#he technically releases tomorrow but he's already for sale in a lot of places

[meownotgood]

gbsbbhbbsbb.... abqbqbq.... a. a.. a. a... aaa.... hhahahsh........ hhng......

[1ddiscourseoftheday]

24 Oct 19

We Made It is out!! [literally redacted for length, me going on and on about how great the song is] But not just that, LT TOUR DATES ARE OUT!! The tour starts in Europe and the UK in March (the Apollo! Donny Dome!), goes international, then wraps up in North America in July, and most of the venues are small and the tickets are on sale in less then two weeks so basically, write your wills/bankruptcy paperwork now cause it's about to get real. Fans are already camping out in South America and TBH they might just have the right idea. We're told there will be "a few more dates" at a "later date" but not soon enough to ease this frenzy I'm guessing. Anyway WMI! The video is out too and continues but doesn't finish the story started in the KMM video- again there's a snippet of the next single at the end and it's Don't Let It Break Your Heart! DLIBYH was recently registered, showing Louis as a performer only, no writing credit, which was surprising. Not clear if he didn't write on it at all or just not enough of it to put his name on there. New writer of note who is credited: Wrabel, a singer songwriter who also runs their own label, Big Gay Records. Louis is in NYC doing promo. He sang at Sirius this morning (airs tomorrow). Also tomorrow Elvis Duran, and he records his Build Series interview in front of a small fan audience. He got papped, just a man, his bodyguard, and his latte casually strolling the streets, and then headed off to a fan meet and greet. If your heart isn't already in tatters from the many many moving fan accounts of Louis taking his time and connecting personally with and loving each one of the lucky fans, how about the picture of Louis jokingly flipping off the huge poster of his own face? And if that hasn't done you in, get ready for Louis asking to hold a baby named Louis and yeah. The cutest fucking Louis+baby pics you'll ever see [commentary redacted] Anyway coverage of the single: lots of quotes about the song and its nostalgic slant, Louis telling all kinds of stories about what inspired the lyrics, and I do mean all kinds! When more than one media outlet comment that he "has shared a few different stories behind what it could mean" you know it's getting shifty out there. So is about the fans, Eleanor, touring (that was a good one!), his mates, or "some other relationship" as one outlet offered? To quote Louis, "I think if the fans really listen to my lyrics you'll know what I'm singing about," and "this song is a message to my fans."

And on the topic of Harry, what is he up to? Well! He's is gonna be on Saturday Night Live on Nov 16, he's gonna fully take it over! That's right he's the host and musical guest and will get to introduce himself and you know he'll make the most of that... He'll be the 28th person to do the double duty which led to much being made of the 28, which led to people crying to Jeff to get the tweet about him being the 28th presenter performer deleted and sue the outlet for announcing it LMAO. Obviously that didn't happen because, what.

Liam's Christmas tune is out and it's a really lovely song! All I Want (for Christmas) was released midnight everywhere so technically not yet lots of places but you know, it's out. The lyric vid is on YouTube, it's the adorable tale of animated game of thrones Liam, his pink haired ex girlfriend (is that the NTMY girl?) and his new significant other, a giant fluffy wolf. And Liam performed tonight (not the new song it was before that.) It wasn't scheduled but he stepped in to fill Rita Ora's slot (she was taken ill and cancelled) to play at the Amazon Music Fashion Europe Event in Berlin. He plays the Kiss Haunted House Party tomorrow night at Wembley, which given that it's Halloween themed I don't expect the Christmas song but who knows.

A new version of NTMY was announced for midnight local time tonight, which it for sure is somewhere (see: Liam's song being out) but I don't see it and honestly it's busy today anyway. Tomorrow for that! But for today, the Niall and Lewis Capaldi friendship test video is out and whatever you were imagining and hoping it would be, it absolutely is. It's Quality Content indeed y'all. It doesn't have a best part, it's all the best part, buuuut Lewis making Niall turn bright red is pretty damn good. Niall will be on Graham Norton Nov 8 as a guest and performer.

[choonlo]

Hey ⑇ p.js

a park jisung oneshot

genre : fluff

wc : 4k

The screams got noticeably louder when a familiar tune began to play from the speakers.

A bead of sweat trickled from the side of your forehead down to your neck as you desperately tried to fan yourself with your hands. Joined by a few other fans, the six members of NCT Dream were in the middle of the crowd, dancing to their latest song, "Boom". You hadn't expected this to happen—actually, none of the people here had, not even the host of the occasion. It was merely a coincidence, you thought. For Korean idols to appear and eventually join this random K-Pop dance event was something out of a fangirl's dream, your dream, and everyone else's for that matter.

As you rapped Jaemin's lines along with the crowd, you let your eyes take in as much of your bias as you could. Park Jisung was indeed just a few meters away from you. Hell, you hadn't had the chance to go to concerts your whole life, but guess what? Your very first one was free, and it was better than those VIP seats that you couldn't afford with the five bucks you called your "savings".

It was hot. It felt like the sun's rays were stabbing your skin, and the heat from being squished in the middle of the cluster of sweaty bodies certainly didn't help either. You ignored the pounding in your head and focused on Jisung who was now dancing to Chewing Gum. The corners of your lips twitched upward. It's been years since the song was released, and you could still remember the curly hair that had brought you into the fandom.

Despite the obvious changes from 2016 Jisung and the present, you could still feel the childlike innocence that radiated from him, the absolute cuteness that caught your eye when you first watched their debut video.

Minutes passed, and they were finally done. The host was now talking to the group, thanking them as each of the members took their turn in shaking his hand. Most of the people were filming the moment, wanting to have something to remember the experience with. You would've been doing the same, but you weren't. It didn't occur to your mind that you should've been doing something like taking a picture, of recording a video on your phone. Instead of doing any of these, you screamed.

"I LOVE YOU PARK JISUNG!"

You had screamed at the top of your lungs, your shrill voice piercing through and drowning out every other noise. Silence suddenly existed in the busy area you were in thanks to you, and you hadn't noticed what you'd done until Jisung's eyes locked with yours.

Actually, all eyes were on you, but it was as if you and Jisung were the only ones there, as cliché as it sounded. Was it mentioned that you were wearing a shirt with Jisung's name and face imprinted on it? And that your backpack was embedded with NCT enamel pins, half of them being, again, Jisung's face. Well, now you remembered.

Finally, you snapped out of your trance and slapped a hand over your mouth, face flushing when you realised the amount of attention being directed to you. A few people started laughing, giggling, whatever. Some went "aww" at your adorable reaction. This made you look down at your feet, and because you did so, you failed to see how Jisung's cheeks reddened, too.

×

Having finished your grieving session, you walk down the stairs to grab a glass of water, phone in hand. You've been wailing in your room for the past few hours, and you basically let your heart out as your parents weren't home yet. But you were probably loud enough that your neighbours may have thought of calling the police, which they thankfully hadn't.

"Legit, I wouldn't be surprised if Jisung has a fanboy crush on you right now," Kim clicked her tongue, her voice seemingly laced with excitement.

Videos of NCT Dream's appearance earlier had started to circulate the internet, not one from any of the social media platforms you used didn't have at least ten posts about the afternoon event downtown.

Of course, that wasn't what had gotten you riled up.

There were clips dedicated to you, most having your face clearly shown in them. Notifications from your phone blew up the moment you got home, friends and strangers spamming you with messages, and you weren't surprised that some even had threats.

Apparently, a lot had seen how Jisung reacted, and some speculations of you being someone more than a fan began to spread across the whole fandom. Oh boy, how you wished.

"Um, no," you retorted, placing the glass on the coaster as you plopped yourself onto the couch. "Did you even see my face in those videos? I looked like crap! Jisung probably felt embarrassed!"

"That's not the overly confident Y/N I know," Kim laughed through the phone. You roll your eyes at her comment. "You looked cute! Like, you looked haggard as fuck, but it was the pretty type of haggard!"

"What does that even mean?" You were annoyed, but you couldn't help but laugh at her statement. "This isn't a fanfiction, Kim."

She groaned, "Oh shut up, ten bucks to you if you don't get involved with NCT's Jisung within a month."

"Are you serious?" you replied, enthused. "You do know that I'm totally winning that bet?"

