#i know the layoffs happened later but like...

[baejax-the-great]

BioWare layoffs occurred after all writing was done so I don’t think it’s that… I think this game is their Hail Mary so they tried to make it palatable for a wide audience which kind of backfires for its old audience.

I mean do you really think it's going to appeal to a wide audience?

Flat characters, boring dialogue and a nonsensical premise work for marvel movies, I guess

[youjustcannotknow]

the weight of the world has crushed me flat on this fine afternoon

[bookishmeow]

I swear, all I am doing lately is defending the Lucanis romance. Listen: When Mary Kirby, his main writer, got fired, the game was in its beta testing. This means that the main written story was done. Beta phases are for making sure there are no graphical or gameplay issues. Not for writing issues. You're past that point. The argument I keep seeing is that they think the Lucanis romance was "unfinished" because of Kirby leaving. Also saying whoever filled in didn't like romances? No, that was Kirby who didn't like them, but she did still write this one.

Lucanis, and the crows, were also written by Courtney Woods. Courtney originally wrote Lucanis in the various shorts, including the ones in Tevinter Nights. She knows the character just as well. So if they needed any extra writing done for the character, Courtney, having been the original writer of him in all the other media he's in, would have easily been able to write anything that Kirby didn't want to. Courtney did also leave, though, before the layoffs. Regardless, writing at the beta phase state does not usually happen. Writing is finished.

The pacing seems off with him because he is one of the first companions you can get and so you can get some of his scenes very early on, before you even get the full roster. THEN he has some of his later scenes after the crows are addressed in the plot in Act 2. These come near last in the actual story plot, right before Act 3 and the point of no return. So it feels like there's a bigger gap in scenes than there is because of this. His romance scenes actually clock in at more time than Hardings. The romance scenes themselves aren't the issue, it is pacing in actual plot that is the issue. Him not being immediately flirty is his personality and him dealing with a lot. He does have flirty dialogue and does make comments on the two of you in banter and ambient dialogue if you go visit him. He's not completely devoid of it. He is not the "Dashing Hispanic" trope (even though antiva is supposed to be Italian adjacent) ala Zevran or his cousin Illario. He has some of the qualities, but is really bad in the flirting with ladies aspect of it. okay, sorry, it's been building. Thank you for reading my ranting.

[daxisyzz]

⁺‧˚ ⋆ 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐚𝐥 | 𝒃𝒖𝒄𝒌𝒚 𝒃𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒔 ⋆ ˚‧⁺

𝑬𝒑𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒅𝒆 3: 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒆𝒐'𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅

Pairings: ceo!boss!bucky barnes × fem!reader

Other characters: bestfriend!Natasha romanoff, platonic!coworker! Wanda Maximoff, Sam Wilson and Peter Parker.

Contents: fake dating, chaotic relationship dynamic, workplace romance, contract relationship.

Summary: News of your relationship spreads like wildfire, and suddenly, you’re the most talked-about person in the company. Between nosy coworkers, jealous stares, and Bucky mysteriously showing up wherever you go, you start to wonder—who exactly is pretending here?

Word count: 2.3k+

Warnings and tags: Bucky’s mean for a split second, he's a cute menace, hyper bestie Nat, judgemental office people, Reader keeps spiralling, many scene switches.

Series masterlist Episode 2 Episode 4

Inspired by the kdrama Business Proposal

Previously on Business Proposal...

You stare at him, fully aware you're about to sign away your entire life. And yet—your landlord just raised the rent, your boss (who's sitting in front of you) is on the verge of layoffs, and your bank account is actively crying.

You had no choice.

With utter resignation, you grab the pen, sign the contract, and glare at him.

“If I go to jail for this, I’m haunting you.”

Bucky smirks, completely unbothered. "Oh, sweetheart, this is just the beginning."

_____________________●

It has been two days since you held that contract and signed it to become your boss's girlfriend. Nothing much has happened except for you learning info about Bucky from a file he provided, about his likes and dislikes—to make it more realistic.

You walked into the office exhausted. No one knew about your relationship yet, and you didn’t know when he was going to reveal it to the public, but you weren’t exactly thrilled. For the past few days, Bucky had been his typical self: ice-cold with a petty streak the size of the Empire State Building.

You were beginning to think you had signed a contract with the devil himself. Ever since you agreed to be Bucky Barnes' girlfriend, he had done nothing but make your life miserable in the most cliché way possible.

Your inbox was flooded.

Your calendar was triple-booked.

And worst of all?

He was making you present at the 8 a.m. executive meeting without any warning.

You were dying.

He walked past your desk, perfectly polished in his charcoal suit with a smug aura, and tossed a file down���barely glancing at you.

"Need this by four."

You blinked at him, jaw slack.

"You said five—"

He cut you off smoothly: "I changed my mind." You stared at him as if he’d grown a second head. He smirked. Smirked.

"Oh, and don’t forget the new compliance reports. I want your summary on my desk first thing tomorrow."

"Are you serious?" you asked, already spiraling.

"Every time."

He turned and walked off like a villain in a spy movie while you genuinely contemplated sending your resignation via passive-aggressive memes.

Later that evening, you sat at your desk after work hours, rubbing your eyes among empty coffee cups and a document that refused to format itself.

Bucky emerged from his office with a silent air which, in your state, you might have missed if he hadn’t cleared his throat.

You didn’t look at him.

He came closer, leaning against your office doorframe and clearing his throat again to catch your attention.

"I might’ve overdone it," he said eventually.

You still didn’t look.

"I didn’t mean to actually... break you."

That finally got your attention. You turned to face him with a deadpan glare. "You gave me seven different tasks with three conflicting deadlines."

He winced. "In my defense, you lied to my face—twice."

"And in my defense, I’m one paper jam away from committing a felony."

He chuckled, then softened.

"Go home," he said quietly.

"I'll send the rest to someone else."

You stared. "What's the catch?"

"No catch." He hesitated, then added with a small smile, "I'll make it up to you. Fake boyfriend's honor."

You grabbed your bag and muttered, "Whatever weird revenge arc this is, I hope it ends soon."

He watched you gather your things in silence, too tired to argue.

Your eyes were rimmed red from hours of screen-staring, and your shoulders slumped under the weight of the day he’d dumped on you. Even now, you didn’t say anything snarky or bite back.

You simply walked past him with a quiet “Thanks.”

And that was somehow worse.

Bucky leaned against the glass wall of your office, jaw clenched. Damn it.

"She tricked you first," his brain reminded him, smug and cruel. "She pretended to be someone else, played me like a fool."

But…

"She looked like she was about to cry," he muttered under his breath, running a hand down his face. "I’m not a monster."

It wasn’t that he meant to overwork you—not really. He just got carried away. You made him feel off-kilter, and he didn’t like that. So he punished you with tasks, meetings, and impossible deadlines.

Petty.

Childish.

Effective.

But now? Now he felt like crap.

"Why do I feel guilty? She lied first."

He sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. "This isn't in the contract."

After a well-deserved sleep, you woke up feeling somewhat refreshed. You got ready, dreading the day ahead. Something was not right—you could feel it. Your gut never lies.

The word was out.

You were halfway through your iced coffee when Peter Parker, the new social media manager you befriended, ran into the office as if he had personally discovered the second coming of Christ.

"Are you dating the CEO?!"

You blinked, barely registering his words.

"What—no—what?!"

"Peter, inside voice," Wanda muttered behind him as she slid into her chair.

Sam raised an eyebrow from behind his computer. "So it's true."

You glanced around. The entire floor buzzed with whispers. You could feel their stares poking at you. Someone was even scrolling through a Reddit thread titled "The Employee Who Tamed the CEO."

You didn’t know how it leaked—maybe HR—but by lunch, the entire office knew.

You were dating Bucky Barnes.

You didn’t even have time to breathe before he appeared. There he was, in one of his many ridiculously tailored suits, slow strides and perfectly styled hair, his smirk as infuriating as ever. And—was that a second cup of coffee in his hand?

"Morning, babe," he said, placing your favorite order right next to your elbow.

"You looked tired yesterday. Thought I'd help." You stared at the drink like it might explode. Everyone’s jaw dropped.

You opened your mouth to respond but— "Oh, babe," Bucky interjected smoothly, crouching next to your desk like it was an everyday routine, "I've canceled all your meetings so you can rest. Just attend the brainstorming session, alright?"

Babe?

You made a strangled noise in your throat. "Alright," you said with a smile that suggested your soul wasn’t screaming.

Later, alone in the break room, you cornered him by the fridge, voice low and frantic. "What is happening?! Yesterday you tried to kill me via Google Calendar, and now you're acting like we’ve been married for five years."

Bucky leaned against the counter, calm as ever. "Things changed."

"Oh, really?"

"The office knows. Gotta sell it."

You stared. "So your solution is to completely change your personality?!"

He smiled—soft, this time. "No. I’m just being the boyfriend you tricked me into becoming." You opened your mouth.

Then closed it.

"...I need stronger coffee," you muttered, turning on your heel.

Behind you, Bucky’s grin widened as if he were enjoying it way too much.

