worrying about that yet lol

ive also been editing the overall list of pokemon, including abilities, allowing them to actually appear in dungeons, and updating the moves list. and fairy type exists, along with a couple fairy moves (just fairy wind, draining kiss, and dazzling gleam for now iirc). oh, and added the ice stone to the list of evolution items.

i also listed out every encounter (with a few edits) in preparation to edit them! im currently taking some suggestions on my discord server but its not really open to public yet cause idk if im ready to moderate with strangers OTL the pmd repository sadly lacks the pokemon i want for a final boss as of writing this, bUT a man can pretend. and imagine. and yearn

[askkrenko]

Krenko’s Guide to Pokemon: Spinarak Line

Don’t count the legs, just trust that it’s a spider

DESIGN:

Spinarak is an amalgam spider with various bits from different real-world spiders, like coloring, face designs, and general build, coming together in a creature that can be read as a spider despite being a heavily unique design. It’s cute, but just a bit creepy, looks both friendly and dangerous, and gives this strange feeling that I both want to hug it and don’t want it anywhere near me.  It manages to be the generic spider enemy for the Pokemon games while not being the same generic spider enemy that shows up in every other game.

Ariados just looks cool and badass, still functioning as an amalgam spider that comes up very distinct from any other spider design. Despite the strong recolor, it’s thematically similar enough to Spinarak that you can tell it’s the evolved form, with a larger horn, longer legs, and less rounded features in general.  The extra appendages sticking out of its back add a great visual, and its low stance makes it look ready to charge or leap. Ariados has to be the result of designers just taking spider traits and throwing them together without actually attempting to make a specific spider, and it came together great.

Art by TsaoShin

ECOLOGY:

Spinarak live throughout the forests of Johto and Kanto, spawning and swarming during autumn, though only a tiny percentage of them will survive through spring. They primarily feed off the Caterpie that are so common in those regions as well as smaller insects. Spinarak catch prey by spinning webs and by ambush rather than being particularly good at self defense. They’re easily caught by Spearow, Pidgey, and other predatory birds.

Those that survive to evolve into Ariados leave Johto and Kanto in the spring in one of the great mysteries of the Pokemon world. Fully-grown Ariados travel across the ocean to Alola, despite the fact that they can neither fly nor swim. Some theorize they craft gliders out of their webs, though this behavior has only ever been recorded in the smallest spiders. Others suggest they travel through shadows, through an underground tunnel, or along the world wide web. As reasonable and ridiculous as any given theory might be, none have actually observed direct evidence of the Ariados migration, only the end result.

Art by Dawn Breaker

TYPING:

Bug/Poison has some decent resistances, including a few doubles, though it does have to worry about being weak to the commonly-used Rock type. Defensively, it’s pretty fine. Offensively, though, these are two of the worst types. Combined, they only hit four types Super Effectively  and are resisted by far too many, with Poison, Ghost, and Steel resisting attacks from both types.

STATS:

At 400 total, Ariados is basically just leaning on a 90 Attack, which is good, but not enough to carry a Pokemon. 40 speed is painful, and its three defensive stats are all 70 which isn’t nothing, but also isn’t anything. It’s not a bad allotment of stats, it’s just that the numbers are pretty low overall. 

Art by ShinySketches

ABILITIES:

Swarm is still bad. Moving on.

Insomnia, as mentioned before, has its uses and can save you in a pinch, but can’t be leveraged and is usually considered a plan B for a Pokemon without actual good abilities.

Sniper significantly increases the damage dealt on a critical hit. Ariados has Cross Poison by level-up and can be bred with Night Slash. As Cross Poison is one of Ariados’ best attacks anyway, this is a great option if you want to build your Ariados to attack. 

Art by Sunnyfish

MOVES:

In the past, the first step to building an Ariados was to get a Heracross, but thankfully Megahorn is now a TR. Slap that thing on Ariados and you have a 120 power STAB attack that, admittedly, gets resisted by far too many things.

For a poison attack, Cross Poison with Sniper, or Poison Jab without. 

Ariados’ STAB moves don’t work on Poison, Ghost, or Steel types, so if you want coverage, you’re going to need to go digging. But not for Dig, because while you can get it, it’s too easily dodged. Throat Chop can be found via move tutor, and you can breed for Night Slash to use with Sniper… but with Ariados’ low speed, you’re generally better off using Sucker Punch, which it learns naturally, to ensure the first hit.

All that said, Ariados just isn’t a heavy enough hitter to be used as a primary attacker and doesn’t have the durability or speed to set up with Swords Dance if it’s built for attacking. 