"Yeah, sure." As she spoke, you heard your phone emit a soft ring from the coffee table. You lean forward from the couch to peak at the screen, there was a notification from your social media, someone had just sent you a message.

"Was that yours?" Kim asked. Your response was a mere hum as you took the device into your hand. It was from a user whose name was literally "akzkjzjsj", and you almost ignored it if it weren't for Kim's comment; "I bet it's Jisung."

Squinting, you saw how the person's icon was a picture of the ceiling, nothing else but a light bulb in the image, like it had been taken just now for a one time use.

akzkjzjsj

: hey

Curious, you were. It didn't seem like a bot. Maybe the person would give you threats, too? It made sense, as it was an account that had just been made.

PJiuwusuwung

: whats up?

akzkjzjsj

: do u know nct

You scoffed, wasn't that already obvious? Ignoring Kim's voice, you typed in a reply.

PJiuwusuwung

: this is legit a jisung fan account ur talking to

akzkjzjsj

: ok

: can we meet up tomorok?

: tomorrow*

PJiuwusuwung

: um what i dont even know u???

akzkjzjsj

: that dog cafe downtown tom at 3 pm

: Nthnkzs (:

Your eyebrows furrowed. "What?" you let out a confused noise, beginning to type once again.

PJiuwusuwung

: wtf !

: what makes u think i'll go !

: hEllo? !

Noticing that your messages weren't sending, you clicked on the person's icon. A wry laugh bubbled from your throat, the person had blocked you. You exited the application and placed the phone back onto the small table.

"Are you done ignoring me?" Kim's irritated voice made you sigh. "What happened? Wait! Don't tell me Jisung actually contacted you."

"No, it wasn't him," you began, "Some guy—or girl, just asked to meet up tomorrow at that dog cafe we go to a lot. And guess what? The asshole blocked me before I could even reply."

"Don't go," she said with a stern tone. "It might be sasaengs, you should be careful when going out. Some people can be dumb enough to do something crazy before thinking twice."

Kim was right, but you decided to brush it off. "Calm down, it's not like I was planning to go anyway," you chuckled lightly, shaking your head.

"Yeah, good to know."

×

"Dad, I'm going out!"

"Where to?" he questioned. Slipping your shoes on, you thought of what your best friend had told you the night before. You technically weren't going to the cafe. There was a sale in the small store downtown, and you didn't want to pass the chance to get your hands on K-Pop merch for lower prices. Obviously, you had to ask for money from your mother, and she was reluctant to give you any, but you had begged enough that she was finally just forced to do so.

"I'm going to meet up with Kim downtown."

"Have fun," he replied. "Don't stay out too late."

After half an hour, you finally arrived. You entered the store, but not without bumping into a few bodies, the place was filled with people after all. Noticing how many customers crowded around the NCT section, you lowered your cap, and you snickered silently. Why were you acting like this? You thought you were being too dramatic, they probably had no clue who you were, anyway.

Your hand hovered an inch above the mask you wore before you stopped, hearing the conversation of the girls by the stand.

"Have you seen that video Jisung? The one where he acted weird when that one fan suddenly screamed "I love you" out loud?" one of them asked, studying Jisung's photocard in her hand.

"Who hasn't? Ugh, seriously, I would've went if I had known that Dream would show up!" the other whined. "The girl is so lucky, all the members looked at her at the same time! I would sell my kidney just to experience that!"

A shiver ran down your spine. It certainly wasn't nice to hear people talking about you, even though it wasn't anything bad, it made you uncomfortable.

Saving the money given to you was undeniably the better option rather than staying here. Right when you turned your back to walk out of the store, your head bumped into someone's chest. You softly mumbled an apology and stepped aside.

A hand grabbed your arm, and you felt yourself stiffen. Fuck, were you recognized? You didn't even wear the bag you wore yesterday, and you had normal clothes on, not those unofficial NCT shirts you usually used. How could someone possibly. . You tried to jerk your arm away from the person's grasp, but his voice stopped you.

"Good thing you didn't remove your mask," he remarked before pulling you out of the store. You knew better than to attract attention to yourself and the boy, and because you had an idea of who he was, you didn't cry for help. Once the two of you were a good distance away from the shop, you pulled your arm out of his grip and stepped back.

"What do you—"

"Don't worry! I won't do anything to you," the boy chuckled, shrugging his shoulders awkwardly. You look at him, he wasn't Jisung, the neon hair peaking out from the front of his hat said otherwise.

"Zhon—"

"Hey now! No blowing our covers!" Chenle hushed you as he crossed his arms, sending you a playful glare. He noticed your confused expression and sighed. "Why are you even here? Didn't we tell you to go to the dog cafe down the street?"

"Wh—" you paused. Realisation hits you like a truck and you gasp, hands moving to slap your cheeks. The person who had messaged you last night, the one who'd asked you to meet up. Was it Chenle?? "Why did you want to meet me?"

"Me? Oh no, not me! All we did was talk to you for Jisung," he explained, voice retreating to a soft whisper at the end of his sentence. Before he could say anything else, you cut him off.

"We?"

He tilted his head in confusion before letting out a sound and clasping his hands together. "I mean me, and the other members, aside from the youngest."

"You see," he continued, "Jisung basically developed a crush on you when he saw you yesterday! He couldn't stop asking himself, and us, what your name was and if he was your favourite among all the members—which was obvious because his face was literally on your shirt."

Chenle shuts his mouth, realising what he was doing. "I'm sorry for babbling. Jisung's waiting for you in the cafe, you should go now!"

He twirls you around and gives your back a push, snapping you out. "Wait, I—"

"Follow me," another boy shows up in front of you. You feel your head pound from everything that's happening, but you follow him nonetheless as he crosses the street. It takes the two of you a few minutes to get to the doors of the cafe, and you almost feel like fainting right there and then.

"I-I still have so many questions," you stare up at the person who escorted you to the cafe. The familiar eyes were enough for you to know that you were talking to Lee Jeno. "Can I pleas—"

"You should get in and sit down," he assured, giving you a pat on the shoulder. "You'll have your questions answered in there."

You nodded your head and tiredly pushed passed the door, the bell ringing from the motion. Puppies started to swarm around your feet, and you began to feel better as you squatted down in an attempt to stop the dizziness you felt.

As you pet the small poodle softly on its head, you take notice of the person who knelt beside you. Raising your head, your eyes immediately meet his. Jisung's face blushes a bright red, and you head the choked howling from the other side of the cafe. The other three members were clearly here.

"H-Hey," he uttered softly, averting his gaze onto the puppies that played with you. "I'm Park Jisung."

Despite the awkwardness, you didn't stop the laugh that bubble from your throat, and Jisung was glad that you didn't, because your voice truly was music to his ears.

"You didn't have to introduce yourself, Jisung." You wanted to give yourself a good ol' pat on the back as you smiled at him, making him even more flustered than before. It was weird, you should've been the one unable to talk properly! He was your idol, after all.

"Do you—I—uh, should—" Jisung was being the exact meme you'd expected him to be, and you felt your lips twitch at his cuteness.

"Let's take a seat on the tables—I mean chairs, the chairs, yes," he kept on stammering, standing up and holding a hand out for you. Now it's your turn to be awkward, staring at his hand for a long time before feeling the heat rise up to your ears.

"Oh, I'm supposed to—" you took his hand and stood up. The other members couldn't stop themselves from making noise. Chenle, who had already entered silently from behind the two of you, would've burst out laughing if it weren't for the four covering his mouth.

The two of you settle at the table further inside of the cafe, cautious of the fans that may possibly pass by. Jisung sat across from you, facing away from the transparent walls. Silence lasted for a long moment before he finally spoke up, "So, how long have you been a fan of our group?"

You looked up from the puppy on your lap and bit back a smile. He actually spoke without stuttering this time. "I started liking NCT when I saw Dream's debut video."

You saw the interest sparkle from Jisung's eyes as he leaned forward, intrigued. "I was actually skeptical about it first, because I wasn't quite a fan of cutesy concepts. But once I watched it, your unit became my favourite group."

"Why's that?" he wondered, tilting his head to the side cutely. An action so adorable that it made your heart skip a beat.

