#game devs please communicate more

[lulu2992]

I’d like to (finally) talk about this interview with Mark Thompson, Narrative Director on Far Cry 4:

I love it when devs talk about their work because it’s always super interesting and informative! This video is no exception.

But what struck me most when I first saw the interview is what he says about Far Cry 3, a title he also worked on as a Level Design Director, which I believe means he was not (or barely) involved in the writing of the script. When he mentions what he thinks the issues with the game were and what had to be “fixed” in Far Cry 4, the thing is that... he often contradicts what Jeffrey Yohalem, Lead Writer on Far Cry 3, explained in various articles.

Under the cut, I highlighted some parts of Mark Thompson’s interview (in red) and compared them to Jeffrey Yohalem’s words (in blue, with the sources) so you can see how different their points of view are.

In this case, when it comes to the story and meaning of Far Cry 3, I’m inclined to give more credence to the Lead Writer’s explanations, but I think this example perfectly illustrates how even people who worked on the same project can have very different (and sometimes equally valid) opinions, understandings, and feelings about it, and why it can therefore be difficult for the audience to determine what the “truth” or the “right” interpretation is…

Open world vs story

MT: We ended up shipping a game where the open world had a lot of cool stuff, but it didn’t have a lot of depth or meaning, and it had almost no connection to what was happening in the story. And in fact, in some ways, the two were kind of opposed and they were kind of conflicting each other. So, on one hand, the story itself had this ticking time bomb of “I have these friends that I need to rescue, but holy sh*t, collecting plants, finding that next animal I need for the next upgrade, getting that next skill point… Oh, look, there’s a radio tower! Wait, wasn’t I heading to that outpost?” And then you’re like, “Oh yeah, sh*t, my friend Keith’s trapped in the basement, I should probably go rescue him… I’m a terrible friend.” That was my main goal: fix this sh*t and make sure that the story and the open world speak to each other, complement each other; strip everything down so that the story and the open world are the same thing and it’s the same game.

JY: People who have looked at the surface of the game think that the story and the game are at war with each other as they are in most games, with the story just plugging potholes and the gameplay is going along its merry way. I think it’s very exaggerated that, “Oh, go save the friends! Go save the friends!” but most people are out on the island doing all this other crazy stuff and experiencing the gameplay. And that’s actually the point of the story. It’s not a game about go save your friends. It’s a game about – doing a lot of picking skins from things, and wait, it’s just a pile of meat – this doesn’t even make sense, yet I’m still doing it instead of saving the friends. (Rock Paper Shotgun - Dec. 19, 2012)

The “white savior” trope

MT: We were definitely aware of some of the tropes that we fell into - unintentionally in some cases, intentionally in some - and (…) almost the first thing that we did was decide how we were gonna address the white savior trope, the outsider who comes in and helps simple people with his outsider’s kind of more advanced understanding of the world. (...) The first thing we said was, “This guy is from Kyrat, no matter what happens. That is the most important thing; he is part of this world, he belongs here.”

JY: “It’s a first-person game, and Jason is a 25-year old white guy from Los Angeles. From Hollywood. So his view of what’s going on on this island is his own view, and you happen to be looking through his eyes, so you’re seeing his view,” Yohalem explained. “It’s set on an island in the South Pacific, so immediately the thing that comes to mind is the white colonial trope, the Avatar trope. I started with that, and it’s like, ‘Here’s what pop culture thinks about traveling to a new place,’ and the funny thing is, that’s an exaggeration of most games, they just don’t expose it. (The Penny Arcade Report - Dec. 17, 2012)

JY: There’s a reason why Jason is a 25 year old white guy from Hollywood – these are all ideas that are in his head. You’re seeing things through his eyes. (...) It’s not that [Citra] needed a white saviour at all. She didn’t need a white guy at all. She was just looking for the ultimate warrior and someone to be her gun. (...) If this was about the white messiah motif, would I be so stupid as to have a main character’s nickname be Snow White? I’m making fun of that! (Rock Paper Shotgun - Dec. 19, 2012)

The player and the protagonist

MT: When we were doing the script review, almost immediately, the first thing we would do would be, “Okay, so how many lines does Ajay have? Okay, cut that by 75%”, and then we would review it and then cut out even more. Whenever possible, we would set up a scenario where we know or we think we know how players would react, and so we would remove the line that the character would actually say and then have the other person react to it. “Oh, you think that, do you?” - in that kind of way, so they’re like, “Oh f*ck, how did he know I was gonna say that?” Whereas, if the protagonist said that line, they’re like, “Oof, I wouldn’t have said that”, and then suddenly you’re kind of broken out of the experience. (…) When you’re in first-person, all you hear is this disconnected voice that might not be agreeing with what you’re doing. So, again, it’s just about stripping away those barriers of immersion so you can imagine yourself in this scenario.

JY: In Far Cry 3, Jason is a character and he’s not the player. The player is another character in the game. Sometimes Jason disagrees with the player, and sometimes Jason agrees with him. And the magic of that is that then it doesn’t matter! Basically, as long as the whole narrative is directed towards what the player is feeling—which for me is how videogames should be—then I get to target Jason as a resource where players can go: “I disagree with Jason.” And the player gets to convince Jason to do something else. So instead of trying to force the two of them together, I’ve decoupled them. (Killscreen - Dec. 12, 2012)

[felassan]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard info compilation Post 1

Post is under a cut due to length.

There is a lot of information coming out right now about DA:TV from many different sources. This post is just an effort to compile as much as I can in one place, in case that helps anyone. Sources for where the information came from have been included. Where I am linking to a social media user's post, the person is either a dev, a Dragon Age community council member or other person who has had a sneak peek at and played the game. nb, this post is more of a 'info that came out in snippets from articles and social media posts' collection rather than a 'regurgitating the information on the official website or writing out what happened in the trailer/gameplay reveal' post. The post is broken down into headings on various topics. A few points are repeated under multiple headings where relevant. Where I am speculating without a source, I have clearly demarcated this. if you notice any mistakes in this post, please tell me.

as this post hit a kind of character limit, there will probably be at least 1 more post. :)

Character Creation

CC is vast [source] and immensely detailed [source]

We will enter CC straight after Varric's opening narration [source]

You are given 5 categories to work your way through in CC: Lineage, Appearance, Class, Faction, Playstyle. Each of these has a range of subcategories within them. There are 8 subcategories within the "head" subcategory" in "Appearance" alone [source]

Lineage dictates things like race (i.e. human, elf, dwarf, qunari) and backstory [source]

Backstories include things like factions. Factions offer 3 distinct buffs each [source]

There are dozens and dozens of hairstyles [source]

There are separate options for binary and non-binary pronouns and gender [source]

"BioWare's work behind the scenes, meanwhile, goes as deep as not only skin tones but skin undertones, melanin levels, and the way skin reacts differently to light" [source]

CC has a range of lighting options within it so that you can check how the character looks in them [source]

There are a range of full-body customization options such as a triangular slider between body types and individual settings down to everything from shoulder width to glute volume [source]. There are "all the sliders [we] could possibly want". The body morpher option allows us to choose different body sizes [source]

All body options are non-gendered [source]

They/them pronouns are an option [source]

Rook can be played as non-binary [source]

Individual strands of hair were rendered separately and react remarkably to in-game physics [source]

Special, focused attention was paid to ensuring that hairstyles "come across as well-representative, that everyone can see hairstyles that feel authentic to them, even the way they render" [source]

