#he only says it once per playthrough

[eyepatchdate]

got a screenshot of this line finally :)

[wlwinry]

do you have anymore thistlecaster headcanons 👀

its been a thousand years since i got this ask im so sorry irl and writing stuff has just been a nightmare. but to answer your question, yes, i do!

gorgug games. for fun. fabian, as a guy raised on the celestine sea who only got to solace at like age 14-16 (i refuse to believe he was adventuring for two years and was still at level one), does not. gorgug decides he's gonna show fabian how

this leads to the thistlecaster purrmon (pokemon) spiritsteel (soulsilver) playthrough

fabian meanwhile is perfectly content to watch gorgug play but he's so genuinely touched by how much gorgug wants to share this hobby with him that he's immediately all in

he's got the controls but he spends most of his time leaning against gorgug's chest holding the fantasy ds and asking for advice

they pick a starter together. it's named hang and the next two purrmon are van and man

when they're eventually full adults doing full adult things they like to surprise each other with sweet meaningful gestures

gorgug will drop by fabian's studio during late rehearsals with coffee (for caffeine) and dinner (for sustenance). all of fabian's fellow dancers adore this guy btw. theyre constantly bemoaning the fact that fabian is hot and rich and has a cute boyfriend who treats him wonderfully and fabian is just like >:) yes i am and yes i do

(he frequently is brought to tears by this though. no one believes he takes gorgug for granted bc theyve caught him tearing up over the notes gorgug puts in his dinner bag)

similarly fabian will stop by when gorgug is in class (getting a teaching degree bc he does not care what aguefort says he's getting a degree before he starts meddling in the lives of kids. also double-majoring in arcane engineering) to whisk him away for lunch

if gorgug has an exam coming up he is all in on making sure gorgug gets as much study time as he needs

he will also show up before the exam starts and quite firmly kiss gorgug and tell him that no matter what happens he will always be the most wonderful person and the greatest wizard of this age

all gorgug's classmates are confused but it gets gorgug to laugh and not be so stressed going into the exam

and after every exam fabian brings gorgug flowers

also in combat they're so. scary

i can't emphasize this enough

it's like fighting people who can read each other's minds. as the main martial and melee combatants for their party (and i think the bad kids still do adventure, they just limit it to once per year for a while) theyre really used to fighting as a team

they know each other's body language so well and they balance each other perfectly. gorgug's strength and endurance and fabian's dexterity and speed. theyre scary

they adore each other so very much. and tease each other a lot but still

theyre everything to me

[astridkai]

My Thoughts on the Romanceable Characters in Coral Island

This is going to be part one with the men + Raj. Merfolk will be their own post because this got long. I also start a little mean, please stay with me here-

DISCLAIMER!!: I am not done with all the heart events, so this is subject to change! I'm also still on my first playthrough. Please don't take anything personally if I don't like your favorite character, it's a game and not that serious. Most of my bad reviews are focused more on being funny than trying to prove a character is "bad". I really love this game and all the characters! These are just my current thoughts (or lack thereof) on them.

Ben

Starting off strong because I hate this man. First of all, he reminds me of an ex so I immediately dislike him a little bit. Then he was gone a whole season and had the audacity to send me an errand in the mail. But that doesn't go into my main problem with him (spoilers for his heart events).

He has a 20-some-odd year old duck named Fun Bucket. Cute, right? Well poor little Fun Bucket fall ill. Tragic! Heartbreaking! What does Ben do? Maybe take his beloved companion to the ranchers (that live like a 10 minute walk away from him) that probably know something about vet care? Maybe try getting some animal medicine? Possibly see if maybe there's food he can feed to help Fun Bucket feel better? None of the above!

This guy just wraps him in a blanket, sits him outside with a TV (which in my game was the middle of winter), and feeds the duck pizza. Pizza. Ducks, notoriously, shouldn't be eating bread! What is pizza? Bread with toppings. Then he waits an absurd amount of time to stop being in denial about Fun Bucket needing medical attention and takes the duck-- duck. D-U-C-K. Duck, the bird-- to a HUMAN DOCTOR to figure out whats wrong with him.

It made me dislike him strongly, I would not trust that man on my farm with my beloved animals. Ever.

Charles

I'm not done with his heart events, so right now he's just kinda...there? The sneezing and dying in spring and refusing to take an antihistamine (per a dialogue line from Yuri I got like once) is very real of him.

Kenny

Kenny!!! I love him so much :D! Planning on romancing him (maybe, undecided still). He won me over with a dialogue about a wasp, because I love bugs and I think people need more empathy for them. I love how he likes animals and nature so much, because so do I. And from what I can tell, he seems very sweet!

Luke

I am done with his heart events, and honestly? Just there, and has rich parents. He has a really cute dog, Taco is great. During the winter fair he has a line about staying with Taco on the beach while he takes a nap, and I thought that was cute.

Mark

I made a post about his reaction to getting a loved gift on his birthday, and it cursed him in my game forever. If I get his actual dialogue, it's a miracle sent by Hell to taunt me. His dialogue box is just a blank white screen and clicking off gives a quick flash of whatever the last NPC I talked to said. According to my save, Mark doesn't exist anymore.

Noah

He's cute and sweet! I thought the scene in the library about the fairy he was researching was fun. I was going to romance him, but he is so worried about leaving his mom alone and her possibly getting hurt that I felt bad at the idea of making him move out.

Pablo

No. The first thing he says to me is "Damn, I wasn’t expecting you to look like THIS" immediately no. Absolutely not. Then I get to his heart events and this man has atrocious listening skills! His brother doesn't want to feel ignored. What does he do? Ignores every aspect of his brother and brings him to things that Pablo, and only Pablo (exaggerated), enjoys! When finally confronted about this his first response is just "What's the difference?" WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!? Sure he fixes it in the end, but still don't like it. No.

Rafael

He seems sweet, and I relate to him a lot from what I've seen. He is also glitched- I'll probably romance him in a different playthrough. I think he's very interesting and from what I've seen on here is very husband worthy, just...he will only talk to me about the Wind Gate opening. I am so hoping for that to be fixed in a patch/update.

Raj

Almost didn't like them because of the coffee obsession. But then their dialogue lines started to be about other things, and I fell in love with them. And the coffee thing became endearing when I learned more about Raj. 100% going to marry them in my next save (I might film that one, unsure). Actively making an OC to ship them with.

Scott

I don't run into him much so he's kinda there. I do like that his personality seems a little unfit to his interest (at least that's the consensus I've seen some people have, I don't totally agree with it but moving on), I think it makes him a little more interesting. I will not be romancing him ever because he has the same name as a family member and that feels weird.

Surya

Another one I was going to romance! I really liked that he moved to the island shortly before the Farmer did, I think that it'd be fun to think about Surya and the Farmer figuring out the island together. Only reason I didn't actually romance him is I don't like having kids on my first saves in farming sims (no valid reason for that btw) and he has a line about wanting the coral reefs to be around for his future kids to enjoy so I felt bad.

Theo

I'm trying really hard to have an opinion on him that is more than just "I like that he likes music and also he's hot" but I can't right now. I'll blame this on sleep deprivation and come back in 3-5 business days if a thought forms.

Wakuu

His relationship with his dad reminds me a little of my relationship with my mom. Seeing Wakuu being able to make some amends with his dad and his dad actually acknowledging he messed up was something that made me feel hopeful for my own life. That has made Wakuu an important character to me.

Not all my ideas are fleshed out because I'm not done with all the events!! I also just don't interact much with some of them (like Theo, Scott, and Luke). If I play on a different save and romance some of them, my opinions will probably change. Thank you for reading this far, I appreciate it :)

[alby-rei]

Prologue (IkeVamp; Luigi's Mansion AU, Part 1)

a/n: Heavily (more like, entirely) inspired by @scummy-writes's playthrough of Luigi's Mansion. 'Twas a lot of fun merging the wackiness of that game with the IkeVamp universe! Multiple parts have already been written, to varying degrees of polish, so I'll be posting them on a schedule (Tentatively, one part per week). Without further ado, Enjoyyy ✨

Series: Comte's Ghost Mansion Tags: Humor, Crack treated seriously, Luigi's Mansion AU, Spooky scary spectral vampires, Ghostbuster MC Word Count: 1000 words Characters: You, Sebastian, Comte (mentioned) Next: Part 2

~*~

You woke up in a dark endless abyss with a headache.

"Where...am I?"

You were not sure how long you were out for, but it must have been a long time.

Last you remembered, you were walking around the Louvre museum in the daytime. A handsome man in a three-piece tailored suit had graciously retrieved your earring from the ground, only to drop and forgot his own handkerchief.

You, wanting nothing more than to return the favor, sought to return it to him. Your quest led you to a secluded section of the museum, barren of any foot traffic, and past a set of large double doors that appeared, at the time, as part of the museum experience.

In hindsight, the dwindling number of visitors around you should have alerted you to think otherwise.

Lightning flashed and the hallway blinked in view, like a snapshot captured with a camera shutter. Thunder cracked once, twice, forcing you out of memory lane and back into the present.

In the split-second that you saw the hallway, a line of tall arched windows stood to your left and closed wooden doors to your right. A high-backed chair was stationed between each door, and a framed picture hung above it. A wall blocked the path at one end and extended into darkness in the other. So, not an endless abyss. But it was not the Louvre museum, either.

Slowly, hesitantly, you took a step forward, and another, and then another, keeping your eyes peeled for any signs of an exit. A door creaked nearby.

You scrambled to hide behind the nearest curtains, but you were caught by two firm hands. Your heart lurched in your throat. You turned around to face your assailant, and a second round of lightning gave you a chance to get a good look. It was a young man with grayish hair swept to one side, his eyes narrow and inquisitive.

"Who are you, and how did you get in here?" He asked, though he did not wait for a response. "Doesn't matter, let's get you out before the others notice."

