#i love that rdr2 is full of references to this game

[regwishesshehadmagic]

"Face me to the West, so I can watch the setting sun and remember all the fine times we had that way."

[exitoath]

What kind of DND characters would the RDR2 cast have?

Let's take a focus on the cowboys because as much as we may love Molly or Mary-Beth, if I include them it means having to assign characters like Pearson or Strauss, and as much as I would, I won't. (spoilers ahead ofc)

Sean Maguire: Sean loves being the center of attention, and as much as he may annoy the gang, he's still a lovable part of them. He's going to focus on having fun and a good time throughout the whole game, and definitely frustrating whoever has the displeasure of being the DM. Sean's energy fits that of a gnome, more focused on pleasure-seeking and going on adventures. His class being Rogue, archetype: Arcane Trickster.

Lenny Summers: Lenny is your average adventurer, he's not Bill who is so focused on making sure that everyone knows he's the toughest guy around (even though he's constantly made fun of for being not) or Sean who is focused on pleasures, he's just focused on doing what he can to survive, and that kind of simplicity in the life of the outlaw I think is a perfect fit for the Human Variant Fighter, Champion subclass.

Hosea Matthews: Hosea hates conflict, in-fighting, and is ultimately focused on living a comfortable life understanding that he doesn't have much time due to his age, reflecting Arthur's own journey of wanting to do good before his passing. However, still wishing to help the gang out, his focus is on illusions, trickery, and snake-oiling. Human Variant Bard, college of eloquence.

Bill Williamson: Bill is made fun of constantly, constantly angry and trying to act like a tough guy despite his intense insecurity. Emphasis on strength instead of intelligence, he'd ask to play as a full Orc Barbarian, Path of Berserker.

Javier Escuella: Javier is a great gunslinger, doesn't have the focus of brute like Bill, and knows when to have fun in life, as well as a great musician to cheer up the spirits of his allies. Human Variant, Bard College of Glamour.

Micah Bell: Bell wants to focus on Brute as much as Bill does. I wouldn't be surprised if Micah picked Paladin and breaks his oath within the first hour of the game. Perfect again for Barbarian path of the berserker, however unlike Bill he's a lot more self-assured, and has a more self-centered built philosophy by comparison. However! I definitely could see Micah playing Paladin Oath of Conquest. Due to his more established mindset compared to Bill who is too focused on his problems and angry to try and build on. I bet he'd pick Tiefling for the devilish look.

Charles Smith: I LOVE Charles so much. Tied between two identities, being black and being Native American, but with no roots, no real upbringing, his biggest problems are not understanding who he is as an individual. However, despite that and his frustrations, he's the most morally focused out of all the outlaws in the gang. He does not care if helping some people is annoying or could distract them from their goals, he will do what he believes is right despite all of that. Because of this character, I'm thinking half-elf, Paladin Oath of Devotion.

Sadie Adler: 💋 I love her maybe more than I do Charles, I wouldn't forgive myself if I didn't include her. She is much MUCH more focused on vengeance, opposing the journey of Arthur and reflecting more of that of John's choice at the end. Sadie at two points in the game is referred to this relationship with death. From Arthur: "You and me? We're more ghosts than people." and telling John directly "I want to die." Sadie picks the Oath of Vengeance, not because she actually cares about making things right, but because she's trying to cope with the immense suffering that she has endured, and she hopes that during one of her many battles, that her own life ends.

Dutch Van Der Linde: The man, the myth, the legend. Dutch is in the same boat as Hosea. Though, while Hosea is more in the field of being a conartist, Dutch inspires his allies to stay together, that they're all one family and how they all can endure. Asking them to have faith, trust him. His biggest flaw is believing the same things he's selling, just as susceptible to manipulation as he manipulates others. Not to overlook his brutality and power, but his biggest focus would be perfect for the Bard of Lore.

Arthur Morgan: I mean.. Look it's in no way to seem redundant or obvious, but let's be real, Arthur Morgan fits into the Oath of Redemption. (I mean it's in the title) A man makes a million mistakes, one causes him to develop the illness that will end his life, so now doing all he can to make sure he does good before he passes.

John Marston: By no means is Marston a saint, or as good of a man that Arthur was, and I feel like that's the point of his character. John *is* a good man, but unlike Arthur, he's lived so sad of a life that it's created the uncaring character we see in RDR1. Losing all of what he called family, killing men because they looked at him funny, and even after settling down, he loses a daughter. The suffering the world has given him has caused him to only focus on living a simple life, protecting his family under any circumstances, and justifying every means to get his rightful goals. Paladin, Oath of Treachery.

[verdemoun]

things my "cishet" "neurotypical" 25 year old (has never played a video game in his life) humanities teacher friend has said during his rdr2 playthrough

(dutch going off at bill at the start of revenge is a dish best eaten) well that seemed uncalled for. dutch is. dutch is starting to lose it, huh

visibly upset over having to shoot up the mansion, esp the stained glass windows. loves the double barrel tho.

(dutch going off at bronte) yeah dutch has full lost it. oh! oh! gator! :D DO IT! DO IT! DO IT! DO IT!

only comment during banking the american art: papa hosea noooooo!!

(the diagnosis) ah yes well he’s dead he’s got consumption

(arthur's walk) why is there a moose in saint denis.

"the hot air balloon! first invented in 1793" (demanded i fact check, he was correct)

oh it's like the wizard of oz! there's no place like blackwater, there's no place like blackwater, there's no place like blackwater.

despite having no reaction to the diagnosis, immediately had tears in his eyes screaming ARTURO NOOOOOO as the funny man died

"mrs adler has the sort of perky butchness i can see you being attracted to"

meeting algernon: don’t you dare fucking say that’s me

five seconds into the intro cut scene: oh no he’s me

micah being on scene for any amount of time: i am dryer than the sahara rn.

i asked him to clarify. he paused. proceeded to refer to which characters made his pussy wet/dry for the rest of the evening. has never made this joke before.

thought abigail was the rat during guarma until seeing dutch muttering chess moves to himself. had decided dutch is very much unhinged and no longer trusts anything dutch says.

no idea who the rat is. does believe there's a rat. thought it was john until i said 'no try again'

bought a theatre ticket and missed most of the show admiring the foyer and guessing what sort of marble it was meant to imitate.

failed to steal the black arabian from the couple in saint denis and sulked because the red arabian is his fav.

spent an hour customizing arthur's outfit. (arthur is hideous pls send help)

spent an additional 20 minutes deciding on a hair style and going through every moustache option only to settle on day 2 stubble.

"i like bill. he might be homophobic and racist and dumb but - i don't know i just think he's neat"

(excitedly) OH I FOUND THE KKK QUICK HOW TO I THROW TNT AGAIN!!

(attempting to dismount a horse) "e for eject"

(getting a low honor dream after killing every single npc in strawberry for funsies) oh no oh no i do not like that how do we fix that

annoyed he can't actually listen to pearson's navy stories

[simeffable]

FAQ’s

Frequently asked questions to eeeaaasseee your mind :)

1. Can I recolour your CC?

Yes! Recolours and retextures are a-okay in my book, you don’t even have to ask first! Just please credit me and link to the original CC. My full TOU can be found here.

2. Is your CC free?

Yes! My stuff will ALWAY be free unless it is a commission. I sincerely doubt I will ever start a Patreon, although maybe one day I will have a Kofi donation page.