The game uses strand hair technology borrowed in part from the EA Sports games. The hair is "fully-controlled by physics," so it "looks even better in motion than it does here in a standstill" [source]

The ability to import our choices from previous games is fully integrated into CC. This will take the form of tarot cards - "you can go into your past adventures" and this mechanic tells you what the context was and what decision you want to make [source]

In CC we will also be able to customize/remake our Inquisitor [source]

A core tenet of the game is "be who you want to be" [source]

There are presets for all 4 of the game's races (human, elf, dwarf, qunari), in case detailed CCs overwhelm you [source]

Story

The story is set 9 years since Inquisition [source]

The Inquisitor will appear [source]

Other characters refer to the PC as Rook [source]. This article says they are "the Rook" [source]

The ability to import our choices from previous games is fully integrated into CC. This will take the form of tarot cards - "you can go into your past adventures" and this mechanic tells you what the context was and what decision you want to make [source]

The prologue is quite lengthy. A narrated intro from Varric lays the groundwork with some lore and explains about Solas [source]. In this Varric-narrated opening section, the dwarf recaps the events of previous games and explains the motivations of Solas [source] (Fel note/speculation: this sounds like this cinematic that we saw on DA Day 2023)

What happens first off is that Rook, who is working with Varric, is interrogating a bartender about the whereabouts of a contact in Minrathous who can help them stop Solas. The bartender does not play nice and we are presented with our first choice: talk the bartender down or intimidate them aggressively [source]

The first hour of the game is "a luxurious nighttime romp through a crumbling city under a mix of twinkling starlight and lavish midnight blue" (Minrathous) [source]. The game begins with a tavern brawl (depending on dialogue options) and a stroll through Minrathous in search of Neve Gallus, who has a lead on Solas [source]. Minrathous then comes under attack [source] by demons [source] (Fel note/speculation: it sounds like the demo the press played is what we saw in the Gameplay Reveal). Off in the distance is a vibrant, colorful storm where Solas is performing his ritual. [source] Eventually we come upon Harding. [source] and Neve. Rook and co enter a crumbling castle, where ancient elf secrets pop up, "seemingly just for the lore nerds". [source] Then we teleport to Arlathan Forest, have a mini boss fight with a Pride Demon, and there is the climactic confrontation with Solas. After a closing sequence, at this point it is the end of the game's opening mission. [source] (Fel note/speculation: So the Gameplay Reveal showed the game's opening mission)

The action in the story's opening parts starts off quite quick from the sounds of things: the devs wanted to get the player right in to the story. because, “Especially with an RPG where they can be quite lore-heavy, a lot of exposition at the front and remembering proper nouns, it can be very overwhelming.” [source]

BioWare wanted to make the beginning of Dragon Age: The Veilguard feel like the finale of one of their other games [source]

Rook's Faction will be referenced in dialogue [source]

Minrathous is beautiful, with giant statues, floating palaces, orange lantern glow and magical runes which glow green neon. These act "like electricity" as occasional signs above pubs and stores [source]

The story has a lot of darkness tonally. These dark parts of the game contain the biggest spoilers [source]. However, the team really wanted to build in contrast between the dark and light moments in the game, as if everything is dark, nothing really feels dark [source]

Our hub (like the Normandy in ME or Skyhold in DA:I) is a place called The Lighthouse [source] (Fel note/speculation: I guess this screenshot shows the crew in The Lighthouse? ^^)

Each companion has a very complex backstory, their own problems, and deep motivations. These play out through well-fleshed out character arcs and missions that are unique to them but which are ultimately tied into the larger story [source]

We will make consequential decisions for each character, sometimes affecting who they are in heart-wrenching ways and other times joyously [source]

Decisions from previous DA games will be able to be carried over, it will just work a bit differently this time [source]. The game will not read our previous saves. For stuff pertaining to previous games/choices, players will not have to link their accounts [source]

Characters, companions, romance

Varric is a major character [source]

Every companion is romanceable [source]

BioWare tried to make each character's friendship just as meaningful, regardless of romance [source]

If you don't romance a character, they may end up romancing each other [source]

There will be some great cameos [source]. Some previous characters are woven into the game [source]

Companion sidequests/optional content relating to companions is highly curated when it involves their motivations and experiences [source]

We could permanently lose some companions depending on our choices [source]

Our choices can influence if characters get injured and what they think about us [source]

The bonds Rook forges with companions determine how party members grow and what abilities become available [source]

Each companion has a very complex backstory, their own problems, and deep motivations. These play out through well-fleshed out character arcs and missions that are unique to them but which are ultimately tied into the larger story [source]

We will make consequential decisions for each character, sometimes affecting who they are in heart-wrenching ways and other times joyously [source]

Gameplay, presentation, performance etc

Each class (warrior, rogue, mage) has 3 specializations. The ones for Rogue are duelist, saboteur and Veil ranger [source]. (Fel note/speculation: Veil ranger reminds me of Bellara. Maybe this is her 'spec' too?)

Duelist gameplay involves a sharp combination of dashes, parries, leaps, rapid slashes and combos [source]

Faction-related buffs include being able to hold an extra potion or do extra damage against certain enemies [source]

Individual strands of hair were rendered separately and react remarkably to in-game physics [source]

Playstyle settings include custom, distinct difficulty settings for options as granular as parry windows, meaning "players who might fancy that playstyle but typically struggle with the finer points of combat can give it a go" [source]

Combat mechanics is a mix of real-time action and pause and play. Pausing brings up a radial menu split into 3 sections: companions to the left and right, Rook's skills at the bottom, and a targeting system at the top which helps get in focus on certain enemies. [source]. In the pause system you can queue up your whole party's attacks [source]

Tapping or holding the shoulder button pauses the game, allowing us to stop the action and issue orders to companions [source]

There is a system of specific enemy resistances and weaknesses [source]. Weaknesses and resistances plays a big role in combat and abilities are designed to exploit these accordingly [source]. An example is that "one character might be able to plant a weakening debuff on an enemy, and another enemy might be able to detonate them" [source]

There is a vast skill tree of unlockable options [source]

You can set up specific companions with certain kits, e.g. to tackle specific enemy types, to being more of a support, or as flexible all-rounders [source]

Healing magic returns [source]

Abilities can change together with elaborate results, e.g. one companion using a gravity well attack that sucked enemies together, another using a slowing move to keep them in place, and Rook using a big AOE to catch them all at once [source]

A shortcut system lets you map a few abilities to a smaller pinned menu at the bottom of the screen [source]

There are class-specific resource systems. For example, Rogue has "momentum", which builds up as Rook lands consecutive hits [source]

Each class will always have a ranged option [source]

Rogue Rook can do a sort of 'hip fire' option with a bow, letting you pop off arrows from the waist [source]

Warriors can throw their shield at enemies, and can build an entire playstyle around that using the skill tree [source]

There is light platforming gameplay [source]

The game runs on the latest iteration of the Frostbite engine [source]

The game targets 60 fps

On consoles it will feature performance and quality modes so we can choose our preferred visual fidelity [source]

The game is mission based [source]. Some levels that we go to do open up, some with more exploration than others. "Alternate branching paths, mysteries, secrets, optional content you're going to find and solve." [source]

Everything is hand-touched, hand-crafted and highly curated [source]

Some sidequests and optional content is highly curated, especially when it involves the motivations and experiences of the companions. In others we may be investigating for example a missing family, with an entire open bog environment to search for clues and a way to solve the disappearance [source]

Gameplay, presentation, performance etc continued, after the above bullet list hit a character limit

