#is this what it is like to be a star wars or resident evil fan

[thecryptidart1st]

I am so happy over the Tales From The Pizzaplex Books being canon

GGY my beloved<3

I’m glad that at least Steel Wool is using the canon of the book lines at least more consistantly than Scott did (and actually validating which ending we are on. The Sammy debate however will continue apparently ;A;)

Personally, I think the FNAF games should stand on their own without doing “homework” to understand the significance of the ending of a DLC story, but I’ve been in the fandom too long, I’m tired of theorizing, and I’m too stubborn to sit down and read ALL the FNAF books

And yet I’m still here analyzing every second of new content from Ruin and wearing every available Hot Topic FNAF t-shirt at work. If there are free PDFs available, I will try and fight my ADHD to read them

[tyrantisterror]

What's the worst legacy sequel you've ever seen? What, in your opinion, separates a good legacy sequel from a bad legacy sequel and what's the worst thing you think a legacy sequel can do?

The worst that I've seen is probably Rise of Skywalker. It's close competition, though - both Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Jurassic World: Dominion have moments that are significantly more stupid than anything in Rise of Sky Walker, but I also think both have a bit more creative effort put into them - Fallen Kingdom has that third act where it basically becomes a Resident Evil adaptation except with a murder-saurus in place of the Tyrant, and Dominion has the whole locust plotline which, while terrible, is at least an unexpected direction for a Jurassic Park sequel to go into that tries to figure out something ELSE you could do with the genetic engineering premise of the franchise beyond just making dinosaurs. Like, all three Jurassic World movies have big problems and they get progressively dumber with each installment, but they're also all ambitious to some degree that I still feel respect for, even if they never really actually reach those lofty aspirations.

Rise of Skywalker, on the other hand, has no ambitions at all. It has nothing it wants to say, no unique twists to pull, no real identity of its own. It's a potroast made of leftovers from better movies, a resuscitated corpse of something much more interesting, patched together like a Frankenstein's monster and abandoned to a cruel world just as callously.

It has no desire to do anything new, merely a checklist of Things You've Seen Before That the Focus Groups Say You'd Probably Like to See Again. Any character that can be slipped into an arc that was done in a previous Star Wars film is slipped into one no matter how little sense it makes for them, and any character who can't is either forced to tread water with nothing to do (hi Finn!) or just quietly shoved off to the side early on and forgotten about (hi Rose!).

Any story beats that weren't in the original films are simply grabbed from a box that reads "time tested cliches to keep your script moving with minimal effort." Make the plot a treasure hunt so we can just race from scene to scene with the flimsiest justification possible and try and trick the audience into thinking something is actually happening! What's that, audience interest is flagging? Quick, throw in a cameo of someone from an older movie! What's that, they're bored again? Pretend to kill one of the old characters, but make sure to reveal they actually lived in no more than two scenes down the line, or else we might piss off the fanboys! Hey, let's look at the Cinema Sins videos for the original movies and see if there's some gripes we can "fix" with this one for added fan cred! Can't disappoint our audience!

It's the story-telling equivalent of smothering something in salt to cover up the funky taste of the close-to-the-expiration-date ingredients.

As for what makes a good vs. a bad legacy sequel... ok, so, let's define legacy sequel first. A legacy sequel is a film or TV show that is a sequel to a popular film or TV series that ended a good many years ago, which brings back some of the old cast of characters (generally played by the same, and thus much older, actors that played them in the past) along with adding a new cast of characters played by younger actors. It tries to replicate the tone of the original series despite being made in a different era and probably by different writers and directors, and generally aims to give you that Ratatouille style moment of nostalgia.

I think most Legacy sequels are kind of doomed to be mediocre at best on the outset because the goal of them from the moment of conception is so mercenary - they're not created to Tell A Good Story, they're created to Keep Consumers Invested in a Lucrative Content Franchise. They have the artistic aspirations of a McDonald's Hamburger - "This tastes exactly like what you had as a kid, and doesn't that make you crave more of it?"

I don't think that art made for mercenary reasons is doomed to be bad, mind you - I mean, almost ALL movies and television were made to make money first and foremost. Even the classic High Art movies I love like Seven Samurai and The Third Man were made for mercenary reasons at the end of the line - it didn't stop the people who were working on them from having artistic goals, but it's a fact nonetheless.

But Legacy Sequels just have an uphill battle in the "artistic aspirations" department, because most people with artistic aspirations don't want to recreate the feeling someone else inspired with their art - they want to put their own stamp on it, their own spin, their own voice. And that will often mean something VERY different will be made, something that might piss of the fans - something that doesn't taste like the McDonald's hamburger you had as a kid, even though it came in the same wrapper.

The worst parts of Legacy Sequels are the only parts that Rise of Skywalker is made of - the parts where the story is clearly only trying to show you things you know, only trying to reheat the leftovers so they taste like your memories, only trying to trick the nostalgia center of your brain that you're four years old again eating at McDonald's. "Here's the thing you know! Here's the running gag you liked, repeated five more times by actors with far less enthusiasm! Here's the same basic premise as the first film, but the stakes have been inflated to make it feel like a progression! Cameos! Catch phrases! Eat your hamburger, you consumer pig!"