3. How do you start making a sim? What’s your process?

If it is a celebrity sim, or a sim of a fictional character like Arthur Morgan, I will always go CC shopping first! I usually start with the hair, then if the sim has particularly iconic outfits (e.g. Fran Fine) I will find as close as possible. Sometimes this is really easy, as with @plazasims RDR2 Outfits, but sometimes I have to be a little creative! Then, I always try to create the sim from Pinterest references first. I usually take a few hours away from it so I can see it again with fresh eyes, and it is usually at this point where I will introduce a photo overlay. Essentially, I will overlay an image onto The Sims 4 window and have my sim and the photo side by side. Laying the photo directly on top and ‘tracing’ is a BAD idea! You can’t see the real sim underneath! Usually looks WEIRD afterwards. If I’m feeling stuck, finding a reference on Pinterest at a 3/4 angle and editing my sim in that view helps a lot! It gives you a fresh perspective and often sorts out problems you didn’t even know you had.

4. What’s your main save?

My main save is (totally cliche, I know) actually my Simself in PlumbobKingdom’s save file! It’s INCREDIBLE, and makes the game so much more fun and interesting with the variety of locations, and everything just looks SO much nicer!

5. Who’s the favourite sim you’ve made so far?

I secretly LOVE my Maxwell Sheffield sim, I think he looks awesome. I love my Arthur Morgan Redux, too, and I’m really looking forward to making Bree Van De Kamp! Might develop it into a DH series if the response is positive enough :)

6. How do you edit your screenshots and/or do you render your sims in Blender?

I don’t render my sims in Blender, as I can’t use TS4 Sim Ripper! I am a Mac user. My photo editing process; taking screenshots in CAS using Trait poses, and photos in game using poses and @ravasheencc Full Control Camera. I then use Picsart on iOS to knock up the composition, Snapseed to clean up the photo (sharpen, colour balancing, glow, vignette etc) and Clipdrop Relight (online) for the lighting.

[gameingrants]

Red Dead Redemtion 2

Red Dead Redemption 2, or RDR2, as I will be referring to it throughout the rest of this article, was released in 2018 by Rockstar Games. It is an open-world story game set in the fictional version of the American west during the tune of the 20th century. We play as Arthur Morgan in an outlaw gang named the Dutch van der Linde Gang.

The main story follows the gang directly after their golden age has ended, and as such, we are watching as the group slowly falls apart. This is a long process that takes place throughout the whole game that is 50 hours long if you stick to the main story and up to 177 hours long if you do everything the game offers. With that time, RDR2 creates a sense of family and friendship between all the characters I have never seen in any other game. All the characters add to the story in some way, whether it is a direct plot point or just random dialogue while sitting around a fire.

RDR2 makes excellent use of being a new game because it takes full advantage of what today's headwear offers. This is expressed in the environments the game has. For example, the game offers areas in the snowy mountains of the Rockies to the swamps of Lemoyne based off of Louisiana. There are deserts that we would most commonly associate with the American west and even the plains and plateaus similar to the midwest. With all of that, I have yet to mention that these areas have dynamic weather and day/night cycles.

I love Red Dead Redemption because it is a beautiful game with a fantastic set of characters and a compelling story to match. It perfectly combines the human element of life with a world that feels like real life. Because this game is so compelling and breathtaking, it has earned a special place in my heart.

[whichstoodonrockyshores]

Arthur for the ask game?

Sexuality Headcanon:

Bisexual, with a slight lean towards men. He would never admit that to himself, however. Arthur is somewhat open about his sexuality with the Gang, but he avoids discussing it.

Gender Headcanon:

Cis Man

A ship I have with said character:

To be clear, this is going to be long. I ship Arthur with quite a few people.

Morbell. Refer to Micah’s answers.

Charthur. Refer to Charles’ answers.

Arthur/Charles/Sadie. Refer to Charles’ answers (again).

Arthur/Mary Linton. I know that the two of them would never work out, but I think they’re adorable. Especially when they meet up again in Saint Denis, it makes me both happy and sad that’s the last time Mary sees Arthur alive.

Arthur/Albert Mason. I adore the Arcadia for Amateurs missions, and seeing Arthur enjoying himself with Albert is always a good touch. I always enjoy seeing Arthur’s picture in the gallery when I visit it.

Arthur/Charlotte Balfour. Arthur recovers from tuberculosis and everything is fine. Canon isn’t real. That is this ship to me, the “better ending” AU.

Arthur/Charles Châtenay. French Charles is one of the few people to make Arthur laugh, through sheer ridiculousness no less, and they always have a good time together. Arthur and Châtenay run away to Tahiti the South Pacific together.

A BROTP I have with said character:

Arthur & John. There is nothing better for me, their friendship makes me so happy. Despite how much they get on each other’s nerves, Arthur and John are brothers for life. John thinks of Arthur often after his passing, and tries to remember the good times before the Gang fell apart and Arthur was sick.

Arthur & Hamish Sinclair. Red Dead Redemption II is a father figure collection game, and Hamish is definitely my favorite of them all. With everything happening with Dutch and Hosea’s passing, I think Arthur needed someone like Hamish.

A NOTP I have with said character:

Vandermorgan is a hard no from me. Dutch is particularly manipulative of Arthur and I just can’t imagine their relationship ever being nice, romantic or otherwise.

A random headcanon:

Arthur is a very quick learner, and can pick up on things easily. It only took about a month for Dutch and Hosea to teach him to read, and only a few more after that to write in full sentences. This is partially canon, too, because after Charles taught him, it didn’t take him long to use a bow effectively. This doesn’t mean he’s good at everything, however, because he’s fairly bad at fishing.

General Opinion over said character:

Despite Arthur being a bad man, and me knowing that, I still loved him from the moment I saw him on screen. I never stopped enjoying his character and growing with him through the story of RDR2. I just don’t think this series would be the same without Arthur Morgan, and I do think he achieved his redemption in the end.

[mtraki]

Canon and Fanworks

Canon is important to me.  This is especially true when I undertake a fanfic.  I need to know what the rules of the world are.  I need to understand the needs and motivations of the characters.  Their relationships, their understanding of themselves and their place in their world-- even if that understanding is (like so often) lacking. It’s important for me to know these things for two reasons: 1) my ultimate goal, when writing a fic, is for a reader to read it and say to themselves “hot damn, I can see this happening in the game/show/book!” That’s my ideal reaction. 2) it helps organize information in my brain between what “is” and what is possible, so I know where I need to start tweaking or building (or subtracting, tbh) This was important to me when I started writing fic for Final Fantasy XV (and also ultimately why I stopped writing fic for Final Fantasy XV).  It was important to me when I started writing fic for Red Dead Redemption II (and still is!).  It is also important to me now, while I struggle to fill this Hitman hole I am in with enough words to maybe get out of so I can write more RDR2.

I consumed all the Hitman content I could find in less than a month.  All the games, the comics, and back when I thought the books were canon, I got through one (ugh... kill me with a garrotte) and started the second one (which I abandoned after learning books weren’t canon).  I wanted and needed to know everything.  I’ve tracked down deleted content, I’ve tracked down hidden dialogue... anything and everything that might help me understand these characters better.  I fell hard into this hole. But now I feel like I have enough knowledge and access to enough references to work with the world of Hitman and its principle characters.  I have a modicum of confidence enough to build and share my fanfic ‘Monstrous’.  No, it is not 100% canon.  No fanfic is 100% canon.  If it were, it wouldn’t be fanfic.  It’d be in the canon source material already.

I do not usually read fanfic in the same fandom as I write, as I find it either affects my own writing ‘voice’, or it shakes my confidence (I’m not as good as THAT PERSON).  That being said, I’ve read some fanfic in the Hitman fandom, and 99% of it has been really excellent.  Some of it reads just like I want my fic to read: I sit back and think “hot damn, you can’t convince me that didn’t happen in a game!” and some of it was just an excellent story by itself that ventured far and wide out of canon.

