#if you pick the 'avatar>character from the game' choice you get a game over

[randomnameless]

Damn,

I finally got to the end (and start, and middle lol) of Baten Kaitos Origins because living in Europe meant I couldn't play it when it was released and -

First of all, serioulsy to all people who see a game and its prequel released later saying it's better to play the prequel first : fig you - if writers/devs designed a game to be a "prequel" they designed the story to flow this way, you learn about X and Y in the first game, and see how they were made into X and Y in the second game!

The experience was designed like this, you can choose to use a slide by climbing on the slippery side first, but it wasn't meant to be enjoyed this way!

Secondly, regarding a certain game I've been ranting about for the last 5 years...

(heavy spoilers under the cut)

Why the fuck did this game made around 12 years ago went so hard and masterfully tackled the "mysterious entity with amnesia is bound to a rando joe who was engineered to host the mysterious entity" thing?

The parts where you live through Marno's (who is U! The mysterious entity!) FB and how you were led to believe it was all about Sagi (the host) being "special" was masterful, especially that last part where both player and characters understand that no, the corrupted/slaughtered rando who was later fused with his siblings to create the eldritch deity you must defeat in the first game... wasn't Sagi, but the random entity you're playing as!

(bonus points for playing an unwinnable battle where you're killed at the end lol, by one of your party members who is also revealed to be 1k years old through this FB!)

And then, Sagi and Marno decide to work together - Marno lends his power to Sagi - and they save the world from another eldritch being.

Like, sure sometimes the time travelling through FB - but not really because you can bring stuff from the past in the present so it's not only FBs - is sort of confusing and yet I really really digged it, complete with the realisation that those people were fucked the second they were led to side with demons/whatever the dark brethrens are.

This past, that has consequences on this story (and on the story of the first game!) isn't just a footnote in an optional book, or delivered in an infodump without having anything nor anyone react to it, no. You play through those events, time travel shenanigans or not, you play as those characters and see what happened (rather, what led to the events that you learn happened).

You see were I'm going lol -

We could have had the same situation going on with Billy and Sothis - Billy being the stand-in for Sagi and Sothis being the stand-in for Marno, trying to recover her memories, living through them (while Billy'd believe they are the one having those "mysterious dreams") until the final reveal, the gremlin is the Goddess the Agarthans hate, the ominous lady with a strange hat seems to love and miss, and the one everyone prays to.

Sothis, who would like to finish the millenia(s?) old feud and asking for Billy's help, and Billy agreeing because this feud is also endangering the current people living here and the ones they grow fond of.

But no - if the devs went through this route, would the player still care about Supreme Leader?

As much as they want?

Well... Sure, Shanath and Baehlit aren't that memorable, but imo, you can't completely ignore them, what happened 1k years ago happened 1k years ago, but those people exist, and ultimately, Verus was the one who put everything in motion because he was an asshole (and parasited by Wiseman too?), in turn, pushing Geldoblame to, uh, well, do the things he does in EWLO and led him to seek power at all costs, even releasing an eldritch entity who will ruin the world.

Add the fact that BK also has, at its core, a story about people being turned into parts/merged/slaughtered but while the first opus didn't focus that much on them - even if the hero and the female lead mentionned they felt their sorrow and pain - the second game? Reveals their names, characters, designs, place where they lived, etc etc...

Meanwhile, in Fodlan, we know who Leif is, but we don't know and aren't supposed to care about the person who became Freikugel.

Malpercio, the Eldritch Entity fought in the first game, is an amalgation of five siblings who were corrupted and merged by sort of demons, each sibling was turned in a "part" of that entity, head, leg, thorax, chest, arms etc etc.

In the second game, you learn and meet the sibling turned into the "legs" of Malpercio, her name is Pieda (uh) Le (sure) Monarna (finally something that doesn't mean or is related to legs lol.

Thunderbrand?

After FE16 and Nopes, it's just... a shiny sword!

[eternal-evergreens]

｡⁠*ﾟ⁠+*⁠.⁠✧"Into the looking glass."｡⁠*ﾟ⁠+*⁠.⁠✧

Part I Part II Part III Part IV Part V Part VI

Post format: Multipart series

Pairing: Yandere!Male!DoL x Fem!Isekai!Reader

Word count: 5k

Synopsis: You gain the chance to wake up in the world of one of your favorite games. Unfortunately, the 'favorite game' happens to be one about rape, violence, and stalking. Not only that, but the game seems to be rigged against you. All you want is to find a way home and put this all behind you, but is that even possible...?

Warnings: Sexual Assault, Attempted Non/Con, Stalking, Violence, Age Gaps, Teacher/Student, Caretaker/Ward, Bullying

Color indicator: Excellent Good Decent Okay Poor Bad Terrible

Another dull morning, you think to yourself, rolling over to turn off your alarm. You pick up your cellphone and blearily swipe your screen as you clamber out of bed. It’s embarrassing to admit, but you really didn’t notice anything was wrong until you stood up and looked in the mirror. You blink, poking at you face and staring where your reflection should be, but isn’t. You wave your hand in front of the mirror. Nothing.

You look around, only to realize that your surroundings are different, too. The room you’re in is plain, cramped, and completely devoid of character. It’s almost liminal, in a way. Eerie in its emptiness. 

You need to get out of here. 

You nervously reach for the door and twist the handle. The doornob moves with you, but the door remains fixed in place. Your phone buzzes, and you fish it out of your pocket, quickly turning it on. You’ve gotten a text, but the number is blank.

You have not chosen an avatar yet. Please choose one from the mirror before leaving your room.

Well, that woke you right up. Is someone watching you? You swerve your head around, checking the ceilings and corners for cameras. You try the door again. You go in circles, turning the whole room upside down. You try the door. Nothing. You check your phone. The same message appears as soon as you open it. You swipe it away out of habit, but it refuses to budge. Freaky. The time hasn’t changed since you woke up, either, though you’re sure you’ve been at it for more than fifteen minutes by now.

You decide to take a peek at the mirror again. You try to remove it from the wall to look behind, but your vision goes white the second you make contact with its’ surface. Your vision clears, and in front of you is a grey figure of ambiguous gender. It looks almost made of clay. Your phone buzzes.

Player avatar selection. 

Select a sex. Sex cannot be changed after starting the game.

1.) Male 2.) Female 3.) Hermaphrodite

Well, you’ve either fallen asleep or been drugged. Not knowing what else to do, you choose female, watching in horror and fascination as the figure morphs to accommodate your choice. 

>Next

Other customization options soon come up. You give the figure your ideal height, weight, and features. You change her skin tone, hair color, texture, and eye color. You watch as she slowly comes to life as your ideal. The person you’ve always wanted to be. 

Your phone buzzes just as you finish touching her up.

Set Name

You’re about to name her when the text fills itself in with your name instead.

Welcome, [First]! 1. Start Game!

You grimace, and hit play.

—————————

When you come to, it’s 07:00 again, and you’re still in that room. You glance at the mirror, only to see your avatar glancing back. You wave your arm in front of it, and she mimics your movements perfectly. You make a lewd gesture, and she does, too. Creepy. Is this really a dream? You’re startled out of your thoughts as your phone buzzes once again.

Welcome to the alpha of Degrees of Lewdity!

If you want to avoid trouble, dress modestly and stick to safe, well-lit areas. Nights are particularly dangerous. Dressing lewd will attract attention, both good and bad. 

The new school year starts tomorrow at 09:00. The bus service is the easiest way to get around town. Don’t forget your uniform and backpack!

1. Next

Your face pales as you read the text. There’s no way. You hit next, reminding yourself that you’re only in a dream, and that no one can harm you in a dream. Your phone opens to its home screen, where you see various apps, some of which are labled.

-Characteristics -Social -Traits -Journal -Stats -Feats

You open characteristics and take a look. At the very top is a color chart indicator. description of your body’s appearance and condition, underneath are familiar stats.

Purity: 7/7 You are angelic. Physique: 3/6 Your body is average. Willpower: 1/6 You are fainthearted. Awareness: 3/7 You have a normal understanding of sexuality. Promiscuity: 0/6 You are chaste and pure.  Exhibitionism: 0/6 You are coy. Deviancy: 0/6 You are squeamish.

Everything seems to be in line with the stats for the beginning of a playthrough. Everything except one.

Beauty: 7/6 Your beauty is beyond measure.

That’s…not good, if the blaring red is anything to go off of, anyway. 

You scroll down. Your skills are all ranked as F, which is actually better than the “None” stat they usually start as. That’s weird, but you aren’t complaining. Your sex skills, however…are all at C. That’s super weird! You aren’t sure what to make of it, so you choose to ignore it instead. 

Your overall school performance is terrible, with F’s all around the board. In real life, this would mean you’d picked the athlete trait, but your physique is baseline, and your athletic stat is also at F, so it can’t be that. It must just be inconsistencies from being asleep, you reason. That’s why your stats are all over the place.

Your status is normal, aside from your allure. Which is maxed out at “You look like you need to be ravaged.” You shudder.

You check traits. You have two.

Alien - You aren’t from around here! RPG like elements have been incorporated into your reality for a smoother experience.  Virgin - Your purity recovers faster. Your virginity might be worth something.

You open your journal. 

It is the 4th of September, 2022.

-It has been 0 days since the game started. -The game started in autumn.  -It is autumn. -School term starts on Monday the 5th of September.

Current quests:

Visit Bailey in his office by 20:00 tonight to recover your ID documents and gain your independence.

Failure to complete quest will result in the day restarting

You turn your phone off and look around. Everything seems normal, too normal. You read somewhere once that it’s impossible (or perhaps just very difficult) to read clearly while in a dream. Could you have been drugged? Or did you take something and then forget about it?

You pinch yourself. Ow.

Well, that’s not solid proof. People have reported cases of feeling pain in dreams before it’s just kind of really rare is all. Or, or! Maybe you’re not dreaming. Maybe you’re dying. Maybe you got into an accident somewhere, and now you’re in a coma. People hallucinate during comas, don’t they? 

You pinch yourself, again. 

It’s not real.

…You might as well see what this quest is about.

You leave your bedroom, and walk to Bailey’s office. You don’t question how you know the way there. You knock on the door and enter. 

“I know why you’re here,” he says. “You want me to release you from my protection, so you’ll be an independent citizen. I could do that. But there’s a problem. You’ve been living under my roof without giving anything in return. You owe me. Until you pay me back, I’m not letting you go.” He picks up an envelope and flips through it. Dozens of identification documents are stored within it. One of them is yours. “£100 should do. To start with. I don’t care how you get it. Knock on doors and ask for work. Rent yourself as a footstool. Steal it, even. Just have it a week from now. Or I’ll find a way to extract value from you.”

You nod and leave his office, returning to your room.

Your phone buzzes as soon as you close the door. 

Quest completed. New quest added to journal. View Now? 

Y/N

You hit yes. 

Time-Sensitive:

Bailey wants £100 on Sunday. Find a job and free yourself from his clutches. 

That’s great and all, but maybe you shouldn’t leave the orphanage today…or ever. Not until you wake up. You decide to just download some social media apps and scroll for the rest of the day instead. You scroll until midday, when you’re stopped by your stomach growling. Can you get hungry inside a dream…? You feel uneasy as you climb off the bed. Your neck hurts from the uncomfortable position you had been in, but that’s the least of your worries right now. 

You leave your bedroom and enter the main hall. A trim girl happens to be passing by your door, so you stop her and ask about when lunch is. She looks at you strangely. 

“Whenever you want…? Just go somewhere and get it. I don’t know.” 

“I meant here, can we get food here?” 

“Sure, if you’re underage. We have to provide for ourselves once we reach eighteen, though. You know that. Everyone knows that.” She leaves in a hurry. You go back to your room to watch “Gootube” videos. It’s not as pornographic as it sounds. 

You stay on your phone for the rest of the day. It never seems to run out of charge. Finally, you turn it off and climb under the covers. You don’t bother to wear pajamas. You sleep soundly, and wake up at 07:00 on Sunday, September 4th. 

Wait, what? 

You look at your journal again. 

Journal 

It is the 4th of September, 2022.

-It has been 0 days since the game started. -The game started in autumn.  -It is autumn. -School term starts on Monday the 5th of September.

Current quests:

Visit Bailey in his office by 20:00 tonight to recover your ID documents and gain your independence. Failure to complete quest will result in the day restarting

But you didn’t fail your quest! You completed it and…

It’s because you didn’t get a job yesterday, isn’t it? 

You sigh and climb out of bed. Off to visit Bailey again. 

“I know why you’re here,” he says. God, you wish you could skip dialogue in real life. Or in dreams, you guess. Bailey wraps up his speech and you leave, this time heading outside the orphanage to look for work right after. 