The rare good legacy sequels don't really TRY to be legacy sequels. They're just... sequels. Another story in the same world as the first, bringing back the characters who actually have interesting arcs left in them, creating new characters with their own shit going on who have good chemistry with the pre-established characters and setting, expanding on themes from the original and exploring parts of the setting that hadn't been explored yet, and all in all telling their own story that's related to the first one's but still manages to be its own distinct thing.

There are not many good legacy sequels, because a good legacy sequel is different than the McDonald's hamburger you ate when you were four, and might make less money than desired because of it.

[slushycoookie]

Kind of struggling right now so I wanted to try doing some editing commissions! I’ll be taking a fic you all want me to look at and help make sure it reads well, there’s no spelling errors, stuff like that.

WHAT I’LL EDIT:

Primarily fan-fics at the moment. That includes character/character, character/oc, character/reader. NSFW too! (Although, I will need your age if you want me to edit that). I’m very open!

WHAT I WON’T EDIT:

Weird stuff. Incest. Certain kinks. Super graphic fics (light gore is fine but don’t go crazy). If you’re not sure, don’t be afraid to reach out and ask.

FANDOMS I’ll EDIT FOR:

I’m very open to a lot of fandoms but just to not overwhelm myself, here’s the fandoms I’ll edit right now:

○Jujutsu Kaisen

○Baldur’s Gate 3

○Demon Slayer

○Resident Evil

○Star Wars

○Marvel (Mainly MCU, Marvel Animation and Sony! Marvel like Venom and SpiderVerse)

The list will update occasionally so just keep an eye out on it!

PRICES:

$5 for under 1000 words, +$2 more for NSFW

$10 for every 1000+ words, also +$2 more for NSFW

Payment will be through PayPal, upfront.

SLOTS:

I’ll be taking 3 slots to start and then add more once I get in the groove. Please note that it will take me about 3 - 5 days once I receive payment to work on your fic. I have a full-time job (sadly) and I’m also working on my own personal WIPs in between that. If something comes up, I will let you know!

3/3 slots available!

[kiigan]

KNOWING YOUR PARTNER WELL CAN POTENTIALLY MAKE WRITING TOGETHER A LOT EASIER.

REPOST DO NOT REBLOG !!

NAME: Theia

PRONOUNS : she/her or they/them

PREFERENCE OF COMMUNICATION : Discord please! It's faster and it's easier and it has a lot of extra functionalities for both chatting and roleplay. I don't mind the tumblr DMs but they are very unreliable and more than once I've experienced not being notified that somebody messaged me or vice-versa.

NAME OF MUSE(s) : Itachi, basically. However, on discord I've dabbed a bit at writing Kimimaro, Temari, and Rock Lee mostly for fun with friends. And I suppose I should mention I also write muses in other fandoms? Though the Naruto hyperfixation has been real as of late, but yeah, I also have muses in Star Wars, Fullmetal Alchemist, Resident Evil, and several Final Fantasy games.

BEST EXPERIENCE : I would say it's that moment you look at a reply from your partner and 1) you are in awe at their writing and portrayal and wondering how did you get so lucky to write with someone so talented, and 2) you can't wait to get to replying back, no matter how long the thread may be, and in fact you find yourself having so much fun with it and getting so engaged that you easily write back twice as much.

RP PET PEEVES / DEALBREAKERS : Uhhh I would say it's probably to feel that my partner isn't as invested as I am. For example, if we agree to plot but I'm the only one suggesting ideas and coming up with scenarios, and all I get back is short replies or something generic like "I'm okay with anything". Or if we have a ship together (doesn't even have to be a romantic ship) and I'm the only one coming up with headcanons and sharing stuff that reminds me of our muses. By all means, we don't need to talk/ plot/ roleplay every single day! I get very busy myself and sometimes go radio silent. And, as someone who's autistic, trust me that I know very well the feeling of being socially awkward. But roleplay is a partnership and requires mutual investment. If I start feeling like I'm the only one excited about our muses and plots, that's gonna make me feel like I'm annoying you and, in turn, that's gonna be the fastest way to make me withdraw from it.

MUSE PREFERENCES: I have recently confirmed that my muse type is Tall and Handsome and Full of Trauma, and occasionally also full of eye gore. But also I am very drawn to "accidental" heroes, heroes that are heroes not out of a prophecy but because, within their limitations, they choose to do what is right and what is needed. And I am also very drawn to big brother figures?? A lot of my muses seem to end up adopting orphans and/or raising other people's children lmao.

PLOTS OR MEMES : I prefer plotting because, from my self-experience, non-plotted interactions get dropped far too easily (either by myself or by my rp partners). That said, I am also a big fan of letting the muses talk and choose what they want, even if it may go against something previously plotted. And I don't think this is incompatible with memes? I do love memes and they are super good for breaking the ice between people who never wrote together! And also super good to provide new scenarios with which to plot and develop upon.