Canon is important to me, but it’s not as important to me as respecting other content creators.  If I don’t like something, I stop reading it.  I scroll on.  If something is VERY DIVERGENT FROM CANON, I look at it for what it is, and if I like it... great!  If I don’t... same rules as before.

What I don’t do is tell that content creator that their work diverges from canon, or that they should stop doing whatever they’re doing.

The only time I feel the need to speak up is if the other content creator is stating that something is confirmed canon when I don’t have that in my notes-- or I have different information.  This is always meant as a “hey, yo, let’s compare notes!” Because canon is important to me, so if I’m wrong, I want to stop being wrong about that thing.  I understand that this might not be true of the other person, and that’s okay.

What’s not okay is telling other people that what they do with their own time in their own defined internet spaces should be catered to you or your tastes.  Unless you are paying them for content, you don’t get to dictate their content.  Full stop.

So all you lovely content creators: create whatever you want.  Do not apologize.  It’d be swell if you tagged (especially for sensitive topics), but ultimately you do you.  If it’s canon-esque, great.  If it’s so AU it’s barely recognizable, great.  If it’s somewhere in between, great.  It’s all great. All you content consumers: consume whatever you want.  Do not apologize.  Just remember that you’re getting this content for free and nobody owes you anything.  Show your appreciation through likes and comments.  If you don’t appreciate it, don’t waste your energy telling the content creator.  Just move on and pick up something you do like.

[lost-your-memory]

How much of the RDR2 supercat fic is actually from the game? I recognized a few game locations, some general landscapes but is there more?

Oooh that’s a good question!

I’m gonna answer with a list of bullet points :

LOCATIONS :

I did loosely use the game’s map to anchor my fic, to have a general sense of layout, but I tweaked a few things.

National Creek (which is a reminder of National City) is probably Valentine on the RDR2 map, both in terms of actual layout of the city and general weather/landscape.

Cat’s ranch is lost somewhere in New Hanover, probably easter side and slightly up north cause the Rockies can be seen from the ranch (and we know they go on fishing trip) but it gets hot during late spring and summer. 

Cat used to live in the South of Rhodes on the RDR2 map, the manor I have in mind for her is the Braithwaite manor.  

Lena is from actual Saint-Denis city, I kept the name. Lucy used to live there too, before she got married and moved with James in a manor on the outskirts of the city, near the water. 

Winn is from Annesburg Town, a place way up north of Saint-Denis. It’s also where Lois ran away from her father, where she met Cat. 

Alex and Kara come from Midvale, which can be associated with Blackwater (for the size, the layout and the riverside aspects) but for the sake of the fic, let’s say it way more on the east, like somewhere south-east of Armadillo 

CHARACTERS :

Now, I didn’t really use the game to write my character but for visual references, I often use :

Sadie Adler, either for Cat, Kara or Lois (depends on the mood)

Abigail Robert, she works well for Lucy or Lena 

Here’s a few visual you can check to see where I look for inspirations for women (x, x, x, x)

Jack Marsten, for young Carter (x)

Some very specific screenshots or Arthur Morgan work for Winn

I also use Dutch Van Der Linde but not for visual reference, he’s just a very good source of inspiration to write an accurate bounty-hunter Maxwell Lord

Also, the horses! It’s one of the things I love the most about the game and I’ll do a full post about each character’s horse and probably names, too.  But that’s pretty much all I took from the game, along with the mind-blowing landscapes and excellent rendition of all the different weather. The Inze tribe is not based on the game, I just decided to go with them being Indians cause it fitted the plot AND the fictional universe pretty well, but I kept the Kryptonian lore, for the most part. If you have more specific questions, feel free to ask!  Cheers, anon! 

[sharp-teeth-and-archived]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐆𝐀 𝐑𝐏 𝐏𝐋𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐓 / 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐄.

First and foremost, recall that no one is perfect, we all had witnessed some plotting once which did not went too well, be it because of us or our partner. So here have this, which may help for future plotting. It’s a lot! Yes, but perhaps give your partners some insight? Anyway BOLD what fully applies, italicize if only somewhat. Long post!

MUN NAME: Bambi / Eden     AGE: 18       CONTACT: IM, Ask, Discord (search discord up on my blog)

CHARACTER(S): a shit ton

CURRENT FANDOM(S): Dragon Age, rdr2, assassin’s creed, star wars (sorta??)

FANDOM(S) YOU HAVE AN AU FOR:  Modern verse, r.dr2, da, skyrim (haven’t touched my bio for it for a while so I may have to touch it up a bit) and that’s pretty much it for any au verse. They’re just crossover verses.

MY LANGUAGE(S): English.

THEMES I’M INTERESTED IN FOR RP: FANTASY / SCIENCE FICTION / HORROR / WESTERN ( my brand ) / ROMANCE / THRILLER / MYSTERY / DYSTOPIA / ADVENTURE / MODERN / EROTIC / CRIME / MYTHOLOGY / CLASSIC / HISTORY (my 2nd brand) / RENAISSANCE / MEDIEVAL / ANCIENT / WAR / FAMILY / POLITICS / RELIGION / SCHOOL / ADULTHOOD / CHILDHOOD / APOCALYPTIC / GODS / SPORT / MUSIC / SCIENCE / FIGHTS / ANGST / SMUT / DRAMA / ETC.  ( I’m open to most things, it just depends on plot & muse )

PREFERRED THREAD LENGTH: ONE-LINER (it happens but I tend to not favor it) / 1 PARA / 2 PARA / 3+ PARA / NOVELLA. / ALL

ASKS CAN BE SEND BY: MUTUALS / NON-MUTUALS / PERSONALS / ANONS.

CAN ASKS BE CONTINUED?: YES / NO / OCCASIONALLY   - only by Mutuals?:  YES / NO

PREFERRED THREAD TYPE: CRACK / CASUAL / SERIOUS / DEEP AS HECK. / ALL

IS REALISM / RESEARCH IMPORTANT FOR YOU IN CERTAIN THEMES?:   YES / NO.

ARE YOU ATM OPEN FOR NEW PLOTS?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS.

DO YOU HANDLE YOUR DRAFT / ASK - COUNT WELL?:  YES / NO / SOMEWHAT. 

HOW LONG DO YOU USUALLY TAKE TO REPLY?: 24H / 1 WEEK / 2 WEEKS / 3+ WEEKS / MONTHS / YEARS. / DEPENDS ON MOOD AND INSPIRATION, AND IF I’M BUSY

I’M OKAY INTERACTING WITH: ORIGINAL CHARACTERS / A RELATIVE OF MY CHARACTER (AN OC) / DUPLICATES / CROSSOVERS / MULTI-MUSES / SELF-INSERTS / PEOPLE WITH NO AU VERSE FOR MY FANDOM (really depends on if you have oen in mind and we discussed it, it’s just not posted) / CANON-DIVERGENT PORTRAYALS / AU-VERSIONS.

DO YOU POST MORE IC OR OOC?: IC / OOC. ( varies, but overall I tend to post more ooc? )

ARE YOU SELECTIVE WITH FOLLOWING OTHERS?: YES / NO / DEPENDS.  

BEST WAYS TO APPROACH YOU FOR RP/PLOTTING:  im me or talk to me over discord

WHAT EXPECTATIONS DO YOU HOLD TOWARDS YOUR PLOTTING PARTNER: Not too much? I’d like for there to be a plot in mind, but I can understand if that’s not the case. I’ve had instances where I want to interact with a character, but have absolutely no idea in mind. Usually sendign in an ask meme can help in that regard.