There is sophisticated animation cancelling and branching. Gameplay is action-like, and the design centers around dodging, countering, and using risk-reward charge attacks designed to break enemy armor layers [source]

The dialogue wheel returns [source]. It gives truncated summaries of the dialogue options rather than the full line that the character is going to say [source]

The bonds Rook forges with companions determine how party members grow and what abilities become available [source]

For stuff pertaining to previous games/choices, players will not have to link their accounts [source]

We can play the game fully offline [source]

There are no microtransactions [source]

The game itself is not as cell-shaded in look as the first trailer looked [source]

[☕ found this post or blog interesting or useful? my ko-fi is here if you feel inclined. thank you 🙏]

[friendly-wizard-bibliothecary]

In Regards to Wyll's Content Disparity

Fandom: Baldur's Gate 3

I don't think some people realize how it feels to be a black gamer in the context of Wyll's content disparity. Intentionally racist or not, the fact that he continues to be overlooked and disregarded by the Devs is really disheartening. As a black gamer (and please note I am speaking for myself and do not represent the wider black gaming community, don't read this as that) I feel just as overlooked and disregarded as Wyll currently is.

Wyll is a great character. I absolutely adore Wyll. But he feels under baked. And this sucks because you see a pattern in media where black characters (especially black female characters, but that's a conversation for a different day) aren't as fleshed out as white characters. They aren't given the same love and care as white or white coded characters and, therefore, the fandom doesn't reciprocate with love and care towards the black or black coded characters. So of course, this reads as people not caring about them, so the writers don't bother to fix them or give them more.

It is a vicious cycle that we see often where they make Wyll, butdon't put as much work into him, so the fandom doesn't like him as much, so they don't think they need to put more work into him. They put more love and care into the white/white-coded characters because that is what the predominantly white fandom wants.

But as they do that, the black fans and the fans that enjoy Wyll as a character are ignored. Their voices are drowned out by the majority and I cannot tell y'all how shitty of a feeling that is. As a black woman, I have constantly been talked over, ignored, had my ideas repeated by a white person and have them take the credit, etc. So seeing Wyll and Wyll fans being ignored, talked over, white counterparts getting the attention sucks.

I get enough of that shit in real life, I don't want to have to deal with that in all my fucking hobbies.

As a black gamer, this makes me feel as if I don't belong in this fandom. It makes me feel like the devs and the writers don't want me in this fandom. It makes me feel like I'm not welcome to play this game, that I'm not welcome to like this character over others, that I'm not able to bring my experiences as a black woman and a black gamer to this game because the main black character is treated like they don't matter. It makes me feel like the writers didn't want to put in the work for this black man and felt like no one would notice or care. That no one but black folks would mind and who cares what black folks are saying?

Again, this is all my opinion and its a bit rambly. I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about this that really is a culmination of various things involving being a blerd and black geek in predominantly white fandoms.

But I think it's important to recognize that people are impacted by this and it sucks for a lot of black folks in white dominant spaces to continue to have to fight for crumbs at the table during Black History Month in 2024. We should have good, fleshed out characters, that are respected and cared for by their creators and by the fandom at large. I really hope Larian puts in the work for Wyll and a lot more people can see how cool a character he really is. He deserves the same amount of love and care as the other origin companions.

[dualityvn]

I would like to address a recent trend I am seeing pop up in the yandere community. I feel that people are kind of pointing fingers at each other trying to decide who is more morally correct than the other. And I find it a little silly. We're here for hot stalkers. None of us are consuming moral fiction.

I sympathize with Fantasia and the backlash she is getting because of her recent update to her game. I still stand by my belief that devs should write what they want before they let themselves be influenced by outside opinions. It is her choice and her game first and foremost. Not to mention it's her first one and being thrown in the spotlight while you're making your first game is a pretty horrible experience. Because you don't know much about the process of making games or what you even ultimately may want to do with your game. It's a trial and error type of thing. And you can't make everyone happy. I still support her and encourage her on her creative journey and I hope the finished game is something she will be proud of.

I also understand that the game originally looked like a yandere romance game and it did not turn out to be that. So people are upset and feel betrayed. Some have spent money thinking they'd enjoy it and the recent update may have changed that. I understand, but I ask them to be understanding themselves and give their feedback without harassing or insulting the dev.

At the same time, I'm observing some weird new mentality in this attempt to support Fantasia. Now, we are claiming that "realistic" yanderes are superior? And that people who enjoy softer yanderes are delusional idiots who don't belong in the yandere fandom? And don't get me started on the word "romanticize." Can we please stop the holier than thou attitude?

We are all in this pig den together. We are all muddy. We are all consuming dark content. One isn't more moral than the other. You are free to prefer yanderes who are cruel and awful and psychotic, but do not belittle the devs and fans who prefer a softer alternative. If someone outside the yan fandom were to look at us, they'd judge us all the same: people who like toxic obsessive love interests. We all know real life stalkers are bad. I am afraid of them everyday. None of us are delusional children and it's insulting and ridiculous to claim so.

Likewise, it's a little silly to claim you can't have darker content in dark fiction. Dark fiction is here to explore the awful parts of humanity without having to worry about morality. It does not reflect on the type of person the creator is. It does not make them an advocate for murder, stalking or sa.

Please be mature. If you wish to criticize, do so in a well thought out way. Do not simply throw around words.

[that-dumb-moth]

Okay, so, fucking PSA. Please read if you're interested in helping either Robert Kurvitz, the Disco Elysium team, or the Internet Archive:

DO NOT CLAIM THAT KURVITZ UPLOADED A COPY OF DISCO ELISYUM ON THE INTERNET ARCHIVE, REPORT THE UPLOAD, PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

Internet Archive:

I'm a person that enjoys community projects like the Internet Archive. They hold crucial positions in public knowledge and do not deserve to be labeled "piracy dens" and do not deserve the legal difficulties associated. By sharing copies of software whose copyright holders still actually care instead of reporting them, you are putting the Internet Archive at risk. Once the Internet Archive gets sued into oblivion, you will no longer have the wayback machine, thousands of copies of scans of rare books and boxes will be lost, and endless piles of abandonware trapped in long outdated storage mediums and standards will no longer be used again. And even worse, once corporations learn that legal pressure is enough to take out public knowledge, they will press down hard on services like the ones Wikimedia offers (that includes wikipedia if you're unaware). Say goodbye to the crowdsourced knowledge of old, and hello to corporate refined knowledge, likely alot of which is AI generated.

Robert Kurvitz

Robert Kurvitz has a very poor relationship with ZA/UM and thus, it doesn't take long to tie a motive to him publishing pirated copies of DE. And as he's the one with the motive and not Internet Archive, it's entirely possible legal action could be pointed at Kurvitz instead or worse, also. And that's where the problem occurs... people keep claiming the file was uploaded by Kurvitz himself. But that's a claim made by the uninformed. The way the Internet Archive works is that each file uploaded is primarily credited to their original authors with credit to the uploader placed to the side. However, people sharing the file are claiming that, due to a misunderstanding, Kurvitz is the one who uploaded the file. When in reality, it was a person using a pseudonym. This simple mistake can undoubtedly prove disastrous.

The DE Team

There's no doubt that the team behind DE were immensely fucked over. And we truly need to fight against that scumbaggery. So, how do you support the DE team? First off, don't pay for DE. And if you're not willing to go to the greynet, just don't fucking play the game. I'm sorry, but hosting pirated games on honest sites like the IA just causes more trouble than needed. Also, please, do not share links to pirated copies and more importantly, don't try claiming the devs endorse piracy. Even if they do. Corporations are little shits that like to sue you over everything.