LONG OR SHORT REPLIES : I have the tendency to write a lot, so I'd say long replies? Which doesn't mean I'm not interested in short ones! Especially because, sometimes, my brain is too mush to handle the long stuff so it's nice to have short ones to get some writing done. I just find it that, with muses like Itachi who rely heavily on introspection, it really is easy for me to get into it and write a lot more than originally planned.

BEST TIME TO WRITE : Whenever my brain is not dead from work, I guess. As of late, it's been a lot easier for me to write during weekends for this reason. I care a lot about my replies and I don't like to give back half-assed stuff, so really the best time is whenever I can sit down, relax, blast some music, and get to writing.

ARE YOU LIKE YOUR MUSE(S) : I am definitely a nerd like Tachi and his perfectionism + obsessiveness come from my own. We are also both introverts and we both often occasionally have... trouble to keep a normal conversation going lol. And, honestly, we are both idealists.

tagged by: @fightaers & @fighterbound ♡ tagging: if you're reading this you're tagged by default~

[willgrahamscock]

pspspspsps what kind of vidya games do u play

I really like the last of us, horizon forbidden west, layers of fear, little nightmares, subnautica, star wars: fallen order, god of war, resident evil (all), hades, dragon age, tomb raider

I'm a big fan of horror as you can see :)

[stop-spreading-this-poll]

Active Polls

Upcoming polls:

Not always like that: Persona vs DC

Hate Allegations: Resident Evil vs Supernatural

Overpowered: Civilization vs Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

You made that up: Undertale vs Star Wars

Poll Results:

Ages: Ninjago vs Spider-Man Across the Spiderverse

Parent Theory: Portal vs Phineas and Ferb

Stupidity: The Locked Tomb vs Percy Jackson

Canonically Trans: Bob's Burgers vs A3!

Evil: 2001 A Space Odyssey vs Portal

Inspiration - My Chemical Romance: Twilight vs Fall Out Boy

This is a child :) : Invader Zim vs Touhou

Not what it's called! : Danganronpa vs Digimon

Canon Last Names: Vocaloid vs Devil May Cry

Creator Changed It: Jojo's Bizarre Adventure vs Tokyo Ghoul

Siblings: Pokémon Mystery Dungeon vs The Owl House

Same Character: Deltarune vs Pokémon Legends Arceus

Yandere/Stalker: Miraculous Ladybug vs Danganronpa

Original/Real Name: Genshin Impact vs Fullmetal Alchemist

Edit Hoax: DC vs Super Mario Bros

Siblings Pt.2: Danganronpa vs Invader Zim

Dark. So dark: Thomas the Tank Engine vs Phineas and Ferb

Spoiled: FNaF vs Warrior Cats

Not Deliberately/Willingly: Warrior Cats vs Mo Dao Zu Shi

Canon Ship: Supernatural vs Vanitas no Carte

This Design was the Original/Fake Leak: Death Note vs Suite PreCure

Quote: Sherlock Holmes vs Fullmetal Alchemist

Mom: Teen Wolf vs Invader Zim

This Character exists: Keeper of the Lost Cities vs Undertale

Teenager: Chainsaw Man vs Pokémon

Dead/Killed: Rhythm Games vs Plants vs Zombies

Women am I right: Red Dead Redemption 2 vs Ninjago

Promo Misconception: Twisted Wonderland vs Free!

****philia Accusation: Cookie Run vs Mobile Suit Gundam

So much over a mistranslation: One Piece vs Ace Attorney

Identity: Shin Megami Tensei vs Sailor Moon

Bad: Phineas and Ferb vs Teen Wolf

True Self: Miraculous Ladybug vs Danganronpa

Dumb: Touhou vs Don't Hug Me I'm Scared

Connected: Yugioh 5d's vs Undertale

Swearing: Homestuck vs Bungo Stray Dogs

Lesbian: Enola Holmes vs Mob Psycho 100

ADHD: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs The Owl House

Stats: Pokémon SGC vs Undertale

Portrayed by Fans: Dimension 20 Fantasy High vs Miraculous Ladybug

The Creator said... : Ace Attorney vs One Piece

Same/Different Universe: Star Trek Discovery vs Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

My poor misunderstood baby: Disco Elysium vs Helluva Boss

Just A Joke: Animaniacs vs Sesame Street

Ages Pt.2: Tangled the Series vs Sonic the Hedgehog

Relationships: Naruto vs Marvel's Avengers

Making Things Up?: Persona 5 vs Project Sekai

Worked on it: Monster Allergy vs Sonic the Hedgehog

Intelligence/Grades: DC vs H*rry P*tt*r

I decide their gender :): Bungo Stray Dogs vs Undertale/Deltarune

Doesn't Happen Because... : Total Drama vs Avatar the Last Airbender

Not in the Bible: Bible vs Pokémon

Cut Content: Persona 5 vs Portal

Not at Face Value: Persona vs Persona

Evil Pt. 2 Deltarune vs Undertale

Reading Too Much Into It: Haikyu vs Star Fox

He knows: Star Wars vs Undertale

Naming schemes: Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go vs Splatoon