"W-Well, first of all, the song was catchy," you shifted on your seat, avoiding his gaze. "The vocals and raps were everything. I even spent my time trying to learn the choreography!"

You were about to start talking again before you remembered who was sitting in front of you. It was hard to do anything when you knew that the Park Jisung was giving all his attention to you.

The corners of Jisung's mouth quirked into a grin, he knew his effect on you, but he didn't want that to ruin this rare opportunity to be able to spend his time with someone he liked. "Hey." His voice made your shoulders jump. "Let's try to be comfortable with each other. Just talk to me, and I'll listen."

Because I want to get to know you better.

"Actually," he began when you finally faced him, "I was wondering if—"

"Sorry to interrupt," Renjun's voice startled the both of you, and Jaemin had to slap his shoulder to stop him from giggling. "Your drinks are with us,"

The two boys moved to the side of your table and placed each beverage on the coaster provided. Your eyebrows raise when you realize that the one given to you was your favourite. Jaemin was beaming, and seeing Renjun give you a polite smile, you decided not to question it and thanked them before they retreated back to their spot.

Either they stalked you hardcore, or they asked the lady in the counter for your usual.

"G-Go on," you shyly urge Jisung to continue, looking down into the glass as you look a sip from the straw.

"Can I get your number?"

He'd said it so softly, so sweetly, and oh so smoothly that you almost choked, shocked at his straightforward question. You face becomes beet red and you clumsily try to get an answer out.

Jisung sees how you react and panics as well, "I m-mean you don't have to! I just—"

"It's okay!" you cut him off, shaking your head profusely. He went silent, and so did you, not knowing what to say. What's next? Your mind was a total mess as you tried to think. Finally, you decided on getting your phone out, but he beats you to it, handing you his phone with a new contact ready to be added.

He knew that your first da—meeting, wouldn't go well. Jisung was an idol, and you were his fan. Although he was glad that you didn't go brain-dead, it was still a shame that the two of you couldn't speak to each other properly as it was, clearly, awkward.

That's why he thought that getting your number would be best, as he could easily talk to you without you seeing him get flustered about everything you did. It was an idea that he was proud of, so he couldn't help but bite his lip in an attempt to hide his smile as he watched you type in your number.

"H-Here," you return the gadget, looking away embarrassed and bewildered. Park Jisung asked you for your number. Park Jisung has your number. Park Jisung plans to contact you after all of this. The Park Jisung, actually knows you?

Jisung shot up from his seat, arm sticking out ready to catch you when you almost fell off your seat sideways. He moved to kneel beside you, pressing a hand onto your forehead and taking your wrist into the other, "Are you okay?"

It felt like your body was on fire when he touched you. "I-I-I am! Yeah, I'm good! Totally good!" you yelped, gently peeling his hand away from your head.

"But you're hot to the touch!" he protested.

"That's because I'm blushing!" you shook your head, pulling him up to stand. "I'm not sick, I'm just flustered."

"O-oh," he mutters, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry about that."

"Don't worry, it's not your fault!" Well it is his fault, WHAT WERE YOU SAYING? You mentally slapped yourself and opened your mouth to speak.

"I—"

"Jisung!" a voice softly hissed. Donghyuck moved hastily, slamming his hands onto the table harshly. He turns to your and gives you a smile. "Hello, Y/N."

"Hi?"

The boy laughs and turns back to his friend, shooting Jisung a panicked glare. "We have to go. Now. The manager is looking for us!"

Both your eyes widen and the two of you stand up in unison. Haechan pats Jisung on the chest before hurrying back, and Jisung looks back at you.

"I can see that you have to go," you gestured to the boys in chaos from the other side of the room. You quickly took notice of the apologetic face he had. "Don't be sorry, I understand. Now go! I don't want any of you getting in trouble."

Jisung nodded and took your hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. Your breath hitched when he pecked your cheek before he runs out of the store with the other members, but not without sending you a last wave. You stood there, dumbfounded, a hand on the place where Jisung had kissed you.

A moment passes and you finally recollect yourself, staggering toward the counter to pay for the drinks you had. The lady smiled and returned the money, "Those boys already paid."

You uttered a soft "oh" before nodding your head and walking out of the cafe. Damn, the past hour felt like an eternity! You were dead on your feet when you arrived home, and you quietly made your way upstairs to your room as your father's snores echoed through the living room.

Crashing down onto the softness of your bed, you let out a tired moan. It didn't take long before you felt yourself drifting off to sleep.

×

A vibration from your leg woke you up, and you groaned as you sat up, rubbing your eyes and looking around your room. You yawned, stretching your arms out and arching your back. "That was one hell of a dream."

You reached for the phone that had gotten out of your pocket, and you blink. Why were you wearing the clothes you had on in your dream? A gasp escapes your lips and you quickly unlock your phone. An unknown number had sent you a message.

Unknown #

: hey

: its mee

You

: who is me?

: j88sufn?

: jisung??

Fingers shaking, you clicked your tongue as you had wanted to slap yourself for being so nervous.

Unknown #

: your one and only :))

You wanted to yell at the top of your lungs, but all that came out was a croak, your voice getting stuck down your throat.

You

: BUT i thought it was a dream?

: are u messing w me

The person takes time to respond before the bubble disappears. Instead, they sent a picture of you playing with the dog in the cafe you were in earlier.

Unknown #

: certainly wasn't a dream

: anywayyy how r u?

You take a full minute to process what was happening and slowly let your thumbs type.

UWUSUNG

: hold that thought

: i gtg for practice, i'll ttyl c:

: ♥️

What? Did Jisung just send you a heart? You, Y/N L/N, could talk to Park Jisung anytime you wanted to. It felt like a dream, like you were being one of those delusional fangirls. But you weren't, because this was real, you concluded after biting onto your arm.

You hadn't sent a reply back after that, as it was too much for you to take in. This only happens when your crush is in the same school as you, not when your crush is an actual idol from SM Entertainment!

You almost threw your phone the moment it rang, someone was calling you. Was it Jisung? No! He left to practice!

The contact "Kim✨😘" flashed from the screen and you sighed in relief, feeling your shoulders relax before you answered the call. Not waiting for her to make a sound, you squealed into the mic, earning a shout from her.

"What the actual FUCK?" she growled. You shrugged her clear annoyance off and started rambling about what happened. Kim, on the other hand, couldn't understand a word you were saying, telling you to shut up.

"Okay, calmly, tell me what happened," she told you, letting you breathe in normally. As you were about to speak, your phone vibrated, and you held it in front of you to check the screen. Jisung had sent you a picture of himself, although it seemed like it was taken by someone else. He was posing for the camera, a sheepish grin on his face as he went with the awkward peace sign.

You let out a laugh at this, finding the picture, which was presumably taken by Chenle, cute. You replied with a heart after saving the image.

"Hey." You heard her huff. "Did you hit your head or something?"

"Hey," you repeated, lips a permanent smile. "Let's meet up tomorrow."

"Sure, but why?"

"Because you're getting your ten bucks tomorrow."

[attract-mode-collective]

Finally, The ET Video Game That You’ve Been Waiting For

Since there was no proper game culture wrap-up last week (again, sorry about that), along with how I’m filing this at the end of the week instead of the beginning (there’s… stuff happening, so consider this one of the more minor examples), there’s a lot to cover this time around. Including a bunch of happenings from the word of art.

So kicking things off is the latest from Amanda Visel X Michelle Valigura. Much like their Star Wars, Beetlejuice, and Heathers cabinets, here we their ideas of what arcade games based upon ET and Aliens could and should look like. And yeah, playing as Gertie is an approach that could salvage its reputation in the video game sphere, plus I totally want an Alien/Aliens video game starring Newt.

Actually, hasn’t something similar already happened? Sorry, haven’t kept up with the video adaptations; last one I played was for the Jaguar. Anyhow, and unfortunately, both pieces are sold out online. Though… and I’m not 100% certain, but… they’re both at the Thailand Toy Expo, so maybe they brought a few extras with them?

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan to be exact, are not just one but two other notable shows, and both focused on electronic entertainment. First is something you’re probably familiar with, the My Famicase Exhibition, and not just because it’s been around for 13 years. As of this writing, the entire assortment has yet to be shared officially, so you’ll have to turn to Twitter to see the participants boasting their own handiwork.