As expected, you bump into someone almost immediately. A voluptuous woman grabs you. “You’re the cutest thing I’ve seen all week!” She says, lunging for your clothes. You step back, but she catches you, lifting your sundress’s skirt and revealing your lace panties. You try to grab her hand and pull it away, but she’s stronger than you. She pushes you to the ground, and you land painfully on the sidewalk. You let out an involuntary yelp as your elbows scrape on the pavement. Is she really going to try and molest you out in public like this? It would appear so, as she’s currently straddling your legs with her knees, keeping them apart. You come to your senses when you feel a hand on your groin, and scream out for help. 

A taut man comes to your rescue, chasing off the woman and helping you to your feet. He treats your wounds and gives you a pepper spray charge. You thank him and go on your way. 

The dog pound is probably the best place to start with, you think to yourself while looking at the map on your phone. So you hop on a bus and wait for your stop, but not before a thin man sits next to you and rests his hand on your thigh. You shuffle away from him, and he follows you. You stand up, and he does, too. No one else is paying attention. You quickly walk to the most crowded area of the bus and sit next to a plush woman. She doesn’t look happy, but doesn’t say anything, either. The thin man watches you from his seat. You reach your destination, and he moves to follow you when you stand. Luckily, a tall man stops him, giving you a thumbs up as he blocks the thin man’s view of you. You give him a grateful nod and step off. 

Your shift at the dogpound goes on without incident. Thugh the employees tried to get handsy more than a few times, they never took it further when you moved away. You even took your lunch break at the nearby cafe! You’re surprised by how much character the place had visually, considering it comes from a text-based game.

By the time the dog pound closes, it’s nighttime. You pale at the realization. It’s nighttime, and you’re in Degrees of Lewdity. Should you risk taking the bus? Or should you risk the streets? 

If you’re on a bus, you’re there for less time, but it’s an enclosed space. If you’re outside, there’s more places to run and hide. But hiding goes both ways. 

You elect to go through the streets, sticking to the places that are the most open and well-lit. You get home without incident, though you swear you saw something in the alleys. 

You collapse into bed and sleep for ten hours. 

—————————

It’s 07:03 when you wake up. You have school today, so you look through your wardrobe for your uniform. You find it, but…why is it so skimpy? Sheer tights, short plaid skirt, tight shirt, platform mary janes and loose socks. You put it on, but the shirt is so tight it won’t button all the way, leaving a sizable amount of your cleavage and lace bra visible. 

Speaking of which, aren’t you only supposed to start with plain underwear? Why is all of yours lace? And why does it clasp at the front? You spend twenty minutes looking for a jacket, different shirt, or other way to cover yourself, but find nothing. Bailey bangs on the doors around the orphanage to wake the orphans up. You sigh and put your clothes back into your wardrobe before leaving.

You bump into Robin on your way out. Literally. He nearly runs you over.

“Hey!” He says running towards you. He doesn’t slow down in time and plows right into you. You help him up. “Thanks,” he says, looking a bit bashful. “I didn’t see you yesterday. Remember, you can visit me in my room anytime you want. I have something to show you. I’m so excited!” He runs off, and you realize you’ve forgotten your backpack, so you head back in and find it. It takes you another ten minutes to realize you’d put it behind the door. By the time you’re ready, it’s already half an hour past seven. You decide to see if Robin is still in his room. 

You knock, and hear some crashing. Before you can ask if something’s wrong, Robin opens the door and hugs you. “Look,” he says, pulling you inside. Your eyes immediately land on the shiny new game console in the corner of the room. “I’ve been saving up,” he says. “What are you waiting for?” He pats the bed beside him and you hop on. You watch him play for a few minutes, and the two of you walk to school together. 

Though it’s literally your first time meeting him, you feel safer around Robin. Though you know he can’t fight to protect you, having someone by your side does a lot to ease the mind. Plus, he’s one of the only decent people in the game. You’re glad, but at the same time, you’re uneasy. You wonder if he notices you’re not his childhood friend. That you look like her, sound like her, but you aren’t her. You wonder if he’d hate you, should he find out.

“Is something wrong, [First]?” You snap to attention. 

“Huh? Oh, uh, no. I’m okay,” you say. “I was just kind of busy yesterday, came home exhausted but couldn’t sleep, you know how it is.” You wave your hand dismissively at him as you pass the school gates. “Where are you heading? I’d like to go with you, if that’s alright. Since I didn’t see you yesterday, and all.” Really, you just don’t want to be alone here. But there’s no need to say that. 

Robin smiles, and the two of you hang out in the rear courtyard. It’s nice, but you can feel him glancing at you when he thinks you’re not looking. It makes you uncomfortable. Has he caught on? You excuse yourself and head to the library. Maybe you should acquaint yourself with the other non-crazy person on campus. At least you won’t have to lie about your identity to Sydney. 

You walk over to the counter near the back of the library. A tall boy with a strawberry blonde ponytail and glasses is stamping books behind it. You smile as you approach him. “Good morning…” He says, yawning. “First time at the rental counter? You can rent out one book at a ti-” Sydney yawns.. “Time. You can also buy school-approved clothes here. Headmaster Leighton’s marked the prices way up, though. Students with a good record get special discounts.” He seems excited, though you can’t place why. 

“Books can be rented out for two weeks at a time. You can renew your rental at any time…” He looks down. You look down. Sydney has stamped his hand. You smile.”...Let’s call that a demonstration of what happens if you return a late or damaged book. My name’s Sydney, by the way! Pleased to meet you.” 

“I’m [First],” you respond. You and Sydney spend some time chatting. You notice that he’s oddly red. 

“Are you feeling okay?” You ask, raising a hand to his forehead. “You’re burning up! Let’s get you to the infirmary!” 

“W-what? No, I’m okay…” 

“No, you’re not,” you say, pulling him up by the forearm. You drag him to the infirmary, and he has to bend down to allow it. No one pays you much mind, though you’re sure you look a little silly, holding onto the forearm of someone much taller than you. You reach the nurse, who informs you that Sydney is perfectly healthy, though tells him to take a rest on one of the beds upon seeing the bags under his eyes.

“See?” He says, smiling. “I didn’t realize you were such a worrier.” You flush, embarrassed. Is pure Sydney supposed to tease people? His face softens. “Thanks…for worrying about me, though” he says, then checks the time. “You should probably get to class.” Right, you’d nearly forgotten you were at school. You thank Sydney for reminding you and leave as he waves you off.

You go to your science lesson. Despite your grade being at F, the lesson is actually pretty easy to follow, some of this you remember from your own highschool lessons. The bell rings and you leave the classroom, only to get shoved into a locker immediately. A boy with blonde hair covering one eye looms over you. You recognize him immediately. 

“Don’t get in my way again,” Whitney says, pressing his knee against your crotch. “Or I’ll put you in your place.” He releases you, but you know that won’t be the end of it. You hurry to math class, hoping Whitney will skip today. You’re tense for the first twenty minutes of class, but slowly begin to relax upon realizing Whitney probably isn’t going to show up. Nearly half an hour into class, the teacher River steps out for a moment. And with the kind of timing you’d only see in movies, Whitney waltzes in, his jacket thrown over his shoulder. You try to look away, but it’s too late. Whitney makes eye contact with you and grins. He walks over to the mousy girl sitting next to you. 

“Move,” he says. She does. You turn away from him, but he grabs your hair, forcing you to look at him.

This is unfair, you think to yourself. Whitney isn’t supposed to sit next to you unless you’re dating. Why now?

“Watcha lookin at, slut?”

This sucks. You want to go home. When is this dream supposed to end? 

Whitney tugs at your hair even harder. “I asked you a question, slut.”

How did you even get here in the first place? Did you really die? Were you in a coma? Whitney yanks your hair back so hard your body goes with it, creating an awful screeching sound as your chair lurches back. River walks in just in time to see you fall on your back. Whitney is sent out. He turns to make a penetration sign with his hands at you as he leaves. 

Math ends, and you head to English. There’s a crowd of students blocking your path. You peer over shoulders and heads to see the source of the commotion, and see a dark haired student on the ground, with two bullies standing over him. Your first instinct is Kylar, but you must be wrong. Kylar’s event shouldn’t happen until a week from now. 

You could try to help, but that would probably get you assaulted. Even if you didn’t, your fellow students would think less of you, leading you to getting picked on later, and potentially assaulted more and–

Fuck it, you can’t ignore this. You’re already shoving past students and blocking the bullies’ view of the student. “Leave him alone,” you say. “I won’t stand for this.” One of the bullies, a thin girl, shoves you down. 

“Sit, then!” She says, the audience laughs. You pick yourself up and ram into the thin girl and her friend. You knock her off-balance and she falls to the floor, screaming as soon as she lands. “You stupid bitch! You broke my tailbone!” The audience is laughing at her, now. Her friend is helping her up. “I’ll get you for this! Mark my fucking words!” You shiver. Hopefully no one notices. You turn to check on the boy they were harassing, only to nearly bump heads with him. You jump back, and the boy smiles apologetically. There’s something else in his expression, but before you can figure out what it was, you make eye contact with him, and the whole world goes dark.

Tousled black hair, short stature, sickly pale skin and the greenest eyes you’ve ever seen. It’s Kylar. It has to be. “T-thanks,” he says. “I-I’m Kylar.” Your face drops, but you aren’t sure if he saw it before running off. The tips of his ears are red, you notice. You step towards the crowd, which is already dispersing. The remaining onlookers make way for you, though you feel a hand grope your butt as you leave. You turn, but no one’s there. 

You head into English class, already exhausted. Kylar watches you from the back. You ignore him. The plump boy sitting behind you sniffs your hair during the entirety of the lesson, so it’s hard to focus. You look down at your notes. It’s an unintelligible mess. Is this what it means to have a grade F in English, you wonder?

Finally, it’s lunch time. You head to the cafeteria, passing by the headmaster on your way there. You swear you saw him checking you out. You shudder and speed up. Upon reaching the canteen, you are presented with three options.

Robin is talking with some students at his table, they seem to be arguing.

Sydney is sitting alone, several piles of books surrounding him. 

Kylar is also alone, stabbing at his food with more violence than seems neccesary.  

Despite your self preservation instincts, you walk towards Robin to see what the commotion is. The lean boy is accusing Robin of ‘looking at him with disrespect’. Arguing with him would be pointless. So you do the next best thing and smile as you spit in his face. 

As expected, he doesn’t take it well, and pounces on you immediately. He tears open your shirt, leaving you only marginally more exposed than you already were. You scream loudly, and Leighton rushes in. You suppress a smirk.

“What’s the meaning of this?!” He shouts, pushing past students to find you exposed on the ground, the lean boy holding you down. He scrambles off of you, and you fix your uniform. The lean boy tries to explain, but Leighton cuts him off and sends him out. Robin helps you up. 

“Are you okay?! Why did you do that?” 

“I saw Leighton on the way over here. I figured if we caused a scene, he’d be the one to get in trouble for it.”

“Don’t do something like that again! That was really dangerous!” You nod, though you don’t really mean it. 

Kylar watches from across the canteen. +Jealousy

The rest of lunch passes without incident and you go to History with Robin. The two of you chat about his game before class starts. You learn some interesting things about the history of the town. Nothing happens during history, and you leave feeling refreshed. You navigate the halls to your swimming lesson and change. You keep your eyes down, but swear you feel the stares of your classmates. You think you hear a camera go off, but when you turn, no one’s looking at you. 

A taut boy follows you around the pool, and doesn’t stop trailing until the lesson is over. He keeps his distance, but it still makes you feel uneasy. The bell rings, and you don’t see him again. 

You meet up with Robin in the courtyard, but hesitate walking home when you see Whitney hanging out by the gate.

“Can we go out through the back?”

“The back? Why?” You nod your head towards Whitney and his friends, and Robin makes an ‘O’ with his mouth. “I don’t mind, but how will we get out?” You’re about to answer when a realization hits you. Right. You haven’t unlocked the tunnel outside yet, which means you can’t leave unless you climb the fence. 

“...Nevermind,” you say. “Maybe they won’t notice us.” You and Robin try to blend in with the crowd, but a hand on your shoulder quickly yanks you into the open.

“Hold it, slut.” Shit. “You didn’t pay the toll.”

You grit your teeth. “What’s the toll?” Whatever, you have twenty quid to spare.

“Flash us your tits.” There’s a crowd circling around you. You notice people pulling out their phones. 

“[First]...” 

“It’s fine, Robin.” You give him a strained smile as you unbutton your blouse. “Happy?” You ask, turning back to Whitney. 