What Ariados can do, though, is combine the rarely seen Spider Web with Toxic Spikes, creating serious entry hazards when trained for defense. This will end with Ariados taken down relatively easily on the opponent’s part, but should make the fight easier for the rest of your team. Toxic Thread, its signature move, can also deliver poison and slow an opponent, making it easier for your next Pokemon to defeat.

Art by SmolSammich

OVERALL:

Spinarak and Ariados are great designs with a lot of cool mechanics and interesting build options that are just too weak because they’re early route Pokemon. Ariados is stronger than Ledian both because it has a better stat distribution and because in Gen 7, the devs gave it another 10 stat points just because. Why Ledian didn’t get that, too, I don’t know.  I don’t have any actual complaints about this pair, they’re just not going to be able to do anything without a larger stat total. Bug/Poison is a pretty weak type combination, but that’s more a fault of the types not being created equal and Bug being horribly underpowered than anything Ariados is doing.

Art by TheMadJip

[lazloorpington]

um ok so i "accidentally" just finished xy because i THOUGHT i was watching the second to last episode but was actually watching the last. anyways (spoilers below) (also this post is very long, you've been warned)

i think it's probably one of the strongest seasons - not necessarily my favourite, but it's very good. i think the characters are on point this season, especially ash! he's still the energetic young trainer with huge aspirations, but you can tell how he's grown from his previous journeys. he may be reckless, but he's also smart!

the other characters he travels with are really great too and never feel too two-dimensional, especially serena! i'm so glad that serena got to have her own experiences and feelings alongside ash explored too, same with clemont and bonnie (including their relationship). i mean, i think this is something all of the seasons do well with their characters, but xy is definitely one that does it very well.

it's also the last season of pokemon that followed the original formula, journeying through the entire region and defeating all the gyms to compete in the region's league. as much as it works, i'm glad they switched it up next season, because otherwise i think it would've gotten too stale. not that anyone liked the fact they switched it up in sun & moon, but i did. so there you go.

and, once again, i feel like some of team rocket's appearances in episodes felt very forced and unnecessary. but... i feel like this season they were also the most evil. i mean, they always were, but this season they especially were. i've said before that in journeys, team rocket feel like nothing but comic relief, and in response i've gotten "well, they always were". and to an extent, that's true! but don't forget, they used to actually do some pretty messed up stuff. there was an episode where they pretended to be ash, serena and bonnie and then went around terrorising people to get the real trio arrested, so they could be separated from clemont, who they could then manipulate to create a machine to capture pikachu! obviously that's insanely elaborate and the end goal is the same one they've always had, but i think it proves my point that their characters really got degraded, because i would expect anything but that from them in journeys.

i also want to bring up the fluff towards the end of the season. i feel like they dragged out the time in between the anistar city gym and the snowbelle city gym a bit too much, every time i watched another xy episode i felt more and more annoyed at the fact they hadn't reached it yet, and we did get some very hard to watch episodes too. i mean, sure, on paper the idea of bonnie doing her usual "will you take care of my brother?" gag only to have the woman respond with "yes" actually kinda funny, but oh dear fucking god i had to skip that episode. it was too cringy. i'm probably biased, i really don't do well with romantic scenes or second-hand embarrassment, but jesus. never do that again.

i feel like the only other gripe i have to bring up is there there wasn't a proper scene where ash and clemont said goodbye. i mean i watched the dub which might've cut it out? no clue. but that really confused me. i mean, clemont was one of the first people ash met in kalos... why... wouldn't we see him say goodbye?! it left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth, watching the last few moments of that episode, recounting all of the journeys everyone had experienced. but eh, it's not a huge deal.

but yeah overall? xy is really good. i think it's a good starting point if you wanna get into pokemon but don't want to bother watching right from the start. as long as you have a good understand about ash and his goals, the season clicks pretty quickly. it also gives us probably the best version of ash we got, depending on how you feel. of course, ash in alola was skilled enough to beat the pokemon league AND his exhibition battle with TAPU KOKO, but ash was pretty much one move away from defeating alain (which, btw, as much as his alola league win was incredible, i feel like ash should've won his battle with alain) and that's a good enough demonstration of skill to me.

so yeah! xy gets a thumbs up from me. i know i was probably harsh this review but i want to emphasise that i do really like this season and i did enjoy it. that being said, i hope they never show a scene involving a crying hawlucha ever. again.