You sat at your usual table in the cafeteria with Wanda, Sam, and Peter, eating lunch and pretending not to notice the sideways glances from other tables.

"They’re staring again," Peter whispered, leaning over his tray of fries.

Wanda didn’t even look up from her salad. "Let them. I’d stare too if my friend suddenly started dating our CEO."

"It’s wild, though," Sam grinned. "One day you’re quietly working like the rest of us, and the next day—boom. CEO’s smiling like someone handed him the keys to his dream car."

You covered your face with your hands. "Can we not talk about this?"

Too late.

The cafeteria door swung open with an audible creak.

In walked Natasha Romanoff—hair perfect, sunglasses still on indoors, lips pressed as if she meant business.

She stopped in the middle of the room, scanned the crowd, and headed straight for you.

"Oh no," you whispered. "She found me." Wanda blinked. "You didn’t tell her?"

"I was going to. Eventually. Maybe. In a controlled environment."

Nat reached your table, hands on her hips. "You! We’re talking. Now."

You barely had time to set your drink down before she grabbed your wrist and pulled you up from the chair.

Sam let out a low whistle. "Uh-oh."

Peter muttered, "Good luck," as if sending you off to war.

Natasha didn’t say a word as she marched you through the halls, then stopped at an empty meeting room and shut the door behind you. Only once she let go of your arm did she speak. She simply stared before saying,

"I’m sorry."

You blinked. "What?"

"I’m serious," she said softly. "I should’ve never made you take that date for me. I was being selfish, and I didn’t think it’d spiral into... this." She gestured vaguely, as if “this” were too ridiculous to name.

You folded your arms. "Nat, it’s fine. Really."

She stared harder. "You almost got fired. That’s on me."

You shifted uneasily. "I didn’t. So don’t worry about it."

She shook her head. "No. You went to that restaurant dressed like a lunatic to scare a stranger off—and that stranger turned out to be your boss. The boss. This is peak corporate drama. I should’ve never put you in that situation."

You hesitated cause Nat seemed tohave no clue. "You didn’t force me. I said yes."

"You always say yes when I ask for stuff. That doesn’t mean I should’ve asked."

Your expression softened. "Well, joke’s on you, 'cause I bagged my CEO."

Nat stared. "You what now?"

You grinned exaggeratedly. "Yep. Dating him now. Whole-ass relationship."

Her mouth opened slightly. "Wait. Are you serious?"

You nodded, still beaming(gotta sell the act). "It’s... new. And weird. But yeah."

She squinted at you. "Since when are you into CEO types?"

"Since they started showing up at my desk with cappuccinos and weirdly good cologne."

Nat stepped closer, lowering her voice. "Okay, but—are you okay? Is he pushing you into anything? I swear, if he’s threatening you behind all that rich guy charm—"

"No," you interrupted quickly. "Nothing like that. He’s... surprisingly nice."

She narrowed her eyes. "You’re being really vague. Suspiciously vague..."

"...I can tell when you're lying."

"I’m happy, Nat."

She paused, then said, "Fine. I’ll pretend I believe you. But just know I’ll gut him if he hurts you."

You laughed. "Duly noted."

Nat sighed, stepping back and brushing imaginary dust off your blazer. "Alright. If you’re gonna keep seeing him, we’re leveling up your date-night looks. I’m pulling up to your door with all my new collections."

You blinked. "For what?"

"For your next date. You think you’re gonna keep dating the city’s most eligible CEO and wear those sad office blouses? No offense, but—no."

You groaned. "Nat—"

"Nope. Already picking dresses in my head. You’ll thank me later when you look like a million bucks and he’s short-circuiting."

You squinted. "You’re enjoying this too much."

"I need this win," she said seriously. "You deserve to look like a goddess after what I dragged you into."

You softened. "You’re forgiven. Really."

She smiled, finally relaxing. "Good. I'll leave you to it. I need the details soon. Gotta go, love—bye." She sent a kiss as you gave a tiny wave back.

The door to the meeting room clicked shut behind Natasha as she continued her day, leaving you alone with that drink still in your hand. You were still processing the chaotic whirlwind of her advice—especially about the date. You had thought she’d be more subtle, but that was clearly too much to ask.

You stared at your phone, shaking your head in disbelief as you scrolled through Natasha's texts. Your fingers hovered over the keyboard, trying to focus on a reply, but the flood of messages kept coming in.

Natasha: “This red dress screams ‘CEO arm candy.’”

Natasha: “Do you own heels that don’t look like they’ve been to war?”

Natasha: “Lipstick shade: ‘I will ruin you.’ Thoughts?”

Natasha: “Wait, should I book a glam team? I know people.”

You could practically hear her voice in every text, each one more ridiculous than the last. Rolling your eyes, you typed back, trying to keep the sarcasm to a minimum:

You: “Nat, please—I work in marketing. This isn’t Bridgerton.”

Almost immediately, a new text arrived, and your eyes widened at the sight of the attached picture—a sparkly, backless dress that was way too much for a fake date. You sighed dramatically and shook your head. Just as you were about to craft a snarky reply, the sudden sensation of being watched made the hairs on your neck stand up.

You froze, your stomach twisting with a mix of nerves and something else. Before you could even turn, you felt a familiar presence in the doorway, and your heart skipped a beat.

There stood Bucky Barnes—silent, tall, his frame filling the entrance as he cast a shadow over your phone while he watched you.

You gasped, nearly dropping your phone. "God—!"

Bucky blinked, unfazed, as he stepped into the room, casually sipping from his travel mug. "Coffee machine’s slow today."

"No. You’re a creep," you hissed, clutching your chest. "Were you standing there the whole time?"

He sipped his mug, glancing at your phone as you tried to hide the screen in panic. "Planning something without me?"

You scrambled for words. "It’s just Nat. She’s... enthusiastic."

Bucky leaned on the conference table beside you, his eyes locked on your phone. His expression was unreadable, but the corners of his mouth twitched—as if he were holding back a smile. "Red dress or the sparkly one?"

Your jaw practically hit the floor. "You—!"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "You type loud."

You groaned, covering your face with your hands. "Why are you like this?"

He brushed past you, heading toward the counter as if he hadn’t just startled you.

"Just making sure my girlfriend’s not cheating on me with Valentino," he murmured casually. Then, with a wink, he added, "I have to keep up the act, don’t I?"

Your heart raced, and your mind scrambled to catch up with his sudden shift in demeanor. The flirtatious, teasing tone sent your stomach flipping.

Before you could say another word, he was already out of the room—as if he had places to be, the ever-dedicated workaholic.

Still staring at the door, you took a deep breath, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Your fingers flew to your phone, sending a quick text to Natasha in search of clarity amidst the chaos.

You: “He’s possessed. He’s like boyfriend of the year now. I need answers.”

You waited, and it didn’t take long before Natasha’s reply lit up your screen.

Natasha: “So what I’m hearing is: red dress.”

Despite everything, you couldn’t help but laugh. Shaking off the unease Bucky left behind, one thing was clear: things were getting way more complicated than they should be.

A/n: sorry for uploading this a bit late but here's the next episode. Lemme know your thoughts. Love you guys. Have a great day!!

Taglist: @calwitch, @scott-loki-barnes, @baw1066, @awesompawsum, @bucky-baby-barnes, @marianastudiesart, @pattiemac1, @maryevm, @borkybawnes, @mcira

[luvyeni]

❛A VERY HAPPY ENDING❜ ( l. felix )

p. masseuse!felix x fem!reader w. 2.3k

warnings? fingering, boob play, oral ( f. receiving ), uprotected sex, cum eating

— 𖦹 ( you're in need of a break and to relax, so your friend makes you a well needed reservation at a massage parlor ) !

authors note. i suddenly remember when felix would go around and give people massages and i came up with this, so enjoy 😁.

“Jesus yn, what the hell happened in here?” your roommate entered your room. “it’s like a tornado hit your room; did this, left — spun the block and hit it again.” She said, stepping over the pile of clothes on the floor to your bed. “im sorry I didn’t have enough time this week to clean, too busy at work.”

“looks like you didn’t have the time to do your hair and anything else, you look like a hobo.” You clicked away at your keyboard, rolling your eyes. “did you come in here to insult me?” you questioned. “cause that could’ve been a text.”

“I came in here to tell you that you need to take a break, you’re working yourself to death.” She voiced her concerns. “im fine.” You said. “baby no you not and that’s okay, we can fix that cause you can’t keep living like this.” She was right, — your job had recently had layoffs and you and the rest of the people that were spared were worked to the bone to replace the missing people; which meant more work and long hours, so you didn’t have much time to do anything.

“living like what?” you turned in your chair. “babe when was the last time you had any me time?” you shrugged. “maybe about a month ago, I think.” She sighed. “exactly you need to relax, that’s why as your roommate and the bestest friend in the world, I took the liberty of scheduling us both for a massage at my favorite masseuse parlor this weekend.”

“I don’t have time this weekend there’s a— nope I don’t want to hear it.” She covered her ears. “you’re gonna put the laptop down this weekend and go out and have some relaxation time.” She said. “even if I have to drag you out myself.”