Good/Enjoyable: Scott the Woz vs Homestuck

Abusive/Horrible Person: Epithet Erased vs Resident Evil 8

Literally: Supernatural vs Persona

Debunked. Multiple Times: Monster Hunter vs Five Nights at Freddy's

Credit: Vocal Synths vs Lilo and Stitch

Canon character misinterpretation?: Green Arrow vs DC

Something Something: Final Fantasy 14 vs Homestuck

Game Myths: Team Fortress 2 vs Geneforge

Headcanon not canon: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles vs My Hero Academia

Canonically gay: Pirates of the Caribbean vs Mob Psycho 100

Relationships Pt 2: Danganronpa vs Fairy Tail

They were the reason they went: Total Drama vs Danganronpa

What's canon: Gravity Falls vs The Henry Stickmin Collection

It's not that deep: Jojo's Bizarre Adventure vs Half Life

Intelligence: Resident Evil vs Bungo Stray Dogs

This is an assumption: Silent Hill vs Undertale

Either one or the other: Durarara!! vs Warrior Cats

One/Two dimensional: God of War vs Gravity Falls

Lesbian: Worm/Parahumans vs Portal

Relationship stuff: The Addams Family vs Gravity Falls

Family: DSMP vs Sonic

Void: Kirby vs Hermitcraft

Backstory: Pokémon vs Resident Evil

Crimes: The Band Ghost vs Scum Villain's Self-Saving System

Shooting and Taking: Person of Interest vs Star Wars

Stop saying this: Ghost Stories vs Madoka Magica

[varpusvaras]

Fic writer asks, 1, 5, and 23 <333

What was the first fandom you wrote for and what fandom(s) are you currently writing for?

My first published fics were for....Hetalia (it was 2010, I was 13, okay? Nobody judge me), though I had been writing just for myself even before that on FMA and Transformers, for example. Probably for others that I don't remember (fun fact, I met my wife because we both wrote Hetalia fics and I was a really really big fan of hers lmao, playing the long game here). Currently I am writing mainly for Star Wars, though I'd like to at some point get back to also writing my Resident Evil fic that I have on hiatus...sorry for everybody who read that

5. What fic of yours is your favorite?

Oh this is a bit difficult, for I like my fics for very different reasons. I think my favorites on AO3 are You say jump, I ask how high and And I'll be here even when I'm gone, the first one for being really funny even to myself and the second one just has my favorite prose I've written in a while (also they're on the exact opposite ends of the emotions spectrum haha)

23. Favorite au?

Oh this is even more difficult. I like all of my fix-it au's in general because I like to live in denial, but I do also love my Post Order 66 AU. Right now though, if I had to pick one, it's the Leia time travel AU!

[multicolour-ink]

I- don't know why a Star Wars AU never occurred to me as a massive fan! I come to your inbox as a Resident SW Nerd™ to absolutely info dump about George's six films. For your AU, how it'd play out would really depend on what part of the timeline you're going for. If it's during the Original Trilogy (Episodes 4-6), the Jedi are all dead and gone save for Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Luke was sent to live with his aunt and uncle, and Leia was sent to the Organas. Both were meant to stay hidden from their father, Anakin, who became Darth Vader. They were deemed the last hopes for the galaxy to be re-balanced and so had to grow up in hiding. Heck, Obi-Wan and Yoda both had to keep exceedingly low profile to avoid the Empire catching on. I'd argue Obi-Wan never would've taught Luke anything had he not gotten Leia's message from R2-D2, begging him for help. That message set fate into motion. I'm sure mentally, Obi-Wan was going 'Heavens, not again.' Poor guy couldn't escape Skywalker Antics til the day he died. Literally.

Now, if you set this idea in the Prequel Trilogy era (Episodes 1-3) or before it, then the gates are kinda wide open in terms of what you can do??? During the prequels, the biggest thing going on in the galaxy is the Clone War. It's a massive-scale thing, encompassing pretty much all of known space, and it was all put into motion by Darth Sidious/Chancellor Palpatine. He did it to create the Galactic Empire, to be Emperor and hold all the power for himself. By this point, the Jedi have been sucked into fighting in the Clone War when they're meant only to be peacekeepers. They lose their way. They become hypocritical and jaded as a whole. And from the moment Qui-Gon Jinn brings Anakin to them, they act like total jerks. He's too old to be trained, they say. He's too attached to his mother, they say. And then when he's the most powerful Jedi they have, they're threatened by him. And yet they don't allow him to form attachments and love in healthy ways, they don't counsel him when he needs it most in ways that could've helped him. They only tell him what he shouldn't and can't do, or how it's wrong to think/do X, Y, Z. They're harsh and inflexible. Had Qui-Gon lived, he probably would've turned out alright. But he didn't, and it fell to Obi-Wan to train him. Obi-Wan was a pretty by-the-books sort of fellow, and so didn't really know how to guide Anakin in ways he needed. If we roll back further still, the Jedi often tried to do something about people they felt were threats to themselves within their own organization. In Knights of the Old Republic, for example, you play as a character you come to learn was power nerfed AND memory-wiped because you were once a Jedi and became a Sith. It's been ages, so I forget if there's dialogue options to react positively and negatively to that fact. I think there was though. For sure you can choose to stay with the light or go right back to being evil. Anyways, I can't say it's out of the realm of possibility that the Jedi would cast infants into exile or otherwise try to stifle their power if they had an alarming potential of being threats in the future. The foremost way Jedi would determine such a thing in the first place would be if one of their own was especially good at precognition. Almost like a fortune-teller, or clairvoyant of sorts? Basically whoever can see into the future and be pretty much always on the money. Of course- the future is ever-shifting, hard to really see with certainty. Often, if and when the Jedi try to stop something from happening by any means necessary, it happens. The Order did everything to try and make sure Anakin didn't become Sith, but he did. Anakin tried way too hard to keep Padmé alive, she died because of him. Stuff like that.