[nintensonyreviewguy]

Pokemon X and Y Review

The following is a review that I wrote of Pokemon X and Y that I devised up a week after it's release back in October 2013. I am really happy that this has found a home to be published on after all these years! Pokemon X and Y are very near and dear to me now looking back at them, nearly 10 years later when they came out on my 20th Birthday while I was in my first year of college. Hope everyone enjoys reading this raw and (mostly) unedited version of my 2013 thoughts on the matter of Pokemon X and Y. Also take a look at some of my other reviews and look forward to brand new content soon! Thanks!

Artwork of the Kalos Region, the setting of Pokemon X and Y. Kalos is based on the Country of France, specifically the northern half.

Overall, X and Y are really good. But I am disappointed with some things. The lack of post-game content is a real turn off for me as well as the low number of new Pokemon. But I really want to say that each new Pokemon in this game actually had a purpose and I had a tough time deciding my team members. There was also some things taken out in XY that were still in Black and White as well as things removed from BW that I wanted to return such as Cycling Road and a ship in the post-game such as the S.S. Tidal. I also feel like the Fairy type can't be taken seriously because of the lackluster new Pokemon and moves that back up the type as well as the stereotypical little girls that train them. There is one exception to this rule, however and that is Florges, the final evolution of Flabebe! I was almost not gonna use one but I would of regretted the decision. Florges in my opinion has one of the most beautiful designs of all the Fairy types! She really does look like a queen and can tear things up and take hits like no one's business! I also love all of the old Pokemon that got retyped to Fairy. My favorites of which are Togekiss, Clefable, Wigglytuff, and Gardevoir. All of which are very appropriate in my opinion for a retype. It gives the four of these Pokemon much more potential than they had before. I do however wish that more Pokemon like Delcatty also got retyped as I think that would of made a lot of sense. It is nice though to see that some of the moves and Pokemon I expected to get retyped, got retyped. I wish there was more.

Artwork of Sylveon versus Hydreigon. This art showcases one of the main concepts of the game that was new at the time, Fairy Types.

Now, for the story! They pulled this off flawlessly! It was not as strong as Black and White but it was just enough like the Sinnoh games. I love how Team Flare's Xerosic has a side arc for him in the post-game much like Platinum and Charon. Team Flare had one of the darkest plots of any villainous team when you look into it. I can't help but compare Lysandre to Adolf Hitler. Both wanted a beautiful world and attempted genocide of millions of people. Lysandre also tries to kill you but ends up killing himself in the process. Of course, this is just an assumption as it is never stated in-game but a lot of people refer to him in the past tense, including Sycamore. Team Flare really keeps the tradition going! The grunts have a variety of Pokemon but like other villainous teams besides Team Plasma, there is now a few generic Pokemon that are used by almost every Grunt, which makes it feel more like Team Rocket before. Team Flare has a hideout like the villainous teams from the first four generations. All of their missions involving them are very lengthy just like Team Rocket, Aqua, Magma, and Galactic. Returning to even more traditional roots is that you face Team Flare a final time and the Legendary Pokemon they sought after the 7th Gym and before the 8th. Another thing I highly praise is the levels in this game! Gym Leaders and trainers had nice levels between each area. The final levels before you even faced the League were at the early Lv. 60's! The only problem is that if one uses a Mega Evolution or turns on the Exp. Share, they can grind through Gym Leaders and trainers like no tomorrow. Keeping the Exp. Share off provides a stiff challenge. But it's really awesome at times to have it on. And I found myself using it frequently. Another thing to note is that the Gym Leaders and Elite Four all had designs and personalities similar to previous Gym Leaders and that most didn't have a secondary occupation like the ones in Black and White. Some were even based after a trainer class, such as Ramos being the head of all Gardeners, a new trainer class introduced. The Gym Leader teams felt basic, but it was the nice basic feel that Diamond and Pearl pulled off so well. One thing that wasn't present in Diamond and Pearl that was however a staple of the series from Platinum onward is that the Elite Four don't gain new teams after defeating the main story. It's a little disappointing, considering that all of the members could have benefited from the add of two more Pokemon to their teams. I do like that the Gym Leaders can be rematched at a new facility called the Battle Chateau. Unlike Black and White 2, you actually gain EXP. from defeating these Gym Leaders. However, I find rather gimmicky is that the Leaders don't appear all the time, but it's actually quite similar to Emerald now that I think about it. They would call you when their Gym was open, which could take forever. You can also rechallenge the Elite Four in the Battle Chateau but they have the exact same teams as when you faced them before, just higher level. The Battle Chateau overall is a wonderful place to train! Better than the stadiums in Nimbasa City as you can battle these trainers more than once a day. As you rank up, they can be chosen to get even tougher, with the levels soaring into the 70's! There is a lot of potential for these games to go even further in the sequels. I feel like a lot of questions and holes were left in the overall main plot, which is expected for the first paired versions of a generation. Confirmation of Zygarde has finally put to rest that the Legendaries are indeed based off of Norse Mythology as it is snake like like Nidhogrr. In fact, Xerneas in it's immobile state looks like the World Tree as well as Yveltal being based off of a couple of Norse Mytholgy birds such as Hræsvelgr, Veðrfölnir, or the unnamed eagle that sits on top of the World Tree!