I don't know if any of that makes any sense. But thank you anyways for reading this.

[forsaken-fates]

' 'This is your home now. Forever forsaken by it all.' '

>[It's been a few days since the disappearance of the previous survivors, and it's been awfully quiet. No more hushed conversations of a person and himself, no more chattering and laughing near the fireplace, no more constant flicking of a coin, nothing. The people who remain in the cabin are all worried, holding onto a false hope that they'll somehow come back, that the round was just taking a bit longer, but it was obvious that they wouldn't. They were gone, and they had to accept that.]

>[Those survivors who had spent restless hours protecting themselves and their team, running around in order to escape the killer, had all been consumed by their own hatred and rage. It seemed as though they had been driven into madness, taking lives of others in the process of doing so, seeking revenge at releasing all the pent up anger that had been kept inside them for so long. Petty rivals became enemies, and friendships crumbled down from the lack of trust.]

>[Hope isn't all lost, though. Despite the rumors spread within the people present at the cabin, they are still well and alive. Although suffering from their demises, they continue on living. The places they stay aren't too uncomfortable, either. As a matter of fact, they feel almost like... home. Be it a bit more uncanny and isolated.]

>[Communication is a limited thing for them, with the majority being forced into a solitary version of their greatest memory. But it is not as difficult as one may think. If one wishes to send a message, or communicate with these said characters, they must write a letter. This said letter must have the name of the person you wish to send it too, otherwise it will be sent to a random person - or maybe even all of them, if you're lucky enough. Although you may feel free to break through the TV and talk to them in person, that's always an option.]

>[Now, what are you waiting for? You want to send a message, don't you? Here, pick up a pen and paper of your choice and write it. Don't be shy. I'm sure they'd be pleased to hear from you.]

SEMI-IMPORTANT POST

OOC NOTES UNDER THE CUT

-[Welcome to Forsakened Fates, an AU that explores an idea of the survivors from the Roblox game Forsaken turning into killers. The in-depth of storyline of this blog is yet to be revealed, as there are a few more gaps in my writing. But, enough of that. For now, let's put down some ground rules.]-

RULES:

1. This is an ongoing AU that is still being written by a sleep deprived high schooler that is solely being driven by insufficient caffeine and pirated music, so please be patient in case your ask isn't immediately answered. (If your ask is taking really long to answer, it probably just means there's a frame being worked on for the post. Please be patient if that's the case)

2. Obvious DNI criteria (creeps, racists, xeno/homophobes, etc.)

3. Please avoid sending controversial asks. This blog was made for fun and I'd like to avoid those kinds of topics in my blog.

4. Keep things SFW and don't get too 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓴𝔂 in my inbox please. Suggestive and combat is okay but avoid getting into too much detail.

5. Anon magic, OCs, crossovers, and the like are all welcome! I love seeing what everyone's creativity made.

6. Characters in this blog are heavily headcanon and AU driven, so if a character ever acts off, feel free to ask about it! (Not guaranteed you'll get a straight answer)

7. I have no affiliations with souldrivenlove, nor any of the devs. This was made merely by my own with self interest.

8. This blog may involve some triggering topics such as murder, blood, body horror, suggestive themes, obsession, codependency, etc. Those said posts will be tagged accordingly + will have a "Keep Reading" cut or will be given a content label.

GENERAL INFORMATION:

- There will be active and inactive characters. Active means that you are able to interact with the character as you please, as long as they follow the rules above. Inactive, on the other hand, means that the character is unavailable, and a special action must be performed in order to unlock said character. Active characters are as follows (those unlisted are inactive): Guest 1337 👊 Chance 🕶️ Elliot 🍕 Shedletsky 🍗💚 >[FileName:"Builderman"not found.]⛑️ 007n7���� c00lkidd🔥

- Again, responses may be somewhat slow. I plan on using Roblox Studio and/or Catalog Avatar Creator for the responses, and I'm still learning in using them, so please be patient.

- Some characters may be OOC or not act like how they normally would. I would like to apologize if I get them HEAVILY incorrect, but most of their attitudes may be because of the lore written for them.

TAGS:

best.served.hot🍕 - Elliot

gamble.with.our.time🕶️ - Chance

rtotwitpyisfoth?🍗 - Shedletsky

am.i.a.robot.or.a.doll?⛑️ - Builderman

always.be.strong👊 - Guest

its.harder.when.u.have.2.love.urself🍔 - 007n7

team.c00lkidd.join.2day!🔥 - c00lkidd

anonymous.letters✉️ - Anonymous asks

signed.letters✉️ - User asks

finally.something.happened🔪 - Rp start

still.praying.hopeless.and.in.vain🔪 - Rp end

ill.be.waiting.so.impatiently🔓 - Character unlocked

whats.that.puppet.boy?📷 - OOC posts

did.you.not.read.the.company.policy?📹 - Lore

[lambouillet]

LAST UPDATED ON: APRIL/30/2025

─⪼ Hi I'm FIORE !

they/them ☦ 19 young adult ☦ artist, worldbuilder and maybe game concept artist : ^ )

🖍️ Art Gallery ─ ✏️ Doodles

LAMBS OF GOD ( Au/Pseudo fan game/World-building )

NEVER WONDER ( Slumbering titans and the land of dreams )

LOGLOG ( Dev log for the fan game part of Lambs of God, also on Bsky and on the Cotl Discord )

📭Asks are always welcomed! I like to take my time crafting a response though so I may not respond as quick as others. Might take a few days to a few months

I have a terrible terrible habit of rewriting my posts very often also so please don't mind if some things sound a little off . Not very good with words such and such

⚠️ DISCLAIMERS/BYF: I have a spiritual, folk catholic, faith healer background as my mother was a practitioner and involved me in her beliefs, as a result what I make is going to be derivative of those experiences and the experiences of others in my community. I will appear a bit standoffish or cold as a result of this too, sorries 💔 I'll have to keep an arms length to most of you for my own sanity

TWS Unfortunately I can't realistically tag all of my posts with trigger warnings everytime, but the ones that you'll have to look out for and that'll appear often (but aren't necessarily explicit) are: Gore, Religious imagery, Religious abuse, Decapitation, Child Death, Child abuse, Animal death, Suicide, Dead bodies, Body horror, Pregnancy horror(implied), Self harm, Watching people sleep, Nudity, and more.

Some of these are treated as regular jokes characters would make to make fun of themselves and their own predicaments but know that doesn't take away from the actual severity of the thing, there happens to be alot of cruelty that doesn't seem apparent on first viewing but it will always be there for you to find, view responsibly and stay safe!

Pr0sh1p/T3rfs DNI. And anyone neutral. I think you are all annoying

Extra FAQ under the read more ↓ check out my friend MTSODIE : )

FAQ:

Asks & dms

📫 ASKBOX

As mentioned above, all is welcomed, I'd however appreciate if you extend some of your courtesy to me and do not send me anything that's along the lines of being sexually charged. Suggestive jokes are fine, calling them attractive is a okay too, I'm an adult but that doesn't warrant that I'll be over the moon with extremely descriptive inappropriate asks. Alright? mind yourself. If you'd feel uncomfortable sending it to a stranger or a teenager think twice before sending it in.

Don't send me personal discourse. If you have a problem with another user that I wouldn't know personally it should be dealt with privately. In no way am I ever going to be in a position where I can give you a resolute answer for this. Remember, I am just a random guy, on the web!