ANYWAYS THAT'S SOME SEMI LIGHT READING AND KNOWLEDGE ON STAR WARS I'M GLAD I GOT TO SHARE ALL OF THAT WITH YOU.

Star Wars AU

Thank you for that info dump, @timid-plumber . It's always nice to have one with actual knowledge on Star Wars contribute to the AU, considering I only know the barebones of it 🤭

Note: TW for death during childbirth

For the AU, Pio and Mia's story takes place in the time set in the prequel trilogy, while the events with the bros happen during the original trilogy. Sure there are some roles that are different from the source material, but I argue that does make the AU its own thing somewhat.

For example: my idea of the AU was that (during Pio and Mia's story) the Koopas are ever more on the rise with the help of their powerful King, Bowser's father. During these early days, King Koopa Sr is training his very young son how to rule when he takes over, which of course means the Jedi want to stop them as soon as possible before this happens.

Long story short, it all fails. I don't have the necessary details figured out, but I imagine that at some point, Pio and King Koopa Sr battle it out, and Koopa Sr and Pio are killed in the struggle. Leaving Bowser an orphan and taken away by Kamek and the Toadies for his safety. Meanwhile, a heavily pregnant Mia hears of her husband's death, and attempts to flee the base they are on, before it's attacked by the koopa army. During the escape, Mia is gravely injured, then goes into labour not long after. She safely delivers two healthy baby boys, but succumbs to her injuries and dies, leaving her children orphans as well.

The Jedi at this point know that the koopas will be looking for these two, plus one of the Jedi wizards, Merlon (who let's just say is the Yoda and/or Obi Wan in this AU) can sense that there is great force power with these twins. Knowing the koopas don't know there's twins, the decision is made to split them up, in order to lower the chances of the koopas finding them.

[mk-wizard]

Top 10 Media that would benefit from spinoffs

After doing my last article, it got me thinking about specific lore I didn't put on the list because most of it is good the way it is, BUT that doesn't mean the lore should not be expanded. Note that there is a difference between a spinoff and a prequel or sequel. A spinoff is a story that takes place in the same universe as the main story of a media, but it is independent from the main story. It is it's own thing with its own unique set of characters with their own arc kind of like Star Wars Rebels, The Bad Batch, Family Matters, Picard and the video game Alien Isolation. Sometimes, they can happen before, during or after the main story, but they are still independent from it. The great thing about them also is that they keep lore alive without breaking it (most of the time) and even if they fail, it's no big deal because the main story still remains intact.

Note that there are spoilers ahead and I will not count media that already has spinoffs like Resident Evil, Jurassic Park, Robocop, Terminator, The Walking Dead, Star Wars, most Marvel media and anything else that has side stories. Anyway, onto the list.

1- The Brendan Fraser Mummy featuring anyone BUT the O'Connell's - I think the third film should be retconned and reinvented as a spinoff. In fact, I could think of so many spinoff ideas for this series because there are so many mummies to unearth out there and they don't even have to come from Egypt which is pretty cool. While I think the O'Connell family's finished after the second film, you can still do things with Jonathan Carnahan (Evelyn O'Connell's brother), the Medjai or just use new characters entirely. Plus, you can still do it now. I say we go for it! By the way, I know people think the Scorpion King is a spinoff series, but actually, it is a prequel at best and it failed because it had no mummies. And yes, that matters. The franchise is literally called "The Mummy", so it needs to have a mummy.

2- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air featuring Hilary and Ashley Banks - I think this series could have benefitted from a spinoff featuring the secondary characters. Specifically, Hilary and Ashley who went on to become roommates in the last episode. The Banks sisters are very underrated as characters as is their dynamic because those few times we did see the two of them together, they played well off each other. Plus, in times where Ashley really needed her, Hilary was a good big sister. I think a spinoff sitcom featuring Hilary and Ashley's new life together while also building up their lives as grown women would have been great to see and maybe, we can still see how it all worked out.