You followed him through the maze of hallways, each turn taking you down an identical path. It was a wonder that your guide could tell heads from tails in the darkness.

"Watch your step," he called out as the two of you descended a set of grand stairs.

Just when you thought you reached the bottom, you were met with more stairs. Blood pumped in your ears as you focused on getting out of here, one step at a time. You sighed in relief when the first sliver of light peeked through the grand double doors at the opposite end of what, you assumed, was the foyer.

Once outside, you gawked at the building you just escaped. It was a three-story mansion. Grapevines crept around and across the walls and into some open windows. Dark clouds loomed over the estate, but the rain died down into a drizzle.  

"Don't fall behind, now!" Your guide called out from the garden up ahead. Rather than continue straight ahead and out the gate, he took a turn going behind the mansion. You stared at the open gate, contemplating your chance of survival. Feeling unsafe venturing out into the unknown, you kept up pace with him along a narrow cobblestone path.

He stopped abruptly, causing you to bump into his back, and asked, "Where did you say you were from?"

You huffed and said, "If you would've let me speak the first time..." You explained your situation to him, and he furrowed his brows. You then barraged him with your own set of questions. Rather than answer any of them, he turned on his heel and talked on the way.

He introduced himself as Sebastian. He woke up in a similar way to what you had described a few years prior.

“I’m sorry, did you say years?” You gaped. What hope did you have of returning home if he had not done so yet?

He continued. "I came face to face with the head of this mansion, a French nobleman who goes by the title, Le Comte de Saint-Germain. He gave me an offer I could not refuse, and so I serve the mansion as its butler."

He stopped in front of a quaint wooden garden shack.

Facing you, he wore a wry smile as he said, "I would like to consider myself lucky, as I haven't seen another human in quite some time. But you, I'm afraid, are out of luck to end up here."

Your eyes shifted. "What do you mean by that?"

"Wait here."

He ducked inside and came out with a backpack that looked an awful lot like a vacuum cleaner. The vacuum tube in his hands only further confirmed your suspicions.

He reminded you of a ghostbuster.

"Unfortunately, I don't know how to get you home. But what I can offer is a means to defend yourself for the night.

"Defend myself?" You echoed. "Against what?"

That was how you ended up back inside the mansion, carrying Sebastian's 'Poltergust 1899' (as he proudly called it) on your back, alongside an oil lamp in hand and an item pouch around your shoulder.

What’s the pouch for? You may be wondering.

After much debate with the butler, you agreed to retrieve "items of interest" for him if he promised to investigate a means of getting you back home. His final remark was to avoid disturbing the mansion's esteemed residents and, contrarily, to report back any interesting behavior you encounter, seemingly of said residents.

The main entrance door creaked open. The mansion's foyer was bedecked with a carpeted floor that stretched up its wide central staircase. White Ionic columns lined the sides. At the top of the stairs, bright moonlight shone through, enveloping the room in a bluish hue.

The door slamming shut behind you pulled your flighty spirit back into its boney prison. Several voices murmured behind the walls.

You caught some of their words, or so you believed.

"A guest?"

"They returned!"

"Oh dear."

"How delightful."

"Go away."

You wished you didn't.

~*~

Back to Masterlist

[palant1r]

my ideas for rewriting fallout 4

So, I've been thinking a lot lately about what writing changes I'd make to Fallout 4. Disclaimer that I've only finished the game once, siding with the minutemen, and I'm currently on a BoS playthrough. And I haven't finished any other Fallout game. So my knowledge is quite limited. But I still have ideas.

(This is gonna be sparse on precise details. I'm going big picture here)

Main problems to fix:

-Main plot is very railroaded, with little influence over how it goes, and lots of plot holes

-Missed potential with companions and NPCs

-Doesn't feel like an RPG. On one hand, it's clear Bethesda wasn't trying to MAKE a full RPG — they wanted to make it more of a first-person shooter exploration game. On the other hand, this is a fucking Fallout game. We're making it an RPG.

-Factions are very one-dimensional

-Little to no meaningful moral choices

GAME MECHANIC CHANGES

We're using the skills, perks and traits system from New Vegas, because different options for using different skills in dialogue is so fucking choice. And yes we're also using the New Vegas dialogue system where you can see what you're saying, there's no percentages, and you get a stupider thing to say if you can't make the check — no more of this four keyword bullshit. Also no more Radiant quests. We never needed those and they suck.

Also the reputation system from New Vegas. So you don't instantly become a faction enemy by shooting a guy once if you've helped them out a lot. (Cute minor detail: becoming friends with Piper increases your Diamond City reputation as she spreads pro sole survivor propaganda)

This reputation system should come with different raider factions. No more generic raiders. You should be able to be chill with the Gunners.

MAIN THEMES

Fallout 4 is set in Boston, arguably the birthplace of America. There's backstory of the Minutemen trying to start a sort of coalition Commonwealth government, which was ruined by the Institute. This is the perfect opportunity for the main plot to center around trying to build a government. How can these disparate factions of the Wasteland be brought together to create a nation? What sacrifices/compromises will you make? Who will you accept as allies, and who will you destroy? So that's one main idea: the creation of a new nation.

The other main idea: technology. What is the right way to use technology to build something new? What are the dangers of technology advancing too fast? How can government ethically use emerging technology to build itself, without misusing it in exercises of power? This meshes well with the synths. Which brings me to...

SYNTHS

Synths are no longer robots per se. They're genetically engineered clones with cybernetic components — pretty sure that's what they're like in canon, but it's made more explicit here. They existed before Shaun's kidnapping, but this resulted in mutations because they were using irradiated DNA, and the Institute was obsessed with creating the perfect human. The Super Mutants are an offshoot of that effort.

So. You start the game. This goes pretty much the same, except Kellog is slightly more fucked up physically — he has some sort of very obvious and distinct mutation, maybe looks a bit like a super mutant. This makes it a lot more plausible that people would recognize him by description alone.

Then things proceed as normal until you meet the minutemen.

THE MINUTEMEN

The Minutemen aren't a disparate collection of settlers + Preston anymore — they're the last remnants of the provisional Commonwealth government. Preston has lost hope that peace in the Wasteland is possible, and is just looking for a safe place to hunker down.

The Minutemen fill a similar role as canon, in that they're a faction who's most compatible with other factions. However, this should be framed as a flaw. Preston believes that stability is the highest good, and is willing to sacrifice other values for that goal.

The Minutemen quests should be less black and white. Each quest to gain a settlement should have a complication. Maybe a settlement leader values their independence, and you can threaten them into joining the Minutemen. Maybe a settlement will only join you if you chase away a nearby band of ghouls — but it turns out those ghouls aren't feral, and have finally found a place to settle down. Do you try to broker peace? Do you chase off the ghouls? Do you chase off the settlers?

Minutemen quests are no longer radiant, and offer opportunities to run across other factions. For example, maybe a settlement wants you help rooting out synths in their community, which brings you in conflict with the railroad. Maybe a settlement has been defending itself with pre-war technology which you can grab the blueprints for and use to defend other settlements, which attracts Brotherhood attention.

The ultimate goal of the Minutemen is to make the Commonwealth into a proper country, or as close as you can get to that in the Wasteland. To that end, they want to bring Diamond City and Goodneighbor into the fold, and get as many factions on board as they can.

Speaking of Diamond City and Goodneighbor...

DIAMOND CITY AND GOODNEIGHBOR

You come across Diamond City and quickly learn that the city used to have a population of ghouls, super mutants, and even synths. However, they were all recently run out of town by Mayor McDonough as a direct result of Piper's journalism pressuring him into taking action to divert suspicion from himself. Piper didn't like that this happened, but refuses at first to acknowledge the harm that her synth fearmongering causes, even though one of the people run out of town was a friend of hers — Nick Valentine, a prototype synth who once looked human but had a mechanical skeleton and brain. His biological parts have since worn away, and he's replaced them with robotic ones.

There are several ways to go from here to find Kellogg. You can track down Nick in Goodneighbor. You can get help from Piper and the information she's been gathering on the Institute. Maybe even the Minutemen will have insight, because Kellogg had a role in the failure of the previous government effort. Whichever way, you find Kellogg, and...

He has no idea who you are or why you're after him.

KELLOGG

Kellogg is, like Nick Valentine, a prototype synth bridging the gap between meat and machine. He seems like a mutated human, but his brain is mostly cybernetic. However, unlike Nick, he wasn't built from the ground up. He started as a normal human. He came across the Institute when he still had a wife and daughter. And in exchange for his skills, the Institute promised him immortality for him and his family. Kellogg didn't realize that what the Institute really wanted was willing subjects for experimentation.

As time went on, though, Kellogg and his family began to deteriorate and mutate. Their cybernetics got side effects. His daughter was unable to properly age. So he jumped at the chance to help acquire better DNA, thinking the Institute would use it to help him and his family.

Once they had Shaun, though, the Institute no longer had need for Kellogg, and they certainly didn't waste their effort using that DNA to save his family. His wife and daughter succumbed to the horror that had been wreaked on their bodies, and Kellogg himself went into hiding. He went to the Railroad, who wiped his memory and gave him a new identity and shelter, where he now lives as a recluse.

When the player finds him, he doesn't know who they are. He has false memories. You are given a choice: do you let the man who killed your wife and is the only lead you have on your son live a peaceful life, forcing you to go far out of your way and do some other shit to find leads? Or do you bring back his memories and make him the murderer he used to be?

There's a third option: you can copy his brain, basically, and upload those memories into Nick in the memory den like you do in canon. But doing this permanently damages Nick, and you have to reckon with Kellogg slowly assimilating into his personality like canon was GOING to do and DIDN'T.

THE RAILROAD

The Railroad is pretty boring in canon. "Slavery Bad" is a noble motivation for a faction, but it doesn't offer a lot of opportunities for interesting moral choices. Moreover, their conflict with the Brotherhood is so laughably forced in canon I can't believe the game shipped like that. But I came up with a simple change that I think makes them better.