“Not quite,” he says, grabbing the front of your bra and unclasping the hook. Your breasts flop out. “There. That wasn’t so bad, now, was it?” You turn and quickly fix your bra, wishing it clasped at the back instead of the front like a normal bra. You and Robin speed away, then find a secluded ally to fix your shirt.

Finally home, you decide to check out some of the apps you didn’t bother with yesterday.

Social              

Excellent Good Decent Okay Poor Bad Terrible

Primary relationships: 

Robin The Orphan Robin wants to be your best friend.           Love: 100% Confidence: 0% Trauma: 0% Lust: 40%

You smile. It’s little different than the starting relationship in the actual game, but you’re slowly getting used to the inconsistencies. You’re about to look at the next box when your eyes are drawn back up to the pink text. Wait a minute, doesn’t that mean bad? You check the color chart to make sure.

But, why? Why is that bad? Isn’t it good? Or, is it because his confidence is low? Maybe the key word here is “wants”. Still, wouldn’t that count more as poor than bad? Whatever, no need to nitpick. You’ll check back in on it later. You move on.

…You almost move on. Why is his love so high? And his lust, too?! It’s gotta be a glitch, right? Right?

Right. You restart your phone and boot it back up. Nothing’s changed. You put that aside for now.

Whitney The Bully  Whitney wants to own you. Love: 50% Dominance: 50% Lust: 100%

Another different one. Also bad. Terrible, even. You aren’t even sure what to make of it. You just met him, and his lust is already maxed out. His love is also surprisingly high, though only half as much as Robin’s is. You make a mental note to sit in view of the teacher during math going forward.

Kylar The Loner Kylar is obsessed with you. Love: 100% Jealousy: 55% Lust: 90%

Another case of inexplicably high stats right off the bat, though you aren’t surprised with Kylar. You move on.

Sydney The Faithful ? Sydney is conflicted. Love: 77% Purity: 44% Lust: 66%

Okay, you’re pretty sure those are all just angel numbers. Or, supposed to be angel numbers. It’s kind of hard to do that with only two numbers. Though 666 is actually more of a demonic number, it still fits the theme. Aside from the strange percentages, you’re also concerned by the question mark next to ‘faithful’, not to mention the fact that his purity is already so low he’s conflicted. You haven’t even flirted with him yet!

You glance at the other named NPC’s. They’re all unremarkable, full of “has no strong opinion of you” aside from two.

Bailey The Caretaker Bailey doesn’t want you to leave. Love: 25% Lust: 99%

Leighton The Headmaster You’re Leighton’s favorite. Love: 10% Lust: 85%

Your stomach lurches. Gross. You are absolutely repressing that shit.

You check your reputation next.

-The police aren’t concerned with you, and have no evidence linking you to any crime. -The atmosphere in the orphanage is calm. -You are considered a normal student by teachers. -Your fellow students desire you.

You grimace at the last one. You make a mental note to buy a more concealing uniform.

Finally, you have your fame. This one should be normal, right? You’ve only just gotten here.

Sex: Unknown Prostitution: Unknown Rape: Obscure. Beastiality: Unknown Exhibitionism: Unknown Pregnancy: Unknown Combat: Obscure Kindness: Obscure Business: Unknown Socialite: Unknown Overall: Famous

What?! Famous?! How does that— Ugh, forget it. You keep reading.

The townsfolk call you Darling. Those in the criminal underworld call you Darling.

…?

What…what does that mean?

—————————

Next>

[nemisuki]

A Simple Click

Gamer AU | Finding an outlet to cure her boredom was desperately needed, so much so that she downloads a game full of magic and chibi characters. But what happens when she stumbles across a certain blonde spamming her to join his guild? She takes the offer of course! Gaining a new way to level up, make friends and perhaps even love. 

᧔o᧓ || katsuki bakugo x f!reader, no manga spoilers, no nsfw, online meeting, bakusquad involved, silly moments, slow-burn, 6.3k word count

The app ‘Wispy Guilds’ soon popped up on the computer's home screen with a ding! 

Y/N clicks on the icon and loads up the game, not aware of the future chaos she brought into her life. Perhaps it was fate that brought her and a certain blonde together. And it all started with a simple click. 

The program opens and Y/N is welcomed into the opening screen of the app. Faced with a pretty scenery of what looks to be a mythical oasis, different shades of greens and blue filling her screen. It looks to be a forest with a castle-like building in the middle of the area. Little chibi characters walk in and out of the place, majority dressed as wizards and others as knights. While others occasionally wear funny costumes or props. 

Y/N clicks on the bubble letters displayed in the bottom of the screen ‘Create Account’. She types in all her necessary information but pauses when she sees the username section. 

“Aw man you have to pay to get a custom username! This sucks..” she sighs with a hint of disappointment. Her eyes lock on the small dice icon and she mumbles a plea beneath her breath as she hovers the cursor over it. 

“Please nothing too bad” she says as she clicks the icon to generate a random username. Her eyes darted to look at the result…. ‘StarHae’. 

“Oh you've gotta be kidding me! But it could be worse I guess” she whines with a small pout on her face. With that now out of the way, she clicks continue and goes to the next page. The character customization page pops up and Y/N gets right on it. 

Unfortunately there's not much options since she's only level one but she tries picking the cutest options. With no access to the higher level equipment, she decides to put on a starter black cape accompanied with a common level sword. Due to the lack of unlocked accessories, she settles with that and then clicks ‘Finish & Join’. 

Her screen turns into a small loading scene that resembles a portal, almost like she's being transported into another world. Then a few seconds later she is in the game. Her small chibi character spawns in what seems to be in the center of a town. Other chibi players roaming around and visiting merchants or chatting with other people. 

Y/N clicks on the W key on her keyboard to move forward to explore. Her avatar shifts left and right as it explores the town square. This place seems to be the lobby where everyone is able to spawn in and purchase items or trade. She looks around at the other players and notices they're all higher levels from her, as to be expected of course. An occasional low level player here and there is seen roaming around as she walks around the shops, but few are seen.

A bright yellow arrow appears on top of her screen seemingly leading her to this npc character under ‘Quests’. She follows it, her small avatar running towards the yellow area that's lit up to grab her attention. A small tab appears in the middle of the screen once she steps close enough to the character. The npc is an older man with white hair and a beard, a small beginner cape on his avatar. Y/N clicks on the tab and a tutorial quest appears on her screen. 

“Lets see….. Kill five wolves in the hunting grounds” she mumbles out loud to herself. She doesn't have a choice to exit the tab, so this must be required. She accepts her first mission and a few seconds later, another yellow arrow appears to lead her to the different area. Her avatar runs to the yellow circle near the grand fountain in the middle of the town square. And soon a loading screen appears on her screen for a brief moment as her character gets teleported toward the hunting grounds, a forest more specifically. 

A health bar appears and a small tutorial plays to show her the mechanics of the game. She clicks to take out her sword and runs along the path of the forest. The game was surprisingly good quality, she was so engrossed in the beauty of the forest that she was caught off guard on the ambush. A gray wolf suddenly appears running towards her and the game pauses. Text boxes and pointers pop up to teach Y/N some attacks she can use against her first opponent. 

After a moment of reading, she follows the instructions and moves around to find a good angle, then charging at the wolf. It attempts to claw at her but she clicks the ‘block’ button as instructed and avoids taking damage. Then clicking ‘strike’ as the tutorial orders and continuing her attacks. 

Soon the wolf's health bar reaches zero and its injured body disappears with a poof! 

Y/N smiles and continues following the tutorial as follows, slowly learning and understanding how to attack these beasts. Eventually she strikes the last wolf in the area and confetti appears on her screen. She completed her first mission and she even leveled up! 

“Hm, this game isn't so bad! Maybe I should do a few more quests to level up” she says as she teleports herself back to the lobby and walks back to the quests section. Her eyes land on a castle button on the right side of her screen that's locked. Her cursor hovers over it and it states ‘Guild’. She's never heard of that term, but it unlocks at level 15 so she’ll see eventually. 

(੭˃ᴗ˂)੭ time skip a few hours⋆｡𖦹 °✩

“This game is addicting” she mumbles to herself as she stares at her new level above her avatar's head. 

Level 15!

She should be heading to bed right now… yeah she should call it a night. 

Just as she's about to click log out, she sees the server chat icon wiggle at each new message. Usually it does once in a while when some players request to trade but not this frequently. It's moving like crazy like it wants her to open it. The universe won so out of curiosity, she clicks to open it and sees some players spamming the chat.

A/N ||| I added the cuss words in between brackets so you all understand what Bakugo is originally typing. It's simply to help you know what the censored words are.  Ex : [curse words]  Anyways back to the story  ໒꒰ྀི ´๑  ̫๑`  ꒱ྀིა 

-Public Chat- 

Bakugo : someone join my guild.

Bakugo : cmon you extras I need one player.

Bakugo : oi you ##### [fucks]

Kirishima : bakugoooo don't be so rude and curse or you'll get banned again!

Bakugo : tch shush it, we just need one more extra to join so we can do the guild wars.

Kirishima : cmon man no one's gonna join if you ask like that! 

Bakugo : i shouldn't need 6 players max in my guild to do the war anyways

Bakugo : this is #### [shit]

Kirishima : hey bakubro come back! Don't be so mean!

-End of Public Chat- 

Y/N watches as the character with blonde hair and red eyes goes around to every high level person trying to force them to join his guild. He seems to be max level 100 and has the knight kit equipped, already giving her the impression that he is someone who prefers combat over healing or protecting. His chibi character runs around typing censored profanities to everyone who ignores or denies his request, it was a funny contrast.

A friend of his, a character with both red hair and eyes, follows him around apologizing to everyone for his friend's rudeness. He seems to be the nicer one of the two and clearly trying to calm the situation down. She could tell he equipped the animal shifter kit due to the red scales on his avatar, and like his friend he is a high level but of 95. Her curious mind wonders what animal he could turn into. Animal shifters are a rare kit and can transform into one animal with a lucky roll of the dice for it to be randomized. 

She doesn't have much more time to think as the blonde avatar starts moving over in the direction she is, near the quest station. His red haired friend trailing behind him like a puppy. Quickly she hides in the crowd of other players at the quests station, not wanting to be the blonde's next target. 

-Public Chat- 

Bakugo : one of you extras better join my guild

Kirishima : pretty please? We just need one member! 

Bakugo : all of these ####### [fuckers] are low level

Kirishima : Bakugo!

Kirishima : They are all new! Be nice! 

Bakugo : tch none can even join a clan anyways 

Bakugo : they are too low level

Kirishima : lets try a different server then?

Bakugo : tch we've been at this for a hour 

Bakugo : Oi someones high enough there

Bakugo : hey level 15 

Bakugo : join my guild. 

Kirishima : which one? 

Bakugo : that girl with the cape

Bakugo : hey you.

-End of Chat- 

Y/N reads the chat and whines under her breath, “I'm the highest level out of this small group of newbies… just my luck”. She tries to ignore them and moves her character to the side and walks to the fountain. Only to be followed by the chibi characters of the blonde and the red hair. 

“Damn they won't leave me alone…. But I don't even know what a guild is. I only just unlocked that feature” she mutters with a sigh as she runs around the map. The two characters follow her wherever she runs to. She could just leave but she IS curious about this whole guilds thing. So after much pestering by these two, specifically the blonde, she reluctantly types in chat. 

StarHae : no thank you..

Bakugo : so you do speak 

Bakugo : join my guild noob. 

Kirishima : Bakugo cmon! 

Kirishima : hi can i call u star :3

Y/N couldn't help but giggle at the dynamic between the two, finding it humorous that they're so different. They seem to be in the same guild, a symbol of an explosion above both of their heads confirms her thought. She reads the message from the red haired person and smiles, typing a response. 

StarHae : sure! hello kirishima :3

Kirishima : Just call me kiri! 

Bakugo : so you gonna join my guild or what 

StarHae : what is a guild? 

Bakugo : ugh just join and find out.

Kirishima : a guild is a team basically! 

Kirishima : we go on missions together and earn more prizes 

Kirishima : its better than playing solo and you level up faster!

Bakugo : just join my guild.

StarHae : um…

Kirishima : bakugo is the guild master and i'm his vice captain! 

Kirishima : please join us!

Kirishima : we need one more player so we can do the clan war 

StarHae : um…. whats a clan war? 

Bakugo : you have got to be kidding me.

Kirishima : ah basically all the guilds compete in challenges 

Kirishima : its sometimes quests but we fight with other guilds in matches sometimes

Kirishima : whoever wins gets 10k gold and rare items!!! 