WHEN YOU NOTICE THE PLOTTING IS RATHER ONE-SIDED, WHAT DO YOU DO?:  I strive to not be one-sided myself, but I do have instances where I can’t think of anything. I’m not sure? Maybe ask the other person if they’re into it or if something else is at play (dealign with real life problems and it just affects their mood voerall).

HOW DO YOU USUALLY PLOT WITH OTHERS, DO YOU GIVE INPUT OR LEAVE MOST WORK TOWARDS YOUR PARTNER?:  I always try to give ideas of my own if I have any. Coming to a equally agreed, general idea is fine. I’ve had instances where I was on both sides of this, but I always try to add input and be equal with the other person.

WHEN A PARTNER DROPS THE THREAD, DO YOU WISH TO KNOW?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS. - AND WHY?: Sometimes I don’t notice it, but sometimes I do. Generally, I like to know, but I understand if someone doesn’t wan tto reach out. Just at least try to let me know and we’re fine. 

WHAT COULD POSSIBLY LEAD YOU TO DROP A THREAD?:  It depends really. Sometimes I just don’t have muse for a thread, or an instance where I have dropped a muse entirely. Sometimes it can be timing, but that’s rarely the issue. Most of the time it’s just I can’t think of anything and I feel like it hasn’t really gone anywhere? I have stuff in my queue for a while, so soemtimes it appears that way until it’s posted and I’m sorry about that.

WILL YOU TELL YOUR PARTNER?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS. ( I do have instances where I was forgetful and I haven’t told my partner int he apst adn I’m sorry about that. )

IS COMMUNICATION IN THE RPC IMPORTANT TO YOU? YES / NO. - AND WHY?: I don’t need to be tlaked every day, but stronger friendships ( ooc & ic ) are formed when I talk to a person. It doesn’t need to be often, but it helps me understand your chaarcter and your approach. With that, I can come up with ideas and understand you rmuse more. I understand if people aren’t fond of ooc chatting, that’s completely understandable to me.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH ABSOLUTE HONESTY, EVEN IF IT MAY MEANS HEARING SOMETHING NEGATIVE ABOUT YOU AND/OR PORTRAYAL?: Criticsm is a good way to grow. Criticsm is different from completely bashing a perosn’s portrayal and not giving any pointers (ex: “your portrayal sucks.”). Or even for a person. If you feel like I am portraying something wrong, like depression or something similar, let me know. If you feel like Lydia’s adhd isn’t properly portrayed, let me know. 

DO YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE SUCH SITUATION IN A MATURE WAY? YES / NO.

WHY DO YOU RP AGAIN, IS THERE A GOAL?: All of my muses are written and taken an interest in for different reasons, sometimes I don’t even know why I decided to write them. I roleplay because I love exploring different characters and dyanamics and it’s easier for me to write like this than forming my own story. But a goal in mind? Be a good rp partner I guess? Or at least try to make things interesting and try my best to portray my characters correctly or in an intruiging manner. 

WISHLIST, BE IT PLOTS OR SCENARIOS:  Varies on muse. I have different plots in my wishlist tag: ( wishlist ). 

THEMES I WON’T EVER RP / EXPLORE:   Potential triggering content ahead. Rape, noncon, abuse, incest, drug use -not alcohol- ( lyrium I can write fine, it’s just the realistic stuff I can’t do. ), inappropiate under age stuff. Themes where I write a stalker. Sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, and racism will never be mentioned by any of my characters. I won’t write smut probably ever, so themes with that I tend to not write. Very likely more, I just can’t think of anything. Within dragon age, I do have a characetr ( Sera ) who will refer to elves as elfy-elves and be pretty anti-elf, which can be triggering to others. Also, animal abuse or gore of any kind.

WHAT TYPE OF STARTERS DO YOU PREFER / DISLIKE, CAN’T WORK WITH?: I can’t work with starters that don’t really have any dialogue (handing something over with nothing vocally said is fine, but when someone is just sitting there, that’s harder to work with unless somethign is plotted). Generally, I like outside circumstances to be explained (locaiton, where in a game/setting this might be occuring, etc), I really like when dialogue is added and body landguage is explained/noted.

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE MOST?:  Honestly? it varies. I tend to really be into deep, complex characters or characters that appear can be sterred in that direction with more added. Bubbly, energetic characters, fighters (typically female). Quick witted or flirty characters & mysterious types. 

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE LEAST?:  I hate using the term but mary-sue/gary-sue. I hate saying that, but if a character has no flaws, I won’t be interested. Or characters that seem to just be placed there with no development. 

WHAT ARE YOUR STRONG ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: I try to add as much effort, or at least a lot of effort, in replies & interaction. I am very open-minded and when I get passionate about soemthing, you can really tell. I am easy-going, so feel free to tell me if you want to drop a thread or have a concern. I tend to work well of other’s people’s ideas, usually able to add my own.

WHAT ARE YOUR WEAK ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: I am slow and my queue tends to be slow since I try not to overhwelm myself and stress myself out to the heavens. I try to reach out, but sometimes I just can’t think of anything to say. My muse can be very flickle at times, so replies to stuff can vary. My msue tends to be more for ask memes than replies at times. 

DO YOU RP SMUT?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS. 

DO YOU PREFER TO GO INTO DETAIL?: YES / NO / DEPENDS. 

ARE YOU OKAY WITH BLACK CURTAIN, FADE TO BLACK?: YES / NO.

WHEN DO YOU RP SMUT? MORE OUT OF FUN OR CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT?:

ANYTHING YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO RP THERE?:  all of it

ARE SHIPS IMPORTANT TO YOU?:   YES / NO 

WOULD YOU SAY YOUR BLOG IS SHIP-FOCUSED?: YES / NO. ( I love ships, but I am selective with it and require chemistry -unless I know your muse and you occ super, super well-. It’s nice but it isn’t he full focus of this blog. I want to explore my characters and witness other people’s characters and their development. )

DO YOU USE READ MORE?:  YES / NO / SOMETIMES WHEN I WRITE LONG STUFF.

ARE YOU:  MULTI-SHIP / SINGLE-SHIP ( Jacob ) / DUAL-SHIP  —  MULTIVERSE / SINGLEVERSE.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO EXPLORE THE MOST IN YOUR SHIPS?: Varies on muse, but for my rdr2 characters I’ve been really wanting a sorta of “outside” character where they aren’t directly involved in the gang, but they are in a relationship with oen of their members. Where my muse,w hose in the gang, will tell you rmuse about it and the whole aftermath of everything. Where their partner will understand to an extent, but try to undestand? if that makes sense? I also want enemies to work on a job/project together and deal with that. But this all also varies on muse.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH PRE-ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIPS?: YES / NO / DEPENDS.  ( I find it easier to write to assume people knwo each other, but an immediate friendship isn’t required. Like my muse may know yours or hear about yours, but they haven’t directly met you before ). 

► SECTION ABOUT YOUR MUSE.