[UPDATE: 5/7/17] Actually, all the pieces are finally viewable on the Famicase homepage proper. Here are my faves…

… I particularly love Saturdays’s flavor text: “The gateway opens once a week. Tomorrow I’m going in.”

… You kinda need to see the actual cart in the wild to understand; here’s a pic courtesy of @mandimappy…

And finally...

… It’s maybe pointing out that the artist responsible for the concept above also did a piece for last year’s event as well, which ended up becoming something that’s actually playable! Hope history repeats itself cuz I really want a game about an all cat band with gross lyrics.

Now, the other show is something you may know nothing about, cuz a. the 16 Bit Models Exhibition has only been around for two years and b, was only open for just one day, hence why it’s fallen under many radars.

Admittedly, I found last year’s assortment a bit more up my alley, most due to my affinity for the obscure. Yet I can still appreciate this very realistic take on the Super Mario Bros (btw, am also sorry that I don’t know who’s responsible for what)…

Along with this realistic take on Pauline and Donkey Kong…

Yet the exhibition was a reminder that not every Nintendo game out there has been paid tribute to death, specifically Urban Champion…

The dioramas are easily the best parts of the 16 Bit Models Exhibition. Here’s an equally impressive one, featuring Castlevania…

Though once again, the obscurer the better, so this tribute to Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa gets a thumbs up from me…

Which is the lesser known game: Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa or City Connection? The latter at least was released on the NES at the time. Then again…

Moving onto fashion, UNIQLO recently unveiled an upcoming line based upon Mario and company. As one might expect from UNIQLO, they look quite nice! Here’s the campaign movie from Japan…

The best part is that UNIQLO’s entire line is headed towards the US! Was not expecting that. Alas, certain designs are not available to everyone, and I know more than a few adults who wouldn’t mind that Kirby tee. So here comes YUMMY MART to the rescue…

Somewhat along the same lines is Namco enlisting the talents of PAYNUS, who represents some of the esoteric offerings in the Pac-Store…

The constant reference to pizza is something that’s present in both the PAYNUS designs and Namco’s own in-house efforts…

Meanwhile, back at METEOR, in addition to the latest Famicase exhibit, they’ve also been busy with a collab with THUNDERBOX (which I highlighted just a few weeks ago). And from the looks of miki800.com’s post, MOUNTAIN GRAPHICS is also involved? Talk about a holy trinity…

Whereas the previous combination makes sense, the following is… unexpected. Recently discovered that R23X has teamed up with the The Yetee of all folks to produce a line of shirts showcasing glitched VHS stills. Including one that’s game related (technically two; there’s also a crop top version as well)…

Looks neat and all, but I’m less of a Final Fantasy 7 fan and more of a Wave Race 64 aficionado, and would therefore love to see this on a tee…

I’d also love to get my hands on one of these 100 yen pins that @rgb_club posted a couple weeks back, though no word on when it might be available…

Here’s another thing that’s not for sale, mostly cuz there was only one, which is of this baseball player made to look like a Street Fighter…

Which had the better Spinning Bird Kick; Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li…

Or City Hunter (yup, that’s Jackie Chan; via tenshokyaku)…

Sticking with leggy video game stars, thanks to thevideogameartarchive, we finally have an answer as to whether Link is boxers or briefs…

And sticking with Link for just a bit more, I particularly dig nozovis’s summary of the fun times him and Zelda have in Breath of the Wild…

Along those same lines is a zine that @WPR_haru made that’s filled with all the photos he took, one that I’d love to have a copy of…

Which fan art featuring a character from behind do you prefer; this Breath of the Wild piece by James Kochalka…

Or this Overwatch piece by some unknown artist (if anyone knows, plz let me know)…

Here we have @RAStyle85’s Astro City with a lots of buttons, for playing whatever game that requires that many inputs…

And here we have former Taito graphic designer Atsushi Iwata’s custom-built device, for producing pixel graphics!

Such things were used in other places, like SNK. Here we have a quote from someone who worked there, courtesy of videogamesdensetsu…

“The sprite editor used by artists for a number of SNK fighting games (Art Box) was written for the Neo-Geo, and uses the Neo-Geo as the interface. As in, you would use the joystick and the buttons to draw the sprite. He didn’t believe this when he started there, until one of the higher ups showed him by firing up one of the machines and drawing a kickass sprite of Robert Garcia in like 10 minutes”.

Does the Art Box sound familiar? Well, it should be.

The latest from The Gaming Historian, on the creation of the d-pad, answers the one question I’ve had for ages: if Nintendo was able to patent the control input, how were Sega and others able to get away with something seemingly similar?

Remember the 8bit Harmonica from last week? Well here’s another project involving the Famicom by Ugoita that’s a bit more… random?

This post has gone on for far too long without any Sega. Time to fix that with some gifs of Sonic from Sega Saturn de Hakken!! Tamagotchi Park, which as you may have guessed is a Tamagotchi title in which you can raise Sonic (and sorry, chilli dogs was Sonic’s fave food in the US, though I believe Sonic Generations would later recon that; via pr0jectneedlemouse)…

Though you can also raise other Sega personalities, like Opa Opa and Alex Kidd, plus even a Mega Drive cart (via grooveonfight)?

Super obscure Sega humor doesn’t get more obscure than this folks (note to self: on the next car trip, bring along the soundtrack to Super Hang-On cuz repeated plays of OutRun and Daytona USA tunes can get old after a while; via dnopls)…

I know the following has been shared liked crazy (hell, even NPR posted the damn thing), and for good reason. All I can say is, Pikachu #14, get your sh*t together…

Speaking of Pikachu and his pals, The Pokemon Center released a line of Ditto Gachapon figures that are supa kawaii (via retrogamerblog)…

Though the one piece of plastic I want the most is the also recently unveiled Samus from Metroid Prime figure by Good Smile Company, which looks hella cooler than the previously released Other M Figma…

Am embarrassed to admit that I have no idea where this following screenshot is from, nor the tune that accompanies it, both courtesy of radicalhelmet. If anyone would be kind enough to clue me in, would be supremely appreciated…

I wonder what the cover girl of this issue of Spoon is playing (via sixteen-bit)…

And this week’s recommended reading comes courtesy of mah boi Don Miller, and is actually something that Oliver at Minus World also picked up on, which is a book produced by the creator of LSD: Dream Emulator, among other things, and someone I’ve mentioned quite a few times around these parts. It’s called The Art of Computer Designing: A Black and White Approach and is available via archive.org…

As someone who has always planned on transforming an old iMac into a fish tank, thanks to Phazed, I know have other ideas…

And finally, and I also know that I’ve been saying the same thing over and over again, but Super Attractive Club members will be receiving another round up game culture snapshots, hopefully very soon! Until then, please enjoy this still life courtesy of peazy86…

BTW, peazy86 also does music, plus music videos…

Don’t forget: Attract Mode is now on Medium! There you can subscribe to keep up to date, as well as enjoy some “best of” content you might have missed the first time around, plus be spared of the technical issues that’s starting to overtake Tumblr.

