#i wonder how long this will last cuz persona 3 around the corner and i dont wanna miss out or get spoiled even tho the game isnt new lol

[thel0llip0p]

oh man having a ship take over ur brain so hard rly makes u insane

[broken-endings]

even though i’ve seen code geass twice before

i somehow missed out on a lot of the stuff I got into for other fandoms

like thinking of AUs and finding fanfic close to those AUs and fanart of ships

like, i wasn’t as avid at all those things as i am now

and now i’m rewatching it for the 2nd time. It’s been almost four years. My first rewatch almost predates my entrance to the yaoi universe

lelouch/suzaku is prob one of the biggest ships of all the anime i’ve seen that has an inordinate amount of doujinshi, but I never had interest

but HELLOOOOO interest

cuz, in between my last rewatch, and now, I actually figured out ways to get myself into ships that I hadn’t been into for a long time (coughcough timkon and jaytim) and now it is so easy to get me into a ship. Give me some gorgeous smexy fanart and the right chemistry and BAM i’m gone.

though these guys most definitely must be the most tragic of all my ships.

but so, in my rewatch now, i’m ALSO thinking of AUs for me to list of different canon divergences.

Thems below the cut

1) Canon Divergence AU where after the Mao incident, Lelouch doesn’t mindwipe Shirley. 

She’s near inconsolable in regards to thinking she’s a murderer, and hysterical about Lelouch being Zero and responsible for her father’s death. But she’s in too deep. She was willing to kill to protect Lelouch, even knowing he was Zero, whom she also contemplated killing.

Lelouch, when he was going to attempt to use geass, made the mistake of saying, “I can make you forget” and she doesn’t want that. She doesn’t know what he’s gonna do but she blocks his face and shields herself. “Shirley, then what do you want?” “To stay by your side.”

She stays by Lelouch’s side, but she’s not the cheerful girl she once was. She’ll smile at him, but it’s gentle and pained, and he can’t remember the last time he heard her laugh.

Lelouch refuses to let Shirley get involved in the Black Knights.

Shirley's paranoid about Lelouch’s identity being discovered, and sneaks around, following him when he isn’t in a mask. She still carries Lelouch’s gun.

Lelouch selfishly finds comfort in having Shirley with him, physically and emotionally. Not having to hide or lie. He does care about her.

She eventually gets him to relent and allow her to be involved in his resistance, but insists that she hide her identity like he does. He doesn’t introduce her as anyone special though, so his people wouldn’t get suspicious or jealous. She isn’t the only member to wear a mask other than zero, for protection.

They have their private moments during missions.

Shirley is the one who lies and hides to keep Lelouch safe. All she can think about is what would’ve happened that night she found out his identity if she’d done nothing. So she makes sure she always does something, even if she doesn’t have the right skills, she makes do. For Lelouch.

I imagine them as a kind of lost, tragic, dark couple.

2) PERSONA 5 AU

all the stuff about geass is actually related to the other world and shadows and personas. Geass is a power used by channeling one’s shadow self. They remain two separate entities but in that moment join to trigger their power. The two worlds overlap in that moment, and because of the power of the other world, said “magical” like effects happen in the physical world.

Geass is weaker than a persona because it is the unawakened other-self.

Lelouch has been channeling his shadow self, but Suzaku is the first to awaken his persona. It is only due to Suzaku’s awakening (when he comes to terms with the fact he killed his father) that Lelouch is even made aware that there is something stronger than geass. Gosh, Lelouch’s other self would be fascinating to see converse with his normal self.

If I was a better read person I’d totally assign everyone their personas, like how in p5 they’re characters of legend. Maybe pull some gods or goddesses from myth, or significant literary characters.

People who’d awaken to personas!!

Suzaku

Lelouch

Kallen

Shirley

Nunnally (the support role)

C2

Euphemia

Rolo

All the crazy stuff with the geass temples and the emperor’s obsession is about him wanting access to that other world, or rather to merge the worlds into one.