Bakugo : tch this is taking forever 

Kirishima : bakugooo cmon have patience

Kirishima : if we get first then the guild gets popular and more people will join! 

Bakugo : tch we WILL win stupid. 

Kirishima : so will you join us star? 

Kirishima : you'll level up super quick with us! 

As Kirishima explains this all to her, Y/N thinks about this offer. It's not bad at all, and there seems to be advantages to being in a clan. Her level is so low compared to theirs, is it okay for her to just join them so easily? 

StarHae : are you sure you guys want me? 

StarHae : my level is only 15…

Bakugo : tch we know idiot just join or else

Kirishima : our clan has only 5 members 

Kirishima : and you need 6 minimum to participate! 

Kirishima : your level doesn't matter 

Kirishima : dont worry we will protect you!

Bakugo : speak for yourself shitty hair 

Bakugo : just click accept.

Kirishima : pretty please? 

Kirishima : we need a sixth member by today or registration closes!

Kirishima : star dont worry

Kirishima : we can teach you as we play :3 

Bakugo : -_-

After that explanation, a small tab opens on her screen, an invitation to join the guild ‘The Bakusquad’. Y/N looks as Kirishima runs around her avatar in circles trying to convince her, while Bakugo is busy spamming her mailbox with many invitations. She sighs in defeat, this was supposed to be just a calm game for her to play once a while but….. Click! 

Accepted Invitation : The Bakusquad

Y/N watches as the explosion guild emblem appears on her head, the three of them now having matching symbols. Kirishima's chibi avatar now jumping up and down in front of her, clearly happy. The guild button suddenly starts blinking in gold obviously wanting her to click on it. She does and sees she now has the option to teleport into the guilds HQ and have access to the guild chat room and quests. 

Bakugo : tch finally

Bakugo : ill sign us up for the guild war now

Kirishima : thank you star!

Kirishima : you totally saved us!!!!

Adam : can you guys leave now?!

Adam : your spamming the chat!!!! 

Elis : Yeah shush it!!!

Bakugo : HAHH 

Bakugo : FIGHT ME YOU EXTRAS

Kirishima : ah sorry guys ;( 

Y/N couldn't help but burst out laughing at the random messages and the way Kirishima's avatar was bowing in apologies to the random players. While Bakugo was spouting more profanities to the people who were typing in chat. At least this was entertaining, yet what has she gotten herself into….

✦ ⎯⎯ㅤִㅤ୭ ୨♡୧ ৎㅤִ  ⎯⎯ ✦

It's been around 2 weeks since Y/N has joined the guild and to her surprise she is having a blast. Unlike solo quests she can level up much quicker now, to prove it she’s currently level 40! Now she has the option to equip a kit which is very useful for the upcoming event, it unlocks new attacks and weapons available to use. 

“Hm… I think I want to be a mage. I'm not very good at close combat and no one in our guild is one yet. So I'll choose this! Plus I can help give my guild mates some boosts and protection spells!” she says happily with a smile as she makes her selection. She clicks on the mage option and squeals with excitement as she receives her new gear. An enchanted cloak with an adorable dress and boots. She even got a wizard hat and a wooden staff for her spells! 

Y/N didn't waste her money on outfits before, wanting to save it for the future. So this new look was certainly needed! Especially for this week.

It's gonna be the first time since the guild wars started that they'll be fighting another clan. Up til now they've just been completing clan quests like raiding dungeons. Soon it's gonna be her first fight against other players so she's more nervous than she expected. She doesn't want to let her new team down. 

Since she joined she has met all the other members of the guild. Kaminari, Sero and Mina! All of them are nice and often talk in the guild chat whenever they're online. Apparently they go to the same school and forced Bakugo to play with them. Hence why Bakugo is never online whenever clan stuff happens, only joining if 6 players are needed for a specific task. Then leaving right after whenever it finishes. He never turned on his mic either. He's a  complete mystery to her. 

The game offered voice chat for clan members so Y/N and the others often talk on there instead. At first she was hesitant, inserting herself into a new group that already knows each other. Yet she found herself enjoying her time in the presence of these people. She never thought this game would lead to new friends yet here they are. 

Soon the day of the first guild vs guild match came. 

Y/N starts up her computer and logs into the game, feeling a bit uneasy about the outcome of this match. If they lose then they won't be able to qualify for the next round. Thankfully she practiced with the rest of the guild beforehand to strengthen their teamwork skills. However not once has Bakugo joined them on their practice matches. She can only hope this won't cause a problem later on. 

She sees the other members already at HQ and chatting happily through the proximity voice chat they have activated. No nervousness at all detected in their tone. 

 “Ah Star you're here!” Kirishima says as his avatar runs over to her excitedly.

“Heyoooo, we're just waiting for Blasty to join in” Kaminari adds on with his usual hyper tone as he chases Sero around the table who shouts out a quick “Hey Star!” 

“There's my fellow gal! Was worried you wouldn't show up, girl! Thank you for not leaving me with these dummies” Mina says happily as she walks over to the group. 

“Sorry sorry but i'm here now” Y/N says softly with a smile to everyone as her eyes scan the guild room. And a few seconds later, Bakugos avatar teleports inside the room with fresh new battle gear. It looks both enchanted and incredibly rare. 

“Wow man! So this is what you've been doing while you were alone huh?” Sero says as everyone starts crowding around Bakugo to admire his armor. Bakugo says nothing back in voice chat as usual and simply types.

Bakugo : get away from me you damn extras

Bakugo : be ready

Bakugo : we start in 1 minute

Bakugo : don't die.

Everyone scrambles to equip their best armor and gear, it's complete chaos as everyone asks for extra supplies and potions. Y/N already was prepared beforehand so she calmly stands to the side and waits. She watches as Bakugos avatar approaches her and stands there almost observingly. Ah he hasn't joined in a while so he must've just now seen the new kit she equipped for the first time. 

Bakugo : You're a mage? 

Y/N reads the chat box and nervously types back, now seemingly too shy to speak through her mic. She hasn't spoken much to Bakugo in general but she wants to earn his approval. He's the guild master after all. But she can't help but to feel a bit intimidated by him.

StarHae : Yes I can offer support and do long distance attacks :3 

She watches as his avatar stares at her for a while, silently analyzing her new look and skills she presumes. It takes a while, so long that she wonders if he's gone AFK right in front of her after the message. Until she sees a short chat bubble appear in the corner. 

Bakugo : Good. 

A bright smile forms on her face at his message. Sure, it was short and blunt. But from Bakugo? She'll take this as a massive compliment. She watches as he quickly leaves her side to start the battle. From his message alone, she feels motivated to do her best. Hopefully they will. 

It was now time for the guild battle to start. Once Bakugo made sure everyone was prepared, all 6 of them got teleported in front of their castle HQ. The building seemingly teleported onto the battlefield in the middle of a forest. 

“Let's do this!” “Yeah, let's go!” “Just follow bakubro!” “On it!’ 

The group of 6 slowly walk through the woods, cautious of any potential traps or ambushes from the other guild. It's 3 rounds in total without a chance to respawn til a new round starts. 1 life each round. The other guild must be doing the same thing, sneaking around the forest trying to find us. 

“A forest huh” a deeper voice echoed through her headphones, so rough yet smooth that it made her jump a little. Huh? 

“Finally using voice chat huh Bakubro?” Kirishima responds eagerly as he chuckles at the end. You can basically hear the smile on his face from just his voice. 

“Tch shut it shitty hair. Can't type while we're fucking fighting against another guild” Bakugo responds with a small scoff. The others snicker through the mic making Bakugo grunt in response.

“Oi Star, get over here to the front” he says in a somewhat commanding tone. 

His voice…. It's the first time she's ever heard it. She didn't expect that at all. Its deep but nice to hear-

“Oi! Mage! You have ears don't you?” he huffs out seeming to already be annoyed. Ah so he DOES talk in the same way he types. Guess that answers the question she's had for weeks. 

“O-Oh! Yes yes! Sorry i'm going” she says quickly as her head shakes to stop her daydreaming. Her cheeks feel warm to the touch from embarrassment and she's forever thankful this game doesn't have a webcam feature. Or she might really die from shame. 

Her small character quickly runs to get behind Bakugo who's currently leading the group. His avatar looks back at her for a moment then forward again. Clearing leaves and making a path for the group. 

“So that's how you sound like huh” he mumbles almost incoherently through the mic. It makes her heart skip a beat oddly. God what's wrong with her. Getting flustered over a voice when she doesn't even know what he looks like. And what does he mean by that? 

“Oh yeah! You're rarely online so you've never properly had a conversation with Star huh?” Kaminari says as he skips along following the group. 

Bakugo simply grunts in acknowledgement, “Hey Mage. I don't know what training you've done with these extras but just stay out of my way okay? And get ready to use buff enhancement spells on me” he orders out to her.  

Sero sighs at his friend's snappy remark, “Don't mind him Star, he's always like that. Just do your best, we got your back”.  

“Mhm… I know… I'll try-” she says but quickly gets cut off when shots are fired towards the group from the other side of the forest. 

The rounds have begun. 

It didn't take a genius to predict the Bakusquad would easily take the first round. When Y/N watched Bakugo run into the open battlefield attacking with no mercy, she knew he was a force to be reckoned with. She was in a trance as he sent out orders to the rest of them, giving them better positioning to win this. He was amazing, too good. 

So much as when the second round approached, the other guild changed tactics and decided to focus solely on Bakugo. Sending all their attacks at him at once, to which Bakugo must've predicted as he yelled out to Y/N, “Defence spell!” 

“On it!” she says as the spell charges up and envelopes Bakugos character in a green force shield. Healing some minor damage taken as well, a nice bonus she learned a few days ago while training. 

With that everyone except Y/N runs out to take the enemies down at closer ranger. A full fledged group attack and an array of magic blending in the air, metal clashing against each other as well. She tries her best to heal her guildmates while hiding behind the rock, occasionally sending out spells to slow the other guilds movements down. 

Unfortunately she wasn't quick enough to cast a protective spell on Kirishima and Kaminari. Both of them disappearing with a poof as they were cut down by the enemies. Though they didn't die in vain as they took 2 down with them. Mina and Sero successfully took out their foes, winning their individual battles. 

2 PLAYERS REMAINING

Quickly her eyes roamed across the battlefield, the other enemy was currently fighting against Bakugo in a heated clash of swords. Sero and Mina were both low on HP but nonetheless started running towards him to help him out. The Bakusquad had the advantage of 2 extra players, this could be a clean sweep. However her confidence was short-lived as Y/N spotted someone in the air hovering above them. A wizard casting a spell as a large fireball started to form in the sky. This was no low level wizard, bad news. 

“Guys look out!” she says as she emerges from her spot and starts running towards them. Y/N is low on energy and she has no more berries to replenish her magic. Thinking about her options she makes a beeline to Bakugo, “Sorry you two just trust me on this!!!” 

She quickly clicks on her limited spell options, there's enough energy to cast one final spell. This might be a risky move but it's the best one in her opinion. Sero and Mina are both extremely low on HP while Bakugo has more. She quickly approaches Bakugo who got  knocked back by the other player. 

“Bakugo!” Y/N calls out as she runs behind him and holds onto his avatar with one arm while the other rests on his back.

“Oi! What are you doing?! I told you to not get in my way!” Bakugo yells out as the enemy he was fighting starts charging at the two. Y/N ignores him as she quickly puts a protective bubble around Bakugo, the attacker falling back as his sword hits the barrier. She focuses hard and gives any last bit of her energy to him knowing what's coming next, he'll need it. 

“You got this Bakugo! I believe in you!”

Before he could respond, the wizard from earlier shoots the fireball down onto the ground, with a large blast. As predicted Sero and Mina were eliminated by that large blast due to their previous low health. Y/N knew she didn't have enough magic left to protect more than one person, so she decided to put her trust in Bakugo. He was their guildmaster after all, and she knows that the others would have agreed with this decision instead. Her avatar in one swoop, dissolves into thin air from that explosion. 

The green shield she casted on him earlier dissolves immediately but leaves Bakugo unharmed from the attack. Without a second thought he rushed his previous opponent and cut him down. Easily making this a 1v1 with the wizard floating in the sky. 

He curses under his breath as he looks up at the wizard and then back at the spot where Y/N sacrificed herself. He ponders for a moment just frozen on the battlefield as the other guy starts zooming down on his broom.

“Now I'm pissed off” he mumbles to himself as he glares up at the last remaining enemy. 

It was an intense battle but he knew he needed to win. Bakugo doesn't take anything else but a perfect victory, and he refuses having to go to round 3. With this new motivation, he sends attack after attack towards the foe. Taking advantage of the energy Y/N gave to him before she was eliminated. Somehow, he managed to break the wizards broom with his moves, leaving the enemy completely defenseless. After losing his main way to escape, it was a solid victory for the blonde. 