Related but slightly unrelated, I will block people freely, whether you've done the above or not, that's just how I like to curate what I see and I do it very often. It's not personal! Please don't take it as such.

Otherwise, everything else is free reign (unless I say so) go nuts, Insane even.

📨DMS

Anyone can dm! ask box rules still apply. Can't guarantee that I'll reply back if the conversation starts with just a "Hi" or "How are you" . I'd really only prefer you message me if there's something to tell or I've done something to elicit you to do so.

General

💬Do you like Narilamb?

No I want to drop hot boiling oil on Narinder ( half truth joke )

💬Where does your username come from?

Its Rambouillet with "Lamb" instead of Ram : ^ )

💬 what's your lamb's name/pronouns/gender/etc?

They / them nonbinary androgynous, because I like to keep them as "ungendered" as they are in the game thats just how I prefer them!

As for a name, they don't really have one! Nor do they deserve one honestly, they don't deserve anything.

Endearingly though, I tend to use Lambie as a little nickname and I DO like the name Lambert because it makes me giggle, but I will only use both for personal and organisation reasons, not because its their name . In universe they're "The Lamb" and nothing else, theres no name behind the title.

ART RELATED

🎁Can I make Fanart/Fanfics of your au/ocs?

Of course! Absolutely! You don't even need to ask! Only thing I'll ask of you though is for you to tag me in them so I can see them... These will always guarantee a smile on my face.

🎭can I use your art as a pfp/post it to Pinterest?

I'd rather you not use my art for anything unless you've had my permission or its art I made for you! Definitely don't post it around other places without my knowledge. I don't have any other active socials besides here and Bluesky under Lambouillet

🎨🖌️Program and brushes

I use Clip studio paint for most of my art, Aseprite every once in a while and Spine2d for my sprites!

I change what I use sporadically so I can't give you a proper answer on EVERY brush I use but here are my frequent ones:

Shockgrunge Marker and Pencil

Kasuy MK sploon

Tacodemuerte Mrsplotchy

Scribbly Dark

Jarijari

Bathylychnops Brushes

Intoxicate set

🚩 Where'd you get the borders from?

I made them! Part1 Part2

Wip Master post and useful visualiser for anyones whos read this far ♥️ muah

One last thing:

I know I mentioned that I had specific experiences that are very specific to me and don't get me wrong it did impact my life to a level thats obviously not normal but also, I am not the arbiter of the experience of every practitioner, cult or religious group. With every situation this experience can vary and be influenced from culture to culture, folklore, upbringing, religion and history. There are some things that I will just NOT know and it's not my place to say whats true and what's false. It would be better if you seeked out somebody who is to ask and do your own readings, but always be sure to approach with a level of sensitivity and tact. Don't try to treat these people as wells of information you can dry up, its ghoulish.

Extra tags directory for my convenience:

#🗃️ - Archive

#🖼️ - Favourites

#📖 - Comics

#relinquary

#prattles

#manuscripts

[msabs]

(artist: @nautls11)

The first month of 2025 has come and gone, and MSABS has been officially under development now for six months. What an incredible milestone - half a year has passed, and yet the people involved in this project are still as passionate as ever. Despite our setbacks and busy schedules, the MSABS team has tinkered away on this game bit by bit, and hopefully, a demo will be available at some point this year.

The MSABS dev team has also decided upon a real, official name: we are DESTIRE. It is a combination of desire and destiny; both important themes in JRWI: Riptide and two major driving forces behind our determination to finish MSABS.

As for our actual game development progress, let's first check out the art department. Some ideas for the "loading" screens have been drafted, a fun way to transition between character POVs.

(artist: @nautls11)

In the writing department, further exploration of one of the many doorways on the 1st floor of the stronghold has been written. Here's a few snippets:

(writer: @ralexsol)

As has become our unfortunate reality, many of Destire have already returned to school and are facing insane schedules that hardly allow time to contribute to MSABS. Our passion is still there, though; this game is on our minds often. If you or anyone you know has free time and experience in pixel art, writing, and/or coding in ren'py, please join the Destire Discord! The more volunteers we have, the faster this project will move along.

May the spring semester bring joy to you all, despite the recent troubles the world is now facing and will continue to face for the next few years. In dark times, it is community that enables us to survive in spite of oppression. Be loud, be brave, and most importantly, be kind.

[thatskynews]

Sky Patched Calendar Ver. 0.26.0: A Guide for Sky Events

SkyFest (Sky Anniversary Celebration)

Season of Duet

Tournament of Triumph

SkyFest: A 5th Birthday Like No Other! (July 12 - July 26)

Duration: 17:00 July 12th through 23:59 July 26th; all times PDT, UTC -7. (Yes, not the daily reset time. This is so the in-game celebration starts at the exact same time that the in-person SkyFest celebration starts in Tokyo, Japan!)

From July 12th through 14th, you can find actual in-game livestreams of talks in these locations:

History of Sky Gallery (Isle of Dawn)

Art of Sky Gallery (Hidden Forest)

SkyFest Cinema (Eye of Eden)

Scheduled Events

July 12

19:00 - Guided Tour of Sky’s History with the devs (History Gallery) - Join us on a live tour through the History Gallery as we share stories and more about how Sky became what it is today!

20:00 - SkyFest 2024 Keynote with Jenova Chen (SkyFest Cinema) - Let’s just say, you don’t want to miss this one…

23:00 - How We Got 10,000 Players into a Level (SkyFest Cinema) - Here’s a peek at how our engineering team created the tech that helped us set a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title!

July 13

18:00 - Design at Record-Breaking Scale in Sky: Children of the Light (SkyFest Cinema) - It’s okay, you can cry! Learn how the team designed the AURORA Concert to make it a memorable and moving experience.

19:00 - Guided Tour of Sky’s Art with the devs (Art Gallery) - Take a tour through the Art Gallery as we talk about some of the art that played a key role in Sky’s development.

22:00 - An Exploration of the Art of Sky (SkyFest Cinema) - How did Sky first come to life in its earliest days? See how art played a key role in the ideas that ultimately evolved into Sky’s world and lore.

July 14

00:00 - Designing to Reduce Toxicity in Online Games (SkyFest Cinema) - How do you make a game that welcomes everybody, with a world that allows compassion and generosity to blossom?

01:00 - SkyFest LIVE Community Concert (SkyFest Cinema) - Sky’s first-ever live in-game concert! Player musicians from around the world will give a memorable performance featuring classic favorites, original compositions, and of course, some of the community’s favorite Sky songs. (This is a one-time-only concert that won’t replay after July 14th, so be sure to join us at the SkyFest Cinema to see it!)

During SkyFest, you can take a shortcut to the secret area by meditating at the Events Shop in Aviary Village. The gates are open to all, so you can join the dance party and watch Spirits take the rooftop stage. Just for the 5th anniversary, the Secret Area will have a display of three capes from past collaborations—the display will allow you to teleport to the special areas that came with each collab, no cape use necessary!

Four star-shaped tokens can be found around the village each day.

New Items

SkyFest 5th Anniversary Headband: 4 event currency

SkyFest Jenova Fan: 8 event currency

SkyFest 5th Anniversary T-shirt: 12 event currency

SkyFest Star Jar: 16 event currency

(40 tickets in total / 4 = 10 days to get all items - 15 days of the event = 5 days extra time)

New IAPs:

SkyFest Oreo Headband: $4.99 (all prices USD)

SkyFest Wireframe Cape: $19.99 - This cape comes with a special ability: After SkyFest ends, it can be used to access the SkyFest version of Aviary, including the History and Art Galleries plus the SkyFest Cinema. Videos from the SkyFest Cinema will replay after SkyFest on a schedule. (Please note that this cape provides access to the SkyFest event spaces ONLY.)