You sighed, knowing your friends wouldn’t back down unless you agreed. “fine we’ll go.” She clapped, standing up. “great!” she chipped. “its gonna be great, I swear you’ll feel like a new woman after this.” She said hugging you; before making her way to the door, looking around the room once more. “and maybe then you’ll come to your senses and clean this pigsty.” She scrunched her nose up in disgust before leaving out.

The next few days were busy and finally Friday rolled around and the weekend was finally here. That evening you got home and your friend was already going at your room claiming ‘we need to get this together before we become new women.” You sighed, dropping your bag; changing your clothes before you also jumped in and you tackled the crazy that was your room; you both finished; covered in sweat from the deep clean. “girl you better be paying me fore that.” Your friend huffed. “I worked like a damn dog.”

“thank you.” You said, ready to take a shower and hop into bed. “no problems girl.” Your friend hopped up. “now get some sleep cause our girls day starts at 10:30 am sharp.” She skipped out her room. “and make sure to tidy up down there.” She pointed to your below area. “why do I need to do that?” you crossed your legs. “just listen to me, and do it goodnight.”

“is it noticeable.” You said looking down; had it been a long time? “no.” you scoffed getting your pajamas ready. “shes crazy.” You said, thinking for a minute. “well it couldn’t hurt anyone.” You grabbed a new razor from your nightstand before making your way into the bathroom.

The next day you a woken feeling a little bit more refreshed than usual; sleeping in a little later than normal and in a clean room really was nice. You woke up, getting ready for the day with your roommate.

You spent the whole morning and early afternoon out with your roommate; getting your hair and nails done, shopping for new clothes and other things for the apartment. It was almost time for you both to head over to the massage place; so you stopped for lunch then headed right over.

“we’re here.” She pulled into the parking lot. “it even looks fancy outside.” You stepped out of the car. “I booked our appointments for a least busy time so it should be empty so we won’t have to wait long.” You both walked into the place, standing at the front desk. “hello?” you friend tapped the bells and a boy came scurrying out.

“hello, welcome to our day spa, do you both have a appointment?” he said. “yes we do its under (f/l/n).” he typed down on the computer, your friend turned to you mouthing ‘he’s cute’ to which you shook your head at her antics.

“oh here it is.” He laughed after struggling to find it. “which one of you is scheduled for felix and which one of you is scheduled for changbin?” you turned to your friend. “does it matter?” she nodded. “changbin is much muscular and he hits all the right places “ you furrowed your eye brows. “you seem to know a lot about this place.”

“if I may?” the man in front of you said. “felix is very good too, he’s the most popular here, everyone always asks for him.” You nod, well if he’s good that’s all that matters, anyway a massage is a massage. “okay.”

He guided you both to two different rooms. “you can go in there and you there, they both should be here soon so you can get undressed and wait.” He walked away. “undressed?” you turned to your friend. “yeah you have to fully be undressed.” She said. “is that why you told me to shave?” she winked, walking into her room shutting the door. “crazy.” You walked into your room closing the door.

You stripped down to your underwear, taking the towel, wrapping it around your waist, pulling your panties down your leg, sitting them down on your pile of clothes — just as the door opened, making you jump, covering your chest. “oh im sorry I thought you’d be laying down already.” He said. “its okay.” You said. “I was just finishing up.”

“well you can lay down now and we can start.” He dimmed the lights. “I can light candles if you want.” You smiled, nodding. “thank you.” You laid down, your boobs hitting the cold leather, making you hiss at the sensation. “you okay?” felix finished lightning the last candle. “y-yes im fine.” You felt your face heat up that he heard that noise. “okay we can get started now.”

You rested your head on your arms; you felt a warm liquid hit your back, making you flinch. “is it too hot?” you shook your head. “just shocked me a little.” You heard him chuckle. “don’t be scared, its just eucalyptus and peppermint oil.” He explained, you felt him rubbing it along your back, you sighed at his touch. “it helps with inflammation and pain.”

The boy in the front was right; he was a godsend with his hands, it’s like he knew you like the back of his hand, hitting all the right places, your body slowly began to relax. “you seem so tense, do you work a lot?” he asked. You hummed. “its not good to work like that, too much stress can cause a lot of knots and that causes pain.” He pressed down on one spot that made your eyes shoot open; a low whimper coming out of your mouth.

“oh , im sorry.” You cursed at yourself, embarrassed at how it just slipped out. “that’s good, it means I’m doing a good job.” He said. “don’t be embarrassed.” He said in a low soft tone, his deep voice sending a wave of arousal in your gut. “let out all the noises you want.”

His hands moved to your side, rubbing them gently; making his way up to the side of your boobs. “is this okay?” you hummed, pretty sure at this point you’d let him do whatever he wanted as long as he kept talking to you like that.

His hands rubbed the sides of your bust gently, you bit your lip to contain any noises that tried to force their way out. “you don’t have to hide them.” He said. “I want to hear them.” You couldn’t for the life of you wrap your head around why this stranger has such an effect on you; but you didn’t stop the next noise that came out of your mouth. “fu-fuck.”

He worked down your back, right above your ass, where the towel covered, pressing down. “its seems really tense here.” He pressed down harder, you whimpered. He worked down to your legs, pushing the towel to sit right above your thighs. He poured some more warm oil on your legs, rubbing your calves, making his way up to your thighs — dangerously close to your bare bottom.

Felix never would’ve done this with another client; he would’ve stopped right at your back — but he couldn’t help it, you were making so much noise and he had to admit; it was turning him on, a lot — and he wanted to see how far he could go.

His hands were entering dangerous territory as he rubbed the in of your thighs, you could feel the heat of his fingers on your cunt, he could easily touch it if he wanted — and you really wanted him to.

It’s like he read your mind cause his next words made your heart race. “if you want me to touch you, you have to say something.” He said. “I wont do anything you don’t want me to.” He said. “i-I want you to.” You said breathlessly. “then turn around.”

You turned on your back, his hands work all the back up to your boobs, gently cupping them; you let out a soft moan. “let me hear you.” He pinched your bud, your back arched up; giving him the leeway to undo the towel, your bare cunt for him to see — thank god you shaved. “so pretty.” His hands travel down to your pussy, lightly touching it. “pl-please.”

“you want me to touch you?” you nodding. “ye-yes.” He smiled, his hand spreading your legs; fingers grazing your clit. “good you used your words.” He rubbed your clit, spreading your folds. “such a pretty cunt.” He whispered. “so soft.” He pushed a finger inside of you. “so wet.” He moved his fingers in and out of you, curling the to hit that gummy spot inside of you. “you gonna cum, I can feel you clenching.” He used the pad of his thumb to rub your clit. “you can cum.”

And just like that you were on his finger, moaning out loud. “so loud.” he sat on the massage table in front of your breathless naked body. “I want to hear more.” He kissed your neck, climbing on top of your body to leave little kisses down the valley of your breath, taking a nipple into his mouth as he sat on his knees in between your legs, his hard cock evident as he pressed it against your cunt.

“sh-shit.” You moaned as he grinding his hips against you, sucking on your nipples. “pl-please fuck me.” That was all he needed, before he undid his pants freeing his hard cock. “you sure you want to do this?” he said. “im a stranger and — I want this, please.” You needed this, you needed him to fuck you. “please fuck me.”

He pressed his tip against your cunt, pushing himself inside of you. “oh fuck you’re so tight.” He slowly worked himself in and out of you. “you need to relax, you’re so tense I can barely -fuck- I can barely move inside of you.” You whined as he used the pad of his thumb to rub your bud. “that’s it.” He sighed. “open up for me.”

He moved his hips fluidity, his cock hitting all the spots your vibrator just didn’t. “fe-felix.” His name flowing right out of your mouth as he worked his way in and out of you. “fe-feels so good.” He moved faster, you felt your orgasm approaching. “im gonna cum.” Your voice was shaky as your clenched tightly around him.

“fuck me too.” He grunted, he moving faster. “felix im cumming.” You gasped, the knot in your stomach snapping as you came. “shit you’re too tight.” He moaned, his orgasm approaching quickly. “shit.” He pulled out as fast as he could, cumming all over your cunt. “fuck.”

“one more.” He said, his face near your cunt. “I want to give you one more.” He licked your folds, the taste of your cunt and his cum on his tongue was dizzying. “fu-fuck.” You were feeling overstimulated at the point, but you still felt your third orgasm approaching fast. “oh fuck.” You gasped. “fuck im gonna cum!” thinking he was gonna move away, but he didn’t he stayed there drinking up all you have to offer. “fe-felix.” You had to push his head away to keep him from going on.

He pulled away, wiping his mouth; your body was fully relaxed by now; the service time was probably long over. “shit my boss is gonna kill me.” He quickly redressed himself, helping you get dressed. “that sounded harsh, I really liked it.” He said, you laughed, pulling your shirt down. “I understand, my friend has probably called me a thousand times.” You pulled out your phone, and believe it or not there were no phone calls from her, but two text messages.