- WHAT COULD POSSIBLY MAKE YOUR MUSE INTERESTING TOWARDS OTHERS, WHY SHOULD THEY RP WITH THIS PARTICULAR CHARACTER OF YOURS NOW, WHAT POSSIBLE PLOTS DO THEY OFFER?: I have a large amount of different muses, but all of my muses all bring something new to the table. Want a guy who seems nice, but can be an asshole with a flick of a dime, who has a secret betrayal plot hidden behind his back? Pick Robert. Want a guy who’s humurous but seems to be hiding under a fake persona? Pick Charley. Want a female assassin who’s very talented anr professional in her work to a fault with her work-alcoholic ways? Pick Evie. Want a sweet and caring character with a heart of gold and will give you advice and comfort? Pick Cassie It depends on the plot, too, but I try my best to add as much to reply to to another. If you ever want more added, tell me! I could give multiple plots, so it’s really hard to put something down.

WITH WHAT TYPE OF MUSES DO YOU USUALLY STRUGGLE TO RP WITH?:  If someone isn’t interested or outwardly hateful of my muse without a valid reason when starting to interact. Beign enemies is fine, but maybe we could write how it became that way? This really varies, so don’t let this steer you away. Just give me something to work with, brign soemthing to the tbale, and I’m usually fine.

WHAT DO THEY DESIRE, WHAT IS THEIR GOAL?:  Varies on muse. Robert: fame/recognition, a legend made out of him. Charley: just to live life happy? He wants to be okay money-wise. Evie: to take down the Templars & help the people of London, not fail and always be successful and outwit her foes. Cassie: everyone around her happy. Sean: His gang to be successful, btu also be sucessful himself, he wants to be admired as well.

WHAT CATCHES THEIR INTEREST FIRST WHEN MEETING SOMEONE NEW?:  Just using the same muses lmao. Robert: Someone who just listens to him and isn’t quick to make fun of him. Charley: If they have a sense of humor and someone he can stand, he’s pretty much fine tbh. Evie: If they can give her any information or aid with her cause. Cassie: How they are feeling. If they let her just listen and seem more open than closed off. Very personality-based. Sean: soemtimes looks, but mostly if they have a similar personality as him.

WHAT DO THEY VALUE IN A PERSON?:  Evie: devotion, kind spriit, efficiency, loyalty. Robert: willingness and empathy despite having little himself. Charley: Honesty. Cassie: Consistency. Sean: reliability. 

WHAT THEMES DO THEY LIKE TALKING ABOUT?:  generally all of them like books (except Sean), events around them, their interests.

WHICH THEMES BORE THEM?:  For half of them, anything mundane or boring. Anything that isn’t relating to anything that’s spoken around / surrounds them.

DID THEY EVER WENT THROUGH SOMETHING TRAUMATIC?:  Robert & Charley (more Robert) witnessed a murder, Robert actually doing that act. Cassie: hearing about the violent nature of her father’s death. Sean: the things he went through with the bounty hunters.

WHAT COULD LEAD TO AN INSTANT KILL?:  A gunshot or anything that could overpower them.

IS THERE SOMEONE /-THING THEY HATE?:  Sean: rich people, Scots for some reason, English people sometimes. When someone disagrees with him on soemthing he is passionate about. Pronouncing and Irish word wrong. O’Driscolls & anyone that’s an enemy of the gang. Evie: Templars, Starrick & Lucy Thorne. People who lie or misled her or others. Injustice. Robert: Someone makign fun of him tbh. Charley: People who don’t plan out anything or are really reckless.

IS YOUR MUSE EASY TO APPROACH?: YES / NO.    - BEST WAY TO APPROACH THEM?: Talk to them. Initiate a conversation. Pretty much that across the board. 

SOMETHING YOU MAY STILL WANT TO POINT OUT ABOUT YOUR MUSE?: None of my muses are perfect. Some are worse than others, but generally msot of my muses will listen to you and usually be nice to you if you appraoch them well. All my muses are different from one another, so expect different results / reactions

CONGRATS!!! You managed it, now tag your mutuals! ♥

TAGGED: stole it

 TAGGING: steal it and pelase tag me ! I want to see your results

[a-shakespearean-in-paris]

Author Interview

I was tagged by @out-of-the-embers, thank you!

going to tag @galadrieljones @thevikingwoman @laraslandlockedblues @ladymdc :)

Name: Cheyenne

Fandoms: I have written for Dragon Age, Detroit Become Human, Greedfall, Game of Thrones, and Red Dead Redemption 2. Active in GOT and Greedfall at the moment.

Where You Post: Mostly A03. If it’s a prompt it will go here.

Most Popular One-Shot: A Knight to Remember--Jaime and Brienne’s first time. 

Most Popular Multi-Chapter Story: Love Song on Sapphire Isle--reinterpreting Jaime and brienne’s relationship at the end of GOT.

Favorite Story You Wrote:  My DBH fic, Our Immortal Longings. It’s the most like something I would write myself, and it’s very quirky in a way that I gravitate toward.

Story You Were Nervous to Post: All of them,  but special shoutout to my first fic for Dragon Age (and ever) In Waking Dreams. I was worried no one would like my writing, but here we are! At the time I wanted to write something unique and give the full dynamic of a relationship, and I think I delivered.  

How You Choose Your Titles: Shakespeare Reference. Or something thematic from the story that sounds pretty. Usually I play around with different titles. 

Complete: Two long fics and lots of one-shots. I have three fics that I plan on finishing. Some are in better shape than others for finishing. >___< (looking at you RDR2 fic)

Incomplete: My GOT fic, Greedfall fic, and RDR2 fic. Also have some DA fics I never finished, that I’m afraid the muse died for. (My modern AU DA fic however inspired my original work--partially. it’s why I stopped writing that.)

Do You Outline? Yes and No. I have a general idea and sequence of events, but I allow a semblance of leniency that accounts for organic change with my story.

Coming Soon/Not Yet Started: I just really want to finish my current WIPS this year.

Do You Accept Prompts? Sometimes! I have a few that I have in my box that I’ll probably tackle when the inspo hits!

Upcoming Story You Are Most Excited to Write: I just want to start writing original fiction!

[danielvanderlinde]

Rank all the members of the gang from least favourite to favourite (and give reasons! I wanna hear those unpopular opinions!)

I spent waaaaay too much time on this.

Strauss: I just don't like him. He is uninteresting to me. I don't care. I blame him for my broken heart.

Bill: I don't really care about him either. He's good for comic relief at times, but he's a racist jerk, too. Big dummy.

Pearson: I think his interactions with Arthur and his time in the Navy is funny, but nothing much beyond that. I still can't find a bull moose to finish my last camp upgrade so I'm kinda pissed about that, but whatever.

Kieran: Ehhh...poor kid. He was kinda handed a shitty hand, but I dont really care about him either. When folks finally seemed to like him...he got got. Poor thing.

Jack: He's four. I don't care. Thought it was funny how he referred to that Italian jerk as "papa Bronte" and it got on John's nerves.

Molly: I kinda felt bad for her, but she's a grown ass woman. Byeee.

Abigail: She's a hoe. Whatever. She's naggy and dumb.

Sean: He's funny, but I low key can't stand him. He's one of those folks that would be beautiful if he doesn’t talk, but he never shuts up.

Mary-Beth: Feel like she didn’t do a whole lot.

Tilly: Same as Mary-Beth, but she joined the gang when she was 12. I wished they would have developed her character or showed insight on how she felt about Dutch deteriorating as he had taught her to read and such.

Javier: Don't care. He ain't all that interesting to me. I do like how he kicked Micah's racist ass a few times though.

Lenny: I like that drinking mission and Valentine, but otherwise…eh…

Susan: She frightens me. She blindly goes along with and enforces Dutch's BS. I want her to slap me though.

Uncle: HAS LUMBAGO. He called out Dutch once for his BS during a random camp event at Horseshoe. He really roasted Dutch, who just laughed it off. Dude is smarter than he gets credit for.