[dazzledbybooks]

May Sage & Alexi Blake will be revealing art from The Cursed Crown every month leading up to the December 1st release! Today’s art comes from Haloren1st! Check it and an exciting new excerpt out now! Title: The Cursed Crown Author: May Sage & Alexi Blake Genre: Epic Fantasy Illustrator: Gabriela Dea Julia Typography by Sylvia Frost from The Book Brander Boutique Release Date: 1st of December About The Cursed Crown: My lips hitch up an inch as the hulking, slender man bends down to whisper in my ear. “A divided kingdom without a leader is weak. You will fall. You will fail. You will all die without my kindness, little girl.” He expects me to falter, shiver, and drop my gaze to the ground like the flock of gentry buzzing around him. My eyes widen in feigned dismay. “Kindness? Why did no one think to tell me you had any?” I have to allow him that one concession: Rydekar is fun to tease. He doesn’t even smile. I don’t think anyone has taunted him. “I have none. You will beg nonetheless.” I just may, in his dreams. And in my nightmares. No one was ever born less suited to ruling than Rissa, the thorn of the seelie realm—a half-fae so wild she’s spent the better part of a hundred years in the woods. For all her flaws, she’s the last of the high court bloodline, and the southern king seems to think that’s reason enough to slap a crown on her feathered head. He needs her to unify the seelie forces. She needs him to forget about that nonsense. In an effort to aid her people without condemning herself to a lifetime of misery, she sets off on a journey to find the one person with a stronger claim to the throne than hers: the cursed prince. Sealed in the mountains of the Wilderness, under many spells, the heir of the first seelie queen is the only royal strong enough to protect the fae lands from their immortal invaders. Surviving the untamed tribes and awakening a thousand-year-old prince seem a lot easier than ruling an entire kingdom where everyone hates her very nature. And her choices won’t come without consequences. Pre-Order for a Limited Time Sale Price! Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B082FS6S5V Apple: https://apple.co/2I0tPNh Nook: http://bit.ly/398w8tQ Kobo: http://bit.ly/2wLAs3E Exclusive Excerpt: The first time the high king sent hunters after me, I terrified them, drowning them in the depths of their worst nightmare. I can get rather bored in the forest, and their fear entertained me for a day or two. The second time, I was less kind. Instead of a handful of men, he sent two dozen. Half returned home, none of them whole. I am no simple beast foreign kings can summon at their leisure. I am no weakling to bow to the will of another court. I am a nightmare. Half a nightmare, if one wishes to be technical about it. No one does, however. The folk like to conveniently forget that I am part gentry. Half a nightmare. Half a child of the Court of Sunlight. Entirely wild. I didn’t expect a third assault. I should have. I may have met Rydekar Bane only once, but it’s enough to understand what kind of king ascended to the throne of Tenebris. A single rider enters my woods this time. Just one man on a pale horse. Yet I bristle. The stems growing inside my veins, sprouting out of my pores, crawl along my arm, protectively wrapping me under their thorns. I feel the feathers on my shoulders flutter. One rider on a pale horse, yet I am afraid. It isn’t in my nature to fear anything. My instincts aren’t prepared for it. Am I to flee like prey? Am I to remain to await my fate? Prepare to fight? I’m so lost I end up doing nothing at all. I’m still perched atop the sturdiest branch of the ash tree I’ve claimed as my home when he appears, standing alone. Rydekar. Somehow, I never expected that he’d come in person. Not here. The first time we met, it was in the dazzling light of the Crystal Keep, right at the core of Court of Sunlight. I was but a child, but already, I knew a predator when I saw one. I knew a fellow monster, too. A hundred years have passed, and nothing has changed at all. He wears layers of black, fashioned in a parody of a court outfit. He cannot fool me. His clothes are light and easy to move in, yet reinforced with spells and iron casts. This is a set of armor if I’ve ever seen one. His hair falls in waves, coating him in a golden halo. Of the number of weapons in his arsenal, his beauty is perhaps the most insidious. From the way he smiles at me as he saunters, there’s no doubt that he knows how to make use of it. “I see you’re tired of sending underlings for me to play with,” I say lightly, eyes closed. Rydekar chuckles. “They tell me you’re a tricky beast to hunt, precious. I thought I’d give it a try. I rather like the chase.” I don’t doubt it. “What do you want, Bane?” I will not call him king, highness, or anything of the sort. His dominion ends at the border of my woods. Rydekar is lord in the south, on unseelie territory. The Darker Woods are on seelie land, and answer to no one. No one except me. “What does any fae want?” “A beating heart for dinner? Endless, boundless entertainment? No, I know.” I glance down at him. “Better clothes. Well, I don’t share my tailor. Find your own.” His laugh is music, another trap meant to endear him to me. “Power, Rissa. I want more power.” I roll my eyes. “And you’ve come here to seek it?” I gesture around me, to the peaceful clearing. “Come down, precious.” His voice is sickly sweet, wrapping around me like a cloak. He aims to seduce me, and if I were any weaker, he might manage, too. Weaker, or stupider. “I’m quite content up here, thank you, Bane.” He sighs with a feigned sadness that makes me smile. “I would prefer not to be forced to make you obey me, Rissa, precious.” I laughs so hard I nearly fall off the branch. “Make me?” No one has ever made me do anything, not as a child, and certainly not now. Some tried. Pixie nurses, imp maids and an endless stream of tutors hired to bleed the wilderness out of me. That I now live alone in the woods shows just how proficient they were in their endeavor. “Make you,” he repeats, ever so softly. “I would prefer for us to have a partnership, if we could. But I’ll get what I’m here for either way.” “Will you, now?” I practically purr. He’s so very delightful. I haven’t had this much fun in an age. I do leap down from the tree, if only because I want him to regret asking for it. He saw me as a child in the Court of Sunlight, back when I hid the nightmare within me. There was only a hint of me showing through, back then. Now, I’m another creature. In the light of the moon, my complexion is sky blue, like that of a drowned corpse. The feathers grow right out of my shoulders, like the twisted twigs on my arms and legs. Back then, I wore long sleeves, hiding what I am as best I could. I’m dressed in a midnight spider silk so fine he might even see through it in this light. Rydekar’s violet eyes take me in, from my dirty, bare feet to my eyes, stopping on every feather, every thorn. Then he smiles, takes one step forward, and snatches my hand before I can recoil. “There you are, precious.” I’m so stunned I let go of my power, and feel the nightmare drain out of my skin. My hand is as warm as his, and has returned to the shade it dons when I’m not defending myself. It’s just like his. The twigs and flowers have retreated back inside my veins, and my feathers still. In this moment, I hate him. He’s taken my shield without any effort. “What do you want?” I repeat. This time, it sounds like a threat. Rydekar is done smiling. He’s dropped the pretense, his eyes flashing with a raw need. I am getting a glimpse of the monster beneath his mask. “You,” he tells me. “Where you belong.” I snatch my hand back. He dares? He dares! I’m about to lash out, pushing every drop of magic in my blood to maim him. He concludes his insult. “On the throne of Denarhelm.” “You’re a spineless, worthless waste of space.” He shrugs. “I’ve heard worse.” “Get out of my woods. I’ll gladly flay you alive if you stay.” And I mean every word, though killing him here would start a war. “Unlikely, but I’d enjoy your attempt.” Attempt? I could—and would—end him with little effort. I imagine freezing him in place and extracting every drop of pain and agony from his mind. “Alfheimr is raising an army, Rissa. Now that the strongest among us have left, we’re vulnerable. Hundreds of thousands of men are arming themselves, and they’ll march on your kingdom first. It’s easy pickings. I could claim it tomorrow if I so wished.” “There is no throne of Denarhelm,” I reply, gritting my teeth. The seelie kingdom has long been divided into the thirteen minor courts. The last high queen ruling over them all left the throne vacant for good reasons. While I do have her blood in my veins, even suggesting that I could claim it is preposterous—and cruel. The Court of Sunlight didn’t even want me to take my father’s place upon his passing. I hadn’t harbored any desire to rule, but the rejection had cut deep. The thirteen courts would never bow to me. I could make them, if I so wish. But I don’t. My lips hitch up an inch at the thought of forcing the thirteen courts to their knees. I’m so lost in my fantasy, I don’t see the hulking, slender man bending down to me until he whispers in my ear. “A divided kingdom without a leader is weak. You will fall. You will fail. You will all die without my kindness, little girl.” He expects me to falter, shiver, and drop my gaze to the ground, like the flock of gentry buzzing around him. My eyes widen in feigned dismay. “Kindness? Why did no one think to tell me you had any?” I have to allow him this one concession: Rydekar is fun to tease. He doesn’t even smile. I don’t think anyone has taunted him. “I have none. You will beg nonetheless.” I just may, in his dreams. And in my nightmares. “Get out of here,” I repeat. This time, to my surprise, he complies, walking back to his silver-white warhorse. “I’ve said my piece. When the time is right, send word. I’ll arrange for your coronation.” I’m confused and out of sorts. He’s leaving, after all this? I don’t understand him. What would he have to gain if I do as he wishes? Wanting a stronger enemy in the north doesn’t make sense. He looks back at me, and smiles one last time. “You were right, you know. I’ll steal your tailor.” That’s a promise and a threat. I don’t doubt he knows I make my own clothes. There’s no one else around, and nothing much else to do with my time. Without another word, the infuriating high king of the unseelie is gone. Stay up to date on teasers and teasers with The Curse Crown Facebook Group! About May Sage: May Sage is a USA Today Bestselling romance writer dabbling in different genres, although the readers who follow every series know they’re all related. When she isn’t writing, she spends her time with her German Shepherd, her two Savannahs, and her black rescue cat, in England. She loves reading, ballet, running, and cake. Mostly, cake. Follow her on Facebook or join her newsletter for the latest update. Connect with May Sage: Website | Facebook | Newsletter | Instagram Connect with Alexi Blake: Facebook | Twitter

http://www.dazzledbybooks.com/2020/02/the-cursed-crown-special-promo.html

[governmentebook-blog]