3- Sailor Moon spinoff featuring Sailor Chibi Moon - I love Sailor Moon, but while I am one of those fans who believe it should have ended with season 3, that doesn't mean the lore should have ended altogether there. I think they had the right idea about making stories where Chibiusa was the focus, but they should have taken the plunge even deeper. I think Sailor Chibi Moon should get her own spinoff series where she is saving the Earth while standing on her own two feet without being in her mother's shadow. I would even age her up a little. Now, hear me out. This is NOT a sequel series, but a spinoff still because it is not featuring the main original cast. This is a secondary character with her own team. It is a new Sailor Moon and a new story which I think still has potential.

4- Lord of the Rings spinoff exploring the stories of the secondary and tertiary characters and more - Ok, Rings of Power was a dud, but the idea of exploring the stories in this lore is not a bad idea. Did you know that there are entire areas in Middle Earth that mirror Asia, Africa and more? I would love to see a spinoff that explores what was going on in those parts of the world or seeing the tragic story of what happened to the dwarves in the Mines of Moria kind of like how Star Wars did Rogue One. Or a spinoff series telling the story of Gollum and his descent into villainy. With the right team and creators, you can make the LotR lore into a much bigger world.

5- Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs spinoff featuring only the Dwarfs - Disney was onto something when it gave Aladdin and the Little Mermaid their own spinoff TV series that explored the lore and worlds afterwards. To be honest, I think they should do the same thing with the dwarves of Snow White. After all, the dwarves themselves are heroic, entertaining and beloved by fans. Plus, considering that the story is German, it would be very interesting to make use of German lore. It could be fun and great for kids while also appealing to adults. I mean, look at how great the spinoff media featuring Tinkerbell and the fairies was.

6- Dead Island spinoff featuring side stories - Like Resident Evil, Silent Hill and many other horror genre games, this franchise would have benefitted from having spinoff media because it did have the good bones to make some. In a zombie outbreak, you can make so many stories featuring random people trying to survive. The only condition here is that it has to happen on an island which within itself is doable because there are many tropical islands. Or perhaps an artificial island like a rig or a secret one with labs. This is one of the greatest franchises and the most it has is one DLC and a franchise we waited too long for. It deserves more.

7- Dying Light spinoff featuring original side pieces - Like Dead Island, this game had many stories happening in the background, but we didn't get to see them. Also, it only has a DLC and a single sequel. I would love to see more side stories that fill in missing gaps and feature fan favourite secondary characters. Or even new characters we can relate to.

8- King of the Hill spinoff featuring Luanne's family - King of the Hill is one of the best animated sitcoms that was adult without being dark or mean spirited yet at the same time, funny without being silly or over the top. It also had an amazing cast of characters that grew into their own namely Luanne who eventually married and had a child. Her story is compelling enough as it is as she went from coming from a broken home with abuse, alcoholism and worse, to creating a loving family of her own. She's a survivor who came out on the other side without being broken thanks to extended family. Speaking of which, I admit it would not be the same without the original voice actress (rest her soul), but the character herself is relevant especially because in many ways, Luanne mirrors Hank. I think she and her family would be awesome to see in their own warm hearted and funny sitcom.

9- Team Fortress 2 spinoff media featuring the Medic - It is no secret that the Medic is quite possibly the very best part of the game. Yet he is also the most sidelined for some reason. I think the Medic deserves his day not just as a member of the team, but in the spotlight in any media frankly. It can be his own comic, his own show, his own movie or even his own game. The Medic has shown time and time again that he is not to be underestimated. I can think of 101 stories to write about him alone though the one that most often comes to mind is a sitcom/action/comedy show about his life after the war as a married man and father.

10- Disney's Tangled the series spinoff featuring Cassandra- While Rapunzel's story is done and over, Cassandra's is not. She went from being a friend, a villain, a secondary heroine to a travelling adventurer. She was not only a good foil to Rapunzel as a sisterly figure, but also a great character in her own right. She is a woman of action with a tomboyish streak, but is open to meeting the right guy (though she won't say it). She is also a strong female character who isn't a Mary Sue or tries to upstage or replace Rapunzel. Not even when she went bad for a while. Cassandra fit neatly into the lore of Disney's Rapunzel and I would love to see where her own independent story goes and maybe, we should. She is a truly unique female character in the lore of Disney as it is as she is not a princess, she was born out of wedlock and it was her own mother who abused and abandoned her.

Anyway, that is my list. What is yours?

[an-aussie-button-masher]

2023 Gaming Wrap-Up

   Welcome back to what is apparently a yearly tradition on this blog: the Gaming Wrap-Up! As we drag ourselves to the end of 2023, it’s always good to take a look back at the last 12 months and try to figure out just what was going on there. And well, this year…kinda sucked. It had a lot going on - it was stressful and exhausting at best for so many of us, but there’s always a bit of good within the bad (for example, on a more personal note, this was the year where I actually got a few of my articles purchased by publishers! Now I can, by definition, call myself a professional writer! Go me!), and video games are always an excellent escape from reality.   2023 had loads of great game releases, including some highly-anticipated sequels and remakes, while the business side of the gaming world had a fair few blunders and foot-shooting (Unity, anyone?). Before the end of the year, let’s all take a moment to remember all the highlights of the gaming world of 2023 - enjoy!