Was anyone really shocked? 

After the victory was granted, the guild was teleported back into HQ. Everyone celebrated and cheered through their mics. But it seems like another person had a different thing in mind. Almost immediately, Bakugo walked straight to her once they respawned at base, not saying a single word to anyone else. 

“Don't pull that self sacrificing crap ever again ya got that?” he spats out as he approaches and stands in front of her. Kirishima quickly tries to deescalate the situation, “Hey man relax! Because of her we won-” 

“We would have won either way shitty hair so shut it” he huffs out pushing Kirishima's avatar out of the way. His avatar grabs her hand and pulls her to the side, away from everyone else. The others watch nervously and attempt to approach but Bakugos avatar turns back around causing them to stay. It was funny to see his chibi character look so scary, he might be the only person in the world that can do that. He looks back at her and sighs seemingly calmer than before. 

“Oi if you pull a stunt like that again i'll kill you myself. I don't enjoy watching my teammates die because of me ya hear me? I dont give a damn if it's just a game” he huffs out as he drops her arm. 

“Got it… sorry” she says shyly through the mic as she tries processing his words. A moment of silence passes between them until he speaks.

“....what's your name anyways?” he says with a softer tone almost as if he's aware of her nervousness. 

“Huh? It’s Star-” 

“Tch. No you idiot. I mean your real name.” 

“Oh…..” she can already feel her face grow hotter the more he speaks to her. Seriously, what's up with this? I guess she should tell him, she hasn't told the others yet either. She doesn't understand why she feels a bit self conscious now but she knows it's because of him, “...Y/N. It's Y/N.” 

“Y/N” he repeats back to her. Her name sounds oddly better whenever he says it. She likes it. She wants him to say it again. 

“Log onto the game at the same time tomorrow” he says as he takes off his expensive armor. 

“Huh? Why? Is there some sort of mission? 

“Because I said so. And don't tell the other extras. So you're gonna join or what?”

“Wait, why can't I tell anyone?” she says confused as she tilts her head. 

“Cause me and you are gonna train alone! You need to practice, don't need you to pull another stunt like you did today. So we're training tomorrow before the next battle” he groans at her slowness. 

“Just… me and you?” Y/N responds a little happier than normal, the idea makes her feel… special to just receive training from him. 

“Hah? Yeah didn't you just hear me! Now don't go blabbering to the other extras, it's a secret.” 

“Okay! I promise I'll join!” she quickly says with a smile. 

“Good. Now i'm logging off, wasted too much time today” he huffs and clicks some buttons about to disconnect. 

“Ah bye-” but before she could finish her sentence his character disappeared. 

Bakugo has disconnected. 

“That jerk! He totally left without saying bye!” Mina says as Y/N walks back over to the group. 

“Hey Star! What were you and Blasty talking about? We couldn't hear from all the way over here” Kaminari chimes in with a hint of curiosity. 

Y/N remembers her conversation with Bakugo and keeps her lips sealed, she was looking forward to tomorrow after all, “Um nothing! He was just telling me to not get in his way haha..” 

“Sheesh! Seriously, that guy is a hot head to the bone. Don't mind him Star, he was just embarrassed being saved by you of all people. Since you're new and all” Sero says while he snickers with Kirishima. 

“Well that should be it for today you guys! It's getting late, so we should log off. Good work today!” Kirishima says happily as they all say goodnight and eventually logging off. 

Y/N clicks the button on her computer, shutting it off as she stretches. She sighs and leans back in her chair. Smiling to herself about tonight. Maybe tomorrow she'll finally get to impress a certain blonde in the game.

(੭˃ᴗ˂)੭ time skip⋆｡𖦹 °✩

“That's 10 losses for you and none for me. You're worse at close combat then I thought” Bakugo huffs out as they have a break from training. Eating some berries to gain some of their energy back. Bakugo surprisingly has been using his mic lately which is something she's certainly not complaining about. They have been secretly training together for about a whole week now. Practicing together for hours each day. Yet she hasn't won to him once yet.

Way to go on impressing him y/n…. 

“I can't do it! I'm a mage, close attacks aren't my specialities” she says with a sigh at her failed attempts from earlier. 

“I've seen plenty of mages be good at close attacks. You just gotta try harder idiot” he says as he stands back up ready for another round of training. 

“I don’t know…” Y/N says not wanting to get up and add another inevitable loss to her name. She was embarrassed at him seeing her struggle so much, she just wants to crawl in a hole and never come out. 

“Y/N” he says through the mic in a rough yet soft tone. 

 ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

Her heart quickens at the sound once again. It's been like this ever since that day he first said her name.

“Y-Yeah Bakugo?” 

“Stand up and fight. No one in my guild is weak, ya got that? Tch cmon dumbass” Bakugo scoffs out as he walks over and picks her character up like a sack of potatoes. He leads them both towards the training grounds again, “If you lose then you try again. If you win you keep training. There's always room for improvement, so get that into your skull. No one is perfect.” 

“Even you Bakugo?” she says with a smile at his kind words hidden under his blunt way of speaking. Over time she's gotten used to him by now and knows he means no harm.

“Eh i'm almost there though” he huffs as he speaks in a serious yet cocky tone.

Something about the way he said that compared to his earlier words was amusing to her. He was cocky of course, yet he knew that even he had limits. She couldn't help but to burst out in laughter through her mic. Her stomach felt heavy from the laughs escaping her mouth

“Hahhhhhh?! What's so funny?! You picking a fight?!” 

“Sorry sorry! It's just that you're cute” she says in between giggles while putting a hand over her mouth to muffle her laughter. She didn't even realize what she said at the time, that her inner thoughts slipped out for a split moment. 

Silence was on his end of the mic while she was busy laughing. She calms down eventually when his character completely froze mid walk.

“Hm? Bakugo?”

“What did you…. Erm, actually I'm logging off for today!”

“Huh?! Why?” 

“Because I'm tired, you idiot! Now log off and get some rest!” 

A split of a second later his avatar disappeared, her character falling on the ground, no longer being held up by him. She blinks a few times at her screen confused then logs off as a result. Guess Bakugo got tired of training I suppose. 

After that incident, she noticed that Bakugo hadn't logged into the game for a whole week. Y/N asked around yet the Bakusquad didn't know why either. Apparently he was just busy and didn't have the time to join. She felt a bit disappointed whenever she joined and he wasn't around. Her eyes always scanned the room in hopes of seeing him. 

Until one day she logged in and there he was alone, fixing and adjusting his gear. Quickly she waddles her avatar over, “Bakugo there you are!” she says with a bright smile clearly happy. She sees the way he pauses then turns to look at her, just staring at her for a moment before…

Bakugo : Yeah im here. 

Huh? Why is he not talking… 

“Why… are you not talking with your mic?” she decides to ask hesitantly, the smile slowly dropping from her face. 

Bakugo : Cause

Bakugo : Don't wanna. 

Y/N nervously fidgets with her fingers as she reads the chat. He always used his mic now whenever they were alone. Did she perhaps do something wrong? So he's back to how he used to be? She doesn't like that…. 

“U-Um…..” she speaks before she can think. Her eyes shut as she says her next words, forever thankful no one is around. 

“....I wanna hear your voice… please” 

Silence. 

After no response she says it again in case he didn't hear her. 

“I missed your voice” 

It's quiet for a moment and she's too scared to open her eyes and see in case he responded in chat. That came out weird didn't it? God she's embarrassed. Maybe she should just log out-

“You're an odd one ya know that?” 

His voice echoes through her ears causing her eyes to snap open. Her whole body felt incredibly hot to the touch. He actually turned on his mic for her? He sounds…. less hostile than normal too. Softer. 

“I'm not the nicest guy. Why would you want me to talk in the first place” he scoffs out loud but she can hear the hesitance in his words. Like he wants her to answer him. 

“Because… I like the sound of your voice and talking to you makes me happy!” she says a bit too eager to please him. She mentally facepalms at her cheesy words. 

“Y-You….” he stumbles over his words like he's caught off guard at her boldness. He huffs and continues, “C'mon your level is still too low! Have you not been training while I was gone?! We have to train more!” 

His avatar starts walking to the training grounds with purpose expecting her to follow. 

“Oh okay!” she says as the smile returns to her face, excited to spend more time with him. As they exit HQ and walk together towards the forest, he speaks once more almost as soft as a whisper. 

“....I like it too” 

“Hm? Like what?” 

“Your voice.” 

He speeds up his walking pace so he's far ahead of her, leaving her behind in a complete daze. Was he embarrassed? 

Her hands rise up from the keyboard and cover her warm face as she processes what just happened. But her smile only grew wider. If she only knew how red faced the blonde was behind his monitor. Maybe joining this guild wasn't so bad after all.

✦ ⎯⎯⋆ ˚｡⋆ ୨ masterlist || taglist || intro || socials ୧⋆ ˚｡⋆⎯⎯ ✦

[misscammiedawn]

One thing I love about video games above all other mediums is the ability to immerse into the experience.

I once saw a post about Disco Elysium, a story that begins with a human disaster recovering from the bender of a lifetime. The game will let you indulge in all forms of drugs and there's no detriment in gameplay for it spare for the fact it can be noticed and observed by your in-game partner and negatively impact his opinion. The game has an addiction system that is entirely based on giving you a choice that seems attractive and letting you pick it.

I never interacted with the drugs in Disco Elysium. I wanted my Harry to be clean. The game does not praise me for this, mind. As far as the fiction is concerned Harry has been clean for 2 weeks maximum and has had relapses before. I made the entire experience more difficult for myself by denying stat upgrades because I wanted to play a version of the character who is trying to get better.

In Metal Gear Solid V, a game which does not in any way shape or form involve roleplaying mechanics, I have a Venom who starts off as Big Boss but over the course of the experience his (our IRL) skill ceiling forces him to start giving up the perfect stealth/no-kill facade. The game does not punish you for it (S-Ranks do not require No Kill or Perfect Stealth) and I am simply not a good enough player to get through A Quiet Exit without bursting out the rocket launcher.

In a game like Celeste, the narrative is about climbing an impossible mountain that weens a player in on the experience one screen at a time. It is the most forgiving video game I have ever played. It urges a player to keep trying. To take their time. Take as many tries as they like. What was once a level that took 40 deaths to get through becomes a level where I collect Golden Strawberries. The grind that Madeline makes becomes the grind that the player takes and you share the experience (doubly so if you play while on HRT. Triple if also going through therapy for DID).

It's one thing for the "Intended Experience" mingling with player experience. Sometimes a game that you can only interact with violence will call you out for only interacting via violence. But when a game pulls you in so heavily that you and the character are acting in unison and your decisions are made not for mechanical reasons, not because the game guides you down a path, not because it is the most effective way of playing? But because it is the experience that you are creating for yourself and it belongs to you and you alone?

Oh that's the sweet spot.

Our climb up Mount Celeste is as unique to me as our gender transition is. Our decision to reject the title of Big Boss and become Venom Snake was our own. Our refusal to dose as Harry was ours.

In essence it's no different than selecting the top route or the bottom route in a Sonic game. One is more difficult, one has access to a special stage, one is faster, one is an area we've not explored in a while, one has more rings... the list of variables is vast but they all contribute to a decision that is made in the moment and on the fly.

But gosh, when the choice is filtered through my in game avatar? Fuck it just hits right.

Edit: Wynn is upset I insinuated she did not have the skill to do pacifist runs in A Quiet Exit. Note this is a Dawn Post and should only reflect Dawn gameplay.

[the-bus-called-graveyard-8]

Madagascar in Nickelodeon Magazine (part 4 of 4)

This last part is some miscellaneous Madagascar content that has appeared in various issues of Nick Mag. I used to keep all my Nick Magazines in big binders so I could reread them, but some years ago I decided to finally get rid of them. I only kept a select few (the Madagascar ones, of course) but before I tossed the rest I flipped through five years' worth of issues looking for any scraps of Madagascar. I don't know which issues any of these bits and bobs are from, but here they are nonetheless!

First we have a prank DVD cover for an absurd mashup of several 2000s animated movies called "Flushed Through the Hedge in a Happy Car". One of the characters parodied is Alex the lion, and several aspects of Madagascar appear in film's description. Full transcript under the read more.

Front cover:

"Flushed Through the Hedge in a Happy Car"

A penguin, a taxi, one wild ride...