PALACES, characters who’d be targeted to get a change of heart

Clovis

Cornelia

Rolo

Schneizel

Marianne

V2

Emperor Charles

It’s possible to enter people with geass’ palaces because their other selves still slumber. Yes, Rolo is both one whose heart they change and he joins the team after that.

3) Psycho Pass AU

Britannia and Japan still are as is in canon. Japan is under Britannia’s control, but it’s Britannia’s use of the Sibyl System that has allowed it widespread control of the world. First the system was implemented through a joint effort, then control was slowly wrenched away from the original government.

There was no war. It’s the distinct lack of fighting that is different in this universe

The Royal family controls the Sibyl System, which leaves them as exceptions in its judgement. Though the system is exactly the same otherwise. Rather than the royals be unjudgeable, the system was built to not be critical of them, anyone within the royal bloodline.

Suzaku is an enforcer, has been ever since he killed his father, the prime minister who opposed partnering with Britannia and implementing the Sibyl System. But the fact that he killed his father is a close guarded secret within the government. Most in the agency, even Lelouch don’t know this truth.

Lelouch is an inspector, and Suzaku is in his squad. They’re still childhood friends. He was surprised to find out Suzaku was an enforcer, wondering what possibly could have happened to him. 

There is no geass in this universe.

Lelouch's psycho pass remains clear no matter what he does or thinks. He realized this early on. He’s always wary that maybe one day it’ll be updated and work on him and is extra cautious because of that thought. As an inspector with a dominator, he’s learned he can actually control the modes his dominator is in as well. Regardless of the Sibyl system’s judgement, he can override it. He keeps this a secret as well. To anyone watching his actions, they’d just assume whatever shape his dominator takes is a result of Sibyl’s judgement.

Kallen and CC are also enforcers in Lelouch’s squad, though CC has an unnatural amount of knowledge about the Sibyl system and confronts Lelouch on his secrets that should be impossible for anyone to guess or figure out.

Lelouch doesn’t know he’s royalty. His mother kept that a secret, and she was still killed. As an inspector he seeks to find her killer. His life outside the bureau he has his sister who is still disabled, though not blind. He has his friends (everyone from the student council)

Lelouch is the youngest senior inspector

I want Euphemia to be in Lelouch’s past too, but I can’t figure out a way to do that and still have him be ignorant of his bloodline

4) Canon Divergence AU in R2 when Lelouch was ready to give up and shoot up refrain in Shinjuku, Kallen does NOT reach him in time.

Kallen gets there too late. Lelouch was all drugged out. She tries to snap him out of it w/ some slaps and yelling, but her motivation dwindles with his lack of response.

She started speaking more calmly, touched him gently, pleading with him to give her any recognition, to which he does respond “Kallen” and she starts to tear up thinking she’s reached him, but then he starts rattling off old orders he gave her, telling her he wants her to be leader of the zero squad.

With a heavy heart she drags him back to where she had been staying alone, hidden in a corner of the ghetto. Unable to stop remembering her mom, Kallen takes care of him, and nods or gives a sullen one word response when he says things.

He seems to be starting to come back to his senses, and she decides one night that the next day she’ll start trying to talk to him again, but she wakes up to find him gone.

He’s gone to get another fix, and when she finally finds him again, she has to start all over with the waiting game. She cries herself to sleep, and talks precautions to keep him from being able to leave when he sobers up.

When it finally seems like she might be able to get a conversation out of him the next day, she decides he’s not going anywhere. While he sleeps, she handcuffs his hands behind his back, and cuffs herself to him as well. She makes a point to actually drape herself over him, so there’s no way he could even move without waking her. She doesn’t think she’ll get any sleep, but ends up falling asleep like that with the monotonous calm of his steady breathing.

“Come back” she whispers before falling asleep.

She wakes up to a shivering Lelouch

He’s lucid and she can talk to him but he’s getting irrationally angry and starts yelling about how he just wants “one more.”

“I’m not gonna let you destroy yourself. You don’t get to do that, not as long as people need you.”

5) Canon Divergence AU When Lelouch says the line to Kallen suggesting she console him and there’s things a woman can do, he doesn’t say it seriously.