Swanson: I like his back and forth with good and bad. I can relate to him a good deal. He's got good advice at times. Seems so wise and shit when he finally cleans up his act.

Karen: She's a riot. She drinks. She can throw a punch. She can pull off jobs. I like how she's hit Molly after Molly slaps her. She's a WHOLE ASS WOMAN.

John: I appreciate him in RDR1…in RDR2 not so much. He was made out to be a disappointment and idiot. Idk.

Caine the Dog: Was a good boah.

Charles: He is the most honorable I think and goes by his moral compass. I like him.

Sadie: Tragic damsel turned bad ass monster bounty hunter. I like her. She frightens me.

Micah: I love to hate him. He's a racist douche and bully. We all know he is a manipulative snake and rat. He's so obnoxious and full of himself, but I find myself admiring him as the bad guy.

Josiah: I love this underrated goddamn man. He’s so mysterious and interesting to me. He's the only one that can come and go as he pleases and Dutch trusts him. I love his voice and his gentleman-ness. His magic tricks are cute. Idk. I’m having trouble expressing it, but I love him.

Hosea: He is my dad. He's the brains behind a lot of scams. He got wisdom and calls Dutch out on his BS. He’s a good dude. I wish we had gotten more time to get attached before…ya…know…

Arthur: He is the best boah. I love him more than I ever loved John. There is just so much to him. So much tragedy and I just want to hug him. He is by far probably the best video game character ever for me. So deep. So much development and back story and tiny little pieces.

Dutch: I’m a manghoe. Can’t help it. He is so dynamic and alluring. I could literally go on forever and ever, but I’ll stop here. Oh, how the mighty fall.

[papa-rhys]

God abigail is such a bitch with Jack He's 4 Abby, he's going to struggle with reading, calm down.

I love Abigail to death and I genuinely think she would kill to keep Jack fed and healthy and I think the “bitchiness” is just how parenting was back then. People were quite cold with their kids and expected them to be a certain way and to be able to hold their own (most kids had jobs at 12-13 or sometimes younger if it was a family business). I mean, it’s normal for parents from that era (and you see this happen all the time in rdr2 too) to refer to their child as “the boy” rather than call him by his name or term of endearment. So she’s not a bitch, she’s just a typical mother from that era. Plus she’s in a far less than ideal situation and is in full protection mode for most of the game, so she gets a little agitated with him because she’s trying to keep him alive and safe and he, being a child, is not the most cooperative

[squidproquoclarice]

The John/Arthur reunion will likely happen in Chapter XIII? 13? But we are now on 50? Can you please clarify because I am currently incredibly invested in John & Arthur as the brothers who might finally see eye to eye. The development of their relationship throughout the RDR2 narrative is just so interesting and perhaps a bit underrated - you just made it justice by your Red Talk though! Not to mention full of memorable quotes ("You must be nervous being this close to water.")

cont.: I was just playing through the mission where A &J blow up the bridge which is so rich in the character building, ending foreshadowing etc. and I'm just thinking - on the one hand Arthur tells John to just cut and run and to be loyal to what matters, on the other they both just do this incredibly stupid terrorist act for the sake of Dutch whose judgment they don't even trust anymore? Why? I'm playing through Ch.6 for the second time and it's just such a crazy desperate ride to nowhere ..~~~~~~~Hi friend! OK, on the first question, this is dealing with the difference between Chapter (big C) and chapter (little c), and it’s an issue of the format of a game vs a fic.The game separated things into sections with place names called Chapters, i.e. Chapter III/3 was Clemens Point, Chapter VI/6 was Beaver Hollow, etc.Given Sunrise is effectively intended as a post-Chapter 6 “DLC in novelized form”, I continued that trend and picked up where they left off, with Chapter VII/7: Wapiti, Chapter VIII/8: Las Hermanas, etc.  That’s Chapter with a big C.For chapter with a small c, that’s it being a fic.  Those are comparable to missions in-game (”Further Questions of Female Suffrage,” “The Course of True Love III”, etc.), and I also give them names in that style.So when I talk about that reunion, I’m referring to big-C Chapter 13, which is the section titled Horseshoe Overlook II, with the latest update of chapter 50.  Small-c chapter 13 was “May The Circle Be Unbroken” and was back in Chapter 8, Las Hermanas.  Sadie and Arthur kicking some ass in Arthur’s first big foray into action after Beaver Hollow, but sadly, no John reunion.  ;)I’m careful to use Chapter vs chapter in my replies, but I can remind myself to use section (Chapter) or mission (chapter) titles as well if that would help people.On the second part, that’s also a format thing, I suspect.  RDR2 being an action-based game implies plenty of missions with killing.  I’d written a meta, which I of course now can’t find with Search because Tumblr is a massive cock about these things, about how the gameplay mechanics of pretty much nothing but forced repeated (and unrealistically large) massacres in the later Chapters are disappointing as they occur alongside both great storytelling and in a game where you previously had stealth missions and non-violent options.  Even in Chapter 6 you have the option to retrieve the chanupa for Rains Falls completely stealthily, and RF praises Arthur’s restraint and humanity in doing that, so I’m really not sure why we have to go on murder sprees where if those numbers were real and they’d slaughtered hundreds, not only the Pinkertons but probably the US Army would be after the Van Der Lindes.    It doesn’t really fit Arthur’s story.  It doesn’t even fully fit with Dutch’s fully embracing overwhelming violence.  It only fits with the notion that this is an action game and therefore dozens of faceless minions have to die.  But games like Dishonored that actually have trophies for doing the game without a single kill prove that you can have an action game and not be forced to turn into a murderhobo.  I fuckin’ love RDR2, OK?  It’s a beautiful game with a truly memorable char and char arc in Arthur.  It’s affected me, and others, in so many ways.  But that’s mostly Arthur’s char.Honestly, the more I look, the more flaws I see.  Some very weakly written chars.  Taking the easy offramp to an endgame and RDR1 by killing Arthur rather than letting his story fully unfold.  And one big criticism I have is promising we had choice that mattered, because we don’t.  The game unfolds the same either way.  The dissonance between Arthur’s developing character and our forced onscreen actions in story missions just keeps getting wider and wider as the game goes on.tl;dr: While it’s realistic that to a certain point Arthur and John are going to cling to Dutch far too long out of love and loyalty and continue to do things they’re conflicted about, it’s overly reductive action game mechanics and forced plot points rather than genuine responsive plot to player choice driving your experience.  So yeah, it doesn’t really make sense.