(friends name)🩷| I told you you’d like him…

(friends name)🩷| have fun girl, I’ll wait in the car😉

Your face burned with embarrassment. “I would like to see you again.” He said. “me-me?” he nodded. “yes, if that’s okay.” You nodded. “I would love to see you again.” He smiled, as you gave him your number. “lets see each other soon.” He nodded. “is the weekend coming up okay?” he wanted to see you as soon as he could — he needed to. “We can get dinner and maybe see a movie.” He moved closer to you, caging you against the bed a smirk on his face.

“and I can give you a even better happy ending than today, only if you’re good though.”

©️LUVYENI

[ajthesirenqueen]

I think Curly had a crush on Anya and Jimmy knew. Hear me out:

The more I think about the way Jimmy behaved and the type of person he is, the more I think that him assaulting Anya might have not been just purely Lust driven. I think it was also Jealousy.

He saw Anya as an object, and as we see in the game he kind of treated her like one too. And Curly did not, Curly treated Anya as a whole person. Had convos with her, made jokes with her.

I think Curly might have off-handedly mentioned how much he likes Anya as a person to Jimmy, and it made Jimmy mad. Made him mad that Curly was again, getting everything he wanted.

Now, I'll have to check the timeline, but if the assault happened AFTER Jimmy found out about the layoffs, that could lean even more into my theory. We see on the memo from the company that Curly is in line for other opportunities after the trip, but the rest of the crew is getting laid off. And we know that Jimmy is immensely jealous of Curly, so far as to twist his words and accuse him of leaving them all behind, leaving HIM behind. So, what does Jimmy do? He takes something of "Curly's." He takes Anya. And the whole time he's probably thinking "If Curly is going to ditch me, I can at least get back at him by taking his woman" I may add more to this, I'm going to replay the game with my bf later, but for now, these are my thoughts. lmk if y'all agree or disagree :)

[piplupcola]

Some shameless POS literally used AI to steal my friend's animated film

I usually don't post stuff like this but this shit's insane and downright insulting. I graduated from Ringling College of Art and Design in 2022, a pretty well known animation school in the US, and every animation student on their final year of college has to make an animated film for our final thesis. If you have any idea of the animation making process, you would know that making an entire film by yourself in one year is batshit insane and extremely exhausting, to the point where I'm still feeling the effects of the process on my physical and mental wellbeing 2 years after I graduated. Once more, my friends and I did it during the covid period, which was another level of hell. I was literally watching my grandfather's funeral while working in the labs at 2am because I couldn't fly home to attend it because we had to make this film. This film was our lifeblood, the culmination of 4 years of hell at school which was suppose to be our gateway into the industry. Tldr, it's fucking difficult to do, especially on your own.

So imagine 2 years later and I wake up to a bunch of messages on our alumni chat where a dear friend of mine posted a link to a tiktok video of someone literally stealing her entire film and superimpose it shot by shot and claim it as their own ad for their AI game. As animators, we aren't unaware of people stealing our films and reposting them elsewhere. Heck my own film "The End" was stolen from our school vimeo and posted on tiktok BEFORE IT WAS EVEN OFFICIALLY RELEASED, and that tiktok got hundreds of thousands of views while a year after my own real release my film is still struggling in the thousands.

But this

This is a fucking new low.

Can you imagine? A fresh graduate going through literal blood sweat and tears to make a film on their own that is so important to their future in the industry, to get them a job, with a film that represents a part of themselves to the world, just used as fodder for some stupid tech assholes? It's infuriating. It's insulting. It's literally a big fuck you to the hundreds of students who spent their lives toiling to make these films from the heart who are just desperate to get into the industry.

The animation industry right now is in complete shambles. People are graduating from animation schools with thousands of dollars in dept only to be met with a wasteland of minimum wage and lack of funding and competing for jobs with people who have already been in the industry for years affected by the massive layoffs not only in the movie but also the gaming industries. These films we make for our thesis aren't just films made for fun, they represent our lifeblood, our only opportunity to get a job as a graduate in this sea of hell. If you didn't make a good film, chances are you're never even stepping foot in the industry ever. It's our golden ticket that we would put thousands of hours through, sleepless nights and pushing through no matter the circumstances of sickness and pain it caused us.

And now some dumb fucking AI using dickbags see that and decide it's worth nothing.

Here's a link to my friend's real film. Please go watch it and support her work. I'm not even gonna link the other piece of shit tiktok because I don't want that video to even get a single extra view but here's a recording my friend made so you can see this malarkey side by side.

It's heartbreaking to see my friend's film barely getting any views while the stolen garbage is already in the thousands. I hope the person who stole my friend's work and made that shit dies in a fiery car crash and go straight to hell.

I cannot emphasise how we must not let this shit continue to happen. We're living in a fucking dystopia and unless we do something about it and support those affected by it it's only going to get worse. They're already expanded from stealing people's still art to stealing people's entire films, if we don't stop this nothing we create would ever be safe.

My friend's film:

The shameless fuckheads who stole her film:

[ahiddenpath]

Life Talk

Discussing how I'm dealing with Things beneath the cut.

I doubt I'll be able to say anything about the US election results that you haven't seen a million times before. I wasn't sure if I should bother commenting. I'm not sure where I am in the processing stages, so... Forgive me if my tone is weird. I definitely feel weird.

First thing's first; I've anticipated this outcome since people started blaming Biden for inflation. That's a typical thing in American politics; whoever is in charge currently is blamed for everything, which often causes the presidency to swap from D to R and back, regardless of where problems began. Of course, if voters really were worried about the economy, well... The Trump tariffs are a laughably, horrifically bad solution. But... I don't think the average American voter understands tariffs. So like. Whelp. There's a very real reason why Rs want to gut public education. Well, there are several, but yeah, a less educated populace is easier to fleece.

Obviously there are a million other horrible things going on here; if I tried to get into them all, I would never finish this post. But I can't say I'm experiencing shock or betrayal. I knew many Americans hate women, POC, the queer community, and others more than they care about their own self interests. Although most, I think, are simply not educated enough to understand that their self interests are at risk, and many others were sucked into the far right cult stuff years ago. Rs always scream about the liberal media, but so much American media (and social media!) is owned by the right, or is at least paid off by them. I'm wondering, as education continues to fail, especially given the next administration, will Americans have any hope of thinking beyond whatever Facebook posts and news in the pocket of (or in fear of) the right tells them?

We're in a bad way, but this didn't happen on the day of the election. We've been living in this environment for years, now. Are things about to get worse? Yes, of course. I think it's an important time to remember who your friends and loved ones are, to lean on them and check in on them, to do stupid fun stuff with them. And I think it's time to step away from the doom scrolling and inventing horrible what-if scenarios. Obviously this is a scary time; I'm not trying to diminish that. But spiraling causes pain now, PLUS more pain later if the bad thing comes to pass.

I've seen some interesting posts with actionable ideas. Get a passport ASAP, look into moving (to blue states, out of climate change buffer areas, or internationally if you can, although obviously that is not easy nor readily available), think about if your industry will be impacted by tariffs and sweeping federal government layoffs, get sterilized if you know you don't want kids, get that medical appointment you've been pushing off. Actionable stuff is productive! Spiraling isn't. Although uhhh, that's easier said than done. I'm just trying to push myself in a better direction, here.

As for me, here are some fractured snippets of how I've been feeling:

-Mourning. Shit, I'm 35. Trump will be in office until I'm 39. My child bearing window is closing. Are we not having a family bc of orange oompah loompah and his country and world destroying policies?

-I'm aware that I will be buffered from some things, purely because of how I look, where I live, etc. And the fact that I'm married to a safe man who adores me affords some protection. I feel weird about it, but must acknowledge it, so I don't get uhh. Disconnected from people who are more vulnerable than me. I think that Democratic politicians who mean well, but don't experience what so many Democrat constituents go through/suffer with for various reasons, becoming so... Out of touch and unrelatable... Um, I think that played a role in getting us here. It's difficult for these politicians to organize or affect change when their life experience is... Just overall safer by default. And this applies to people who aren't politicians, too, just on a less official level.

Those of us who are comparatively safer for various reasons need to hear people who are less safe and acknowledge that some things impact us differently, and we need to prioritize what the most vulnerable need.

-On the day before the election, I started Googling how to become a witch and books on witchcraft. I did it with a wry grin, because I'm aware that magic/witchcraft/New Age stuff/tarot/crystals/mysticism/etc surge in popularity during times of political and economic strife. Meaning that they are SUPER FUCKING POPULAR right now, and have been for a while. You might know that I'm a Seeker (tarot practitioner), but I'm also a scientist. I'm... not the most spiritual person.

But, like, FUCK IT. Time to become a witch. Time to creep into the wild woods and make a hut and live with the bears. TIME TO CURSE SOME MF-ers!

I told my reasonable friend. Here is our conversation:

Hidden: So I'm googling witch books.

Friend: No. We don't turn to magic in the face of tragedy. We drink hot cocoa.

Hidden: FINE I GUESS (hrmph!!!!)

I told another friend the same:

Friend: How are you holding up?

Hidden: Googling how to become a witch. So... yeah.

Friend: How... how DO you become a witch?