They're a bunch of Super Mutants. (With some synths and ghouls sprinkled in)

Due to their lack of bloodlust, they're not exactly welcome in other Super Mutant communities. But they also share the belief that super mutants are the next stage in human evolution. They believe that humanity should be free to evolve into many different forms, and see synths as an extension of this. After all, they say, it's clear that humanity can't progress in the Wasteland by clinging to its current form. They don't seek to destroy the Institute — they seek to take it over, to offer super mutants and synths the ability to make more of their own. This makes them an inherent threat to the stability of the Commonwealth, even though they are sympathetic with a coherent ideology.

There's varying opinions within the Railroad on wiping synths' memories. Some object to it, believing it's unnecessary and dangerous. Some are idealists, believing that synths should have the option to live the normal life that Super Mutants can't — maybe some of the railroad mutants wish they could become human again. (Maybe you even have the option to give them Virgil's serum). Some believe the memory wipes are necessary to cut off the synths' loyalty to the railroad.

(If you take Synth Shaun with you at the end, you can have the Railroad wipe his memory and replace it with memories of you as his father. Fucked up!)

The Railroad keeps records of synths they've relocated. You can access these records, either through gaining their trust or through bein' a little stinker. That's one way to find Kellogg. But the records are scattered and encoded.

So. You've found Kellogg. You've Dealt With Him. You've probably made contact with the Railroad. How do you get into the Institute?

I think there need to be more options for how to do this. But I don't know what they are. We're moving on.

TO THE BROTHERHOOD OF STEEL!!!

When you first meet the Brotherhood in the police station, you quickly learn that they've changed their secluded ways. They've decided that there will be no future society that will need their technology if they don't interfere now, and the Institute, which actually develops technology instead of hoarding it, has lit a fire under their asses. But they've overcorrected and overstretched themselves. Paladin Danse believes it's their duty to secure the Commonwealth to protect its citizens, but acknowledges that they don't have the manpower. Knight Rhys has beef with Elder Maxson, thinking that the Brotherhood needs to focus on securing its existing territory before expanding. And Scribe Haylen?

She's a ghoul. The first in the Brotherhood. She's pre-war, and got her way into the Brotherhood because they saw value in having someone who could actually remember the origin of the technology they seek...and because Paladin Danse vouched for her despite his own hatred of ghouls. That's why she's so loyal to him. Danse still obviously doesn't like ghouls, but trusts Haylen in spite of that.

The Brotherhood storyline I want is a McCarthyism allegory. When they start causing too much trouble for the Institute, the Institute strikes back. But not with Coursers and synths. No, the Institute works in the shadows. They "accidentally" let slip data that shows there are synths planted in whichever factions they're enemies with at that point (which depends on the players' actions, and if you side with the Institute, you help them do this). This includes the reveal that there's a synth in the Brotherhood.

Cue the witchhunt. Everyone's suspicious and paranoid. The Brotherhood can't get anything done, because they're self-cannibalizing due to their synth hatred.

Because the player isn't part of the Brotherhood, Maxson and Danse know that you can't be the synth. So they trust you to root them out. Even if you're not in the brotherhood but you're on good terms with Danse, he asks you to help him. He says that synths are tearing his organization apart, and he can't bear to see his trusted comrades in arms turn against each other like this. (If your speech score is high enough, at this point you can start convincing him that it isn't the existence of synths that's a problem, it's the brotherhood's own attitudes that have led them to this point)

That's right: Maxson doesn't find out Danse is a synth offscreen. You figure it out. Maybe you take that Institute data. Maybe you find out from the railroad. Maybe you get Nick or Piper's help. And then you get to decide what to do with that information. You can keep it to yourself and watch the Brotherhood tear itself apart. You can tell Maxson, initiating a more canon version of Blind Betrayal as Haylen tips Danse off. You can tell Danse...but unless you talk him out of it, he'll reveal his true nature to the Brotherhood, hoping to end the witch hunt. But if Danse is caught, it doesn't stop. Now that one synth is exposed, after all, who's to say there aren't more? To save the Brotherhood, there are a few options. You can kill Danse and convince Maxson there are no more synths. You can expose Danse and make him the new Elder, changing Brotherhood policy on synths. You can lie to the Brotherhood, saying there are no synths after all and the Institute was just starting shit.

If the truth about Danse becomes known, you and the Brotherhood find out that it was the Railroad who wiped Danse's memory and planted him as a junk dealer. If Danse was exposed and killed, this leads to the Brotherhood going after the Railroad, believing it's too risky to leave them around as they could plant synths in the Brotherhood again. If you change the Brotherhood, this is a possible way to ally them with the Railroad, if you can convince them that they should ally with the peaceable faction of their enemies and that their policy of super mutant/synth genocide isn't tenable for maintaining control of an area.

But yeah, Danse's arc is a microcosm of the Brotherhood's arc: blind hatred of the Other is incompatible with their continued existence. In the Wasteland, you either change or you die. Cling to the remnants of the old world, and even if you surround yourself with bunkers and power armor, you will be destroyed from within.

Anyway. That's all I have for now — I'm still thinking about what to do with the Institute, and there are a lot of companions I haven't met, so I don't know what to do with them. But I think this is a good start. Feel free to add your thoughts/questions.

[dicethrow]

List of Headcanons

What is their backstory and why did you choose it?

Well, I wrote up a bit on his backstory on the carrd but essentially he's a classic story of a good lad being forced into a criminal lifestyle cause of family and life events.

Finn's moral compass for most of his life is constantly spinning around, not sure which way to point. His mother raised him until just before his teens and she tried her best to nurture a kind hearted nature, a boy who loved music and arts and just wanted to play the lute and sing.

After her passing and his father returns to his life to take him "under his wing", Finn's life of music and art is torn to shreds as his father toughens him up for the life of a pirate. At first Finn resents his father, but over time begins to see it as his father trying his best to make sure Finn survives and thrives in this lifestyle. And by his late teens he certainly thrives. He earned the name Finn "The Fury" Locke for his rage during raids but mostly his constant simmering anger even out of fights.

He's fiercely loyal to his father, the captain, and the crew, having taken many injuries and killed for them throughout his life. Out of the crew, his closest friend and mentor was a half wood-elf named Jon. Jon was the chef and took wee Finn under his care when Finn was still a child grieving the loss of his mother and the life he once knew. Jon was much calmer than most of the other pirates, more patient and open-minded. The kitchen was always a space for Finn to be himself and funnily enough, the one spot on the ship where he never simmered to anger.

As for why I went with Finn? I've always been fond of the sea, I've sailed, dived, surfed, etc. I spend so much of my free time at the beach. I wanted to write a character that also shared the same love for the ocean and Finn as a pirate just fell into place for me. I wanted to write someone who's main obstacle isn't anything or anyone but just finding himself again. For the story of the fight against the Dead Three, Finn doesn't have his own personal battles per say, just the slow crawl to self discovery and finally feeling happiness with himself. His biggest quest mark is facing his father at the docks of Baldur's Gate.

Do they multiclass? Why (not)?

Yes! With my playthrough Finn is going up to level 20 (😎) and so my current plan for Finn is:

Level 12 Rogue Pirate

Level 5 Fighter Battle Master

Level 3 Bard College of Swords ( only happens near the end of Act 3 as he begins to embrace his Bardic nature )

What was your Tav like as a child?

Near unrecognisable to the man now. Young lad, not well off by any means but rarely knew hunger. Carefree, happy, excitable child that had a small group of friends where he loved being the jokester with. He would sneak to watch street performers play songs and tried to set up a terrible band with his friends.

Academically he was perfectly average in most classes, with exception to music and writings where he excelled. His mother worked hard to save up to buy him a lute that he treasured until his father took it from him and cast it into the ocean.

What do you think happens to the party, afterwards? Do they go for drinks? Do they go their separate ways?

Finn would certainly suggest drinks, a well earned rest. He'd also be very glad the Elfsong is still standing.

Now, the question is would Finn join Karlach in Avernus? I'm between two minds on this cause Finn would adore Karlach so much, she's a very dear friend to him but he'd also know that Wyll would join her too.

If he doesn't join her, he'll be dashing after Astarion and using his cloak to cover him up enough until the others can join them and help. After that, he will insist on serving all those who remain a pint or two in the Elfsong but he wouldn't feel much joy to celebrate. His friends fighting for their life and freedom in the Hells. If anything he's just grateful it's all over and he can focus on the next stage of his life.

Otherwise, he's diving right into Avenrus and smoking that fat cigar before chopping up as many demons as possible while the smarter lads work on a way to fix her engine for good.

Years after the game, what do you think your Tav is up to?

Most of his adventuring, and rogue lifestyle has been put away. Finn has now focused his energy on being a simple bard and author. He's trying to write the story of the journey of their adventure with the tadpoles and how a group with little in common banded together to crush the plan of the Dead Three and later the Netherbrain.

Finn has no ties to anywhere on land, his home in Waterdeep is long gone and so he will happily go wherever he needs to be.

One day he also meets Jon, who's left the pirate life to set up an inn in Baldur's Gate and Finn makes sure to be as much of a regular customer as possible.

What do you think of your Tav's development throughout the game? If you compared them to who they were at the start, what would be different?

Like chalk and cheese, Finn in Act 1 wouldn't recognise Finn in Act 3, from physical appearance to his entire personality. Finn slowly gets calmer and open to new ideas.

Yet, Finn post game finally understands how it is to be truly happy with himself. He's finding peace.

Did Karlach get upgraded? Did she turn Illithid? Did she return to Avernus? If so, did Tav join her, or Wyll, or both?

No fucking way would be agree with illithid Karlach.

Anything you want to say about your Tav! Give a random headcanon, answer a random question, say whatever you want!

Pigeon (his parrot) is the real hero of the story.

Does your Tav help the mindflayer against Commander Zhalk or do they run straight to the helm?