He treats it as sarcasm and doesn’t approach her. He just sits back down.

Because he didn’t approach her or force himself, because he was truly at the end of his rope and Kallen didn’t know what else to do, and she could tell that he said those words, believing she’d never do such a thing.

Because she had time to think about it and felt desperate herself, she considered that even if he isn’t serious, he wouldn’t have suggested such a thing if it was meaningless. Even if his intention of saying it was to try to scare her off or push her away, there’s a lot of things he could have said or done, but he chose that one.

One thing Kallen has learned from Lelouch as zero is every decision he makes is precise and thought-out, every word he says isn’t said without consideration behind it, that’s how deep his manipulation and predictive nature goes. Even in this crisis where he’s not himself she can still believe that “There’s a reason he specifically said that.”

“Fine” she says after the abnormally prolonged silence.

“What?” Shock in his eyes he slightly turns to look in her direction

“You heard me.”

The one thing Lelouch can’t predict is the human element. People may have patterns, but they can also break those patterns. That’s one thing he can’t anticipate.

Kallen goes over to him and gently takes his hand. He still looks shocked and hasn’t said anything else. He’s so out of character it’s scaring her. She leads him to stand up and follow her, still holding his hand

“But not here.”

All Kallen can think is “if this can bring back Zero, so be it.” She would already kill for him, so she’d do anything.

They’re walking quite a while before Lelouch flexes his hand and starts gripping Kallen’s back.

They get to where she stays when she’s not with the Black Knights and she only lets go of his hand when she’s led him to sit on the bed in her tiny room. She closes the door behind her. Kallen could swear his look of shock was exactly the same as it was initially.

She walks over to him, to which, Lelouch finally manages words out “Kallen, you don’t have to–” 

She silences him with a finger to his lips. Standing over him she leans down to give him a kiss and she lets him, then much like his instinct when Shirley kissed him, he pulls her close to him, arms encircling her, deepening the kiss.

It started slow and passionate but they steadily picked up the pace

They don’t speak again about what they’re doing. The only words out of either of their mouths are either encouragement or direction, “lower,” “faster,” “wait,” “yes, that’s good.”

6) Canon Divergence AU where Shirley doesn’t die

I just want it. I have no idea how it would GO

[attract-mode-collective]

Gentlemen Prefer Pixels (Over Polygons)

Called me old-fashioned, but nothing’s sexier than a girl that’s a mystery. Blocky, abstract pixels make you wonder, whereas smoothly detailed polygons do not.

And the above, featuring interpretations of various leading ladies from various 8-bit games from an old issue of Famitsu, illustrates this point nicely. I’ve always had a thing for Samus, but it was kinda more fun when my imagination filled in the blanks.

I also kinda dig the pink and white color scheme for the armor she has here. Bonus points for not sexy-ing up Tyris Flare…

BTW, they’re from this old blog that hasn’t been updated in ages. Google Translate sez its aim was to transcribe 1000(!!!) issues of the classic Japanese game mag, and once again, I am saddened by my inability to understand Japanese.

I also have a new project; to archive the source, since info like this is fairly scare and blogs in general do not stick around forever. Oh, and I’d gladly accept anyone’s help towards this effort, cuz my hands are pretty full at the moment.

Speaking of archives, thank goodness for the Video Game Art Archive, which preserves illustrations found in old game manuals. Recently it began showcasing imagery found in the manual for Ballz, on old 16-bit fighter in which every character is made out of, you guessed it.

As it turns out, the Japanese edition has its own unique interpretations of abstract game graphics…

And, as is often the case in Japanese game manuals, comic strips can often be found…

So, what news has me the most excited this week? Nope, it’s nothing related to PAX East (which I was unable to attend, unfortunately). Instead, there’s word that the Brick Theater is reviving the Game Play festival! It’s been a summer staple (alongside the New York Asian Film Festival) for years now, and I was super bummed that there wasn’t one last July (I also feared the worst, that the plug had been pulled entirely).