Hidden: IDK, that's why I'm googling it.

Sigh. I might still buy that book on the history of witchcraft and paganism. What, it's history! xD

-Otherwise, I've been weirdly fortunate that work has been so demanding. I've been learning more about in silico analysis lately (using huge protein databases to predict how developable a new antibody based drug might be, which residues to change, and how immunogenic your antibody might be). I'm learning and doing so much that I come home exhausted, but like. Maybe that's the lack of sleep on Tuesday night talking.

-I've been leaning into the animal of myself these last few days. The soft, squishy, vulnerable meat of me. Sleep and work and food and relying on my partner bond with my husband. Listening to his heartbeat, feeling the low rumble of his voice when we cuddle, letting skin on skin release safe and happy hormones.

-I think I need to get off reddit and its eternal doom. Like, permanently. Tumblr and Insta are the only other social media I use, but Tumblr is all digimon and Insta is all cats and dolls. I'm hoping the political posts that aren't primarily actionable die down on Tumblr soon, so I don't need to spend less time here, but obviously people need to post what they are going to post. If I'm here less, this is likely why.

Most of all, do what you can to beat back despair. I don't really have comforting words, except that you're not alone. Other people DO think and feel the way you do now. Let's all try to be there for each other, distract one another, and maybe have some hugs and hot drinks. Or like... start a coven, idk.

You are loved. Ask for help if you need to, offer it if you can.

[caltropspress]

RAPS + CRAFTS #34: Snotnoze Saleem

1. Introduce yourself. Past projects? Current projects?

I go by the name Snotnoze Saleem. So far, all projects under this alias have been released on Illuminated Paths, including the mixtape Intifada, the sister EPs Shards I & II, and the most recent EP Samizdat, all self-produced. I don’t want to give too much away as of right now since I prefer to announce music when it is fully complete, but I got a collab tape with an amazing producer coming up, and I’m always working on my own stuff.

2. Where do you write? Do you have a routine time you write? Do you discipline yourself, or just let the words come when they will? Do you typically write on a daily basis?

Any and everywhere. I used to have a routine where I would write on my lunch break at work, and then afterwards after smoking. I don’t particularly like employment, so I always had a source of agitation to pull from, however that routine has recently been shattered due to a layoff. But I’ve been slowly finding a new groove until the next source of daily annoyance gives me more ammo, and even without a job, there’s always something. I discipline myself by sitting down and saying, “I’m going to come up with at least a few bars here,” or, “I will find a pocket in this weird ass beat,” but during that window of discipline I’ll let the words come as they may. I make an effort to jot down interesting thoughts or turn of phrases every day, even as little as just two words that I think sound interesting when put together. I tend to feel panicky if I feel I haven’t written anything for a few days straight, which can happen.

3. What’s your medium—pen and paper, laptop, on your phone? Or do you compose a verse in your head and keep it there until it’s time to record?

It used to be strictly pen and paper because I thought it was more “official,” but as time progressed I found myself thinking in bars all throughout the day, and I found it much more convenient to just pull my phone out and type whatever it is that came to me. I don’t think I’ve ever kept a whole verse strictly in my head; I’d be too afraid of forgetting it.

4. Do you write in bars, or is it more disorganized than that?

Usually disorganized, and then I find a satisfying order and rhythm for recitation. A few times a song will be more focused and will come off as what you could say are logical thoughts, like my one song “A Foreign Army Invaded My Funeral Procession” from Shards II, but that wasn’t even on purpose. It kinda just came out that way.

5. How long into writing a verse or a song do you know it’s not working out the way you had in mind? Do you trash the material forever, or do you keep the discarded material to be reworked later?

Nah, I don’t trash anything - always keep it. I’ve used lines I’ve written years prior, or recycle entire verses on a new beat if I think it fits better. When I’m in that discipline window I mentioned earlier, I’ll just write whatever, doesn’t have to make sense (not like the finished version has to) or be on any type of beat or rhythm or cadence, just get the juices flowing. It’s usually pretty clunky at first, but once I’ve gotten used to the beat then I can make adjustments. If I’m working on a verse and I haven’t reached that breakthrough beyond, say, a week or two, then it may be time to move on to something else, but that doesn’t mean I’ll never go back to it again.

6. Have you engaged with any other type of writing, whether presently or in the past? Fiction? Poetry? Playwriting? If so, how has that mode influenced your songwriting?

I used to write screenplays when I was younger, and little short stories. I don’t know what happened as I aged, but I find it hard to write organized thoughts and sentences like that nowadays - you know, “proper” sentences. I think the biggest influence it has on me now is just the fact that I’m not a stranger to the act of writing my thoughts down since I’ve been doing it for a while in some shape or form. I would like to read more poetry as well.

7. How much editing do you do after initially writing a verse/song? Do you labor over verses, working on them over a long period of time, or do you start and finish a piece in a quick burst?

The production plays a big role in this. If I have a beat that really gets a strong reaction from me, like my blood starts boiling as soon as I hear it, I can knock out a big chunk of a verse quickly, or maybe even a whole verse. Other times, it’s just a matter of reciting it either out loud or in my head over and over and over and over and over again until I’m fully satisfied with every word and pocket.

8. Do you write to a beat, or do you adjust and tweak lyrics to fit a beat?

Always writing to a beat, though I may pull from the random thoughts and feelings I’ve jotted down during my day-to-day. But the beat is usually the biggest factor in helping with writing a verse as opposed to little blurbs. If it’s something crazy, like some clamorous buzzsaw synth with a vocal sample of an elderly woman gasping or something, then the words will match that atmosphere. If it’s something calmer, I will adjust accordingly.

9. What dictates the direction of your lyrics? Are you led by an idea or topic you have in mind beforehand? Is it stream-of-consciousness? Is what you come up with determined by the constraint of the rhymes?

Man, I will pull from anything. My immediate surroundings, maybe a sign I see on the street; or something someone said earlier that I thought was funny or strange; a memory; a feeling I had at a particular moment; a meme or tweet I saw online; the news; a sentence from a book; whatever. Despite the seeming randomness though, I think there are always a handful of topics in my mind that I tend to dwell on or go back to, and it seems like I attempt to compile those disparate sources to fit within those topics even if I didn’t really set out to do that when I started. 

10. Do you like to experiment with different forms and rhyme schemes, or do you keep your bars free and flexible?

Hmm, those seem like the same thing to me. I would say I do both. Lately I’ve been making a conscious effort of trying not to use “obvious” rhymes, so instead of rhyming, for example, “feature” with “creature,” maybe I’ll go with “people” or even “facetious” or something. See, it doesn’t really rhyme, but it kinda does and you can make it work. I think that makes it more interesting. Nothing wrong with “obvious” rhymes though - more of an exercise to keep my mind sharp. 

11. What’s a verse you’re particularly proud of, one where you met the vision for what you desire to do with your lyrics?

I mentioned a collab tape with a producer earlier. I got a song on there that I really think I left the planet on. I wrote it when I was bedridden with COVID, and I think the combination of my brain being in such a vulnerable state and the beat really speaking to me helped with my writing. Don’t get COVID, by the way. Of the stuff I have out at the time of this writing, I like the song “Embryonic” from Shards II. It’s a kind of spoken word thing over a noise sample. I like hearing what different people think I was going for on that one.

12. Can you pick a favorite bar of yours and describe the genesis of it?

That’s a really tough one. It might be recency bias because it just came out, but I like when I said, “Bantustan bandit back on that bolshevik bullshit.” I like the alliteration and I enjoy using political terms in a somewhat irreverent way. “Bantustan” is in reference to the areas in the West Bank that are designated for Palestinians, which have been compared to the Bantustans of Apartheid-era South Africa, which were designated for black Africans; “bandit” in reference to flippant use of samples; and “bolshevik bullshit” because I guess my raps tend to lean pretty left-wing.

13. Do you feel strongly one way or another about punch-ins? Will you whittle a bar down in order to account for breath control, or are you comfortable punching-in so you don’t have to sacrifice any words?

I don’t think I have any authority to tell people how they should or shouldn’t rap. 99.9% of the time I don’t use them because I just don’t need to, and it makes a song easier to perform. But on my song “Nymphs” off of Samizdat (where the line I highlighted in the last question is from), I actually punched-in most of the lines because I was inspired by people like RXKNephew who I feel do it in a unique way, and I just thought it fit the beat. Just seemed like a fun thing to try out. But I don’t really whittle anything down. I have good breath control and sometimes it could even give it more flavor when it sounds like your lungs are about to burst before you finish a line. 

14. What non-hiphop material do you turn to for inspiration? What non-music has influenced your work recently?

Novels of all types, although my favorite authors are ones who can be funny about very serious things - satirical, you know - or know how to play with the English language. The real world. History and politics. Jazz music helps me with finding flows because it is so free and organic. And I really love noise and punk music for the energy.

15. Writers are often saddled with self-doubt. Do you struggle to like your own shit, or does it all sound dope to you?

I like what I put out. It’s not lost on me that many people may find my style outlandish and maybe even unlistenable - that’s okay. It sounds like me and whoever it’s meant for will find it and enjoy it. 