Okay so Finn has a surprisingly high intelligence (and extremely low wisdom) and his high intelligence is mostly because he's quite tactical. When he sees that fucking huge flaming sword, all his thinks of how useful and valuable it is. So he asks Shadowheart if she has a way to disarm the commander and turns out Shadowheart was able to command him to drop it. Once he got the sword in his possession then he dipped the hell out of the crashing ship with.

What's their opinion of Emerald Grove? Do they help the tieflings or side with the druids?

Finn hasn't met a druid until coming across the Grove and his first meeting with them trying to kick out the tieflings doesn't bode for a good first impression.

Considering a few of his old crew mates were tiefling who joined the ship, a couple boarded to escape unjust persecutions, he's leaning towards the tieflings instantly. Nettie trying to poison Finn doesn't cement a better view either.

One thing he likes from the Grove is one of the druids is willing to sell him a flintlock pistol and so Finn scourged up as much gold as possible to buy one. Failing to get enough gold, he steals the pistol and lets poor Gale get the blame as he was nearby.

But overall? He's 100% on the tieflings side and thinks Zevlor is pretty badass.

What does your Tav think of the Underdark and the Myconids?

The Underdark? Fucking loathes it. The only person likely to complain about it more than him would be Astarion. From open seas to co fined underground? Nothing he'd hate more.

Finn knows nothing about the Myconids when meeting them. Initially he wonders if they're edible cause they're fungi but since he works on the principle of "if you ain't threatening my team then I'll leave you be" so he's happy to hear them out. Although he will constantly mutter how "this fucking caveland is full of weird shit" while moving around their colony.

[bellagrimfox]

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Headcanons/Ideas for Epic Mickey

Headcanons

Oswald often gloats about how he got an appearance in Disneyland/world. Until he remembers some of the kids mistaking him for Mickey.

He hates being called old despite being made years before Mickey. (thanks @jakeneutron and your awesome interpretation of Oswald)

Oswald was responsible for naming all of their rabbit kids, but he'd always forget who's who since there's 420 of them. (I feel like this one is obvious but I thought it'd be nice to say it)

Oswald gets paranoid about his foot being stolen or cut off, to a point where he puts an extra blanket around his lucky left foot.

Oswald never rubs his right foot since it's cursed with bad luck, though his misfortune isn't often the foot's fault and if it is, it's usually someone mistaking it for his lucky foot or by complete accident.

Oswald has a huge stigma against wolves and foxes. As for dogs, he hates rabbit hunting breeds but is overall ok with them. Fortunately for Mickey, Pluto is one of the few dogs he likes.

Oswald originally was terrified of having kids (Reference to Poor Papa short), though he very quickly got over that fear once he saw his first child.

Oswald has a small interest in lost media, mostly preserving and finding cartoons long forgotten.

Fanny was Oswald's first wife and the one he had children with. She left him around the time the Bunny Children were born. Oswald remembers the reason, though he won't share that with anyone other than Ortensia.

Ideas

Let's start with mechanic ideas before we get into rewrite territories.

His remote weapon could function differently but in a way that perfectly mirrors Mickey's paintbrush. To do this, let's look back at what Mickey can do.

The paint allows Mickey to create and reform enemies, thinner is pretty much the opposite. Using this fact and the original remote mechanic in the sequel, let's see if we can combine them together.

Electricity

His original attacks are still the same with being able to stun enemies and effect technology. However, in the rewrite, this moveset is basically the Paint counterpart.

Now this is where the new stuff happens. His Thinner attacks are based off plasma.

Consider this image as a reference for how his remote would look like when in Thinner/Plasma mode.

Anyways, Plasma mode can kill Blotlings and similar enemies and damage technology. For example, when you use Plasma on fireworks, instead of just igniting them, they explode into a ball of fire that can destroy walls and anything else nearby.

Corruption

Consider this a part 2 of the Plasma mode idea. Reprogramming works differently when using Plasma. Whenever you fire a beam of Plasma on an unarmored Beetleworx, you will end up corrupting them which will turn them into violent drones. As for switches, they will malfunction and break, making them unstable throughout the entire playthrough.

Bonus Mechanic

When Oswald is on very low health, you can use his lucky rabbit foot to get a random beneficial effect such as healing or extra damage. Just note that you can only use one rabbit foot per level and it doesn't work on bosses.

SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT!! IF YOU HAVEN'T PLAYED OR SEEN THE GAME, PLEASE DON'T READ THIS PART!!!

Epic Mickey Story Rewrites

Note: I haven't played the original game yet so this is going to be based off what I've seen and read from the wikies.

In my rewrite, events in the game change in content and story based on if you've used the Paint or Thinner as the main weapon. That's just the summary but the worldbuilding post will go deep into it so please remember this for future posts.

First, the neutral path, Oswald follows the same personality and attitude towards Mickey like in the game. Though I'd add some moments of character development with extra cutscenes. These scenes would be slightly altered depending on the Paint and Thinner path but would be pretty much the same regardless of which path you take.

For example, I came up with a scene where Oswald wakes up in the middle of the night and he goes to where Mickey is sleeping. In this moment, Oswald is able to snatch the paintbrush and is about to use it on Mickey to steal his heart, only for him to not go through with it since Mickey has done so much to help him save Wasteland and stop the Storm Blot. (This is the canon name of the main villain blot. This video best clears up the confusion)

Now for the Thinner path Oswald, he's a lot more aggressive towards you and while he sees it's effective in wiping out the blotlings, he also sees that it's affecting the civilians of Wasteland and calls Mickey out on it often.

Paint path Oswald becomes more friendly and positive to Mickey, regaining the hope that he and Mick can really become brothers and forgetting about stealing his heart.

Now for the big spoilers, the last moments of the game.

I'm very happy to write this part finally.

In the beginning of the second part of the final boss, Gus says this-

In the rewrite, there is an actual time limit for the final boss where you actually have to recover the heart before Oswald gets absorbed. However, this time limit is long on purpose, giving you enough time to defeat the Storm Blot. Of course, both the neutral and thinner path endings don't change much from the original game.

Though, if you did go pass the time limit, you would get a secret pin and a secret non canon end where it's a mirror of the regular ending but Oswald isn't there.

But on the Hero path, a different scene plays out.....

After Mickey frees his heart, it lands into the hands of Oswald who, after some consideration, hands it over to Mickey. Only.....this time, before it could leave, Oswald keeps holding it. When Mickey tries to get closer, a transformation occurs.

Oswald's body becomes an unstable mass of ink and thinner, his mouth replaced with a mess of teeth, his hands replaced with sharp claws.

As for Mickey's heart, it became fused to his chest, covered in an armor of pure thinner, making it sickly green with pulsing veins. In hero mode, the Storm Blot has brought one more trick. The last resort. The final challenge.

The Forgotten (Oz-Blot)

[kaija-rayne-author]

I'm doing a series of reviews as I play Dragon Age Veilguard. One or two posts a day, whenever I can play.

This is installment one.

Can't remember if I mentioned that a lovely person gave me a copy of DAV. And I'm so very grateful I can play close to release. So I can do an unbiased review series.

Something came to my attention. I need to make it crystal clear that I utterly love the diversity in DAV. It's fantastic. I'm also a heavily left leaning, non-binary, queer as fuck reviewer, editor, and author.

I'm on media blackout while I play this, so I'm only getting second-hand info on how awful it is right now in the DA Fandom. Please be safe and take care of yourselves. Arguing with incels and white supremacists is completely pointless. They sea lion worse than an actual sea lion. Your mental health is important.

Though, every single time the anti-queer brigade comes out for a new DA game, I sit there thinking 'have you bozos ever played any DA game, like, ever?' My guess is nope.

I'm seven hours in. (2 in CC so 5 playtime.)

Spoilers for DAV. Dragon Age Veilguard

Also, this is all my off the cuff writing. I haven't the time, energy, or desire to edit them.

Five hours in... I can confidently say welp, it's a game. It is indeed a video game.

I don't hate it? Most of it? Can't say I love it, either.

Background and environment folks did a fantastic job. And I was pretty sure they would. That part feels like Dragon Age. Except for the floaty spaceship thing in Minrathous. Intentionally not saying what it's supposed to be, because they do tell you.

Baddy design is as bad as I feared. If not actually worse.

I totally called it on several points, which gods escaped, for one. The fact that those 'demons' were gonna give me a headache, too. And the whole Solas Varric sitch.

CC is pretty good. Nothing ground breaking, but people should be able to make a character they like? You can make a good redhead.

I like the new codex design. I still preferred DAO for that one. Aaaannnnd I've already caught a couple editing errors in the text.

Extremely thrilled that my non-binary ass can be non-binary.

Yes, you can actually make a (slightly) pudgy character.

That is still not Solas. And you can't try to tell me I'll probably like him once I see him in game, anymore. I don't. He does still move the same, so they got that right. Still has the subtle humour, too, which, since Weekes wrote him, makes sense.

They were right, the characters do look better in game.

AND THAT IS STILL NOT A FUCKING DARKSPAWN.

My youngest kid just glanced at my screen and did a double take with a 'Ma? Why are you playing Fortnite?'

From the mouths of babes. He's right in that Fortnite player age bracket, FWIW. And no, he has no interest in playing Dragon Age. No matter how much they made some of it look like Fortnite.

Not feeling any of the romanceables, yet. But I've only met Neve, Lace, and Bellara. Alas my poor bisexual heart. None of the women do it for me. That may change, it's still very early as per in-game events.

I'm going to stick with it to see if it'll actually catch me up. Because it sadly has not, yet. By an hour in on my first playthrough of DAO, I was head over heels for Alistair. By 1 hour into Awakening, Anders had me. By hour 3 in DA2? Anders and Isabela both had me. By seven hours into DAI? I was very much in love with Solas, though I was playing a guy because I wanted to Romance Dorian first. (Still really loved Dorian.) But yeah, that bloody elf had me first, and I think it was at the first damned scene with him in it. Which is roughly an hour or so in?