Artwork showcasing the encounter with Xerneas at the bottom of Team Flare's base of operations.

One thing that I found touch and go, was the routes. I really love how even though some of the areas that felt linear, had lots of side stuff hidden away from the main road to do. And some routes were just lengthy in general. Some routes had potential but it was overlooked because of lack of trainers and side route stuff to do. These routes include Route 9, 10, 11, 12 (could of had more trainers, long route overall), 14, 17. Some of my favorite routes for Kalos include Route 4, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22. A lot of locations in Kalos however were not where I expected them to be. Some of the longest routes such as Route 9 and Route 17 didn't have any trainers at all, just the Sky Trainers which I had to bypass after finding out Hawlucha can't participate. Next thing is the graphics, which is a no brainer. The graphics for this game are stunning. These games take the graphics to heights that were almost unimaginable back in the old days. They transitioned over to this very well. A lot of the familiar designs for trainer classes remain, as well as the types of NPCs you encounter looking similar to previous generations only bigger sized, making it feel all the more at home. To wrap this all up, I want to say something about the post-game. I was complaining about this at first but I realize that almost all Pokemon games since Red and Blue lack a post-game that keeps you addicted for much long. For instance, FireRed and LeafGreen are great, with the Sevii Islands and all, but once you complete them and catch Mewtwo, there isn't much left to do. It feels the same way with XY. There is a small side quest series with Looker in the post-game along with catching Mewtwo, Zygarde, and the Kanto Legendary Birds. The exception to this rule however is the Generation IV games and Gold, Silver, and Crystal. Even then, once you completed all the missions in the post-game, there wasn't much left to do. Especially the case I found with Gold, Silver, and Crystal, and their remakes. But the point I think about the post-game is to capture all the remaining Pokemon that you didn't catch during the main story. Black and White pulled this off really well. It made collecting Pokemon loads of fun, especially with the mechanics that came with it such as shaking grass and dust clouds and high leveled evolved Pokemon to be found. An example of this is Tyranitar. You do, however, have to have lots of patience for this, which some people don't have. It made something to truly strife for instead of traditionally leveling up our Pokemon, we got to hunt for them in the wild. It is nice to see that the shaking grass and dust clouds do come back but with a new twist. Pokemon actually can swoop down from the sky, a bush, or from the celling of caves! It really made the game feel so much more livelier, having a Woobat on the celling come out as a shadow at first then suddenly attack you!

Artwork showcasing Mewtwo and Lucario in their Mega Evolved States. Mega Evolution is another major concept of the game that was introduced that would go on to be featured in other games.

Oh man though! I feel like I covered everything in XY when I am forgetting a focal point: Mega Evolutions! I really like the designs of all the Mega Evolutions for the most part and feel like the Pokemon that needed them, got them, such as Houndoom. Mega Evolutions aren't too overpowered depending on the Pokemon that Mega Evolves, such as Houndoom and Gengar. It actually gives them a boost that they deserve! Some like Tyranitar, felt a little too much.

To finally conclude, X and Y are great games and a worthy addition to add to the series for long time fans!

My Final Score: ★★★★★★★★ "Great" 8/10

[crystalelemental]

This month has been interesting in two ways.  One is the abundance of supports, three of which all focus on the same cluster of stats to boost: Atk/Def/Crit.  The other is more interesting, though.  Three whole sync pairs use Rebuffs, a mechanic very rarely seen prior to this.  Given the introduction of so many, as well as the new Champion Stadium parameters including a condition to stop weather, terrain, and zones, I feel confident saying that Masters is attempting to establish a new Rebuff Meta.