16. Who’s a rapper you listen to with such a distinguishable style that you need to resist the urge to imitate them?

Well, the flow on “Nymphs” was done on purpose as a direct tribute, but otherwise I think I’m weird enough as a person (in a good way) that I can take influence from my favorites such as DOOM or ELUCID and it would still come out sounding like me, if that makes sense. 

17. Do you have an agenda as an artist? Are there overarching concerns you want to communicate to the listener?

I would like to show the listener that rap is a limitless genre and the best genre and the culmination of all genres, where you can say whatever you want, however you want, and that you can really make a beat out of anything. Real-world concerns would focus on eradicating oppression of all people on the basis of who they are (or any basis really) and the use of everyday language in creative and “foreign” ways. 

RAPS + CRAFTS is a series of questions posed to rappers about their craft and process. It is designed to give respect and credit to their engagement with the art of songwriting. The format is inspired, in part, by Rob McLennan’s 12 or 20 interview series.

Photo credit: Delaney Nash

[mortispoxi]

https://videogames.si.com/news/disco-elysium-dev-zaum-layoffs

Today it was announced that Studio ZA/UM's upper management has not only decided to let a third of its employees go but has subsequently canceled the majority of the projects the studio had been working on and let me tell you I… am not the least bit surprised and find the whole thing rather ironic. (rant incoming)

First and foremost, before anyone tries to twist my words I am not celebrating people losing their jobs, especially now that the UK is in a recession. No, what I am highlighting is the irony of it all. These employees, some of whom if you recall argued with fans that Robert Kurvitz's dismissal was all his fault and we were buying into the auteur theory for the last two years, are finding out they were not the exception after all and that upper management can and will do the same thing they did to Kurvitz and co once they've outlived their usefulness. We all knew this was going to happen sooner rather than later but it’s still devastating to know that so many people are going to be affected by the greed of these conmen. The other shoe has finally dropped, and these are the unfortunate repercussions.

Kompus's decision to lay off a third of the employees, some of which have been part of the studio since its inception, does not come as a surprise to anyone who has been paying attention. It's been more than obvious that it was a matter of time before they would drop the façade of a caring boss to reveal their true nature. These employees running to the press crying about their future redundancy is acknowledging a truth those looking in from the outside always knew; the investors are slowly squeezing the life out of the company and no one, not even the founding members of ZA/UM, are safe from being snuffed out by these money grabbing conmen because nothing is sacred to them. This goes beyond just another game studio letting swaths of developers go over the past year and a half because a) at the time of me writing this the studio has not released another game so firing everyone on project X7 seems a bit overkill when you can potentially transfer them to one of the two projects they’re confirmed to still be working on especially when the company is already so small, and b) this is a well-established pattern of morally bankrupt behaviors the investors engage in whenever they encounter anyone who will interfere with maximizing their gross income.

The irony of it all is that these people are now turning around and finally crying mismanagement when Kurvitz had warned them, even before he got fired (and multiple times after), that yes, the investor’s mismanagement is the reason things fell apart so quickly and only now are they seeing he had been right all along. If they truly believed the same wouldn't eventually befall them like it had with their former coworkers, then I'm sorry but that one’s on them to reconcile with. There is no reason for anyone to still be defending the studio at this point since, again, it's pretty clear the investors did this to maintain control over money rather than their excuse that they care about the well-being of their employees. It doesn't exactly take a brainiac to realize the investors have been lying this entire time about the reason why the studio has such a toxic work environment when the guy they accused of being the source of the toxicity has been gone for 3 years and yet the studio’s environment remains the same, ya know? The investors don't care, they never cared, and this is just the consequence of believing that they ever cared to begin with catching up to these people.

Robert Kurvitz was right, continues to be right, and will always be right about how scummy the investors are, and the sooner people acknowledge this the sooner it’ll take to put the IP rights back in the hands of its rightful owner.  

[catonator]

Funny heading to a blogpost on videogames that’s some sort of reference

Look, I already used the ctrl+alt+delete quote in a blogpost title. It’s February 2024, and it’s already a very wild year for gaming. We’ve had more layoffs than with the entirety of 2023, games shown off at events seem to be stagnating, interest in the art is waning. Youtube is filled with “modern gaming sucks” doomer blackpill videos. It’s a miserable time.

Is gaming just over?

Well, no. Of course not. The Sonic franchise has lingered for decades despite consistent failure. Games are more resilient than that.

Humanity’s relation to computing is still pretty fresh, and I’d say that despite the size and scale of a lot of it, we’re still going through major growing pains. Concepts like video games, the internet and special effects are still pretty new, despite being around for twice or thrice as long as most of the people reading this have been alive. Internal combustion engine -powered cars were invented in 1808, made mass produced in the 1910s, and even then it took until the 1950s for them to be common enough for the US government to bother designing cities around them. In the present day, many have come to resent the car-centric design mentality, even though the driving (no pun intended) factor behind them was mainly the same as with technology today: scientific and technological progression is unquestionably good, and therefore new and successful ideas should be pushed and relied upon as hard as possible. What could possibly go wrong?!

Video games are far from the only medium which is seeing similar problems. Movies have suffered greatly from a capeshit infestation, in which the abuse of VFX artists is valued over, you know, basics of good filmmaking, and the general public is clearly sick of it. On the internet, we’ve decided that megastructures like Twitter are better than forms of communication we’re good at, and it’s gone horribly wrong. We’re still learning the “do”s, “don’t”s and “who the fuck thought this was a good idea”s of tech.

Games as an artform are as alive as they ever were, but the sheer scale of the operations has grown to a point where nobody can really understand it. The numbers behind playerbases and the money traffic have so many zeroes that you can’t even fathom the number. Even if I used some metaphorical figure, like 20 000 cars. Shockingly, despite how console sales haven’t really increased in numbers (the top selling console of all time is still the PS2), most of the top-grossing games of all time are relatively recent. This implies that the behaviour of consumers has shifted from purchasing a variety of different kinds of games into purchasing fewer games of fewer different kinds. And I don’t think it’s a case of customers deciding to shift over naturally.

In the past decade or so, the gaming industry has decided sensible experiences are a way of the past, and the future is making games for debt and making back the money with horse armour and other garbage the general public doesn’t really want.

But we’ve seen this shit before. In the 90s, 3D was “the future”, and 2D pixel art or hand-drawn art in general seemed to go the way of the dodo for polygons and ““realism””. About a decade later, 2D art would see a resurgence and in some cases overtake the big lads in lasting impact. In the end, people crave personal stories, varying ideas, and interesting ways to tell them. Not much has changed since ancient Greeks, besides that the medium of storytelling has largely shifted from some guy standing on a stage, trying to explain another world, to electronic devices actually showing us the other worlds.

I think as we play out the Icarus stories in real time, we’ll also learn when boundaries are pushed too far, and the scale of the bullshit simply collapses in on itself. When that happens, the public is forced to step back and reevaluate the ways we thought were the future, and what really is better for all of us.

When a storm flattens a forest of dead, decrepit trees, the sun and rain can now reach the ground and cultivate a new generation of different plant life. Once hidden beneath the dead corpses, now able to grow and bloom in a way the old generation never could. You should just keep doing what you think is right. Now’s the time more than ever to be the backbone of a better industry, for many applications of tech, from games to communication. And it’s better, if the backbone comes from the grassroots, and isn’t defined by the megacorporations. Because those cunts will never learn from their failures.

[alyjojo]

2025 Career Reading ⚖️- Taurus Sun/Rising

Preshuffle: A lack of vision makes you feel powerless or you’re in a situation where you are powerless and can’t envision a way out of whatever this is. You have options but your decisions are made for you? Someone else is making the call and you’re like a slave to whatever this is - it keeps you powerless.

Meditation: You were a Scorpion 🦂 running for your life from several much bigger animals that wanted to eat you. You dived into a hole under a rock and some kind of bird-like predator was trying to snap you with its beak…you just stayed at the back of the hole. You have a stinger, and pinchers, but you weren’t using them. Scorpio has already shown up twice, that could be relevant.

Current Energy: 3 Pentacles

What’s Hidden: 10 Pentacles rev

Potential Changes: 9 Pentacles rev

Best Outcome/Advice: 5 Pentacles

SATURN - LEO - 3RD HOUSE

- Be realistic about leadership by making the right connections.

- Be concerned about the creativeness of the idea in question.

- You must wait before you can do what you want to and get your ideas going.

Well, you’re not going to like this but you probably won’t be surprised. Whatever you’re doing is like…a bootlicker position, at least for the time being, and probably for a good portion of the year with Saturn here prominently. You could make good money so you put up with it. Whoever your boss is, they’re terrible at giving direction or leading or working or showing up idk, and you’re the one holding it all together. This probably pleases you and makes you feel important and needed, currently you’re feeling 3 Pentacles. Everyone is working together to create a larger successful business and you’re appreciated for what you do. Are you though? Or are you being taken advantage of?