I'm intensely curious about the story, and it's why I was so desperate to play it. So unless it somehow utterly offends me, (worse than those not-fucking-darkspawn and what-the-actual-fuck-are-those-demons already have) I'll finish it. Unless I lose interest. It's at least worth playing so far. I don't feel like I wasted the seven hours.

Fighting is reasonably easy to adjust to. And it'll be more fun when I get the hang of it. (For me, I usually don't have a lot of trouble picking up new fighting systems in games.)

Oh, and it took Astarion BG3 half an hour. 🤣

Please no spoilers if anyone responds. As I said, only seven hours in.

In case you're interested, here's my predictions piece.

And here's the second part in my ongoing review as I play series.

[amplexadversary]

So I may have used my playthrough of The Outer Worlds to indulge in my desire to see some even darker AUs for G Gundam (since there is no shortage of opportunities).

Spoilers for a 30 year old anime and a 4 year old video game to follow, obviously.

My excuse for why anyone from G Gundam is in fucking Halcyon relies on two things changing:

the presence of an exodus into other star systems in G's setting (not that weird given the tech levels)

Domon actually succeeding at apprehending his brother without finding out the truth (maybe justifiable assuming he actually landed where he was supposed to and stumbled upon the Devil Gundam right when Master Asia moved it to Shinjuku).

Given these assumptions, my thought is that there is no way Ulube actually keeps his end of the deal re: letting Domon's dad, Dr Kasshu, out of cryo sleep. It's possible that in the show his plan was to blackmail the man into silence but that's still a witness AND victim running around being a liability to him, and he already has his accomplice Mikamura to worry about.

As a result, I think Ulube would JUMP on the opportunity to get rid of not only the witnesses to/victims of the Devil Gundam Incident, but also both his witting and unwitting accomplices by shipping them all off to another star system.

He'd probably immediately shove Kyoji into cryo to shut him up. Then, he'd move the goalposts for Domon by making something up about how Difficult It Is Getting An Acquittal In This Country, and that Domon would probably be older than his dad by the time he actually gets to see him again (a lie which, if Neo Japan's legal system is anything like the criticisms to its IRL counterpart, would have a grain of truth to it).

Naturally, Domon would be pretty upset by this. He'd probably accuse Ulube of lying to him and going back on his promise (true). Ulube would then play the sympathy card, claim he wants nothing more than to help given the service Domon has provided, etc. etc. etc, and then once Domon is at peak desperation Ulube brings up an alternative.

Instead of potentially waiting years or decades to see his family again while the legal system grinds its gears, Ulube offers to arrange a deal with a program meant to colonize other star systems. If Domon signs the necessary paperwork in his father and brother's absence, Ulube can secure them all a place on an interstellar transport called the Hope. Domon and his family all spend only 10y in cryo, and see each other immediately when they're all woken up at their destination.

Ulube probably gives Domon a few moments to think, and then pushes him further. Mikamura's also going (Ulube has plenty with which to threaten him) and his daughter, Rain has decided to come with. If Domon stays in the Neo Japan colony or on Earth, he never sees several of the people he's close to again, and has to wait for a non-guaranteed chance to see the rest.

Boarding the Hope would mean Domon never sees his teacher, Master Asia again, but Ulube's summary of the situation makes it sound more and more like the better option. Domon writes his master a letter saying goodbye and signs the paperwork.

Things going as planned for the Hope would mean it would take 20 years for anyone on it to make it back to Earth to question Ulube's report of what happened, and that's if the Kasshus turned around and came back as soon as they all woke up.

Per the opening of The Outer Worlds, things don't go as planned. After 70 years, Ulube has almost definitely died of old age. He's won.

And the Hope is adrift in the outer rim of the Halcyon system. Halcyon's technology is insufficient to safely revive anyone who has been in cryo for more than a decade or two. The only person who has tried is a wanted criminal.

(Which, admittedly, is something of a plot hole if we combine the two settings because the way G Gundam uses cryo definitely implies that Earth can revive people who have been in cryo for extended periods... but on the other hand Halcyon *is* run by buffoons and the original techs who revived the Groundbreaker might not have had that knowledge. Or died in the interim. Or the colony lost that particular bit of knowledge in any number of ways because there is extensive evidence of a widespread habit of not maintaining systems until they fail, cover your ass rather than admit to ever making any mistakes, etc, etc.

We can fill that hole with screwups similar to what we actually see in the game. When the Hope is found almost 30 years after it was supposed to arrive, someone went to look up how to revive people and oh shit the database is corrupted. Shit. Where's the senior cryo tech from Groundbreaker? They got pink slipped 20 years ago. Maybe we can ask Earth- no that would involve admitting we fucked our databases up. Up until now the ship was missing so it's just going to stay that way.)

So at the beginning of The Outer Worlds we have Dr. Phineas Welles sneaking onboard and looking through a manifest for a candidate to attempt to revive. He's pretty sure he's figured out how to do it this time, and this might be the last attempt he can make because he's out of one of the key chemicals he needs. But he's not certain. Welles needs someone he can be fairly confident will help him, but wants someone more a little bit more expendable than the brightest minds on the ship.

Welles hits pay dirt when he finds a group of passengers with the same last name and a promising history.

Two of them were exiled from Earth due to criminal charges, and have extensive knowledge of biology, robotics, and terraforming. Hell, he's pretty sure he's read some of their papers.

Welles briefly considers reviving either scientist. It would be nice to have someone he could relate to around, and surely they would understand his goals. Having family on the ship would be a strong motivator to rescue the other passengers, and hey! the criminal record implies (to Welles at least) a healthy disdain for authority that would motivate them to throw in with another fugitive!

But no, he doesn't revive Raizo or Kyoji Kasshu. Welles does not want to risk dissolving anyone he thinks is brilliant enough to actually save the colony. He also considers and decides against reviving Rain Mikamura, a talented engineer and medical doctor, for similar reasons.

Instead he goes for Domon Kasshu. A man who, according to his report, had already gone to great lengths in attempt to save the same people Welles has his eye on. A hand-to-hand combatant in peak physical condition would be unlikely to die should the revival succeed, and this one would be easily led (Welles thinks it lucky that he got to him before the Board did).

Domon doesn't yell at Welles as soon as he wakes up, but it's close. Right about when Welles slams the door to some kind of pod in Domon's face, Domon's fist connects with the door, and Welles is met with a volley of questions.

"Where's my dad? Who are you? What do you mean bad news!??"

Domon isn't familiar with all of the terminology Welles is using but is deeply disturbed by the concept of exploding or being liquefied, and continues to bang on the door.

And now the old man is asking for his help. Domon's family and his best friend are still frozen on that ship.

It feels like the Gundam Fight all over again.

Except the person asking him for help this time is (proudly) waving a Wanted poster in his face.

[swashbucklcr]

1, 3, 10, 93, 94, 95, 100, 105 (dont have to answer all these, just want the world to know!)

@iron-hearts-ablaze | Questions for my Tav

This is super fucking long so it's under a read more:

1. What is their backstory and why did you choose it?

Well, I wrote up a bit on his backstory on the carrd but essentially he's a classic story of a good lad being forced into a criminal lifestyle cause of family and left events.

Finn's moral compass for most of his life is constantly spinning around, not sure which way to point. His mother raised him until just before his teens and she tried her best to nurture a kind hearted nature, a boy who loved music and arts and just wanted to play the lute and sing.

After her passing and his father returns to his life to take him "under his wing", Finn's life of music and art is torn to shreds as his father toughens him up for the life of a pirate. At first Finn resents his father, but over time begins to see it as his father trying his best to make sure Finn survives and thrives in this lifestyle. And by his late teens he certainly thrives. He earned the name Finn "The Fury" Locke for his rage during raids but mostly his constant simmering anger even out of fights.

He's fiercely loyal to his father, the captain, and the crew, having taken many injuries and killed for them throughout his life. Out of the crew, his closest friend and mentor was a half wood-elf named Jon. Jon was the chef and took wee Finn under his care when Finn was still a child grieving the loss of his mother and the life he once knew. Jon was much calmer than most of the other pirates, more patient and open-minded. The kitchen was always a space for Finn to be himself and funnily enough, the one spot on the ship where he never simmered to anger.

As for WHY I went with Finn? I've always been fond of the sea, I've sailed, dived, surfed, etc. I spend so much of my free time at the beach. I wanted to write a character that also shared the same love for the ocean and with all the plotting we've done Vix, Finn as a pirate just fell into place for me. I wanted to write someone who's maIn obstacle isn't anything or anyone but just finding himself again. For the story of the fight against the Dead Three, Finn doesn't have his own personal battles per say, just the slow crawl to self discovery and finally feeling happiness with himself. The fact he has also met Osian, the man who makes him finally believe soulmates just makes his journey all the better.

3. Do they multiclass? Why (not)?

Yes! With our playthrough we're going up to level 20 (😎) and so my current plan for Finn is:

Level 12 Rogue Pirate

Level 5 Fighter Battle Master

Level 3 Bard College of Swords ( only happens near the end of Act 3 as he begins to embrace his Bardic nature )

10. What was your Tav like as a child?

Near unrecognisable to the man now. Young lad, not well off by any means but rarely knew hunger. Carefree, happy, excitable child that had a small group of friends where he loved being the jokester with. He would sneak to watch street performers play songs and tried to set up a terrible band with his friends.

Academically he was perfectly average in most classes, with exception to music and writings where he excelled. His mother worked hard to save up to buy him a lute that he treasured until his father took it from him and cast it into the ocean.

93. What do you think happens to the party, afterwards? Do they go for drinks? Do they go their separate ways?

Finn would certainly suggest drinks, a well earned rest. He'd also be very glad the Elfsong is still standing.