JANUARY-MARCH    Let’s get started with a bit of the old and a bit of the new - a pair of high-quality remakes of some classic survival horror games, Dead Space and Resident Evil 4, set a new bar for gaming remakes, with RE4 even being nominated for GOTY! Meanwhile, Pizza Tower took the indie genre by storm with its deranged animations and surprisingly catchy music, and Hi-Fi Rush ambushed us with a sneaky release and some toe-tapping rhythmic combat.   Fans of classic Nintendo games had a bit of a sad start to the year however, with the announcement that Nintendo would be completely shutting down all online services for the 3DS and Wii U, basically pulling the life support plug on the two platforms for good. Additionally, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) continues its streak of rough years; with X-Box, Sony and Nintendo all foregoing attendance, this years’ E3 was announced to be cancelled. With a rise in developers and publishers preferring digital and social media announcements over live shows thanks to the impact of COVID, could this be signalling the end of live gaming conventions like E3?

APRIL-JUNE    Moving on, 2023 also saw the release of some particularly exciting sequels - Dead Island 2 finally released after 9 years in development hell while The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom blew its GOTY-winning predecessor out of the water. Street Fighter 6 brought in Metro City veterans and newcomers alike, and Star Wars: Jedi Survivor continued the tale of Cal Kestis in his battle against the Empire in a galaxy far, far away.   From the small screen to the big screen, The Super Mario Bros. Movie joined the small-but-growing ranks of video game movie adaptations that are actually good, thanks to staying true to the games’ actual identity instead of trying to turn it into something else like so many other game-to-film adaptations. E3’s cancellation also wasn’t enough to stop the Summer Games Fest from being held, featuring a mix of live and digital shows and announcements. Also, this year was quite the mixed bag for game publishing companies - Embracer Group, a publisher for major development teams such as Gearbox Entertainment and Crystal Dynamics, went under some massive structural changes due to a major deal falling through, and was just one of many publishers that underwent huge changes in 2023.

JULY-SEPTEMBER    The latter half of the year didn’t see quite as many major game releases, but it was certainly a case of quality over quantity - Baldur’s Gate 3, an absolute narrative feat, practically overtook the entire second half of the year for both those familiar with the series or D&D and players entering the Forgotten Realms for the first time. Oh, and Starfield was released too.   Meanwhile, a cornerstone of video game voice acting, Charles Martinet, retired from voicing the Mario bros. Having provided the iconic voices of Mario, Luigi, Wario and Waluigi since 1994, Charles still works as a global ambassador for Nintendo in conventions across the world, while the superstar voice role would be taken over by Kevin Afghani later in the year.   Back in the business side of the gaming world, Unity - the group behind one of the most prominent game development engines in the industry - completely shot themselves in the foot this year as they announced an incredibly oppressive retroactive licensing fee to begin next year. This new fee would mean that every single developer that had ever used their engine would need to pay Unity for every copy of their game that has ever sold, even from before the fee took effect. Naturally, everyone disliked this, especially within the indie game community. The sheer amount of backlash caused Unity to rework the agreement to be “less aggressive”, but their reputation is beyond saving now.

OCTOBER-DECEMBER    2023 looks to be closing off with a bang - in yet another major simultaneous release, October 20th saw Spider-Man 2 expand the urban playground of everyone’s favourite web-slinging duo while Super Mario Bros. Wonder brought Nintendo’s flagship franchise in a fresh new direction. Meanwhile, another highly anticipated sequel, Alan Wake II, spun a terrifying new narrative just in time for Hallowe’en.   Of course, the biggest talking point for the end of the year was the Game Awards! Baldur’s Gate 3 beat out some incredibly tough competition for Game of the Year and swept the rest of the awards alongside Alan Wake II; a handful of exciting new games were announced, including a sequel to the classic World of Goo and a vampire-hunting action adventure starring Marvel’s Blade; and we learned that the Call of Duty developers can’t take a joke. However, the biggest announcement arrived just before the awards, bringing the entire gaming community together for one of the most anticipated sequels in video game history (besides Half-Life 3): Grand Theft Auto VI. Set for a 2025 release, 12 years after its predecessor, GTA6 returns to the sunburnt beaches of Vice City, introducing a modern Bonnie & Clyde as its’ pair of playable protagonists Lucia and Jason. 

LOOKING FORWARD    So, aside from the GTA fans that are probably cryogenically freezing themselves until 2025, what are your plans for next year now that 2023 is nearly over? There’s plenty of other games to look forward to - Star Wars and Marvel fans will be getting another exciting set of games with Star Wars Outlaws putting players in the shoes of the galaxy’s next big name in the galactic underworld, while Wolverine will be hacking and slashing his way through the neon-lit Madripoor. Taking our hands off the controller for a moment, a handful of other games will be taking their turn on the silver screen with a promising-looking Fallout streaming series and a somewhat more sketchy-looking Borderlands film. Can’t be any worse than the Halo series, right…right?