Returning Items

Anniversary Party Lights: 33 Hearts

Anniversary Sonorous Seashell: 33 Ascended Candles

Light Fence, Birthday Flag props: 20 Candles each

Balloon prop: 30 Candles

Happy Birthday Music Sheet: 10 Hearts

Confetti Launcher: 20 Hearts

Anniversary Plush: $9.99

Season of Duets (July 15 to September 29th)

Season Pass holders have the chance to unlock three Ultimate Gifts, and a mask can be unlocked for regular Candles even after the Season ends.

Season of Duets begins at July 15th and continues until September 29th.

Tournament of Triumph (July 29 to August 18th)

New Format to the Event Currency System:

2 event currency in the event area daily

Event currency pool (1): 25 in the first ten days of the event

Event currency pool (2): 25 in the second ten days of the event

5 event currency in the event area on the last day (Aug. 18)

Players can earn one event currency each time they complete a Tournament game, including after repeating a game, up to the total number of event currency available in each “pool.” Then, 25 more become available when the second half of the Tournament begins.

Event Items

Tournament Curls: 25 event currency

Tournament Torch: 37 event currency

Tournament Golden Garland: $4.99

Tournament Tunic: $9.99

[felassan]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard info compilation Post 4

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [another post]

Post is under a cut due to length.

There is a lot of information coming out right now about DA:TV from many different sources. This post is just an effort to compile as much as I can in one place, in case that helps anyone. Sources for where the information came from have been included. Where I am linking to a social media user’s post, the person is either a dev, a Dragon Age community council member or other person who has had a sneak peek at and played the game. nb, this post is more of a ‘info that came out in snippets from articles and social media posts’ collection rather than a ‘regurgitating the information on the official website or writing out what happened in the trailer/gameplay reveal’ post. The post is broken down into headings on various topics. A few points are repeated under multiple headings where relevant. Where I am speculating without a source, I have clearly demarcated this. if you notice any mistakes in this post, please tell me.

Character Creation

BioWare confirmed that even if you make your Rook a short king, the team has done work to ensure animations fit any character build [source]

"Dragon Age's character creator has seen a massive glow-up" [source]. "The volume of choices you get here are frankly insane. As Epler noted, “you could spend forever here,” and he’s not kidding." [source] The art and graphics teams spent a lot of time trying to make hair look amazing [source: the Discord]

In CC we can customise our "bulge size" [source]

Some more detail on the new lighting options to see how Rook looks like in CC when you make them: you can view them in "blazing forest sunshine versus the glare of an underground temple" [source]

"newly mobile, extra-hairy hair" [source]

Faction choice has statistical boons. For example, Shadow Dragon Rook deals extra damage to Venatori blood cultists [source]

Faction choice basically determines why Rook has been called to help in the fight against Solas [source]

All pre-determined character models in CC can be adjusted [source]

You can make a really tall dwarf if you want [source]

"Setting your previous world state is fully integrated into the character creator for Veilguard" [source: the Discord]

Inquisitor appearance will be re-created, there is no way to carry their appearance from DA:I into the game [source: the Discord]

Classes for Rook are not restricted in the sense that you can play any almost class, lineage and faction combination that you want. For example, a mage Rook can be a Crow [source: the Discord] (Fel note: it sounded like Rook cannot be a magic-wielding dwarf, even though the exception of Harding now exists) (Fel note: there is a mage Crow in one of the books)

Story and lore

Here is another article which refers to Rook as "the Rook" [source]

The story is set "9-10 years from DA:I and about 8 years from Trespasser" [source: the Discord]

They have been tracking Solas for "a while. Something else you’re gonna learn about…" [source]

The game does not use the Keep [source]

Shadow Dragon is the faction background with the most in-game reactivity (e.g. from other characters' dialogue) during the prologue section of the game, due to the fact that the prologue is in Minrathous and the Shadow Dragons are a Tevinter-based faction [source]

"I also saw a big moment after the gameplay trailer ends that I can't talk about" [source]

During the more narrative-heavy dialogue choices, "the game will also give a bit of context on what you're about to choose, but doesn't go as far as explaining the exact consequences or precisely what will happen thereafter" [source] "the game shows you how you’ll go about the choice, but it doesn’t tell you the consequence of that choice". [source]

"The game is bringing back Dragon Age 2s dialogue system, which was tone-based and resulted in its protagonist Hawke falling into one of three different personality states. You have three general tones in a conversation: kind, humorous, or aggressive, with slight variations depending on the situation" [source]

"Venatori blood cultists" [source]

"The whole game has the makings of another Suicide Mission [ME2], given that you are up against a god with the ability to collapse dimensions" [source]

"Choices and consequences". "Now, it seems you can see the effects of your choices like never before, and this time, they marry that choice with incredible visuals" [source]

In the bar when you're trying to get information in the opening, if you choose to fight it out and the barbrawl ensues, you then have to run from the pursuers in the bar [source]

A key concern of the developers when creating the environments was to make “a world worth saving" [source]

The prologue is quite linear but there are additional paths you can follow to find additional loot [source]

In the opening section of the game there is a dock which has been attacked and the soldiers that were there have been killed, "but rather than seeing this passively, we walked through the aftermath and had to interact with the scene to piece it all together" [source]

The tone of the gameplay video is a good indicator of the tone of the rest of the game [source]. On the tone: "dark fantasy" [source]. horror & gore is back along with DA's classic dark elements [source]

Tevinter Nights is a better tone indicator for the game than the original reveal/character trailer. Ghil Dirthalen: "Tevinter Nights has felt the most 'DAV' to me" [source]. The gameplay reveal video is the best indicator for the tone of the game (vs the character one) [source]. there is still messy dark shit in the game [source]

Tonally the game is closest to Tevinter Nights and DA:O [source]

Ghil Dirthalen: "[as] one of those unfortunate souls who has latched onto a media world so hard: This game is for me. For the hardcore DA lore nerds, I've been secretly screaming about things I saw for MONTHS now" [source]

The game is true to the DA stories we know and love [source]

Characters, companions, romance

You can choose to engage in companions' own storylines as you progress or ignore them entirely [source]

You will often have to make dialogue choices that will affect how your various companions treat you [source]

Neve is quick-witted [source], measured and elegant [source]

In the opening, you interact with the companions as you move through Minrathous. "your choices during these interactions will determine who goes on portions of the mission with you, along with how “pleased” they are with the answers." [source]

On Varric and Harding: "Instantly the two felt like they’d never been away and avoided the trap of being parodies or fanfiction versions of themselves" [source]

Solas' eyes were always purple hh [source] (yes!)