Anyhow, nothing has been announced because they’re still gather applications. So if you happen to have an idea for a stage production that’s video game related, click this link. Oh, and for anyone interested in my write up of Game Play 2015, here ya go. 

The other exciting bit of news is this footage of 3DS Space Harrier, Galaxy Force II, and Power Drift, the 3DS versions running on a PS4 with a PSVR, courtesy of posthumanwanderings…

I seem to recall Yu Suzuki saying that he’d love to have Space Harrier in VR at the very least… though I believe the following is just a test produced by hardcore Segaphiles.

Sticking with Sega, though also back to the subject of theater; remember TOKYOHEAD, that play in Japan that depicted the trials and tribulations of top ranked Virtua Fighters? Well I recently came across this video…

… and this article, which mentions TOKYOHEAD. The production utilized motion capture tech called DL-EDGE that allowed the actions of actors on stage to be mimicked by in-game character (which I thought was what was happening in one photo, in my write-up)…

One last bit of stage theatrics; please enjoy this handshake from the stage production of Persona 3 (via emperorsfortune)…

For whatever reason, this photograph has me imagining a woman from the future, sent back in time to save humanity, but instead of arriving in some back alley street light in the Terminator, it’s in the middle of a game center…

It’s actually artist Mariko Mori, and you can check out other photographs from the same series, I think (including one of her dressed like a sexy android hanging next to a Sonic & Knuckles demo station), here.

Speaking of PDFs, during a regular scheduled attempt to gather anything I can find regarding The Flying Luna Clipper, I came across this link, which itself contained one to an archive of MSX Magazine…

Despite being the cover story, there isn’t much intel, or so it would seem…

… Yet the whole issue is definitely worth leafing through, especially if you’re obsessed with old Japanese PC hardware designs as much as I am.

Please enjoy this bit of fancy footwork from Tekken 3 (via sixteen-bit)…

Sticking with the subject of fighting games; the latest from the CDTcrew is perfect for anyone that’s a fan of Street Fighter 2 and seizures…

Which fighting game glitch do you prefer? This one from King of Fighters 2002, or this one from Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3?

Okay, time to chill for a bit. For six hours exact. That’s how long the sound of the Arwing’s engine, from Starfox, goes on for (there’s also a twelve hour version, for anyone interested)…

This week’s recommended reading is courtesy of Kotaku, which recently interviewed individuals from two local businesses that specialize in console repair. Here’s some excerpts from 'Let Him Fix It': The Battle Over Who Gets To Repair Your Consoles…

““I’ve been fixing stuff since I was a little kid, scavenging garbage,” GorillaStomp said, not looking up from the Xbox he was dismantling with a screwdriver. He was watching a For Honor Twitch stream while removing pet dander and cigarette detritus from the Xbox’s jammed disc tray. “Basically, I went from Legos to real-life troubleshooting.”…

… Back in 2008, GorillaStomp interviewed for a job at 8-Bit And Up with its owner, Joe. “It was the weirdest interview I’d ever had,” he told me. Joe asked if he’d ever worked as a repair guy. GorillaStomp said, “No, but last summer, I fixed seven PS2s for my buddies.” Joe hired him.”

Here we have a promotional vid for Atari, produced in 1981. It’s actually quite excellent, as far as corporate propaganda is concerned, thought it’s also a super sexy time capsule (via tvgame)…

Just a bunch of Super Mario mushrooms, in the corner of a Japanese book store. That is all (via fuckyeahjapanese)…

Behold, Moscoso x Psyduck (via altcomix)…

Which piece of Sonic fan art sent to an old video game magazine is better? This one (via sonicthehedgeblog)…

Or this one (via oldgamemags)…

And which Famicom cart (via famicartart) do you find more appealing? This one, for Perfect Bowling…

Or this one, for A Taxing Woman…

As much as I love a beautifully rendered cover art, sometimes a quick and dirty screenshot also does the job well (via shmups)…

I really have no idea what this image is about, but because it’s Xevious related, I kinda have to share it (via gaijira)…

And last but not least, this is apparently the only decoration in fmtownsmarty’s room…

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