Now, the question is would Finn join Karlach in Avernus? I'm between two minds on this cause Finn would adore Karlach so much, she's a very dear friend to him but he'd also know that Wyll (or Gale of we're throwing in our HeatWeave plot) would join her too.

If he doesn't join her, he'll be dashing after Astarion and using his cloak to cover him up enough until Osian can join them and help with some magic. After that, he will insist on serving all those who remain a pint or two in the Elfsong but he wouldn't feel much joy to celebrate. His best friend(s) is(are) fighting for her life and freedom in the Hells. If anything he's just grateful it's all over and he can focus on the next stage of his life.

Otherwise, he's diving right into Avenrus and smoking that fat cigar before chopping up as many demons as possible while the smarter lads work on a way to fix her engine for good.

94. Years after the game, what do you think your Tav is up to?

Most of his adventuring, and rogue lifestyle has been put away. Finn has now focused his energy on being a simple bard and author. He's trying to write the story of the journey of their adventure with the tadpoles and how a group with little in common banded together to crush the plan of the Dead Three and later the Netherbrain.

Finn has no ties to anywhere on land, his home in Waterdeep is long gone and so he will happily go wherever Osian needs to be. He will ensure to visit his favourite niece Calise as often as he can, and has regular correspondence with Osian's family who have taken him in as his own. He's far happier and more relaxed now with the love of his life and the life he always wanted to live.

One day he also meets Jon, who's left the pirate life to set up an inn in Baldur's Gate and Finn makes sure to be as much of a regular customer as possible.

95. What do you think of your Tav's development throughout the game? If you compared them to who they were at the start, what would be different?

Like chalk and cheese, Finn in Act 1 wouldn't recognise Finn in Act 3, from physical appearance to his entire personality. Finn slowly gets calmer and open to new ideas, plus Finn in Act 1 would have never expected to fall in love with a wood elf wizard and yet by Act 3 Finn can't imagine his life without him.

Yet, Finn post game finally understands how it is to be truly happy with himself. He's finding peace.

100. Did Karlach get upgraded? Did she turn Illithid? Did she return to Avernus? If so, did Tav join her, or Wyll, or both?

Mostly answered this in question 93!

No fucking way would be agree with illithid Karlach.

105. Anything you want to say about your Tav! Give a random headcanon, answer a random question, say whatever you want!

Pigeon is the real hero of the story.

[mychlapci]

here is my objectively correct list of lost light characters playing fear and hunger

rodimus - he makes a massive deal about this really difficult human game. he goes into it fully expecting to breeze through the dungeon. he encounters the dogs at the very beginning of the game, closes it, and then promptly deletes it off his computer. he wails and cries and complains so hard and is such a piss baby gamer about being shit at it.

megatron - he likes the lore. consistently takes his time when playing because he hates le'garde so much and lets him die every single playthrough. enjoys enki greatly. also deeply respects the rng and strategy aspects. rodimus hates him for being too good.

ratchet - i want to put him directly into the game (as a treat <3) but i cannot. he doesn't like it. because he's old and because i don't think he'd appreciate the horrors. but i do think he would find rodimus fucking everything up very amusing. if forced to play he would spec into healing via sylvian and then explode everything with combustion

thunderclash - he is perfect at the game. wins every single coin flip. does not get hit once. godlike rng. rodimus thinks he's cheating but he's not. has 100% the whole game. cried when having to fight the god of fear and hunger (you know his ass got emotionally attached to the girl) and he probably wrote fanfiction about enki and ragnvaldr kissing

whirl - nas'hrah speedrun%. he explodes everything. he takes every single opportunity to cut off his own characters limbs. what is wrong with him?

drift - got emotionally attached to moonless. exclusively play ragnvaldr. he gets really into the worldbuilding and desperately wishes that the eastern sanctuary was more elaborated upon. is literally the only person besides thunderclash who doesn't get mad when he plays. he does seethe and cope sometimes, but it's usually in the privacy of his own room. or he rants to ratchet

cyclonus - he played as d'arce, got to le'garde and then created a marriage between the two per whirl's suggestion. he was so horrified by the resulting abomination that he closed the game and never opened it ever again

that's all for now but i love funger and i love transformers and i figured you'd appreciate this

oh man, Rodimus is me. fuming because 6 minutes into the run he got fucked over by a guard or the dogs or a maneba and needed up limbless in the blood pit. Again. he can never match up to Thunderclash' speedrunner's spirit.

i bet tailgate would also get freaked out if he ended up creating a marriage on accident, but he'd come around to it and constantly bug cyclonus with questions about how if this was possible, would he do it with him? cyclonus says no. whirl says yes.

tbh i would think Megatron would sympathize with le'garde, both of them having a... machiavellian attitude to reaching one's "noble goals". but perhaps relating to the ole' dickhead just makes him angry.

[entropy-game-dev]

Alpha testing, v0.09a & patchnotes

We’re so so close to the 10th alpha build of the game, and things have changed so much! But for now, let’s get into the playtest for v0.09!

My friend who has done the second-most amount of testing is great, I love how he plays! He gets so into the game, like, play-freaking out when enemies attack him, reading all the descriptions I’ve written, and dreading what nasty things each enemy might be planning to do.

Especially, I like that he goes and checks out the things he mentioned in previous versions - I totally forgot I addressed some of his comments like letting the cancel button automatically choose the “negative” option in a dialog - and he made sure to try them and was pleasantly surprised when he found that I had implemented his suggestions!

His playthrough was more focused on testing the overall game balance and progression, as I had changed the stat gain curve at the suggestion of my friend. I completely forgot I had hastily implemented a logarithmic curve, giving greater stat growths at earlier levels, levelling off towards the later levels. I did this in order to make early levels feel “good”, but forgot that I had finely tuned my stats in a linear fashion, so one got quite powerful too quickly.

This had implications regarding experimentation of party and moves - getting powerful enough, you didn’t really need to change things up for the most part. Now that I have changed things back to linear stat growth, battles were quite a bit more challenging, but not unfair, which I am happy with. I might need to up the damage of moves overall, however.

The thing is, my tutorials are still not properly working, and it’s a big thing I’ll be working on this week. So my friend went too deep into the first dungeon, not knowing that a) robots can be recruited, and b) lower floors are more dangerous. Therefore, he’d only be fighting a couple of battles before retreating to the ship, and didn’t collect many parts or units until I mentioned that to him over text. These are all things that should be popping up contextually, and will be something to work on this week.

There are also a couple of more minor game streamlining issues that will make the early game less of a slog, and it’s small things like these that are really only apparent when you watch others play your game. It’ll also mean the game will be nicer to stream and watch (?) maybe...

Anyways, thanks for reading my rambling, and the patchnotes for this version can be found below the cut as always!

v0.09a Features:

Added new tutorial when robot is destroyed

Now you gain 1 data per new thing interacted with

Fixed fuel cost for first trip to first area

Added back generic attack sfx for hitting players

Mouseovering minimap tiles say what feature they are

Field menu mouse controls...!!

Added miss text when you miss

Add up and down arrow animation to affinities on the unit stat page when they change

Added general data when not researching a project that gives a bonus to collected data when researching

Added new notifications at 25, 50, 75, and 100% research project completion

Scan now compares atk to def and the result of the scan is based on the difference

Allies can be moved around by routines now

Added routine summary text

Polish:

Made levelling up gain stats at a linear rate

Time synch now isn't castable on self

Upped data dropped for enemies

Encounter rate slightly lowered

Made faction enemies spawn at higher rates

Multiple steps in the same liquid won't display the same message

Re-added atk and hit text to the routines menu

Sector travel message doesn't fire if you don't have the research

Shader turned off at game over message

Removed debug text from tutorials

Made affinity labels hang around for a bit longer

Stopped text from having dynamic appearance speeds on the little label that appears during battle and exploration

Burst stat message applies once per person

Reduced and inverted AI scaling on moves that use HP

Charmed enemies have better AI

Scan reveals recruit info first, instead of stats

Made HP only appear once scanned

Stat panel only reveals stats if scanned

Put research results reminder on the collection screen

Astronaut now starts in slot 2, assistant in slot 4, because psychology of equipping parts

Removed red grid in columns 1 and 5 when in corridor

Aligned sector travel message in nav interface

Fixed timing of animations related to reflecting and conducting, added some extra metadata variables

Actually made damage do 1 minimum

HP value fades in with enemy

removed some debug message calls

Revamped room determining algorithm

Stopped input before field viewport is visible

Standardised element icons between fonts

Bugs:

Overfilled has the right icon

Minimap good/bad colours don't show anymore

Minimap refreshes after teleporting

Move label objects now despawn properly

Element burst now chooses an effect correctly

Tutorials for picking up parts now work

SFX of attacks now play

Stopped crash when enemy moves downward

Combining AI priorities fixed

Effects now appear on top of the enemies

Log chooser now doesn't choose empty log to view, crashing the game

Defend animation now showing on enemeies

Status effects now apply their elemental advantage properly

Stopped inspect option during core recruitment leting you see the ones in the inventory

Move enemy script won't move enemies randomly if a position is specified

Missing an enemy doesn't softlock the game now

Fixed affinity calculation bug

Stopped frame-perfect input to get into the equips window before the inventory has refiltered itself

Death affinity now always applies death through % buffs/debuffs

Row-wide random attacks on the party now display properly

Fixed stun/null affinity display on equip

Text colours fixed on element burst

[sorcerous-caress]

Ugh, it finally happened! Khal'ian and Kira's saves are fully cooked! So close to finishing act3 with my boy! 😓

Well, it gives me an excuse to finally remake Kira or create Khal'ian's in-lore manic best-friend Issal.

Welp, time to test honor mode with new subclasses!🤗

I'll work on more Wyll/Kira drabbles later tonight, but I have a question.

Do any of your Tav/Durges co-exist? Would they be pre-game friends/foes/lovers? I find it fun to branch out and see the characters I create interact with each other.