The Zone Meta Pokemon Masters has long emphasized the need for field effects.  Not in any absolute way, in the sense that optimal play tends to include it.  The multiplicative 50% bonus to damage is significant and devastating, and the game has always, to some degree, warped around it.  In the early days, entire types were considered good or bad based on the presence of a field effect that multiplied their damage.  The old saying of "Everything is weak to SS Red" had truth to it.  Under Sun, a powerhouse like Red really did outperform the best most other types had to offer. So it made sense that, given time, they would introduce a mechanic like Zones to compensate.

And it worked!  Types began to explode in popularity with the introduction of types.  Starting with Ghost meant that Anni Lillie went from pretty sad to wildly impressive, and for a brief bit was one of the highest DPS units in the game. This hasn't lasted, as wild powercreep took over, but the impact of Zones has been significant.  Now, instead of a handful of types like Fire, Water, and Psychic dominating everything, almost every type competes (except Ice, which is cursed).

This has had a profound impact on the meta overall.  Most notably, on the shift to on-type.  In the days when I started playing, on-type was for chumps.  The solution to everything was Kantrio, and Weather Titans.  SS Red was unstoppable in his raw power, SS Leaf was stall bot supreme, and SS Blue was a defensive powerhouse that wouldn't break.  Having each of them meant having three wins under your belt, regardless of what the stage weakness is. If you had Maxie and Archie, you basically won CS.  But with Zones, now on-type seems far more common, because of how quickly you can clear.  Even in Gauntlet, it's a major source of just nuking the daylights out of a threat.  The field effect meta defined which units were worth using entirely in the early days, and developed to the point that now it is an equalizing force across types, but decisively the strongest effect available.  And that's bad for business.

The Gauntlet Meta Gauntlet, I believe, was designed to break up the use of field effects.  The Zone setters tend to be powerful tech nukes, which can handle stages independently. You don't want your best damage dealers of a type partnered with sync nukers who can handle the stage just as well.  You break those up.

This has been the interesting limitation of Zones for the last year and a half. Zone setters are considered supportive in nature, but their emphasis as tech nukers makes them much more viable alone in Gauntlet.   They support in CS, but they're the center of everything in Gauntlet.   And it makes things difficult when you have extremely potent damage dealers like Champion Hop supporting a really weak type.  Why use anyone else's sync when Hop's will do better? When the Zone setter is too strong, it's hard to justify using them to support a different favorite.  It's wasting materials.

Add to it, Gauntlets require gimmicks.  Sure, you have a good damage dealer and a field effect tech support.  Can you apply status?  No?  There goes any hope against Uxie, Cobalion, and Tornadus.  Can you debuff?  No?  There goes Latias.  For types that aren't weather, good luck against Moltres.  Depending on your tank, heavy hitters like Tapu Bulu will steamrolls you too.  There are a ton of issues that plague field effect setters in Gauntlet.  This is one of the reasons that weather setting supports were in such high demand.  They weren't about to overshadow the main damage dealer, and provided strong complementary skills that were useful to types they supported overall.  Unfortunately, we still don't have Terrain supports, but we did get a Zone support in Aura Cynthia, who is widely considered one of the most ridiculous sync pairs currently in the game.

Gauntlet did this interesting thing where it placed emphasis on role compression, pushing the field effect onto the support instead of a Tech.  And that particular development hasn't fully taken effect yet.

The 12.5k Meta The new CS parameters are a push for two things.  First, Standard Damage Reduction pushes for players to always approach things on-type.  This is meant to limit the potential of off-type clears, which had been a standard in the 7.5k meta, and continued to be defining in the 10k meta.  12.5k intends to put a stop to it, or at least slow it down.  The limited CS events all being weak to the same type is meant to capitalize on this; now you need five competent damage dealers of each type for this mode.

The other big name is "No Weather, Terrain, or Zones."  This effect is worth 150 points, and shuts off everything.  Well, on your end.  Enemies can still do it.   This doesn't prevent the use of these effects, but it does encourage using something else.  Notably, this condition is 50 more points than No Stat Debuffs. Exceptional stat debuffers like Lucian were largely underappreciated because they had to compete with field effect setters. Now, Lucian competes.  He's an extra 50 points.

But man, if it were that easy, then every Leer support in the game just steps up. We have commons doing that!  If only there were another way to push some kind of new mechanic forward...

The Rebuff Meta Rebuffs seem to be that answer.  Sure, you have debuffs, but you can save 100 points if you don't use them.  Sure, you have field effects, but you save 150 points on those.  250 points is 10% of what you need per match.  Maybe consider it.