Starring Will Smith, Tom Hanks, Ellen DeGeneres, Wanda Sykes, and Luke Wilson

From the creators of "Charlotte's Open Barnyard"

Back cover:

A break-dancing New York City Penguin named Happy (Wanda Sykes) is accidentally shipped to a zoo in Mexico City. The homesick bird escapes and meets a hilariously sassy taxi named Turbo McCab (Will Smith), who offers to drive her home. Along the way, they get stuck in the woods during hunting season, freeze solid during an ice age, and visit an underground rodent city, where they pick up a tuxedo-wearing mouse named Wobbly (Tom Hanks). Just outside of New York City, Turbo gets a flat. A nerdy raccoon named AJ (Ellen DeGeneres) offers to take Happy over the hedge to find a spare.

Once in human territory, Happy becomes obsessed with Dancing in the Suburbs. Will Happy find happiness as a reality show star? Will her lion dance partner (Luke Wilson) ever learn his moves? Will Turbo ever get to race in the Madagascar 5000? Can penguins really talk? And who is paying for all of Turbo's parking tickets?

2-Disc DVD Collector's Edition

Bonus features include:

A step-by-step look at the 350-day process of creating convincing CGI fuzzy dice.

Deleted scenes that were cut because they stink real bad.

Voice talent farting into the microphone during recording.

Trailers for other penguin movies.

Director's commentary.

Director's dog's commentary

Rated P for Penguin

Digitally mastered for superior penguin cuteness

Next we have three ads I snipped out of different issues.

Top left: Madagascar video games

"Madagascar and the all new Madagascar: Operation Penguin

Go from the zoo to a place that's totally new

Rule the city and the jungle in two hit games based on the hit movie. In Madagascar, play as Alex, Marty, Gloria, and Melman in a wild adventure. Available on all video game consoles. In Madagascar: Operation Penguin, play as Private Penguin in madcap missions, available only on GameBoy Advance."

Bottom left: Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa video game

"Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa

For PS2, PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PC, and DS

Play as all the main characters—including the penguins—through the story of the Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa movie.

Tip: In the soccer match in the In Madagascar level in single-player mode, Mort the lemur can be a tough goalie. Raise the Power Meter to the 75 percent mark and you can kick the ball over Mort's head and score nearly every time.

Zelda the roving reporter: Do you have a license to drive that?"

Right: TPoM world premiere

"What's New on Nick

Penguins of Madagascar

The penguins are back, and this time, it's for their very own show! Catch the premiere immediately after the Kids' Choice Awards on Saturday, March 28. And check out the first-ever Penguins of Madagascar online game at nick.com."

Lastly, we have this crossover comic of the Penguins with Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender. I don't have the cutout of this, but I distinctly remember seeing it in the Gag Station of one issue's Comic Book section. I was able to find it online but unfortunately I don't know the artist.

And that's every time Madagascar was featured in Nickelodeon Magazine!

[my-current-obsession]

Something I both love AND hate about FF7 (the original game and everything after, including the Remake trilogy) is that it is just ambiguous and/or player-driven enough that no matter which side of the love triangle you fall on (assuming you do in fact ship Cloud with one of the girls), the majority of fans for that ship are 100% CONVINCED it's the correct/canon option.

Like, certain scenes are definitely up to interpretation, and people are going to thus have varying reads on those scenes and the characters/relationships the scenes are about. It doesn't help that several scenes change depending on the player's choices, which acts as a confirmation bias as you naturally get more time and romantic moments with the girl of your preference. It really seems to me that MOST people who ship Cloud and Aerith have one solid interpretation (with a plethora of supporting evidence) of the series and the romance, while most people who ship Cloud and Tifa have their own solid interpretation with plenty of evidence that is VASTLY DIFFERENT from the Clerith reading of the game.

This is not a case of "one ship is clearly, explicitly canon and fans of the opposition just like their pick better and/or think it made more sense narratively and WISH it was canon" - for an example of that, look to the Avatar the Last Airbender shipping wars. This is a case where both sides literally interpret the story just differently enough that they come to entirely different conclusions about which girl is Cloud's true love. And if either side reaches out to try and explain their viewpoint to the other, they're just met with "uh, no. You're wrong." Try and explain what Cloud might be thinking in a given scene with one of the girls, why he acts a certain way... "That's not it at all, where are you getting this? Are you delusional?"

Like, I am a Clerith shipper. I have played all the games in the compilation and watched Advent Children. I tried to be as completionist as possible, even. And I came out on the other side of really digging into the story of this game loving Cloud and Aerith's dynamic and pretty firmly convinced they were canon. Or as canon as possible in the timeline where she died.

As any Clerith fan who participates in the fandom would know, if you try and explain your interpretation of these characters and the romance to a diehard Cloti supporter... you're met with a lot of "you're misinterpreting! Cloud and Aerith were just friends! She loved Zack to the end and Cloud loved Tifa since childhood and never stopped! Also Aerith is actually BAD for Cloud because she's too pushy/abrasive. She's not helping him open up, she's just forcing him to go along with her and making him uncomfortable!"

All of this is of course infuriating, but I'd like to think I'm self-aware enough to know we are kind of guilty of the same thing. The majority of Tifa fans are SO happy about the kiss in Rebirth, while we're over here dismissing it because, one it's optional, and two Cloud is "obviously" using Tifa as a rebound or settling for her since Aerith is seemingly unavailable. But that's not how Cloti fans see it at all.

We can talk until we're blue in the face about how TIFA deserves better than Cloud because she shouldn't be the second choice - the one he settles for. But I think most people who really love Cloti genuinely don't see it that way. In their eyes, she's NOT second-best. Cloud loved her all along and this kiss is finally confirming that. And nothing we say will dissuade them, just as nothing they say will actually change OUR minds about Clerith.

It is honestly really difficult for me to try and see the story and romance the way Cloti fans do, but I know the reverse is also true. Both groups of fans interpret the characters and relationships differently. The compilation ALLOWS us to interpret them differently. And this is why the ship war for a game from 1997 is still raging on.

Because both camps are certain they're right, they defend their position viciously. Sometimes that means invading the "other side" to tell them how wrong they are. This discussion/rant was prompted by a Cloti fan on a Clerith vid who wanted to debate MY comment about how wonderful the ship was and how good they were for each other. He was "confused" and "concerned" because Clerith fans were reading the story wrong or warping it to suit our ship.

I wanted to tell him, "buddy that's what YOU'RE doing". I wanted to write a goddamn essay explaining why Clerith is canon actually. But considering in my INITIAL comment that he first responded to I'd already brought up why I thought Clerith was great, and he was IGNORING that... I knew it would be pointless. There is nothing I could possibly say that would change his mind. There is nothing he could possibly say that would change my mind.

As long as both sides of this war are fully convinced they're right, this war is going to be endless and brutal. And that's why my absolute biggest fear for part 3 is an open, ambiguous ending regarding the ships. Maybe it will canonize nothing. Maybe it will canonize BOTH by having the actual ending change depending on which girl the player favors.

Either route will offer no relief to this eternal battle. I would honestly prefer for Cloti to explicitly and unambiguously win than an ending where neither girl does. Because I can accept a loss. I can accept being told that actually I WAS interpreting the story wrong, but I'll only accept it from the text itself. If anything, a Cloti ending might encourage me to go through the entire compilation again trying to view it with that canon couple in mind. I'm sure I'd see things differently, even if I'd always have a place in my heart for Clerith. And I sincerely hope that if Clerith were to win that Cloti fans could do the same.

All I know is that I'm sick and tired of this ship war. I personally have never gone after Cloti fans or engaged in Cloti content with the intent to debate or hate on the ship. But I don't speak for all Cleriths. I'm sure at least a few fans of my ship are guilty too. I have seen many obnoxious Cloti fans invading our spaces to disparage us - mostly on YouTube and Twitch, less here on Tumblr - but I KNOW there are plenty of kind Cloti fans who just happily enjoy their ship and leave us to ours as well.

At the end of the day, regardless of how part 3 ends things, I just wish we could live in peace. Please enjoy your ship. Your interpretation of the text and romance is valid. But so is mine. If neither side can agree, then the best thing to do is leave each other alone.

[beelsnack]

Welcome back!

How about headcanons with some casual intimacy? Like demons guys of your choice just sitting on the floor for some reason and Mc just puts their legs over the boys shoulders? Just to chill and sit like that.

Sorry if it's confusing

No worries Nonnie, I got you!! I think I'm going to pick Levi, Belphie, and Mammon, mainly because I think they would be the most surprised by it.

-----

Mammon: It wasn't often that Mammon could be found concentrating so hard on something, even less so when the thing he was concentrating on wasn't money-related. But Levi had been ranting and raving about this new manga that came out, and the plot had been intriguing enough for Mammon to pick it up.

(Translation: Levi had left it on the couch in the living room and Mammon decided that meant he could read it.)

Usually the manga that Levi liked didn't have enough action to keep him entertained, but this particular murder mystery gripped him by the throat and before he knew it he was almost done with the first volume and contemplating asking Levi if he could borrow the second.

"Did Levi convince you to read that one too?"

Mammon felt a pair of arms wrap loosely around his shoulders before someone rested their chin against the crook of his neck. There was only one person with that much of a lack of self-preservation instinct.

"Jeez, human, you've got some nerve sneaking up on the Great Mammon like that!" Mammon huffed, twisting around in their grip to glare at them. It must not have had the heat in it that he wanted it to, because the human merely grinned and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"I didn't sneak up on you, you were so into the manga that you didn't notice me."

"Whatever," he grumbled, cheeks hot. "Most people would at least hesitate to hug one of the seven rulers of Hell without warning."

"Do you want me to stop?"

"I didn't say that!"

Levi: "If you hit me with that blue shell, I swear to - Levi!"

Leviathan cackled as the human's character spun out of control. "Out of my way, normie, I've got a Demario Kart race to win!"

"You suck!" the human whined, kicking at Levi's hip from where they sat sideways on the sofa next to him. "Enjoy your ill-gotten victory, you filthy cheater."

"It's not cheating if I use an item that the game gives you!"

"It's dirty!" Despite their harsh words, the human was grinning as they finally regained control of their car. "I hope you fall off of the track."

"Someone is a sore loser," Levi grinned.

"You haven't even won yet!"

They had been sitting with their legs folded for the better part of an hour, so the human desperately needed to stretch their legs. Instead of turning their body to sit with their feet on the floor like a normal person, they unfolded their legs and laid them directly in Levi's lap.

"Huh - wha - I - wh-wh-what are you doing?" Levi stammered, hands slipping off of the controller at the sudden invasion of his personal space.

"Stretching."

"Oh, and I'm playing dirty?" he grumbled, fumbling around until he finally got his hands back into the correct position on the controller. When he looked back at the screen, the human's character whizzed past him and over the finish line.

"That was cheap," Levi frowned.

"Womp womp."

Belphie: "Why is your sleep schedule so messed up?"

Belphegor had texted the human at 1:00 am with instructions to meet him outside because the stars were pretty and he wanted to stargaze with them. They never thought that the Avatar of Sloth would have sleep problems, but then again, he slept so much during the day that he was basically nocturnal.

"You could have said no," Belphie shrugged from where he was leaning against the wall of the garden.

"But then I don't get to spend any time with you because you nap the whole day," the human shot back, rubbing at their eyes groggily. "So you get sleepy human and you're gonna like it."

"Hm," he hummed. "I don't mind sleepy human, though. You're cute when you're sleepy."

The human mumbled something before shifting around. Belphie was about to ask them what they were doing before they rested their head in his lap.

"Can I help you?" he asked instead.

"Yes, by shutting up."

They kept their eyes closed, and Belphie was secretly glad because he could feel his cheeks getting hot. "Why?"

"You said you like sleepy human, so you're getting sleepy human."

"...Alright then," Belphie finally relented, bringing his hand down to idly stroke their hair. "I guess this is okay."

[illarian-rambling]

Hello! I heard you like DnD!

What has been your favorite campaign so far? My current friend group is completing a 5e WotC one, but I have also seen some great homebrews done. Do you prefer WotC campaigns, or homebrews? What were some memorable moments? ✨

Oh god, you've got me started, now I'm never gonna shut up >:)

So, I've played in four games and ran one, all homebrew, over the course of my time. My first campaign I was a life cleric with a pet goat that I saved from being a sacrifice. I didn't really know what I was doing, as it was my first game, but I had fun. My second game, I was a rogue snakeoil (and crack) salesman, which started the trend of all my characters selling drugs. Game three, I played an evangelist artificer and fell in love with the class. I adore robots, what can I say? In my current game (which is an original story, but in the planescape setting), I play a barb/fighter hazily struck out of time. She's up to three mystery voices in her head now, one being the sword of Kas, sells drugs via cranium rats, and was in a pro-wrestling tournament.