-githzerai anon

You can try to downgrade the game version and script extender versions to finish the saves off if you were really close to the end!

Also in the new endgame epilogue, Voss sends a letter that mentions the githzerai canonly in game! I thought of you when i saw it. If you're okay with spoilers lmk and I'll post it.

Also dude, honour mode is fucking brutal. One save file, you can't reload and if you die in the tutorial ship the whole save is nuked. All the rolls are inflated with a higher check number, I couldn't recruit Us because i failed the mutiliate roll despite having advantage. So many other people mentioned failing the Wyll Karlach pers roll and the pulling Gale out of the portal roll too. It's full on sadistic and I'm loving it but I can't go far yet because I'm still waiting on my favourite mod to update.

As for the Tav/Durge question, they definitely share a common dragon theme, I based them on different dragon species for fun.

First Tav was based on a gold dragon, friendly, chatty, noble heritage, extroverted and flirty. Romanced Astarion. Backstory is them being a noble supposed to take over the head of their family soon but got kidnapped, comes back to finding out the previous head got murdered and everyone in their family is a suspect except them since they were far away. Their dream person was a half-elf women. Gets thrown off the ship with a small baby red dragon that serves their family, followed them here. Hoards eggs/gold/gems.

First Durge was based on a red dragon, prideful, rude, arrogant, easily jealous, competitive and loves flattery. Romanced Minthara. They're not native to Baldur's Gate and instead come from a far away land in the east, they don't remember much since losing their memory, they hold a lot of Gortash themed stuff in their inventory not knowing why or who it belonged to. Their dream person was a drow man. Hoards bones/skulls/corpses.

Latest Tav is based on a brass dragon, loves to talk/sing, overconfident, cute, bad at being humble, anime magical girl tropes. Romanced Wyll. Multiclassed into bard, backstory is that they are a famous popstar that recently went solo from their band, too used to only dealing with fans so they tend to be offputting to normal people, they were touring in Baldur's Gate when they got kidnapped. Their dream person was a dragonborn man (mod). Hoards books/art/statues.

How do they relate? I'm not sure, maybe they're the same person but a different dragon lineage each time that drastically alters their life? Maybe they're long lost siblings? Maybe they don't know each other.

Well except two of them. I made a durge high elf guy for Minthara to abuse on a playthrough once, he is friends with my first Tav and i made them his dream person but they got separated ontop of the ship.

I mostly think about how my characters would interact with other people's characters, I think most of my Tavs or Durges would be indifferent to each other.

Khal'ian for example, I can say my first Tav would consider him a friend, maybe get a bit protective.

First Durge would be condcending with him and compares his shortcomings to Laezel a lot.

Latest Durge would be very friendly and think he needs encouragement to get out of his shell, might even be pushy about it.

I try to switch up the companions too on each playthrough to make it like it's an alternative dimension where every shifted a bit. Aka the werewolf Shadowheart au or the younger Gale one, since the more playthroughs you do, the more dialogue and scenes you start skipping so their canon plot gets old quickly and writing your own sounds more interesting.

But i do make them all human, all of my characters except that one high elf guy made specifically for Minthara. I genuinely have the biggest hard on for humans. i really think they're neat.

And my first dnd character was a dragonborn paladin yet here i am in human sorcerer heaven/hell?

What about you anon? Do Kira and Khal'ian know each other? What about the best friend you mentioned? Do any of them co-exist?

First Tav - Gold Dragon

First Durge - Red Dragon

Latest Tav - Brass Dragon

[otakween]

Digimon Adventure 02: Digital Partner - Final Thoughts

Okay, this one is a bit of an enigma. This is a Wonderswan "game" that's not much of a game. From what I can gather from the extremely sparse info on the internet, it exists more as a peripheral to other Digimon games. I started "playing" it to poke around and see if it was worth "completing," but...I don't think you can complete it?

The general concept for this one is just bizarre. You teach digimon words and then fight using those words. The game does not explain this very well. Also, the digimon all seem to speak perfectly good Japanese so why am I teaching them words to begin with? The only thing that I kinda thought seemed fun was that you can counter attack by playing shiritori (or "atamatori," which I didn't know existed) with the enemy digimon. You can also match the word's "genre" ("Apple" and "Orange" would both be in the fruit "genre.") This has potential but the execution was iffy. Additional thoughts below the cut.

Notes:

-The game starts with Gennai asking if you're a boy or girl (he assumes you're a boy at first lol). I was excited to play as a girl for once and pick my own name.

-You're supposed to beat the game within 8 in-game hours before the portal to your world closes. However, the goal of "communicating with digimon" is so vague, that I'm not sure if there's a way to fail?

-The world map is tiny and based on Digimon World. (Misty Trees, Infinity Mountain, Dragon's Eye Lake, etc.) There's also very little variety in the digimon you can speak to and the stuff they have to say. I think I spoke to like 4 different Elecmon and heard 3 Numemon say the same thing several times too (I only really played for an hour). The only things to do when entering a location are: talk to a digimon or fight a digimon.

-You can have 2 digimon in your "room" at a time. Your room is where you can check their stats and teach these partners words. Presumably they grow based on what you teach them and maybe digivolve? You can return digimon back to where they came from and pick up new ones. Unclear if they lose everything you taught them when you return them.

-Some random partner digimon are featured from the anime (most but not all). They all tell you that they've been "waiting for you." This kind of goes against the anime's one-digimon-per-chosen-child thing...guess I'm playing as a Mary Sue

-This game is in black and white, which is fine, but sometimes the map isn't detailed enough to figure out how to enter a place or what textures are supposed to be (it's hard to tell that the lake is a lake, for example).

-If nothing else, this game has cute character animations:

-There is zero info online from people who have played this game (at least not in English). There's no English translation which is obviously a big part of that. No walkthroughs or playthroughs to give me context. I did see a thread where someone was mocked for asking for a walkthrough though, so I guess that tells you how much substance this one has

I might poke around a little more to see if I can get one of my digimon to digivolve or something, but I think I'm safe in skipping this one for the most part.

[unma]

3 8 25 :]

3. Favorite musical artist / group you started listening to this year?

Three artists come to mind when I think about artists I found this year: mekaloton, KAT and tanger. I'm not sure who out of these three I'd say is my favorite, though tanger does have that recency bias helping her music lol.

Tanger's prefer not to say album is awesome, give it a listen. I specifically found it through womp womp (I actually posted it on here as soon as I found it, that was how quickly it got me hooked).

I haven't listened to mekaloton in a bit, because I'm going through that bit of time where I stop listening to much new music because I don't have the energy to give them the focused first listens I think they deserve. So I'm only going to bring up somewhat older releases. Their Coordinate Shift cover is fucking awesome. (Oh yeah, I love Ferry too, but I discovered Ferry a long ass time ago. Go listen to Ferry's music too though). Corpse Astronomy and Machina are great, but Only Game in Town is so fucking good. Oh wow I'm having memories of playing gbf just listening to it. I must've had this playing in the background a lot.

KAT makes great music, alas due to the previously aforementioned state I'm in, I haven't listened to their newest release. I have listened to Self Proclaimed Angel and Dizzy Paranoia Girl more times than is normal. It's really obvious why for the latter if you listen to it. Ha.

Mentioning here because it'd be a crime if I didn't: I recently discovered Utsu-P and yeah. Disappointed in myself for never listening to their music before now.

8. Game of the year?

When did I start playing Terraria again?

In all seriousness I don't play new releases enough to have a strong opinion on games and the like. Partly due to not having an income source of my own.

I'm looking through all the games I've talked about recently and wow. Uh. I don't get into new games often, do I? I'd say mouthwashing, but I've yet to actually watch the playthrough yet (I always remember when I'm busy) so I can't really say that. ...I've been watching copious amounts of Among US content! Money Monday's are fun. But that a game from like, 2020? 2018?

Yeah I don't know.

25. Did you create any characters (in games, art, or writing) this year? Describe one

Oh here's my excuse to talk about Observer!Frisk (henceforth referred to as Ai)! She's existed for a lot longer than a year, but I first put down art of her this year and only posted about them after so I'll count it.

Observer!Frisk is in simple terms a Core!Frisk swap. Of sorts. He's still a Core Frisk, but I refer to them as a swap because they came about as a result of me making Ink and Error swaps and realising I needed a Core!Frisk to accompany them.

I love Ai, there is something deeply wrong with them and they refuse to acknowledge it ever. Sure, your need to obverse literally everything and everyone you can doesn't come from your crippling worry about your lack of control. Granted, said worry comes from the fact that they once had that control (a la time powers) and lost it due to their own mistakes, so it's to be expected when they relied on said control as a crutch.

I mean, all their friends are in the void now, save for Sans, who by their own actions is now an Error, and his clone consumes alternate universes chasing a method to stave away his complete lack of feelings, so she's got a lot of baggage. God. When you put it like that I understand why he's like this.

Also doesn't help that they inherited the disattachment that one treats their experiments with from Gaster. I suppose it's easy to take up such an attitude when you can treat all the people you know like characters in a visual novel.

They make have done a paci-neutral route and done everything they did for the sake of reaching a happy ending, but I would hesitate to call them a good person, per se. They are driven by perfectionism (what they really wanted was a perfect ending after all), and now that their attention is turned to observing and telling stories, that does mean they're willing to do anything to ensure perfect endings and complete control.

Well, they're not the worst. Or they wouldn't still have the entire Underground backing them after what happened.

Don't ask them about their face. You'll get away with it once or twice, but push them on it and you might find out why you never mess with the smiling all-knowing types.

I have a tag for them too! Should be #observer frisk, I think.

[iam-back]

A Review of Vinny's Quality DOS Games 2

I have to put a Content Label on this post because of one of the games in the video and therefore displayed on the thumbnail, front-and-center for all to see.