[assless-chapstick]

tell us your experience playing rdr2 the first time? did you play rdr1? did you fall in love with arthur immediately like the rest of us? ☺️

!!! YES!!So I've actually only played thru RDR2 one time; I finished it perhaps a month ago after spending maybe 6 months playing through?? I've been playing it on my brother's PS4 so I would spend like 4 to 8 hours on a saturday playing or whatever, only playing like, once a week. I always like the savour game experiences so I did like, every side mission and a lot of hunting and dicking around. I didn't rush through the story at all, and I'm really glad I spent the amount of time i did playing through!!Fun story; about my second or third time playing, I was talking to my mom afterwrds and she was like "did your cowboy die of cholera yet?" and I was like, wHAT? so I had the TB spoiled for me. But the game is so full of twists and big story things that I was still surprised by so much! I played through about 1/3 to 1/2 of RDR1 back in the day, and I spent so much time dicking around and doing the side missions that I never finished the main storyline. I think that's the difference between the two, for me; I was way more driven by the storyline of 2, and i think the diversity of characters really compelling. I think having the camp and all the people to take care of and interact with made me really want to go back and play each new mission; who will I be on a mission with this time, what will we do? Idk there's a lot of reasons I liked the gameWhat really struck me and made me fall in love with Arthur was his subversion of the usual hyper-masculine fantasies that westerns really play in to, and even RDR1 fell in with. Like, John in rdr1 is just a very violent, angry man that lets you play out those power fantasies, and that just made it a very different game than RDR2Like, Arthur is a very sensitive and introspective character, and his story to me was a lot more compelling because of this. The way Arthur cares for his family, the way he treats women, and how he goes about his masculinity is a very different way of portraying a powerful male character and to me that was really refreshing and interesting. His emotions were very complex, and he has a lot of love and sadness that he really shows that and that's what makes his story so good and interesting and what really endears you to him. And that's just arthur!! There's so many characters that are all so well crafted and complex; with rdr1 the characters were, i felt, all very one-note and the complexity of not only Arthur but of Dutch, John, Abigail, Sadie, Charles, everyone, was really interesting. And the way they told the story, with references to folks who died and things that happened in the past, really helped with the world building and making everything feel very real and like, important and poignant...anyway I could go on forever about it!! but thanks for asking, mister!!

[lavellane]

tagged by @synthzander thanks so much <3 

Favorite game from the last 5 years? dragon age origins Most nostalgic game? the sims 1 (making magic expansion pack if we get real specific lmao)

Game that deserves a sequel? terraria !!! and they CANCELLED their sequel wtf??

Game that deserves a remaster? dragon age origins or morrowind so i can actually finish it jfc

Favorite game series? elder scrolls (v closely tied with dragon age - i just really love those dragons yknow)

Favorite genre? fantasy and rpg stuff :)

Least favorite genre? multiplayer, battle royales, games where all u do is kill each other over and over with literally no motivation or storyline uh

Favorite song from a game? lost elf theme from the tresspasser dlc in dai! fucks me up EVERY time its seriously stunning.

Favorite character from a game? hmmmmm i love serana from tes v more than life itself, yennefer from the witcher, & also probably alistair from dao <3 i love so many characters tho so its hard to even think of one on the spot

Favorite ship from a game? geralt x yennefer and shepard x garrus!

Favorite voice actor from a game? i don’t really have a favourite tbh ! i dont follow them enough to have preferences. i REALLY like alix wilton regan though (british femme inquisition and sebille from divinity) 

Favorite cutscene? maybe aloys training/age up scene from horizon zero dawn? that part was lit lmao

Favorite Boss? handsome jack babyyyyyyyyy 

First Console? a wii lmao

Current Console or Consoles? i literally dont own a console :) press f to pay respects

Console you want? ANY CONSOLE LMAO - preferrably a ps4 but ik the ps5 will probably be announced next year so............

Place from a game that you’d like to visit? thedas i guess? there’s SO many places i would want to visit.

Place from a game that you’d like to live in? thedas again?????

Ridiculous crossover that would never happen but would be super fun? i mean theres been suggestions and references in each game so its in the realm of possibility but - skyrim and fallout would be so good and funny tbh

Book that would make a good game? - well as much as i hate the books, i think the mortal instruments would make a REALLY good rpg if they used the general universe/world as a foundation and you just played as a random shadowhunter/downworlder? also gemma doyle trilogy would be really cool as a sort of telltale/character driven kinda game. 

Show/Movie that would make a good game? - a lot of the big ones - game of thrones (ik telltale already did it but a full rpg would be lit), stranger things, etc.

Games you want to play? yikes so many. ac odyssey, rdr2, cyberpunk 2077, ELDER SCROLLS 6, DRAGON AGE 4, gdi im so sad. 

Have you gotten 100% completion in a game? lmao with terrarria, skyrim and the telltale batman game???

Have you cried over a game? i cry over every game. mass effect 3′s ending was the worst tho i believe

What power-up or ability would you want in real life? aside from the obvious stuff, i would like  to have solas’s from inquisitions somniari/dreamer abilities tbh. to learn secrets and stories in dreams is really cool plus visit ur friends in dreams and go on adventures! love it

tagging: @falkreathh @femmeshep @brigmorewitches​ @trvelyans​ @aldmerii​ @noonvraith​ @alothscorfisers​ @feeshies​ @drthamen​ @dreadhobo​ @denerims​ and anybody else who is up to it (only if u want to of course) <3

[shiredwarf]

Some thoughts on the horse accident simulator and sad outlaws :(

okay, so this is the big old game impressions post I promised. don’t know how organized it’ll be since I’m still in a state of grief but here we go. First part is spoiler free, whenever there’s a number after a comment you can scroll down to the end to find a more in-depth comment containing spoilers. There’s a clear separation between the spoiler-free part and the rest with a lot of empty lines so you can stop ready before it gets dangerous^^

General comments:

in case you somehow managed to miss this despite me screaming about this game for 3+ weeks: I loved it. So freaking much! I don’t want to rank it cause it’s all still fresh and it wouldn’t be a fair competition atm but it’s definitely in my top 3. there are so many things this games just gets right. Granted, others might disagree but to me, it was the perfect mix of main missions, side missions, RPG elements, perfect map size, dramatic dialogue without overdoing it, etc.

I actually wasn’t planning on buying this game, I was saving money for the new Fallout game (that was before that whole mess) and then more or less bought it on a whim because a) it looked amazing, b) I’d had a rough week and I wanted to shoot virtual things and c) my favourite online news website trashed it and whenever they trash an open world RPG I just know I’m gonna love it cause they have the absolute worst taste in games^^

I bought rdr1 a couple of years ago but never got around to actually playing it. I still know almost nothing about it apart from who the main character is and where it’s set. I’d like to keep it that way so I can enjoy that at some point as well :)

If you haven’t finished yet, I really recommend getting a good horse early on and sticking with it. The final scene with your horse will be even more emotional if you’ve had it for most of the game :))))))))))))))))))))

I suspected this game would wreck me and it did :)))))))) I think the only game that affected me more was ME3. But yeah, I cry easily when I watch stuff and I was gone from the moment Arthur put on his head in Chapter six to the end (which is quite a while and it involves fight scenes and everything! Try shooting people when you’re busy crying!) and then again through the credits after the epilogues.

This game is HUGE! Not because the map is big or because the plot takes so long, it’s just so full and alive. Very hard to describe but it’s just so big!

Stuff I liked:

THE HORSES! Absolutely amazing! That (and landscapes) are probably what people talked the most about when it was released and it’s understandable. The animations and the handling is just unbelievable. I can’t even imagine how much work went into this and that’s probably not even the most impressive thing about the game!

The landscape is stunning but honestly, HZD was just as stunning, had the same kind of diversity regarding climate zones and yet RDR2 does something I haven’t seen to that extent in any other game so far: It makes the land around you feel alive! That’s down to tiny things like being able to see the individual rain droplets in the fog when you hold up a lantern, the way a bush moves around you when you walk through it (the first time I saw that I literally gasped!), rockslides and avalanches, wheel tracks in the mud, localised dirt on Arthur or the horse when you fall down. And then, of course, there are the bigger, scripted additions like railroads being built, houses burning down or being erected as the game progresses, trees being taken down or burning after a thunderstorm, animals around you interacting with other animals, animal carcasses decaying if you leave them, predators hunting prey (like have you seen this stuff? It’s insane!). Then you have NPCs that remember you and make references to your last meeting, NPCs are repulsed when you still have some blood on you, people you beat up sporting a bandage the next time you see them, having to remember to cut your hair and beard and take a bath, someone you captures freaking out when you place them too close to water because they might drown, a farmer fixing their fence after you accidentally rode through it a couple of days ago, Arthur quietly singing when you ride for too long without doing anything, your fellow outlaws having interactions that don’t involve you at all! There is so much detail in this game and it’s not like other games haven’t done a similar thing but not to this extent. It generates an immersion that I think is currently unparalleled. Absolutely incredible and you can tell that (despite the frankly unacceptable working conditions that were reported) people put their heart and soul into it.