10 Pentacles rev and 9 Pentacles rev show codependency and an unstable business or foundation, your company could be one that doesn’t make much money and you’re constantly having to come in “for free,” or you do the work of three people while the others have every excuse in the book not to do their share…you’re doing it, why would they complain? You feel teamwork but really you’re just isolated. For some this could be predicting layoffs or having to leave a job, whether by choice or not depends on you & your story. The best outcome is leaving this - either the job or this dynamic within the job. Stand up for yourself.

How you do this could get tricky though. For some you’re just leaving and that’s the end of it…probably later in the year. For others, you’re having to use the chain of command to “battle” others, shitty coworkers that don’t do their share of things, especially if you rely on them to do your job or they’re making you look incompetent. Saturn Leo 3rd is taking leadership into your own hands when it comes to other people, I’m sure you’ll speak up to others before having to go to a boss or something, because others don’t care what you’re saying, “yOuR nOt tHe BoSs” haha. Childish shit, Knight of Wands rev, for some you could literally be working with teenagers or they just act like it. Unreliable, goofing off, don’t finish anything, and you’re following up behind them crossing t’s and dotting i’s like a good SLAVE. For real tho. Stop that 🛑

For some, going to management or something may work but it’s going to bring you some enemies as well. You’re the “Karen”‘is how it’s coming off - and you’re justified as being right so fuck them 💯 Some may even lose their jobs…don’t feel bad, that’s showing, you did what you had/have to do because 2 Pentacles is juggling everything while Georgio over here is drunk af all day and left at noon - why does he get a pass? 3rd House shows siblings and it’s giving that vibe. You could work with people you know, old friends or actual family, that could be part of the problem. Wholeass family taking advantage of your diligence and need for order.

No matter how you swing it, changes won’t happen immediately, either because you take forever to speak up, boss takes forever to actually do something about it, or you’re looking for something better but are only finding…not great opportunities. You want The Hierophant, you’ve got Knight of Wands rev. Something lasting, genuine, official vs. unreliable, temporary, and never know what’s going to happen tomorrow…some drama 🎭 Being conflicted about this will take some time, because you don’t like change, but your best advice is leaving this. For some of you, a friend could show you your next opportunity, or some kind of social networking thing is the key. You hear about it through the news thing you follow or your sister posts something amazing idk. If a boss helps, great, for many though it’s not going to get better until you exit Stage left 🧡 I’m sure you’ll try every other option before actually doing that, and do you boo, you know what you can handle and what you can’t. You’re being validated for it being too much as it currently stands. Change is necessary and inevitable, and because it’s affecting you more than others, you’re the instigator - even though you hate change more than anything. What’s worse, change or being right but not doing anything about it? Got ya 🗡️

Signs you may be dealing with:

Heavy Virgo Sun/Saturn/Moon

Scorpio

Gemini

Leo

Capricorn

Taurus

Saturn/Leo in the 3rd House

[an-aussie-button-masher]

2024 Gaming Wrap-Up

   It’s that time of year again! I’m not talking about Christmas or whatever - it’s time for the yearly Gaming Wrap-Up where we take a look back at the past twelve months in the video gaming world. There’s no need to dwell too much on the real world; we all know how things are going at the moment. It’s a bit rough right now to say the least, but video games are always at least an enjoyable escape and there’s always new releases, updates, announcements and other news to look forward to. As we wind down for the holidays and prepare for whatever comes next, let’s take a moment to remember some of our favourite games and other related events that happened throughout 2024. Enjoy!

JANUARY - MARCH    The year had a bumpy beginning for those working within the video game industry itself, as a string of constant mass layoffs from many major development and publishing groups (such as Microsoft, Sony, EA, and Riot) has led to such jobs being on shaky ground for countless people and making their futures very uncertain. The layoffs continued throughout the early half of 2024, becoming a major factor in the strikes that would occur later on.   On a more positive note, 2024 had a strong start for most video game releases. The Like A Dragon/Yakuza series continued in Hawaii with Infinite Wealth, the sole developer of the deckbuilding roguelike Balatro was shocked at how enormously popular the game instantly became, and long-time damsel-in-distress Princess Peach finally took centre stage as the playable hero of Princess Peach: Showtime! Meanwhile, some highly-anticipated remakes of Final Fantasy VII and The Last of Us II released, but an awful reception to Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League certainly killed a lot of faith in the gaming corner of the DC universe.

APRIL - JUNE    Further along in the year, the 2024 Summer Games Fest was held, continuing to build up as a “replacement” for E3 as the main games showcase event of the year. Several exciting new titles were announced, including Star Wars Outlaws, Civilisation 7, and bizarrely enough an Among Us animated series adaptation! Speaking of adaptations, the Fallout live-action series also released, to be met with near-universal acclaim as a rare actually-good video game adaptation that remained faithful to the source material while telling a strong, original narrative.   The second quarter also saw the release of some popular games; Stellar Blade brought us a sci-fi action adventure that was just a tad overshadowed by the fanservice-y character designs, while MultiVersus (Warner Bros.’ fighting game counterpart to Super Smash Bros.) finally reached its full release after languishing in early access for the last couple years. Animal Well was the newest hit indie game, a labyrinthine metroidvania populated by wildlife and puzzles, and the current king of action RPGs Elden Ring received a major expansion dubbed Shadow of the Erdtree. 

JULY - SEPTEMBER    The video game industry’s turmoil came to a head in the latter half of the year with the beginning of the SAG-AFTRA voice acting strike that is still ongoing as I write this. After a year and a half of failed negotiations and concerns over the threat of replacement by AI voice recreations (as well as pressure from the mass layoffs earlier on), thousands of workers began a labour strike that would hopefully convince their employers to offer fairer negotiations. In lighter news, Sony Entertainment’s attempt to enter the hero shooter genre with Concord resulted in a staggeringly hilarious failure - high prices and unappealing characters led to such a colossal flop that Sony had to shut down the games’ servers and issue refunds within two weeks of launch! Good job Sony.   Contrasting Concord’s embarrassment, the release of Astro Bot was met with universal adoration as a clever old-fashioned platformer that thrives on the nostalgia of Sony’s long history of titles since 1994. Following in Princess Peach’s footsteps from earlier, Zelda also got to helm her own solo title with a new entry in the Legend of Zelda series titled Echoes of Wisdom. Meanwhile, Black Myth: Wukong starred the monkey hero of the classical Chinese tale Journey to the West in an action RPG adventure, and Star Wars Outlaws threw players into the depths of the cutthroat criminal underworld of a galaxy far, far away.

OCTOBER - DECEMBER    We round out the year with - what else? - The Game Awards of 2024! Astro Bot walked away with a more-than-deserved Game of the Year and several other wins, though it’s not like it had a whole lot of decent competition for it. Of course, the only real reason people pay attention to the awards is for all the juicy announcements and reveals that come with them: sequels for The Witcher, Okami and The Outer Worlds, yet another Elden Ring property, a flashy new trailer for Borderlands 4 that I for one am obsessed with, and a surprise announcement of Naughty Dog’s new space-opera IP called Intergalactic: The Heretic.   Besides the award show, the tail end of 2024 also saw some popular releases including the Persona-esque medieval fantasy RPG Metaphor: ReFantazio, while Marvel Rivals jumped straight from the pages of a comic book to finally give Overwatch some truly strong competition in the hero-shooter genre. Finally, while it didn’t quite beat out Fallout in the awards for Best Adaptation, the second season of acclaimed animated series Arcane was still met with outstanding praise.

LOOKING AHEAD    So, where does that leave us for next year? We’ve got plenty of highly-anticipated games to look forward to in 2025, which still doesn’t sound like a real year we’re about to enter (what do you mean 2018 was seven years ago!?). It goes without saying that the biggest highlight of the year will be the release of Grand Theft Auto 6, which I’m not entirely exaggerating about when I call it the most anticipated video game release ever. Before that, however, we’ve still got the next few chapters of Toby Fox’s Deltarune and the superheroic hack-and-slasher Wolverine to keep us occupied, but the release I’m personally most hyped for is Borderlands 4 - I still can’t stop rewatching that trailer.   Oh, and, there’s also gonna be a Minecraft movie next year. So that’s…something. Maybe it’ll be one of those so-bad-it’s-good movies, but I’m not holding my breath. Not every adaptation can be as good as Fallout. Besides that, 2025 is looking to be an excellent year for the gaming world. So, despite the state of, well, everything right now, just hold on a little longer - there’s always something to stick around for, even if it’s just the next game you want to play.   Until then, I hope you enjoyed this look back at the gaming world of 2024, and I look forward to seeing you all again in 2025!   Happy Holidays!

An Aussie Button-Masher

[jomiddlemarch]

A handshake is available upon request 

“There used to be offices. Actual fucking offices, doors, windows, generic black and white landscape photography in a black frame because they wanted to be a little edgy, architect-school-wannabes,” Nina announced at the water cooler, which had been moved out of what was nominally the kitchen-slash-lounge, so that it was less appealing to stand around and chat. They weren’t allowed to bring in their own water bottles however, because their bathroom breaks were strictly regulated and a full Stanley on even 50% renal function equaled more time away from their screens than they were allocated. The water cooler had tiny paper cones to drink out of and if you didn’t swallow the whole thing right away, the paper would start to turn into mush in your hand. It wasn’t compostable though, because collecting compost would take time out of someone’s schedule that didn’t generate income.