[ISR] MsiBamba ShelBamba | Much like Chex had Chex Quest and Skittles had Darkened Skye, everyone's favorite Isr43li (I have to censor out the name because filters aren't word-bound) peanut-Cheeto has a video game featuring its infantile mascot!

It's bad enough for a video game to only have one song in its "soundtrack", but Bamba: The Game is up there with Hong Kong 97 in terms of repetitious torture! Not helping is the wonky controls and everything, even the animals you're supposed to get to, hurting you. You want some good games where you play as a baby? Miracle Upa-World, Family Guy: Video Game! and Road to the Multiverse, Rugrats: Search for Reptar, Studio Tour, Gotta Go Party, etc...

And legend tells that this game can only be played once per bootup, otherwise subsequent playthroughs won't work properly or the game will flat-out refuse to load.

[Unknown - likely Asia] Hilarious Bowling | Whoa, okay! Only two games in and we're already going from a 0 to a 100! No wonder doktawhawee9870 said this feels like the sorta game they, their brother, and their friends would make drunk, and when they sobered up the next morning, they'd come to regret it!

In our roster we got a certain former painter-turned-historical monster, Madonna who has bowling pins on her stage presence, a mishmash of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan, a guy who wears "Old-Year" on his big old hat and calls himself Napoleon, and Sherlock Holmes.

But then you play as some ordinary little ankle-biter pipsqueaks. Bowling for a Content Label. "You can... have a Napoleon v.s you-know-who in Dracula's castle, in this game."

Ooh, poor Napoleon. His Psychonauts appearance, this is not.

[SWI] BeerThe Last Eichhof | "You try my patience, make your choice!" Did you expect Galaxian but with beer bottles and the game studio's logo? No? Good, cuz that's what this is! You can buy beer bottles to extend your range (Vinny ends up passing up on Pony and buying Bunkel) and powerups (the speedup is called "I Want To Be Fast", which leads to the exact joke you've come to expect if you've spent any time on the Internet after, say, 2003).

Also, what are these sounds? Laughter when you die? "I am!" Cowbell? Exploding Pac-Man appears sometimes? A train that drops plates is a boss? Sneezing? What!? And it all leads to some dudebros yelling "RUCKSACK! RUCKSACK!", which of course Vinny mistakes as them saying "suck".

[CHN] Clearance/Bubu Bubu | What would you expect from a game Vinny calls "Bubboo/Bubba Chang Tang-Gan"? If you said Bomberman with space-octopodes, you're right! This one begins as an octopus spends his last gasp of moon-air sending a distress signal to another Death Star-like thing. Immediately after, you're off to the space-pyramids farting out black exploding newborns to defend yourself against the ladybugs, hermit crabs, and... things!

If you press other keys, you can shoot fireballs or leave trails of fire, but Vinny can't figure out how to do that before he moves on to...

[RUS] Crow II | I say "Russia" because look at this! The Wise Cat in the cup game, Pike v.s Ivan the Fool in the fighting section with Katyusha playing, chasing Baba Yaga's house on a horse-drawn carriage... Let's skip to the second go-round of the second section, because yee-yikes the crow is loud and woo-wee does that ominous laughter give you a chill.

After Vinny wins, he finds himself on carriage-back chasing what he at first believes to be menstruation or anal bleeding, but is actually, of course, Baba Yaga's house. Unfortunately, he doesn't realize his objective until it's too late and he's outpaced the house by kilometers.

I appreciate the semi-Mode-7 though.

[???] Cyber Marine | First Super Cop, now this! The gamedevs somehow went by without a lawsuit from Orion Pictures - that's clearly Robocop! These levels complete themselves, literally, and joystick-less movement is a galdurn MYSTERY! Did these bozos not know how to program A VIDEO GAME!?!?!?

[KOR] Dark Side Story | The feel-good hit of the summer: Dark Side Story! Starring Kevin James as a toaster, Jean Claude van Damme as an arm, Adam Sandler as a washed-up broad, and ET as a slimy space-penis! Alright!

...Nah just kidding. This one's from Sonnori (yes, "A Labyrinth Called School" Sonnori), and after two crashes and some bumbling around with commands he's off! After witnessing this poor gentleman get trapped inside a gachapon ball you're immediately thrust into a girl's living room, neither cutscene nor fanfare - she's our player character, whom I'll call Seonhwa, but Vinny says she's more like Tifa Lockhart.

All Vinny can do is run around, get lost, smack a guy around (by the way, the outside stuff is a beatmup), and be constantly preturbed by the D-note that goes on a bit long.

[KOR] Dino: Earth Rescue Operations | Are those Cheetos? Even the Hangeul says "Cheetos"! Anyway, in this arcade-esque game, you burn the dinosaurs and collect fattening junk foods like bananas, cherries, and yes, those sweet succulent Cheetos!

DESSERT P! Seouo is quite prolific on the leaderboard, aren't they?

[JAM] Ganja Farmer | Much like K(S)FH was a Simpsonized Rat Trap and BeerThe Last Eichhof was an alcoholic Galaxian, Ganja Farmer is a marijuana-scented Missile Command. NEXT!

[DEN] Guldkorn Express | To get that salty Bamba taste out of your mouth, have some sweet Guldkorn cereal! On a sentient train driven by a bear! Whoa, this old IBM DOS game has some good physics! Why does the dynamite sound like a Mozart? When will Vinny learn the key you need to press to drop the dynamites you've collected? And why does the death message sound like "high maintenance taint"???

Ah yes - I forgot about the thing I thought was a dragonfly, but on closer inspection is a bee!

[CHN] Jinyong Fighter | This fighter comes with the BEEFIEST bass this side of that one YTPMV of a swamp level. After a fight between Little Dragon Lady and what looks like Sammy Hagar who controls ice and lightning, we're introduced to 13 wacky characters! A red kung-fu guy, an old man who can become a frog at will, not-Sammy Hagar, a magic rocket-card guy, an electro-wizard, a ninja who got lost on the way to Edo, Little Dragon Lady, the red dancer, a monk who throws psychic projectiles, a clown who becomes a monster, a guy who has a dragon, and a fiery swordsman.

He plays as the frog-shifter v.s not-Sammy Hagar and loses both times. Handy-king-dude-guy wins. Twice.

[KOR] Kart Race | From the "developers" that brought you The Day saga and Icarus (which was shown in the last Quality DOS but skipped), and immediately after one of Vinny's trademark Super Show Bros Talk About episodes (presumably Mario Kart and how slapdash Korean bootleggers ripped them off or some doomsh--), here's essentially the Korean Skunny Kart/Miracle Design slapdash racers!

Our repertoire this time is Jyun, Ijin, Can, Chang, Tina (?), Elle, Tai, and Mog! Together they race in their dumb cars, pick up just one item to use it 8 times, and take victory ultra-seriously, as if Vinny places second the game will not let him proceed. Why is the hit-sound one of those fast-talking-on-phone sounds?

[ITA] Our Thing | Oh boy, more common games reskinned with a certain thingy in mind! This time it's Mafia Doom, complete with O Sole Mio droning on and on in the background! NEXT!!!

[KOR] Catch the Mole | Oh joy, 60 seconds of Whack-a-Mole excitement, now with Numpad requirements, packaged entirely as its own game for you to play at your rinky-dink home in the seedier side of Seoul. As an added bonus, the game messed up Vinny's mic quality, he thinks.

[KOR] Real Fighter | More like "Not Virtua Fighter"! The vanity plate runs faster than the game until Vinny increases the cycles. Also, in the menu graphic, Inoeru looks like Spy TF2. This one's quirk is that the CPU will always pick the first character you pick for this session, in this case Blood. Don't you think the music is a bit wrong for a fighter? Sounds too peaceful for such violence.

He always loses, even when switching to Inoeru, whereupon the game crashes when the word "PERPECT" shows up.

[KOR] Reon's Adventure | After a long intro sequence set in the grassy fields with a Kremlin castle, some come with mee-eeyalaboo, ducks, and Museum of Anything Goes, we finally come across the title screen where we meet Reon himself, who seems to be a rascally lion-scamp.

Gameplay consists of Reon swashbuckling his way through the levels in 200 seconds or less, but he can jump on the ones that aren't cacti as well. He can rake in the won coins as he adventures, and then at the end of the level he meets this merchant with shoes of steel walking on a bed of spikes! Metal.

Vinny then gives up when he puts the Ctrl key back in (it popped out and it happens to be the key you use to use a sword), killed by a Spindashing Squirrel.

[RUS] SABOR | Y'ever see a game with better music than art? This is that. The story is as follows: weapons are banned somehow, and scrolls for SABOR end up in a rural village where 5 guys find it and then they're off to save the world. Hefty task for a bunch of quintuplets, but okay.

The outcome of the first round determines that of the second - but because Vinny loses all five times the first round he has no choice but to watch the quintuplets get beaten to death. Then he goes to training mode, where the training dummy is not a sandbag, or a sack of meat, but an entire other guy! You punch its lights out, because the healthbar is candles - worst MS-DOS pun ever until 1994's SpaceKids came along and Zeedle rode on a literal horseshoe!

[KOR] Sybal's Monkey Adventure | This side-shooter refreshingly takes place in the open plain, as a monkey shooting bananas against evil jumping and flying monkeys. A lot of stuff is in 5s. 5 lives, 5 hits before death, enemies in waves of 5 at first...

[CHN] Violent Myth | True to its name, this one is a fighter with a mythical twist! You got these birds, soldiers, kings, Little Dragon Lady? This one's gimmick is that you can go reeeeeeeeaaaaaaally far away from each other. Vinny's first match, the opponent fires blue Blazing Torches. Then the AI craps its pants.

Second match, the opponent fires little castles and he complains about how apparently far away the controls are (S and D to move, Shift to kick, X to crouch? Seems close-knit to me!).

[KOR] Hello! Mr. President YS | Contrary to my initial wishes for this to be a dating sim where you talk to South Korea's president, this one is a political board game in an era where we really don't need any more of it.