I loved the fact that there weren’t too many side quests as there often are in RPGs (and most of the times they are somewhat repetitive). I felt there were just the right amount of additional quest markers on my map at any given time and apart from like “Hey mister race me!” quests every single one of them was unique! And most of the time you met well-developed NPCs you could later meet again! (Mickey and Hamish and the widow whose name I can’t remember right now stand out here <3)

The lighting in this game is out of this world! I think there was only one scene in which it didn’t quite work but apart from that every in-game scene might as well have been a cutscene for its beauty

It’s utterly heartbreaking and since I apparently love being sad this is perfect for me ;)

I loved the fact that they took accidental dialogue interruptions into account with the whole “right, where were we” thing

The motion capture and voice acting is brilliant! And as far as I can tell many of the actors haven’t even really done anything big but everyone was so stellar and Arthur’s actor really delivered!

Love my outlaw gang so much :’) especially the relationships between Arthur and John, Dutch, Sadie, Hosea, and Charles

and I LOVE Arthur! What an incredible main character and what a fantastic character journey! [1]

(connected to the point above) probably my absolute favourite thing about the entire game: The game objective changes drastically 3/4 of the way through and suddenly things that used to be a disadvantage are the opposite and the other way around. It’s brilliant! [2]

The music is so stunning! Both the background ambient music during free play but most importantly the songs they recorded and worked in so seamlessly. I still get goosebumps thinking about “Might I (Stand unbroken)”

Stuff I didn’t like:

I don’t think I’ve had any bugs (which is really surprising for a game of this size) except two instances of the dialogue disappearing for like a minute or so. It didn’t bother me that much, just turned on the subtitles for a bit and it was fine but yep, I did find some bugs

I feel like a horse that is able to bolt if it sees a snake or a predator should be able to not hit a solitary tree that I obviously did not want to ride into ;) like I get the collisions in dense forest areas but in open planes I feel like the horse should be smart enough to take a step to the side without me prompting it ;) 

it’s really easy to accidentally murder someone :( and I feel like the bounty system needs an update. If I accidentally walk into someone who gets offended and then starts shooting at me even though I’m apologizing then I shouldn’t get a bounty for knocking him out so he won’t kill me :/

I really did not like the “supernatural” stuff... I know they were just easter eggs and not relevant in any way but they just threw me off completely

There was one character I think I was supposed to connect to and I just didn’t which was a bit of a shame [3]

I wish there was a mission to the west (think Arizona, Utah landscape) I would have loved to ride through there with Arthur

I’m sure I missed quite a bit and I haven’t done everything in the game by far (only like 80% completion). I didn’t hunt much apart from the first two chapters, I didn’t craft much, I didn’t explore as much as I wanted to and I waited until like Chapter five before spending money. So there’s lots of stuff I still want to do and even more, I want to do again and really take my time now that I don’t have to be worried about accidentally reading a spoiler^^

So yep, second playthrough (albeit a much slower one) is about to start :)

SPOILERS WILL START BELOW! STOP READING HERE IF YOU HAVEN’T FINISHED!

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SPOILERS APPROACHING!

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THERE BE SPOILERS BELOW!

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[1] Arthur’s Character:

Arthur Morgan is definitely one of my all-time fictional characters now. It was an amazing journey from someone who clearly has a moral code but doesn’t (want to) use it for various reasons to someone who (probably for the first time in his life) takes charge of it and stands up to the people who want to make into something he’s just not. I’m an absolute sucker for character growth and rough characters becoming protective and selfless and trying to make the world a better place before they go. For me, that’s what separates a good movie/tv show/game from an excellent one and RDR2 delivered!

And then there’s the’s the huge TB bombshell in chapter 5 which changes everything and accelerates what’s been coming for a while. I’m such a big fan of this, honestly. Normally you get that kind of stuff at the beginning (e.g. Breaking Bad, Deadpool, etc.) to motivate some kind of change but in RDR2 you get all this time see Arthur not be who he clearly should be but getting closer and closer and then the dam just breaks. I mean I hate it with all my heart because up until then I thought he might get out alive but damn what a wonderful character arc!

[2] Game Objective:

So this is the big one, very subtle I think but again something I don’t think I’ve ever seen a video game do and I’m just stunned!

I started writing a list for this post when I was in Chapter 2 and I had “Honour system” on my “stuff I don’t like list”. The reason for that was, I thought it was pointless and not well thought through. Sure it’s a nice idea (and not a new one) to give the player the option of being a very nice or a very bad guy and then depending on that some interactions might change. That’s the whole nature of RPGs. But the thing is, it should be equally easy to play as totally good or totally bad. And it wasn’t! For most of the game, you were at a severe disadvantage if you were trying to get high honour. You can’t rob people to get some money, you can’t rob carriages or trains to train for the larger missions and gain experience, you can’t refuse to collect a debt instead you have to beat people! Sure, now and then you can help someone and they give you some money or some supplies but that doesn't compare to what you’d get by looting corpses. And even if you somehow do something really good and your honour improves, you will still have to take part in Dutch’s raid so you fall back down to some area in the middle. I thought that was frustrating and I thought I was missing out on a big part of the game experience because my objective to be nice got in the way.

But then Arthur got sick and from that moment the rewards for being nice were insane! And I realized that the game objective was directly tied to Arthur’s internal struggle. He wanted to be a good man but life made it seemingly impossible so he kept stealing, he kept killing, he kept turning back to bad habits. But once he broke free of that, once he started to see the good in the world it was suddenly so easy to get high honour because for once the game (aka Dutch’s influence on Arthur) didn’t force you into dishonourable situations anymore. It’s so neat! Turning something that used to be a disadvantage (wanting to be good) into an advantage more than halfway through the game. I’m honestly so impressed by the total gear change that achieved!

[3] Mary:

Here’s the thing: I really want to like her and it’s not even that I dislike her, I’m just really indifferent. It’s obvious Arthur loves her a lot and it’s obvious she loves Arthur quite a bit as well but all I saw in the game are two people who might like each other but who are clearly not compatible. And I was wondering if the game wants me to root for them, to hope that they’ll make it and basically have the life John and Abigail have at the end of the epilogue but I kept thinking: “That will never work”. I think it’s mainly because we see so little of her and like 40% of what she says is “Oh, Arthur” (which gets old real quick the same way “I have a plan, Arthur!” gets old after 20 times). I feel like if she’d been around for more missions I might feel very differently. Or some flashbacks might have been nice. But with about 60+ hours of gameplay and about 30 minutes of Mary I just couldn’t connect. It seemed like a relationship that was way past it’s prime just like their outlaw lifestyle and just like the outlaw lifestyle Arthur just didn’t want to believe it. 

That being said, I don’t think Mary shouldn’t be in the game! I think she has a purpose and I did her first mission very early one, so that was the first time that I saw Arthur display complex emotions which was great! But as the story went on I just cared so much more about the other outlaws and I honestly think Arthur would have been happier being Jack’s weird uncle who drops in from time to time than Mary’s proper, upstanding husband. So in the end, some outlaws standing next to Arthur’s grave would have made more sense to me than Mary :/