The New World of Book Publishing

Up front - I believe that the way of the government ebook publishers, fictional agents, editors and brick and mortar book stores are maneuvering the way of the dinosaur. Here's why: First, there is a perilous factor involved with paying an author to publish a publication. The cost could be astronomical to have the manuscript read, then modified, then pawed over by publishers and their bean desks. Then, the edited manuscript has to go to print. Coloring illustrations can't really be a part of the book because they price tag far too much money to process. So , publishers decide on authors who are already published. Does this make sense? If an article writer of a best-seller is unknown, how can his or her best-seller look at the light of day? If that "best-seller" does help it become into the premier placement at the front of the brick and mortar book retail store, it may have a shelf life of only two or three weeks ahead of it is tossed into the back of the store, and ultimately it might end up on the discount table at Joes' Buck-a Reserve Emporium. Then, there's the issue of returns. Publishers currently have agreements with book sellers whereby they get their money-back for "loser books" that were placed incorrectly in stores, or possibly didn't sell briskly enough. It may take three years before your book title and subsequent content - beyond those of the 40-page Submission Package, is reaches the local. I need only to remind you that Borders - the phone number two book store chain, has contemplated bankruptcy. These reasons are partly to blame for the demise of many bookstores to date - including the thousands of "mom 'n pop' is an acronym that used to dot America or any other city of village across this planet. Therefore , my conclusion is that the way forward for book sales will be in the online e-book format. How the very best work is that authors (rookies or published) will create their very own book. They will initiate and control the title of the reserve. They will design their own covers. They will edit their courses using any number of excellent spelling and grammar software programs available nowadays. They will format the book (usually in safe-mode, closed. pdf format), and they will upload the book(s) into a book store. The book store could be their own instructions complete with their very own system of collecting money from credit cards (or using existing PayPal technology). Their books can also be submitted to Google Books, or Amazon, or to any number of internet book stores that will be coming to the Internet - especially seeing that the number two chain has sent the signal in which brick and mortars are on the way to extinction. With the coming of the Internet, and "Kindle" or "nook", or Apple's I-pod, or any laptop computer, any book can now be read.... without ever currently being printed. The publishers of tomorrow will make out a lot better because: Authors will prove themselves by the number of training books they sell. If a book takes off into the stratosphere caused by any number of things that can propel it, the new publisher about tomorrow can be there to generate the contract for that e-book. At that point, the publisher knows that this book can make a ton of cash. This is what was missing before. There was often a risk. Now, with the advent of the online e-book, together with tracking capabilities for sales, there is minimal risk. A author - rookie or not, can become famous by coming out on YouTube and garnering millions of hits. An author is able to do what Justin Beeber did.... hit the YouTube outlet, go "viral", and have millions of hits. Today, Justin Beeber is doing quite well for a "kid".... novice... newbie. Authors could become famous by appearing on TV reality shows, or about the Orpah Winfrey show if they attract a certain audience. Experts can, for example , hit the lottery. One such lottery victorious one hit the lottery over five times... so he chosen to write a book about how he won so many times. The ebook sells globally! The old-fashioned way of clawing your way towards top just by marketing techniques - using Facebook, Bebo, YouTube, Ezine, or Faithwriter's. com - and a number of other article writing sites can get an author found. Faithwriter's. com was the vehicle that Shellye Horowitz "lucked out" on. Here's the blurb form the Faithwriters. com website concerning Ms. Horowitz: - "One associated with my articles posted on your site "Calming the Storms regarding My Heart" has been accepted for publication in the The lord's Way Series - a writing opportunity that I come across through your site.... I am so very thankful. " aid Shellye Horowitz The rookie authors are basically automatically, but the playing field for all is level at this point. Any individual can write a book and take it all the way to the online arrange store - in less than a week after it is written. Gowns about two years, nine months and 24 days a lot quicker than going the publisher/literary agent/editor route! Other reasons precisely why online e-books will dominate the publishing world of another day includes these very valuable attributes: 1 . The online e-book can be edited on the fly. This makes the e-book technically better than the printed version where typos or other errors are found... to late to correct them. It also makes the e book current because the author can edit his or her book when. I have edited my books ongoing, and have even altered the front cover a couple of times. All it took was to edit as well as upload it again. 2 . Color Illustrations can be used. You cannot find any extra cost associated with adding all the color illustrations how the author wishes to incorporate into his book. I have extra color illustrations to every book that I have made into a home-based e-book. My paperback on Amazon is 157 internet pages, sells for $14. 95, and has no color drawings. The newer version - the e-book, has 257 pages and all kinds of color illustrations... no extra cost you to this author, nor to the nonexistent printer... and the public receives a better quality book - and that brings me to your best reason why online e-books will rule. 3. Charge The cost of an online e-book is far less than a paperback or even hardcover book would cost in a brick 'n mortar store because it costs nothing to take the book from strategy to the online book store shelf! My e-books are generally priced at just $9. 95. If my Diary of any Dieter book was a paperback, it would garner $14. 89, and $22. 00 if it was in hardcover. For $9. 95, the reader gets a tremendous deal because they get the similar book- that they can download to their laptop or other "reader device", and they get the added benefit of full color illustrations! How does this be beaten by a brick and mortar book store? some. Profits The profit from my e-books on Amazon is usually $0. 73. Yep - seventy-three pennies! Oh sure, that sells for $14. 95, and people are still buying the idea for that amount. From that, Amazon sends a gross pay attention to $6. 73. Out of that, I have to deduct the $4. 00 it cost to have the book printed, and finally instant I have to deduct the $2. 00 that it cost us to ship it to Amazon in Kentucky or perhaps wherever else they direct me to mail the item. Net $0. 73. By the same token, it cost me not print an online e-book, nothing to ship it, nothing to obtain it to a reader's e-mail in-box, so of the $9. 95 that PayPal collects for me, I net $9. /36 after they take their $0. 59 to do typically the transaction, collect the money from the buyer's credit card, process them, and deposit my $9. 36 directly into my banking accounts set aside for that purpose. How many editors did I need? Actually zero. How many publishers? Zero. How much did I have to pay a good bookstore to showcase my book? Zero. Publishers, publishers and literary agents will have to adapt to this new way of promoting books. Publisher should, in my opinion, lose their cavalier perspective about rejecting authors. I understand that the primary reason that they reject authors out-of-hand is solely financial. They can't take those monetary risk. Now, they will have access to all book web sites... like Google Books, or Amazon (and maybe Boundaries if they are allowed to continue their online book marketing), and also determine - from sales recorded there, which experts they may wish to sign a contract with for the book rights. Since publishers and literary agents will have access to the online guide store's management (no doubt), and can generate far more probable book sales than the author, deals will be struck. At this point - about the way authors now have to go from publication store to book store to promote their books. Let's take a talk about how that might shake out in the world of book income of the future. Rather than going from book store to reserve store (which costs money and time), the author may very well be featured in a video setting on the primary book seller's sites - like Amazon, etc . Next to the e-book title, there could be a small TV screen icon. Readers would enjoy be able to see what their author looks like, and the journalist can have almost a personal "chat" with his reader at that levels. I do it now on my own personal book store internet site. Other benefits of marketing can be that just the book basically the only thing that could be sold. Autographed pictures, or autographed ebook covers could be sold. Tee-shirts could be sold. Contests may just be arranged to where the author of a best-seller (online e-book) can meet with several of the contest winners who ordered her book -at a backstage event or evening meal - or awards show. Not only would the media hype of an awards show for authors be prudent tutorial and profitable, but more books would be sold as the offshoot of that hyped event. I liken that scenario to your new movie coming out on re-release on video. I really believe that my concept of tomorrow's book stores and situations will become reality in the very near future. With technology right now, the Internet is fast becoming tomorrow's everything. It's a "giant brain" containing information on how to do anything. It's a shopping center where I now get most of my stuff - from flash drives intended for my computer (ranging from $3. 95 5o $117. 00 for the same thing), to laptops shipped to this home... to books. In fact , in my opinion, computers will bring about another problem-solver, and that will be online food shopping. The regional Stop and Shop supermarket might end up having a storage facility somewhere that services five towns. From there, they could own virtual shelves where all the food is stored... much like it may be where I shop. I can load my virtual foodstuff list into my virtual wagon and have it shipped to me brick and mortar house the same day or next -- and probably save money. The down side is that employees can be needed for the online store, but not for the brick and mortar stores a whole lot. This is why America should be competing for these types of services. Naturally , jobs could be had my the hundreds of thousands if our flesh pressers would finally get on the American public's side and acquire going on producing natural gas, drilling for oil safely, executive clean coal technology, having automobiles that run on propane. We could become energy self-sufficient. That alone would travel the price of fossil fuels down again. Schools, colleges - deal schools could all hire teachers to teach - on line. Same jobs - different venue. Teachers would certainly always be safer. Kids would not have to worry about guns or drugs with virtual schools. It's all coming anyway, only many of us ought to be the first to recognize it.... and capitalize on it.