Probably one of my most memorable moments was perma-killing my artificer, Gillaria. To start, Gillaria was a bit of dunce. She was smart, yeah, but had balls wisdom and even worse charisma. She tried to fly into a portal to hell once on a wooden broom so she could take an energy reading. She got kidnapped in like three separate alleyways and gave her full, legal name to a devil. This is all to preface with the fact that this character didn't make the smartest choices.

The other thing about Gillaria was that she was a priest of Relhan, the setting's god of innovation. She and her two robot buddies, Anatolius and Aenira, would preach the word of this dying god on street corners, since the main temple to him had been destroyed. Usually, given that the highest charisma score between them was an 8, this ended up with tomatoes being thrown.

Anyways, though the campaign was supposed to go a little while longer, our dm got a new job, so we had to end early. The party decided that our last hurrah would be to raid the Golden Trident, a rival faction we'd been eyeing for some time.

One Gillaria project she wanted to get done before the end of the campaign as well was the squirrel laser. The construction of such a laser is as follows:

The druid Awakens 6 squirrels with their magic staff. The squirrels are now sentient.

Our warlock signs these squirrels onto warlock pacts. The squirrels can now cast the cantrip Bonfire.

Gillaria has a Decanter of Endless Water and the spell Magic Mouth

Infinite steam power has been achieved

We did the math and we would've been able to power a railgun with this set-up, so our dm decided, fuck it, campaign's almost over, they can have a death laser. It was decided it would be a DC 16 dex save against being zapped into ash.

Anyways, cut to us raiding the Golden Trident. Our level 10 warlock is being chased by an anctient dragon, our barbarian fell off the airship (We had a dragon ghost powered airship. Long story, also Gillaria's fault) and we're being chased by the enemy's airship.

Gillaria tells Anatolius, her steel defender with an intellect headband that she treats like a son, to point the laser at the enemy skyship, ready to fire once it warms up in four rounds. Gillaria then flies over to the enemy ship, hoping to disable its engines. However, like any good artificer, she's immediately enamored by the engines themselves. At this point, I the player forget I have a four round count down.

Yeah, you can see where this is going... The dm has me pick high or low on a d100 to see what part of the ship my laser hits, and I invariably pick wrong. And that is how Gillaria got blasted to ash by her own automaton, wielding her own laser, atop her own airship. Her final consolation was finding out that her god was not, in fact, dead and being reincarnated into his steel and steam avatar.

This is one of sooo many dumbass stories for this character, she was a piece of work. Thanks for asking though, I love talking about dnd! Feel free to share a story of your own or ask any questions :)

[larathia]

(brief BSD meta thought)

I remember back when FFVII was new, there was this whole fan outcry about Aerith's death. And there were fansites and things all over the place about secret codes to bring her back, or theories about how she wasn't Really dead. I mean it was a Big Deal. Aerith died, and she stayed dead the rest of the game.

While Cait Sith has this whole dramatic self sacrifice scene around the temple of the black materia. And then you get out of the temple, pick up the materia, and wha-hey, here's Cait 2.0 bouncing up to greet you!

And the game writers did this on purpose, or so they said. They were Commenting on the cheapness of video game death, or something like that. So Cait Sith's death and 2.0-ness was playing it up, while Aerith stayed rock solid cold because that drove home the seriousness of the situation.

And I think about this quite a bit when reading BSD of late. Because in the beginning it felt like death was a real danger. We were even kind of afraid for Dazai, drowning in the river. But by the end of the Muersault bit it's become utterly dismissable. "Yeah, I know. He's drowning in a room without an exit. Falling sixty stories in a steel trap. Shot in the head on camera. He'll be fine."

And now it's "Oh. Yeah, they've been chopped into mincemeat on camera. I'm sure it'll be okay. Just wait a few more chapters and we'll see how the trick is done."

That has to be a deliberate narrative choice. Asagiri's spent a hell of a lot of time cheapening death more and more over the course of the series, and I can't help but think that the fact the main macguffin of said series is a reality-rewriting book has a lot to do with this.

Like...over the course of the series...they've all become like Dazai. No matter what happens to them, death isn't going to happen. Like Dazai's just...ahead of this particular curve. (And, like Fyodor, he would be. Most of the cast don't want to die. They wouldn't push that line. But Dazai's been trying to die since he was fifteen and yet nothing. ever. works....)

What happens if you realize you're a main character in a story, and the author doesn't want to let you die?

And Atsushi is if anything the avatar of that kind of story. Didn't Yosano say it? "It's not regeneration. It's like the injury never happened in the first place." Atsushi's had that kind of Wile E Coyote immunity from the beginning. He's the protagonist. He has literal plot immunity.

What if...what if Fyodor's goal this entire time has been to render the story so ridiculous that it must be rewritten?

[andthekitchensinkao3]

First impressions on Dragon Age: Veilguard?

These are my first, basic, entirely subjective impressions after playing through the introduction and literally nothing else. Purely personal opinions: you don’t agree, that’s fine by me. Just move on.

But, a question for the friendly neighbourhood Veilguard fans out there: who should I romance first? :3

I really don’t like the character creator. It feels both too clunky and too nitpicky, and while I did like some of the character builds, most of them just made me go ‘...oh okay’ - here’s looking at you, Qunari avatars. I’d heard they were bad, but wooow. Somebody at EA Bioware really don’t love the Qunari.

In the end I picked the starter elf, changed his colouring a bit, upped the ear game because I find big-eared elves charming AF. Picked the ONLY hairstyle that didn’t look like my pale ass queen was engaging in some heavy duty cultural appropriation, or dragging it up Cher style. Which, you know. Valid. But not what I was going for.

Went through the motions of sex and gender - IMHO Larian and BG3 did this SO MUCH BETTER, although admittedly what didn’t they knock out of the park?

Went through the motions of changing my Inquisitor into a pale imitation of my lovely Qunari mage who spent half the game picking flowers, and the other half flirting up a storm with Dorian.

On the plus side, my Mournwatch He/Him non-binary Rook turned into the sassy queen I wanted him to be, but I didn’t think he’d end up as in-game, because I was so underwhelmed by the weirdly lit character creator. And glitter makeup? Really? We’re going as far away from the nitty gritty of DA: Origins as we can, huh?

But, again, let’s not even talk about trying to create a character in an acid green lighting. (Hello, Inquisitor. You’re looking jaundiced today.)

I like that they kept what I’ll lovingly refer to as the “Card Art”. I also love the backstory art, which reminded me a lot of DA:I. Coincidentally, the lore art etc was about the only design choice I loved in DA:I except for the architecture, clothing/armour and interior designs. I felt rather like everyone in DA:I suffered overly long philtrums, and as such looked like stiff upper lippers even when smiling. But. Alas.

I still want my stiff upper lipped DA:I Solas back. Who is this pretty boy Solas, and where can I get him exchanged for the original? Anyone? No?

Also, Varric, my dude. Where’s your himbo blonde tresses? What happened to you baby gurl?

I LOVED the dwarf default avatars. They looked cute and sexy and all kinds of gorgeous and fun. I found that sadly lacking in pretty much all the other default builds. Although Human Rook #1? Hot damn. Beautiful.

The Qunari, though? I want DA:2’s Qunari back, but like… if I have to pick between Veilguard and Inquisition, I’ll pick Inquisition any day. Heck, I’ll even pick Sten and his nonexistent horns over this! (I love Sten, I’m just feeling some kinda way right now)

Anyhoo.

So far, I’m having a lot of fun. No, I don’t agree with a lot of the design choices, but I felt the same way about DA:I to be fair, and I love that game.

I’m ready to send my sassy pretty boy Rook into all kinds of adventures and sticky situations, and hope the story and gameplay isn’t as horrendously cartoony as some of the trailers and reviewers have suggested.

[mitigatedchaos]

[ abilitiesconsideredunnatual ]

(what the fuck did you do to your avatar congrats I don't normally react to avatar changes that viscerally)

Both this and the original avatar are from the 2008 Thermal Wars TCG. The new avatar is from a rare lunar version from the OOPS! Lunar Coup expansion.

Each character card has three "classes" that represent their "natural interests." At the start of the game, after the objectives have been picked from the objectives deck, each player draws from their deck until they get four character cards, which constitute their initial coalition, which are placed face-up on the mat. They then pick one "ingroup" class from the characters in their starting coalition. (Each class has a few associated benefits and drawbacks not listed on the card.)

There is a second mechanic called "ideological tension" which is raised and lowered (most significantly by events from the events deck). When adding a new character card from the player's hand to the coalition, characters with at least one class in the ingroup add no ideological tension. Adding a character outside the ingroup adds one ideological tension for every class they don't share with an ingroup member.

Adding a variety of character types provides a more diverse array of abilities and resistances, but it increases the odds that either events or other players will push your ideological tension over 7, forcing characters out of your coalition (added to your discard pile), and allowing other players to take control of institutions. This encourages a style focused on ideological tension management.

Almost all the Neo-American Biomechanoid cards are good, but most of them outside of the OOPS! Lunar Coup expansion are colonials (space colonists), not lunars (lunar colonists). This can pose a problem for lunar-heavy decks, which tend to (ironically) be light on Neo-Americans. The lunar variants provide more flexibility with the choice of ingroup, providing an edge in tension-heavy game modes.

I recently received the rare variant, so I decided to update my avatar.

[randomnameless]

What are the odds of, 20 years from now, IS releasing a 3 Houses remake but with:

most of the “uwu” moments removed

Edelgard being constantly and explicitly portrayed as a villain with characters calling her out on her actions

Massively reduced recruitment options

deeper worldbuilding for Almyra and Adrestia

Claude explicitly adressing that Almyra's just as much at fault for it's bad relations with Fodlan as the other way around and swearing to work to get them to stop pillaging and taking child slaves

TWISTD not being so story-breakingly OP

CF not existing at all, or at least being rewritten from the ground up and being fully finished instead of a glorified reskin of another route

Dimitri's friends, especially Dedue, supporting him and being important for his character development instead of just Byleth

Byleth being fully-voiced and having a very clearly-defined personality and beliefs, being an Avatar only in the fact that the player can choose a different name for them but otherwise being a normal FE protagonist

Rhea's S-support being erased from existence, along with her getting new supports with her family and friends and more plot relevance post-timeskip

Sothis' S-support also being erased, especially if CF still exists, and having her be rewritten so that she only gets her memory back right before fusing with Byleth, apologizing to her children for leaving them alone again but refusing to let Byleth die, staying unambiguously dead for the rest of the game

I highly doubt any of this will ever happen, mind, but if it did, 3H might just jump multiple spots into being one of the best FE games lol

Oh, anon :(

I'm afraid this will never happen lol

FE16's main appeal is the uwu factor, you have to feel bad for Supreme Leader who is sekritly the red emperor, even if she does red emperor things.

That's the basis on which FE16 was built, a lot of parasocial pandering towards Supreme Leader, which will make the player feel "sad uwus" when they will have to fight her, always wondering if they couldn't have picked her route instead.

(I say "sad uwus" and not "feel bad", because Fates made the player feel bad, by having characters react to Corn's choice, and Corn, in turn, reaction to all the salt and shit thrown at their face, as the result of their actions).

And while we could think FE16 is also a story meant to challenge the players, and have them realise they're interacting with biased narrators so it's up to them to find the truth and make their own opinion about the world - imo this reading, while a thousand times more interesting than "uwu be sad uwu" is, imo, not the one the devs prioritized, hence the constant supply of Hresvelg Grey.

As I ultimately came to realise (when nopes was released lol), no Fodlan game can circle around and ignore the uwu factor. Uwuing about Earl Grey and always being a carpet to some lord characters is part of Fodlan's DNA - the faves will always take precedence over the world/lore's coherence.

Clout wonders about Fodlan's isolationism and if it has any relationship with Seiros's tenets? No one, not even Hilda, will tell him that Fodlan might not like its neighbours because said neighbours are always trying to invade them (as she could speak for Almyra). Leonie and Claude wonder if they will get some sort of retribution for saying out loudly they don't believe everything good in the world comes from Sothis... when the Alliance is later revealed to be a place where no one really gives a fuck about religion, and when no line, on-screen, has been thrown around that could justify their doubt and worries (not even a random NPC dissing people for being students in the officer's academy even if they are not particularly religious).

Supreme Leader is another can of tea lol, but you get the meaning.

This is also why, I believe, we will never get WoH meaningful content (and not Epi wanting to use the power of friendship to help his genociding fwends!) because we can't uwu about it -

Much like every story centered on the Lions (even if AM got the Parley scene...), a plot hax has to happen to make you forget everything about the red emperor emperoring because now she's a puppet and nothing has ever been her fault and what is even agency and accountability ?