“Really?” Alina said, keeping her voice lower than Nina’s. Nina was a veteran, relatively speaking, having survived the layoffs in ’18,’19, and ’22 and she wore Grimace purple Converse to the office on casual Fridays. Alina was approaching the end of her 90-day probation and needed to keep the job for the benefits more than anything else. The pay wasn’t great but there was vision and dental.

“Yeah, that was before all this cubicle shit,” Nina said. “If you don’t believe me, ask Gen. She remembers—”

“They said it would build morale. We’d all be interacting and sparking ideas or some nonsense like that. Like they want us to have ideas,” Gen offered. She was a bit more circumspect than Nina, which wasn’t saying all that much. She’d been assigned to show Alina the ropes the first week and fortunately, they were becoming friends. Well, work-friends. “They also took out all the vending machines except the one on the 24th floor.”

“The one with the ancient turkey sandwiches?” Alina said.

“Doesn’t ever need to be restocked, does it?” Nina said.

“We’re all just drones now,” Gen said. “Look what they did to David—”

“He was lucky he didn’t get fired for finding that loophole,” Nina said. Gen could get ranty about David, whom she’d had a crush on for like a year and who barely spoke to her, even though everyone could tell he was interested. “It’s worse what happened to Alex. That’s an absolute fucking nightmare.”

“What happened to him?” Alina asked. She’d seen Alex around, a tall, impassive dark-haired man with a close-cropped beard in the standard corporate uniform—charcoal or navy pants, button-down, no tie, cross-body nylon satchel—though she’d thought if he ever smiled, he’d probably be quite the looker. Not that he’d ever look at her, just one step up from a temp. 

“You know he basically built the place from the ground up, but I guess he was over-leveraged, there’s some rumor about his mother being in a crazy expensive assisted living with like a private nurse, but he doesn’t talk about her. After the takeover, he couldn’t afford to leave or he wouldn’t, there’s no real agreement on that part, and anyway, they took his top floor corner office and stuck him on 11. He’s got a door but no windows, can’t even keep a goddamn aspidistra alive in there,” Nina said. 

“Shit, there’s tattle-tail Tatiana and she’d coming over,” Gen muttered, then plastered a broad and clearly fake smile on her face, ducking her chin slightly to make her pony-tail bounce. “Hi, Tatiana!”

“Your reports ready to be filed?” Tatiana, the ostensible division supervisor, said. She looked lacquered, like she’d been manicured head-to-toe and left under the UV drying lamp a little too long. She didn’t smile but made some kind of smile-adjacent expression that showed her teeth. She must have the high dental plan because she clearly had caps.

“Just about,” Nina said. “Talk to you later, Alina—”

“After work,” Tatiana said. Nina nodded, then winked at Alina when Tatiana turned to squint across the floor at the cubicle Matt sat in, his blond head towering over the felted-composite wall.

“Yes, I was just going,” Alina said, though Tatiana had lost interest and had pivoted, obviously intending to walk over to Matt and find some reason to interrupt him. He’d play up his Norwegian, acting like he didn’t understand her, when Alina knew he was completely fluent in English, but he’d figured out it was the easiest way to get Tatiana to move along without getting saddled with additional work.

“Alina, maybe you can do me a solid? I left a folder on 11,” Nina said. “Can you run it down for me before you finish your break—”

“Break’s only 10 minutes. You better hurry,” Tatiana said.

“Of course, not a problem. Teamwork makes the dreamwork, right?” Alina replied as cheerful as a cartoon princess slogging it out in the forest with gnomes or dwarves or a nosey bunch of rodents, aware it was Day 84 and that she needed Tatiana to sign off on her or at least not have a reason to dump her. She was also aware that Nina had no folder, but that there was an office supply closet with the folders they used on their floor and that it was right next to the only office on 11. The office that evidently belonged to Alex, former CEO, now cooped up with a withering aspidistra. He could maybe use a cup of what passed for coffee in what passed for a general collegial friendliness, if you discounted that they worked in a cold steel skyscraper engaged in the soulless corporate grind.

For @iamstartraveller776 who suggested Evil Universe Trope "no coffee-shops, bakeries, florists...only cold steel skyscrapers in the soulless corporate grind" and with thanks to Severance for making it mainstream :)

[aita-blorbos]

AITA for concealing a huge impending promotion to my coworker/best friend?

For context: I'm basically the only reason this friend has this job, though simultaneously, he's very much a factor in me being at the point I'm at, too. As in promotions I've already gotten since he started. It's an office job, the kind that tbqh we're both very privileged to have. Like where the title you have doesn't actually give you that much more responsibility (sometimes it gives you less) but it does give you more money kind of job, and we get paid on salary.

So I've been here like a decade. I worked my ass off to move up the ladder. He's been here a couple years and thanks to me he's basically speedran all that to a position very adjacent to mine. I'm kind of his boss but I'm just one of many people who'd have the authority to fire him, if I wanted to? And that group of people has actually recently gotten a new member, bc our company is getting bought out. There were a lot of layoffs happening as a result, even to the degree of both of us worrying about the possibility of getting fired. Like REALLY worried. We've even gotten closer in recent months specifically trying to plan together about what to do to prevent that from happening. I'd already have called him my best friend before but I guess I'd say that if I had any doubts he'd say the same, they're gone now after that period of time. This is relevant bc it's part of why each of us thinks the other is the asshole, I guess.

Anyway, nevermind all that worry, apparently my leadership skills are admirable enough for the new big boss to specifically want to move me up a LOT. I wasn't expecting it at all. New boss revealed this in an otherwise kind of relaxed "meeting," too, where it was just the two of us, and where nothing was formally promised. So I frankly had a sense that it wasn't quite set in stone. So when my friend asked about what happened in this "meeting" a few minutes later, I didn't tell him about the specific good news. But I DID give him a vague, *truthful* reassurance that we'd be okay and wouldn't lose our jobs.

So here's where it gets into that HE could possibly be the asshole: In his words, he was afraid that I was overconfident or mistaken about how likely we were to keep our jobs, or whatever. What he does like RIGHT after I give him that reassurance is go to eavesdrop on the new boss. and then pass on some sensitive information to other people in the company who could actually affect a major shareholder meeting. I obviously can't go into detail but the info he passes on is the exact kind of thing that had the potential of costing me, really US, the job(s).

Before any kind of meeting actually happened, I found out through a third party that he'd essentially tattled. I was unbelievably pissed. We got into a bit of a physical scuffle that I started. I'm not proud of it, but he hit me back, so I feel we're even. And we still did get the promotion in the end. The conflict that remains is this argument we keep coming back to: about why I "wasn't just honest about good news"/"why I tried to scare him"/ "why I didn't trust him", etc -- vs why HE didn't trust ME! I didn't want to risk leaking sensitive information (which he went and fucking did anyway), and also, I frankly wanted to surprise him. And he totally robbed me of the ability to show him *I* swung it for us.

I know how I sound but I do feel he went behind my back. Ultimately it didn't actually mean anything but that's still what he did. Meanwhile he of course feels that I gave him no choice but to do that. His defense includes that he was just trying to save his own job (tbqh he did stand to have like over half his salary docked), which I respect in the scheme of things but as it relates to us two, personally, I wanna win this argument. Which of us did worse?

[f0point5]

Kelly remind me sooo much of an ex boss 😭 she's also a nepobaby but pretty useless so she got a job as a team manager with an assistant which was the one doing all her work, poor dude. She got herself pregnant by a junior that worked there and he was like 6 years younger than her and when they broke up the baby was like 4 months, she dropped the job and move to her mother's country (her dad was the one who got her the job) and like a year later the owner's kid started working on the company and she reappear and started flirting with him in front of her ex who pretty much didn't see his kid because he don't have money to travel to another country, the owner's kid is even younger (he's like 22 i think?) and the poor kid stayed with her grandmother, dad try to sue her and got himself layoff 😬 but she did bring the kid to the country but now she's a "tiktok mommy influencer" and lives with her new boyfriend, the owner's kid is pretty nice and help him get a job and he can visit his kid now but lordd that woman is trying really hard to pass her kid as the owner's kid even though the dad is very present she always post talking about how her new boyfriend is basically the kid dad because he's been with her more (who fault is that??!?), funny enough the kid adore her dad. I don't work there anymore but I still watch her tiktoks and talk with my ex coworkers 🤭

Random story time.

I, as a nepo baby, used to work with another nepo baby, except she had higher nepo cred. This girl was the dumbest person I’ve ever met to the point I honestly couldn’t believe she was real.

Anyway she developed a stalker crush on the same guy I had a crush on and he totally hated her and he told me that but I couldn’t tell her because I didn’t want her to know how I knew that. So I was stuck listening to her talk about trying to get his attention even though I knew she had no chance and it was hella weird.

She quite seriously didn’t know what dial codes were. So crazy.

Wonder what ever happened to her 😂