[ohshimaacademy]

Please sega..make a sonic boom reboot

Morden sonic had a lot of games..so..I think Sega needs to take a brake from modern sonic and this time reboot boom sonic...why you may akk?..let me explain why Sega needs to stop making modern sonic games and make..a reboot of the sonic boom franchise a few months ago they brought you an exclusive trailer of Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric when it was still in its beta phase, called Sonic Synergy. 

This trailer was discovered by MotoBadnik, a user focused on the research to which we have to thank today for this article, which not only analyzes the evolution during the development of Sonic Boom: Ryse of Lyric, but also reveals details and exclusive information totally unknown until now. . From here we thank you for your dedication to preservation and research on this subject by giving a speaker so you can show the world your discoveries. I do not want to entertain more, so I leave you with him and his magnificent research article.Hello, 

motobadnik:I’m MotoBadnik, and today I present my research on the development of Sonic Boom: The rise of Lyric. All information has been obtained thanks to a former employee of BigRedButton who has contacted me, but who wants anonymity.origins

Around 2007, it was stated that SEGA were looking for Western development teams to revitalize their intellectual properties such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Golden Axe, and more. While Golden Axe: Beast Rider came out to bad reviews and low sales, Sonic’s western production was forgotten about. Big Red Button, a squadron of ex-Naughty Dog developers, were called on to produce the game. During the earlier part of development, drastic redesigns for the characters were proposed. Sonic Team dissaproved of these strange designs, and desired they stick closer to the source material.The game had already begun development in October 2011. At that time it was in “BlockOut”, experimenting with races and games like “LAN Party” with a multiplayer approach. 

The orginal Awesome Story: The story planned at that time was about the origins of Sonic: Sonic and a young Eggman were friends, but during a sequence of time travel Eggman annoys something in the past, causing his enmity. The elders were very important in this story, because they were related to the origin of Sonic. It was also planned that Eggman was a playable character. (Sonic Origins was the tentative title) 

The game featured a strong storyline featuring the "Ancients", ancestors of Sonic and company's, who sealed the evil Lyric (an owl, the natural predator of hedgehogs) away. Chao, known as "Chaos", were able to be used in the game. Eggman would have been featured, as a younger, thin, and hillbily-like character, implying time travel may have been a stronger component of the experience. Originally, the game was developed for Playstation 4 and Xbox One, and possibly PC, but was moved to Wii U, the first of many production troubles.

One of the pillars of the game was to create an organic and more natural world tailored for Sonic, with hand-painted textures for a cartoon style. Although not ruled out, this can not be seen much in the final game due to the Wii U hardware.The game had an approach of 80% Exploration and 20% Speed. They wanted to make a kind of Jak & Daxter with Sonic, reminiscent of Bob Rafei’s work at Naughty Dog.After a series of demands from Japan, they worked for 2 and a half years in the Vertical Slice (a technical demo in which all  

aspects of gameplay are represented, to advance on them) demonstrating SEGA’s approach to the game . The game was planned to be a Cooperative Multiplayer game for 4 people, with digital release on Steam, also planning a port to PS Store and Xbox Live if it sold well. That Vertical Slice is what we know as Synergy. The story at this time was not very important, the game would start in this room, with its corresponding scene. 

Here begin the problems, about the end of 2012, SEGA teaches Nintendo Vertical Slice, and include Synergy as part of the exclusive contract on Wii U. To this is added that SEGA requested a version for 3DS, which had to be also occupy BigRedButton until Sanzaru came to save her.About mid 2013, we try to port Wii U, that completely changes the focus of the product, “Reforma” starts.The multiplayer for 4 players was impossible, and the game had to be redesigned to an adventure for 2 players. They also had to eliminate a lot of mechanics due to hardware and that made the levels have to be redesigned (more linear, buttons to interact with everything).Another big problem was added to the Wii U disaster: The television series.A designer presents SEGA with the idea of ​​making a Sonic TV show. It was supposed to be separate from 

the game, but about 8 months before the game’s release, SEGA gave control to the series, changing large parts of the story and going back to silly Knuckles among other things, forcing characters to create a richer world that was totally excluded in the series and creating scenes and levels filled due to the change of history. (I do not have information about the previous story, only that the elders were going to be much more important)

Throughout the development, Sonic Team and SEGA Japan forced BigRedButton to change several aspects of the game:Gameplay: Originally the game was going to be based more on exploration than speed, from Japan they demanded that it had more speed and that they reduce the exploration. Originally you could swim, they were opposed and because of that in the final game you die in contact with the water.Designs: Several designs by Sonic and company were discarded for moving too far away from “Legacy” designs, making them more similar.

Several NPCs had to be changed due to violating Sonic Team design guidelines. (Cliff was originally an inventor, but Iizuka said that the only inventors should be Tails and Eggman)

History: The original story was completely eliminated, they refused categorically to tell the origins of Sonic, and said that they would explain it someday.                        

 Mechanics and ideas eliminated or changed: Rappel, throw your partner as a slingshot, push your teammates as you run to give them more speed, you could run in the water (Water Ski) with your friends with Sonic being the leader, you could swim and dive for a few seconds underwater. The vast majority of them were eliminated by the Wii U.Among the levels that reached the final version, Lake Crater had a big change, it was going to be focused on 4 player Water Ski. Due to the change to Wii U they had to mix parts of levels to fill the lack of mechanics (The worm boss took place in Crater Lake).They wanted to bring the Chaos back, but due to time and hardware limitations they had to abandon the idea.Synergy had a “piggy bank” system, when you found one you deposited your Rings, and then you could improve your characters and weapons with them. The change of focus of the game forced to discard the system. Due to the change to Wii U they had to mix parts of levels to fill the lack of mechanics (The worm boss took place in Crater Lake).They wanted to bring the Chaos back, but due to time and hardware limitations they had to abandon the idea.Synergy had a “piggy bank” system, when you found one you deposited your Rings, and then you could improve your characters and weapons with them. The change of focus of the game forced to discard the system. During the history of origins, Eggman was going to be playable, after the elimination of the story the idea was completely discarded.The name Synergy was probably discarded due to SEGA wanting to create a global brand and lose meaning after “the reform”                                             Multimedia Then I present an internal PDF of BigRedButton of February 2014, a design guide, in which you can see several concepts and ideas for the game and how it evolved, including several things discarded. You can download it here.I also present 2 versions of the Synergy trailer. One of November 2012