Gameplay, presentation, performance etc

Some enemies have additional shields that are weak to ranged attacks [source]

When asked about if the war table from DA:I returned, John Epler said "There is a table. Now, whether it works the same way as the table in the previous game..." [source]

Once you get passed a certain point in the game, it opens up dramatically, however it is not an openworld game and they wanted to make sure that all the content mattered and was a more structured, sculpted experience for the player. There is some exploration, some opportunities to get off the beaten path, and some spaces that are fairly wide [source]

The button to press to bring up the skill wheel is RB or R1 (depending on what controller you're using) [source]

"You'll also have access to two skills or spells for each of your two companions that you can command. For a more seamless, uninterrupted combat experience, you can also assign these skills to shortcuts (such as holding the left trigger and hitting the X button) to quickly use them" [source]

"The game is bringing back Dragon Age 2s dialogue system, which was tone-based and resulted in its protagonist Hawke falling into one of three different personality states. You have three general tones in a conversation: kind, humorous, or aggressive, with slight variations depending on the situation" [source]

"booting Fade demons into pits" [source]

"BioWare have revised Dragon Age's art direction to make character models a little more consistent with the series' lovely Tarot-inspired menu art. Flesh is ruddy to the point of painterly; facial features and bodily proportions are thicker and more striking, as though the characters had been cut from clay" [source]

The 3 specs for Warrior are Reaper (has lifesteal/stealing health from enemies, and other freaky powers, does big damage), Slayer (can wield the biggest blade, big swords, big damage) or Champion, which is tanky, shield-using and Paladin like [source] [source]

There are quick-recover prompts [source]

You can roll through puddles of incoming AOE [source]

There are ziplines between some levels levels [source] (Fel note: just like in As We Fly... )

There are also slidey hills to slide down between some sections [source]

There are still some Hinterland-type areas designed for exploration [source]

We can do some home base management to our home base [source] (Fel note: this refers to The Lighthouse, detail in a previous post)

Camera placement is quite zoomed out [source]

Where Rogues have 'momentum', Warriors have 'rage' and Mages 'mana'. When a warrior spends rage in the ability wheel it triggers more powerful attacks. this has been referred to as a build-and-spend mechanic. this system resource gates your use of more powerful skills and is built by getting stuck in [source]. Momentum for Rogues is built by landing hits without taking any [source]

There are big glowing environmental cues for picking up loot or replenishing health potions [source]

"Epler noted that The Veilguard will not be an open-world experience like Inquisition, and instead will have large spaces to explore with quests littered throughout. This allayed my early concerns that they would course correct too hard from the oft-maligned open areas of Inquisition" [source]

Melee and ranged attacks can be charged up [source]

It sounds like there is an option to have greater guidance on when enemies are attacking [source]

The community council gave a lot of notes on the game's art direction to BioWare (gave feedback to the devs) that they were told and shown were changed from the first reveal/character trailer, these made it into the gameplay trailer [source]

The community council asked about having an arachnophobia mode, though they can't guarantee this was implemented [source]

"You’re encouraged to explore and grind for stronger weapons and gear, so your stats and cosmetics improve the further you get into the game" (in the sense that you’ll be rewarded for hard work) [source, two]

Follower information such as cooldowns and health will be visible on the HUD [source: the Discord]

There is a "quick cast" option if you prefer not to use the wheel, should be a chorded action using a controller [source: the Discord]

On PC you can play with keyboard and mouse or controller [source: the Discord]

An accessibility option is the ability to make auto-targeting stronger or weaker depending on your preference [source: the Discord]

The game will have DLSS support at launch [source: the Discord]

Re: hard drives, the game can be played using an HDD, they would recommend an SSD though for the optimal experience [source: the Discord]

There are lots of different interface options you can play with, e.g. combat text size, opacity, when to display health bars [source: the Discord]

Other

The leak from last year or whenever it was (the one that leaked screenshots and a gif from the game) was mainly a lot of outdated stuff and didn't really represent even the early version some community council members had played [source, two]. It was not leaked by a member of the community council, but by a member of another focus group [source]

The community council were given the chance to play the game twice, once in Fall 2022 and a year later in 2023 [source]

There is no information as yet regarding when pre-orders will be open [source: the Discord]

BioWare are hoping to at the very least have the very "best of" the Discord dev Q&A featured on social media and potentially in a blog [source: the Discord]

[☕ found this post or blog interesting or useful? my ko-fi is here if you feel inclined. thank you 🙏]

[pretzel-box]

Greetings,

my name is Chea. I'm a retired author for the pressure fandom. I know I said I won't post here anymore, but we reached a line where I feel forced to speak up.

1. WRITINGS

All my pressure related works will most likely get deleted due to the drama with the devs and the community. I won't elaborate further. Please do your own research for information.

You can save the work you like, but please do not repost them anywhere. This would be an insult against me.

The ideas itself will probably get recycled for future posts on my new blog @satori-runa

Please mind that any mentions of pressure and its lore will not be included.

2. ORIGINAL CHARACTERS

Sasha was never a real pressure oc. She was more some sort of persona that I gave a pressure background lore. I will hereby void all of that, so she's just a persona again. All interactions with her are now not valid.

Same with Charles, he won't be a pressure oc anymore but a placeholder oc for whatever fandom I feel like.

3. INTERACTIONS

I'll make myself clear.

If you support the devs or the game, leave now. I am not comfortable getting associated with the fandom and the game itself any longer. This whole place got ruined.

Thank you very much for your time.

And with best regards,

Chea.

[galoogamelady]

What’s Fallout like? Like I know I can google what kind of game it is but more than that what games would you compare it to? and is it more story-based or gameplay-based?

That's a difficult one to answer and I'm not sure I have the authority to do it lol

But I'll try!

The Fallout fandom is fairly complicated due to the IP being passed around and the lore/values of its storytelling being muddied over the years. That being said I think both old-school and new fans would still agree that the story is the most important element, as they're meant to be role playing games where you make decisions on often heavy matters (especially in the games of the original devs).

Fallout 1 and 2 are turn-based isometric rpg-s from the late 90s. If you like that type of gameplay, they're fantastic games and cult classics. They don't shy away from heavy themes.

Then the IP got sold to Bethesda and their version of Fallout is a FPS/TPS action experience, as seen in Fallout 3 and 4. The combat is fun but even the newest game is shit by shooter standards. If you played an Elder Scrolls game (like Skyrim), they're like that but set in a retro futuristic post apocalypse. A large slice of the fandom has only played these ones and skipped the original turn-based games.

Fallout New Vegas was made by the original team but using Bethesda's engine. Many fans would tell you that out of the modern titles, that's the one with the best writing.

Fallout 4 was a very popular title due to the scrap and build system. As you adventure, you can scavenge all sorts of trash and then build your own little settlements in the wasteland and populate them with settlers. Add mods to that, and the community really did some magic. It made people connect with the world of Fallout on a personal level.

The story in a nutshell: in an alternate timeline, survivors of a devastating nuclear war are trying to rebuild and make the irradiated wasteland of the United States liveable again but every group and faction has a different take on how society should be rebuilt. When the writing is done well, your choices have weight and it's impossible to be fair and please everyone. You get to discover a variety of different factors that lead to the Great War and you have to wager whether humanity is doomed to make the same mistakes all over again. Is there a way to avoid them? What kind of sacrifices does that require? Etc.

A lot of it is supposed to be a critical look at war, 50s Americana and the dangers of nationalism, rampant consumerism, xenophobia, etc.

Hope this helped a little! It's difficult to find two Fallout fans who are on the exact same opinion of all the games. I personally think, the fun part of the games is when you get to carve a little slice out of the wasteland for yourself and your community and the stimulating part is the overarching story and lore.

It's no wonder the original writers made The Outer Worlds too, which I don't consider a legendary game but the similarities are obvious in the themes.

[rubblerousers]

RubbleRousers Kickstarter Postmortem

As you may have seen, the RubbleRousers Kickstarter unfortunately failed at around 50% of our goal. Let me start by saying thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to each and every person who made a pledge. It is amazing that we made it as far as we did.