So we got the general "good old academy days" that Engage tried to push, and the recent Heroes alts -to avoid talking about post TS Fodlan, because IS doesn't want to talk about post TS Fodlan.

I mean, if you're not in FE16 with the various "Rhea maybe BaD bcs Nader raids Fodlan every monday to show everyone how large his penis is" and unable to meaningfuly interact with that world, all the "Crust System + IdEaLs" nonsense just sound like Ashnard's battle convo, and while Almedha still seems to be fond of him, she's the only one on Tellius who still has positive feelings about Ashnard as a person.

Tl:Dr : Fodlan's DNA is "Supreme Leader uwu" + "Rhea BaD" + "don't ever question the characters and nod when they say something ridiculous".

If you remove even one of those core principles, FE16 crumbles, so at that point, it wouldn't be a remake that would be released, anon, but an entire AU to the game.

[alexissara]

Unicorn Overlord Demo - Quick Review

Unicorn Overlord is a game I was not interested in but given the demo was taking over my feed I decided fuck it I'll give it a shot like I did for the Project Triangle Strategy Demo. The presence of a dude main lord already is a massive turn off for me so I did go in with a negative feeling about the game and the game managed to not turn me around at all.

The story of this game is just bad, it's not good, it's not great, it's not good. We got no sense of conflict really, we get a fridge cool battle mom and then the good boy prince who is good and pure and perfect goes out to go fighting the bad evil emperor who took over the world. Turns out people betrayed his mom not because there was complicated politics or anything but because they were simply mind controlled. The game right away damsels another woman and then constantly fills it's plots with serious big boys. On my playthrough it took a long time for me to get any women at all to join my army outside of my starting character Chloe.

The game provides a choice system but the choices do not tell you what you get from either choice and the choices are simply "Do I murder this guy or do I let them live". It would really benefit from letting you know what it is your gaining on the gameplay side instead of having you go in without knowing as a means of trying to push or pull you in different directions.

These are paired with how boring Alian is as a protag. He is a proper good noble boy with proper good noble boy morals. You get to make choices for him but their either being a good boy who believes in people or being like a lawful guy who is still seen as good maybe more good who punishes enemies more often. He talks and has his own personality kinda outside of that but honestly he is so low impact he could have been a blank slate Persona protag who never speaks and it make no real difference. There was really no reason this character couldn't have been a selectable gender or customizable player avatar and kept basically all the work on the character already done, hell he is just ando enough you coulda just picked pronouns on him.

The other characters writing is not particularly exciting either the lesbian angel and her girlfriend are cute but they are no Aylain and Isobel even if they are functionally the same classes and similar dynamic they lack the passion and talent behind them. No one else really stood out to me, there were characters I thought were fine but no one felt stunning or particularly exciting.

Gameplay wise it's not super great it reminds me of so many better games. The RTS elements brought into an RPG make me think of Yugioh Falsebound Kingdom only idk for me it's less exciting. The maps so far are pretty boring lanes that don't get me to imagine a set piece very much with these wider war scaled battle it's painfully real of a setting for a plot that gives me no investment in the horrors of war, it's just fields and shit. There isn't a lot going on but also there is a skill system to dive into and honestly that seems like it's too in depth for me to give a shit about either since it wasn't really given the kind of slower introduction it should have been given to get used to adding skills and getting an idea of how that might improve a unit.

Overall, I guess it's fine but I really do not see what the hype is about. I'd play this game and probably do a full review if I was given a copy but mostly because I simply don't have other video games I'm looking forward to in the near future and I enjoy having something to passively do on my switch when I am feeling icky but I could also idk play my backlog or random gachas so idk. This could be a lot better.

[barilleon]

Actions Speak Louder: The Silent Protagonist

Sometime last year somebody published an article about how Mario has no characteristics. I got made and wrote this post on Silent Protagonists. I never published it, so welcome to the world premiere!

When we read or watch or tell stories, much of the action is driven by the characters, especially the main character. We watch them try, fail, grow, and succeed. We know them by their traits, and we love them by their flaws. Sometimes we project onto them. We relate to them, or we wish we could be them.

We know Bugs Bunny is a trickster because of how he constantly pulls the wool over the eyes of his adversaries. We know Jonathan Harker is clueless because it took much longer than is probably reasonable for him to realize Count Dracula wasn’t just a harmless weird guy. We know Captain America is sincere and stalwart because he puts everything into what he does and never compromises.

In video games, it can be tricky to write or pick up on the characteristics of a main character. The character is meant to be an avatar for the player, someone we can see ourselves in. Some games allow us to really customize our character. We decide how they look, what they wear, and what they say in response to NPCs. We have a lot of control in driving the traits of our character.

But even if we don’t have that control, even if they don’t speak, silent protagonists always have character traits. They’re defined by their actions—the actions you’re piloting—in the context of the world you’re playing in.

My favorite silent protagonist is Ness, from EarthBound. For a young kid, the journey across Eagleland and beyond was difficult, but Ness takes it anyway. When he gets homesick and wants to stop, he calls his mom and keeps going anyway.

When the journey requires him to put his soul into a robot and travel back in time with no guarantee of return, he does it anyway.

Ness is, in his own mother’s words, a “thoughtful, strong boy.” He keeps fighting for a better tomorrow, and he keeps going no matter how many times he gets his head handed to him. Even if it’s you pressing the continue button, in the structure of the game’s narrative, it’s Ness making the conscious choice to keep moving forward. Lots of silent protagonists share that trait.

Another good example of a silent protagonist is Red from the original Pokemon games: another young kid who embarks on a lofty adventure. We know that Red is capable of forming a strong bond with his Pokemon even at his young age, which means he's a very understanding and empathetic boy. We see him trespassing: pressing buttons he shouldn’t, invading hideouts he has no business being in. Red isn’t afraid to cause trouble for the right reasons.

We can also tell a lot about a silent protagonist by their surroundings, especially those they have control over. Red has video games and a computer in his room, which is a big deal for a kid living in the early 90s.

The best example of this, in my opinion, is Mario’s hotel room in Luigi’s Mansion 3. It’s a total mess: pizza left out with boxes strewn all over the floor, suitcase open and clothes hanging out. Mario’s a slob! And you can't blame the ghosts; not when all the other rooms are reasonably tidy.

Mario isn't exactly a "silent" protagonist. Charles Martinet voices his lines, which are usually a collection of "wahoo!"s and "yippee!"s. That's a look into Mario's personality as well, especially juxtaposed with other Nintendo heroes. This is fun for Mario. He enjoys this.

You don't hear Link yelling "wahoo!" when rolling around Hyrule Field.

[gautierprotectionsquad]

Reading an orv role swap au and it’s making me think about how i would imagine a role swap au. orv spoilers ahead but i did censor out the big stuff.

I think if dokja was a regressor, his path would be similar to gongja’s in suicide hunter. Dokja’s version of WOS will have dokja constantly dying to save his friends and starting over, not thinking about how his death in the previous rounds affect his companions and for that to come back to bite him.

My idea of a dokja WOS bad ending is most likely dokja committing suicide in some permanent way. That way he won;t regress and cause more aus with traumatized companions.

As for yjh being the sole gamer, first of all gaming is very different from reading. Gaming allows you to make choices and that character is essentially You.

In order to make a game that makes a distinction between You and The main character, it would have to have a lot of restrictions in game play. Esp since this is a regressor story with over 1800 lives lived, it means the game will force you to die over 1800 times without your input. Alternatively you can change wos’s plot a tad.

Instead of dying 1863 times exactly, you simply have the character remember every time they die in game and force the player to start over every time you die no matter your save point. Which would certainly explain away why there would only be 1 player. That sounds like an awful playing experience.

And why YJH is the only player is bc he is a perfectionist and a completionist so once he picked it up, he couldn’t put it down till he finished. Also, bc he’s intrigued. So even though yjh is not using the game for escapism, he’s still crazy enough to finish a game that is frustrating with a protagonist that insists on dying.

Then when the apocolypse happens and wos and yjh's world collide, he’ll end up helping dokja bc he spent years frustrated with dokja dying a lot and not being able to do much to prevent it that he can’t help but yell at him not to do stupid shit like he always did to his avatar.

Things start to break a part once you get near the end towards the big meta shit. So basically, it’ll be best to scrap that part of the world building. Yjh did not ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ (major orv spoiler), hsy did not ▇▇▇▇▇▇(major orv spoiler). That’s the hardest part for me to pass on in any orv au i imagine. Orv is just too intricately connected that removing or replacing a single piece fucks the whole thing up.

[l-1-z-a]

The Sims 2 - Eurogamer - 7-17-2003

Seven expansion packs later we get the sequel!

Updated on 17 Jul 2003

Like it or not, The Sims is the biggest selling PC game of all time by some margin. It's not a success, it's a bloody phenomenon, and each and every expansion pack gets snapped up faster than chocolate drops dangled over the jaws of a slavering canine.

The Sims 2, then. An excuse to sell you the same game all over again with shinier graphics or a lovingly created sequel that'll drag in the few unbelievers that are still not convinced it's the greatest game ever? A bit of both really.

Eh, when I were a lad, it were all C64s around here

When home videogaming was a very small lad indeed, Activision released a wonderful text/icon based decision-making game called Alter Ego on Commodore 64 disk. Basically you went from the first stages of consciousness in the womb right up to (potentially premature) death, and could be as sickly sweet nice or as much of an unhinged arsehole as you wanted to be and everything in between simply by choosing your response to a series of typical scenarios. It psychologically profiled your 'individual' and really was one of the most compelling videogames experiences ever.

Just like Alter Ego, The Sims 2 lets your computer-generated creations grow from babies to children to adults and then to old age, also developing emotionally, mentally and physically. Apparently your creations will respond according to given situations depending on choices you make during your formative years. EA calls these 'Life's Big Moments' and your 'Life Score' depends on how you negotiate your way through these situations.

Included is the rather splendid 'Create-A-Sim' feature, which, shockingly, lets you customise the facial features to an almost infinite degree. On show at Camp EA were a few examples of how flexible the system is, with the ability to tweak everything, including the size, shape and colour of the eyes, width and length of the nose, hairstyle, and so on. Just to prove the point a pre-made Mr. T clone showed off the potential to tailor your avatar exactly the way you want it.

My disturbing offspring

Rather disturbingly, players can see what their offspring might look like if matched with a particular individual - and with aliens among the basic races available you can conceivably have a family of green-faced afro-sporting offspring running around. Thanks to the sure to-be-hyped-to-death DNA feature, your offspring will not only resemble the parents physically, but also pick up character traits, so if your Sims are a bunch of low life slobs, don't be surprised if the sprogs can't be arsed to tidy up either.

Another key enhancement is the much improved house building tool, which allows players to construct abodes spanning as many as four floors, with curves for the first time and various new objects to deck out your palace/slum exactly the way you want it.

Visually, The Sims 2's engine is a revelation next to the severely ageing original, with vastly improved, detailed character models sporting a pleasing array of incidental animations and individual touches that make the game a far more compelling prospect. Aside from that, the background detail and general style of artwork made even the various stills dotted around the presentation area look like renders rather than mere screenshots.

Don't hit on me!

The Camp EA demo session itself showed off a few typical Sims scenarios, with four teenage Sims (two boys, two girls) of varying levels of attractiveness and social skills. While the ladies man Bernie could charm the pants off both the ladies with his 'flirt' social skill, the slobbish Marty had no chance, hamstrung by his comparatively primitive 'hit on' skill. Similarly, the ladies don't appreciate infidelity - as evidenced by Bernie's dalliance right in front of his previous target resulting in a display of waterworks.

Upstairs in the Jacuzzi, we got to see the same foursome sharing the hot tub Big Brother style, with various examples of how the game allows players to engage in progressively complex activities the more they engage with one another. One such event was the ability to engage in some mock synchronised swimming, while later the use of a gym showed off the ability to spruce up the physical appearance of your Sim, and potentially win the heart of that shallow bint you've had your heart set on.

With the game still some six to eight months away from release, it'll be some time before we get proper hands on with the next blockbusting episode in this ridiculously large selling series [and it'll be muggins here who 'gets' to do it, I'll wager -Tom]. By then, the current relatively high minimum spec of 32MB graphics card and PIII 700 shouldn't be considered too high, especially when you acknowledge just how many expansion packs this will undoubtedly spawn.

More more more

Until then, there's another expansion pack to wade through (Makin' Magic) and, of course the more structured console sequel, Bustin' Out. As soon as we get a sniff of playable code, we'll let you know everything there is to know about The Sims 2 and its mutant offspring.