Does Sega like making sonic games bad?..come on they could of had a awesome new franchise to do..think of the awesome new ways they could of introduced the characters, hell they could of done a sonic syenrgy verion of the sonic rush trilogy...that would be soo cool!!!...ane hell why not make a knuckles chaotix game..yeah I know the game was bad but..the plot isn't that bad..here is the plot, The plot starts out on the day before the opening day of Carnival Island, a huge amusement resort with the latest in high-tech rides and games. As the guardian of the island, Knuckles' job was to make sure nothing went wrong before the grand event.Behind the scenes, however, Dr. Robotnik was cooking up a new dastardly scheme. To fuel for his latest diabolical device, Robotnik went to Carnival Island to find the Power Emerald that supplies electricity to the entire island which would fit into his plan perfectly. To further ensure that Knuckles and his friends would not interfere with his 

plans, Robotnik used his Combi Catcher to freeze Mighty the Armadillo, Espio the Chameleon, Vector the Crocodile, and Charmy Bee in time.When Knuckles returned from patrolling the far end of the island, he found Dr. Robotnik as he was imprisoning Espio the Chameleon in a Combi Catcher, and chased him away, saving Espio. After that, Knuckles discovered that he could rescue his other friends one at a time by using Ring Power, a power that holds two partners together like a magical rubber band. Never held back for long, Knuckles set out with his team to save Carnival Island from Robotnik before tomorrow's grand opening.

By god..if they took that plot..and combine it with sonic synergy and it's original gameplay...bam you got your self a awesome spin off!!!..one of The chcharacters I was waiting to see was Blaze and Silver..but Noooooo they Only showd Three..three Characters!!!!..shadow Metal and vector!..that's It!!!....anyway a sonic syerngy version of sonic rush would be really cool...ane hell why not make a new intrsting story for blaze...and since sonamy is in sonic boom (kind of) how about they could do a romance between sonic and blaze...i WO

[gggifss]

Your Search Engine Optimization Service, Ethical Search Engine Optimization, and Competitor Monitoring

Whenever an ongoing company undertakes an internet search engine optimization program, whether it is performed in-house or outsourced to an SEO service, most associated with attention (and rightly so) is dedicated to the company website. This might be the one aspect where there is really a feeling of control--once a web page is released into the wild, the business will have to see how its site fares against all the other websites nowadays, whether the other internet sites are using ethical Search Engine Optimization strategies or perhaps not. Apart from modifications made to the company internet site, the assumption is often that the organization and, if it is making use of one, its SEO service, has zero control of just what appears in search results. However, this isn't usually the case. Often, you or your SEO solution can have a direct impact on search engine results by monitoring your competitors and reporting them to the major search machines when the SEO techniques used on their site autumn outside what is popularly named ethical Search Engine Optimization. (please be aware that it is the phrase I use through the entire article. while I believe that the word "ethical" is tossed around too often, "ethical SEO" is among the most standard expression to explain white hat techniques, and thus) Primary Competitors To start out with, let's determine competitors. Almost every business has at minimum a handful of other programs that it considers become main competitors--the ones that sell the same products and solutions, which can be of similar size, and so on. Its important that the Search Engine Optimization efforts (or absence thereof) among these competitors, if they are employing ethical SEO practices or not, be monitored on a basis that is routine. Whether they have maybe not hired an SEO service of their own, or if they have not started doing SEO in-house at all, you'll have peace of mind once you understand that the employment of this channel, for the moment, is yours. If your competitors begin an SEO campaign, with or without A seo that is outside, you can learn much about their sales and marketing techniques by evaluating the keyphrases that they target. And you can also investigate whether they are utilizing SEO that is ethical in their campaign. Your Online Competitors It is important to keep in mind that it is not likely that searchers are getting to determine just between you and also the main rivals you have listed. They're going to consider any company that matches their particular requirements and that turns up for their search phrase. For this reason your criteria for a competitor online should broaden to encompass any business that offers products or services for any of your targeted keyphrases like yours that outranks you. If your in-house staff or your SEO service not only continually monitors your search engine jobs but also analyzes the companies that appear you can often identify forward-looking competitors of which you were previously unaware--your primary competitors of tomorrow above you in search results. Violations This brings us to the key issue of ethical SEO. Seo is nevertheless a very new concept to most businesses. Even the respected companies makes mistakes in this arena, either by selecting the SEO that is wrong, or by trying to avoid hiring A seo service altogether by bringing it in home with well-intentioned but unqualified people. For example, BMW's German site was recently removed temporarily from the Google index for using doorway pages--something that isn't considered A seo practice that is ethical. It stands to reason that your competitors are also not resistant to violations. Bad Firms You will find very notable examples of otherwise smart and founded organizations hiring an SEO service that place them in a worse situation than before they pursued SEO--by getting their site removed from major search engines for violating the engine's terms of solution, for example. Not long ago, there was a well-publicized example where most of the consumers of the Las Vegas SEO solution were penalized. Almost all of the clients stated which they had been not informed that the firm was not practicing ethical SEO and they had been therefore at danger. SEO companies are generally divided in to two camps--those called "White Hats" (those that utilize ethical Search Engine Optimization practices and certainly will never knowingly violate a search engine's regards to service) and those called "Black Hats" (those that do not use ethical SEO practices and that may make an effort to unravel the most recent algorithms and exploit any loopholes to achieve rankings at any cost). Neither approach is invalid--it is not against the law to violate the terms of service of a google. Moreover, black hat techniques could be very effective. However, the strategies are risky, and anybody employing A seo service that wears a black colored hat and does not use ethical SEO techniques should undoubtedly be apprised of this risk at the start. Internal Resources Companies in many cases are tempted to avoid hiring A seo service by performing SEO in-house, and the project https://blboss.wordpress.com/ almost always falls onto an already overburdened IT department. The problem with approaching SEO from the strictly technical mindset is that the strategies employed, including the keyphrases targeted, will not necessarily be in line with the goals of the marketing and sales divisions. In addition, an IT resource will usually approach SEO from a standpoint that is purely technical without knowing ethical Search Engine Optimization techniques, and this can induce trouble. Penalization is a really real possibility, also it is difficult to get back onto an index once your site has been removed. Monitoring A thorough SEO service will monitor not only the couple of competitors which you deem crucial but additionally web sites that appear higher than you for any of your selected search phrases. This might be notably controversial, especially to virtually any SEO webmaster or service that uses tactics forbidden by the search engines' terms of service. However, numerous white hat SEO service firms think about it an obligation to their clients to routinely monitor the sites of any competitor found on the machines become sure it really is using ethical SEO techniques. There is really a reason that every search that is major has a form to report sites who do not utilize ethical Search Engine Optimization tactics and whom violate the terms of service so that these sites can be subsequently penalized or removed. Spam filters cannot catch all violations without additionally removing a number that is large of sites. Search engines count on their users to greatly help them to keep their indexes clean and free of sites perhaps not utilizing ethical SEO techniques. There are numerous processes to too spam an engine--far many to list. But, A seo that is good not only knows just what many of these techniques are but knows how to determine them when it sees them so they can be reported to the motor accurately. The Outcome

Business is business, as well as your interests usually run directly counter to that of your competitors. It is very likely that it will be removed when you report a website that is not using ethical SEO. This implies there is one less company you need to be worried about into the online arena, at least for the moment. If the site under consideration outranked yours, you additionally get the added good thing about seeing your rankings improve as the violating pages are removed--provided, of course, that you will be using ethical Search Engine Optimization techniques and steering free from violations yourself, or you may be reported by a competitor of yours or its SEO service! The engine also advantages of users violations that are reporting. Machines do not like people trying to trick their indexes, since there might then be pages arriving for specific keyphrases which are not really appropriate to those terms. Clearly, the search engines realize this benefit--if the engines thought they could weed down all the spam by themselves, they would not give a reporting system. Supporting this type of operational system, after all, is not free. Real people used by the engine have to visit the offending pages to verify that they're not using SEO that is ethical. In the example that is notable earlier of the firm that got most of its clients penalized, the dog owner of the SEO service in question had been quoted as saying, "Google can kiss my ass. This is the Wild Wild West." He might be right--maybe it may be the crazy Wild West. But there are certainly a whole lot of brand new sheriffs in town--and they truly are wearing white hats.