I also want to assure you that this is not the end of the project, just a setback. More details below.

The goal of raising funds has always been for two reasons:

To pay the wonderful artists in the community who are working on the project

To pay for server hosting costs

At this point, since the game isn't live, the second point is largely irrelevant.

In the future, there will be another Kickstarter, potentially with a lower goal. For right now, I will continue working on the game in my own free time, just as I have been.

You might be wondering how you can help with the project, and help bring RubbleRousers to reality. If that is you, thank you! You're what's keeping this project alive.

Here's the main ways you can help with the project:

Volunteer your time and skills. If you are willing to volunteer some time on the project, I'd love to hear from you. Please contact me if you have any of the following skills: Character (cat) art, item art, environment art, apparel art, graphic design, UI/UX design, frontend web dev (Angular-Bootstrap tech stack). This is a very low-obligation position, and you will never be pushed to contribute more time than you are able or willing to.

Donate. Any donations received will be used to pay artists for asset creation. You are welcome to ask where your donation goes, and I can tell you exactly what asset(s) were made with your donation. Find us on Kofi.

Offer your thoughts and opinions. We have a Discord server where I frequently post updates and, more importantly, seek feedback. We've had great discussions on things like how to best include gender and sexuality in the game in a respectful manner, and what kind of combat system to include. Note that members must be 16+ to encourage mature discussion.

Thank you all for reading. Now, I have to get back to coding :3

[smews]

Re: The Veilguard worldstate and prior choices.

I know that we don't all have to have opinions about every little thing, nor do we have to share them but I just wanted to add one more voice in case others feel the same.

We haven't played the game. We don't know what the story is, not really. All of the marketing and communication from devs so far seem intent on stressing that the game will be about found family and your companions. I can see a case being made for characters being very focused on the task at hand. Harding might have opinions and stories all about every event in Inquisition, but will the events of The Veilguard present her with a situation where she would want to mention the Chargers? Would the narrative be served by it?

How much will we be interacting with Morrigan? Is she in a position where she would feel comfortable or want to mention having or not having a son when the gods are unleashing chaos? Will we get to really know her as Rook or will we interact once and then the rest of the time she shows up is just us observing her?

Will Rook even get to interact directly with the Inquisitor? Or will we only see them in Solas's memories?

What story are they really aiming to tell here? People who have gotten to play it say that it has more impactful choices and branching situations based on those choices than any other Dragon Age game. Did this branching mean that they couldn't incorporate prior decisions, or did they find that the story they wanted to tell didn't require input of previous decisions?

I'm disappointed, yes. But I'm not angry and I can think of potential reasons why they would go this route. My prior choices still matter to me and to my experience and personal narrative when playing the previous games.

My long-winded point is that we don't know. Play the game, don't play the game. Like it, don't like it. It is okay to be upset and to feel let down. I'm sure I will have some criticisms, but I can't criticize what I haven't played yet.

And for those who feel greatly affected by this, please remember that this is not a direct attack on you. The writers are telling the story that they want to tell, we get to consume it. Maybe we'll send it back to the kitchen, maybe we'll get some mods and add some salt and pepper if it's not to your taste, but please don't threaten or attack the chefs. This is not a waffle house.

[box-off]

Hey guys, as much as I HATE internet drama and personally have a lot of stuff to worry about in real life instead of wasting my time here, discussing WHATEVER. I have to come here and talk about this.

First of all, I personally LOVE postal. All of the games, I own merch of it, I own the games, I even own the movie. I drew and will draw a lot of stuff about the game. I enjoy playing it, I enjoy creating for it, I just like it. And when I came around here I was pretty excited, there were a lot of people who share my interests and there still are BUT there's a bit of a problem.

I haven't been posting much stuff related to the games, mostly because I just didn't have time and I do other stuff that is not always related. And while I was away I kinda started noticing a bit of a shift in the fandom, maybe it's just me watching it from the perspective of someone who doesn't interact with it that much by now, but damn it does feel strange.

I'm going to dedicate this post to my dear @mayonnara, and if you want to see their point of view on this, please go check their recent posts.

True crime. True crime is interesting, if you think about it well enough, all human history is true crime but there's a bit difference between "Wow, this story is interesting, I wonder how that happened" and "Wow, those guys are hot and thanks to that we'll dismiss what they did, which is, killing people". You guys??? Are dumb. Sorry to say it, but don't put people who are genuinely interested in just crimes that happened and idiots who worship killers. I don't like when people worship real life people in general, but come on, those people specifically?? Why not go for Hitler straight away? He killed more people! Go to a fucking cult if you need to worship weird people so bad.

On other hand, you're not welcomed in the Postal community. When you enter any of the games the first thing you see is.... drum roll... A DISCLAIMER. That says what? "No violence in real life", "violence should stay in video games", and hey, did we all forget what is one of the reasons postal redux doesn't end the same way postal 1997 ends? Guys... sorry to tell you this... The devs DO NOT like people like you.

Reminds me a lot of how some smart-ass decided to make an edgy joke about a worker from RWS who had a really serious health problem. The game might be edgy, the RWS made it that way, yes. But I doesn't mean they enjoy you dumb fucking idiots who think that what is normal in a fictional world is okay in real life. Sick and twisted all you want, but have some dignity, keep your bullshit to yourself

[marshmelman]

New Agere Website FAQ!

If you're looking at my profile, it's probably related to my website project, so here's a quick FAQ for your convenience.

Last updated 3/19/25

- What is it?

The website I want to build is going to primarily be a social media platform, but it would also function as a resource directory (links to other helpful websites, info pages for fighting the stigma) and have some free activities (online games, coloring pages, a gear shop). I want it to be a one-stop-agere-shop as much as possible, so make sure to let me know what kinds of things you want to add to it!

- Who is it for?

It would be specifically for all regressors/dreamers and cgs. This also includes pet regressors, system littles, age dysphorics, and anyone else who has a "kid in an adult body" type of experience. However it is not a fandom site, so hobbies and fandoms that are childhood related but don't involve regression (babyfur, kidcore, popular cartoon fandoms) aren't being catered to and if you're a member of one of those communities without also being a regressor, then probably you won't be very comfortable on the site...

- Why is it being created?

The short version is that regression was incredibly lonely for me and all of the existing sites have issues that make them difficult to navigate as a regressor imo. The full story can be found here!

- When will it be done?

Not for awhile! At this stage, I'm still building up the look and feel of the different sections of the site. So far the homepage is something I'm happy with and you can see a small demo of what it looks like here! Although it has changed a bit since this was recorded. The section I'm currently giving my primary focus is the daycare, so look forward to the next progress report about it! All progress reports get posted to ChuChuu.net, and you can sign up for an email newsletter when new ones drop as well. And it has a coloring book game! Give it a look, why dontcha.

-How can I help?

Please share the link to my interest community survey, tinyurl.com/marshmelman with anyone you know in the community that might be willing or able to share their input on whether they want me to continue with this project, and, if I do, what features they want me to work on building. If you use more image-based websites (pinterest, insta), there's also a handy flyer at the bottom of this post!

- I have another question!

The best way to ask me questions directly is to send me an ask right here on tumblr. Asks will be tagged as "*raises hand*", so you can see previously asked questions. Also see my long list of answers to someone's long list of good questions pinned to my reddit profile u/marshmelmann. there's an anonymous ask box on the dev log site, chuchuu.net as well! Questions I answer on the dev site get cross posted here because the dev site doesn't have a notification system.