Rebuffs are still new, and are admittedly kind of unexplored.  We only have 8 users: Halloween Allister, Gordie, SS Wally, SS Hilbert, C!Serena, SC Steven, SC Zinnia, and SC Lyra.  And for all of them, the effect is bizarrely limited.  Almost all of them involve a single application on the first successful hit, with Hilbert's even requiring a specific condition.  SC Zinnia is only once, but on use of trainer move.  The other three are applied, but capped to two MP.  Nothing in the game reaches the maximum of -3 rebuff.  Maybe for fourth anniversary, eh?

What I find fascinating about this effect is how specifically it seems built for CS. When your opponents don't change, one application is all you need. But in Gauntlet, the HP bars shift, and you lose that Rebuff.  It's also worth noting that for Uxie purposes, the rebuff counts as a status change, yet because of how it works, only the 2MP options can make this matter.  The Rebuff meta really doesn't extend beyond it's one area of use.  Which is fairly distinct.  Debuffs and field effects found great success across modes, but Rebuffs seem weirdly locked to a CS-specific benefit.

To compound the oddity, they seem to have recognized instantly that role compression matters.   The first ever Rebuff sync pair, Halloween Allister, came in with 2MP selected uses, and was a support.  This is unusual.  It usually starts as a Tech kind of skill, and many of the users are in fact Tech.  But they're aware of the value of role compression, and have done it twice...and oddly, both users are pretty lackluster.  Allister's too slow to matter much with most Ghost types, but he does combo well with fast options.  Meaning the commons specifically benefit most from him.  Lyra’s almost the inverse, being pretty bad as a fit for Ground-type, but exceptionally strong for units like Maxie and SS Giovanni who don’t really care what their support is doing, so long as it’s not Sandstorm Ingo.

I find this interesting for a few reasons.  First and foremost being, they're trying to push on-type clears, but the support rebuff users don't interact that well with their type.  Gordie rebuffs a type he barely targets.   The whole situation is just bizarre.

It's also strange because the Tech units seem complemented by absurd firepower.   Their relevance in CS is to support with the Rebuff, but their Gauntlet presence is to be the center of attention like field effects.   Which...doesn't break any particular barriers.  If anything it makes them far worse, because at least 1/5 field effect units could be useful for supporting a longer fight.  The Rebuff user doesn't help much, and can't use their nuke, without 3/5.

But I think that’s the point.

Rebuff Game Plan The truth is, as has been said by many others, that Masters has plateaued. There's only so much variety that can be introduced into the game before we start hitting some theoretical walls in what's possible.  The clearest example was the Palentine's Mallow situation, where she really is just "less successful SS Brendan."  Her kit is highly similar, but just...worse.  So what use does she have?  Especially for players who aren't interested in long streaks in Gauntlet? Which I imagine is most of them.

The truth is, I think Masters is trying to push for a new source of revenue with this.  Rebuffs are meant as an answer to the new CS meta’s parameters.  And unlike field effects, you need 3/5 for their sync nuke to matter, otherwise they’re wildly lacking in Gauntlet.  But that’s the point, isn’t it?  People could pull field effects at 1/5 and get value across every mode of play.  Rebuffs are more limited, and therefore encourage 3/5 for other avenues of use.  It’s just strange how much they seem to be holding back, given Allister and Lyra.

So the only remaining question now is, will it last?  Will this kind of approach be successful?  And my answer is a resounding no.  To put it bluntly, the pressure for these skills isn’t there.  Zone mattered tremendously, because they evened out a horrific discrepancy that existed in the game.  When you have like five types dominating the entire game, and rendering all 12 of the others irrelevant?  That’s a major problem.  The introduction of Zones had natural appeal.  Rebuffs don’t.  They aren’t an equalizing force; they’re an attempt to create a secondary avenue to higher damage, that’s just functionally worse.  Especially for the Gauntlet meta, which I realize is no longer the focus, but still needs to be considered.  Modern units typically aim to have tremendous use in both CS and Gauntlet.  While certain options lean toward one or the other, there’s often intent for both.  And Rebuffs don’t have that appeal right now.  They can with the MP, but most of them focus on immediate application.

I think there’s going to be a lot of rebuff coming out in the next few months, with likely different means of application.  I don’t know what will wind up working or sticking, but it seems to be their approach.  For my part, I don’t think they’ll be a significant draw at all.  Not with how they’re working right now.  Tech units with Rebuff are more useful for their sync than their rebuff, functionally mimicking the field effect users, while support units with rebuff don’t have good enough buffing kits to make a huge impact.  We’ll see if they can strike a nice balance.  But for now, rebuffs just feel...really boring.