   I mentioned in last years’ wrap-up that 2023’s E3 is hopefully back on track, which has aged a bit poorly; well, there’s no need to worry about that this time as next year’s E3 has already been cancelled. At least that means saving on tickets, but is the age of big gaming conventions coming to a close? Time will tell, especially depending on if Summer Games Fest is still in the works. Maybe things are switching to a more digital-based platform for game announcements - as someone not fond of crowds, that suits me just fine.

   But, hey, that’s not until next year. Until then, I hope you enjoyed this look back at the gaming world of 2023, and I look forward to seeing you all again in 2024!   Happy holidays!

An Aussie Button-Masher

[theconstitutionisgayculture]

What are some of your favorite games of all time?

This is a great question, more questions about video games, less questions where people make up things I never said and demand I defend those positions, XD

Anyway, here's a short list:

Pathfinder: Kingmaker. The best isometric RPG ever made, in my opinion.

Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes. The best version of one of the best games ever made.

Mass Effect Trilogy. Yeah the third one shit the bed in a lot of ways, but I still enjoy the series as a whole. Playing a game series where your choices carried over from one game to the next was groundbreaking in the 2000s, and I always enjoyed my time with these games. Especially rereleased in the legendary edition.

Resident Evil 2, Original and Remake. My favorite Resident Evil game of all time. Great game, great story, great characters.

Resident Evil 4, original and remake. Second favorite Resident Evil game. Also, my husband's favorite game ever. I love seeing him get excited over it, XD

Suikoden 2. Great gameplay, great story, best game in the series.

Tales of Zesteria. Mikleo my beloved!

Jaws (NES). Yes, it's bad. Yes, it's short. No, I don't care. This was one of the first games I ever owned, and me and my dad used to play it together when I was very little. I have a lot of fond memories of trying to figure out how to beat the game with him. I still remember how excited we were when we started to figure out the gameplay loop for the very first time.

Mortal Kombat 2. The game that introduced me to the series, and still one of my old favorites. I still play and love MK to this day because of it.

Kingdom Hearts, whole series. I can't really pick one game, because they're all both really, really good and really, really bad, XD. But I love the story and the characters, and I've enjoyed each of them in different ways. But if I had to pick just one, I'd probably pick 2.

Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic. Still the best Star Wars game ever made. Still one of the best western RPGs ever made. The plot twist is still one of my favorite moments in video game history.

Max Payne 2. Ugh, so good. Great storytelling, fun gameplay. Took everything great about Max Payne 1 and did it better. RIP James McCaffrey.

MegaMan Battle Network, whole series. Probably the best reimagining of a classic IP I've ever seen, from the old days when "reimagined" didn't mean "vandalized". I was several years older than him when the first game came out, but in a lot of ways I grew up with Lan and his friends, and these games will always have a special place in my heart.

Jade Empire. Another great BioWare western RPG. Great setting, good story, unique characters, and really good and unique-for-the-time combat.

Soul Nomad and the World Eaters. I don't even know why I like this game so much, but I do, lol. They should have given the male PC a romance ending with Gig, though >_<

Pokemon Red and Blue. Pure nostalgia entry, but even though there are a lot of boring Gen 1 haters, to be a 10 year old kid when the original US Pokemon craze was at its peak was something special, and the games and the Pokemon will always be cherished in this house. Gen 1 supremacy, noobs!

Batman Arkham Asylum. You have no idea what it was like growing up a Batman fan and a video game fan in the years before Arkham Asylum. Every Batman game was terrible. It was a running joke how no one could do a good Batman game. Hell, half the word of mouth for AA was "did you hear someone's trying to make a good Batman game?" That they got many of the incredible voices from Batman the Animated Series back was even better. RIP Kevin Conroy and Arleen Sorkin. (And fuck Mark Hamill)

Legacy of Kain, whole series. Aside from Metal Gear Solid, this series is the definitive master class on video game storytelling and voice acting. I love the plot, I love the characters, I love everything. I hate how the ball was dropped so hard after Defiance, because that game set up an amazing follow up that just...never happened. It was such a sad fall from grace, because in the early 2000s this was the AAA game series. Everyone loved it. Everyone was desperate for the next game. And then it just kind of fizzled out after a few missteps and developer woes. And it died a quiet death in a proto-live service multiplayer game that no one wanted and even fewer people played. And while the tragedy is appropriate to the Gothic setting, I'm still hoping against hope for a faithful remake of the first games that spurs the original developers to finally finish the series the way it always deserved.

Honorable Mention: Final Fantasy 8. Gonna be honest here, 70% of my love for this game comes from fanfiction, lol. I played the game when I was a kid, and didn't really like it. It was weird and looked bad (I played it long after I'd gotten used to the "modern" graphics of the PS2 generation) and even with a Codebreaker and cheats the final boss was super frustrating. But there's some really great FF8 fanfic out there. Stuff I reread every few years. And it's given me a phantom nostalgia for the game.

[huntinglove]

8, 11, 12, 13. For any you’d like :)

Hi hi!! Thank you so much for the ask!!

8. How tall is your F/O?

Sir Pentiousis around 7 ft tall

Simon is roughly 6 ft tall

Napstablook is around 4'1"1 ft

Tokoyami is a solid 5'5" ft

Muichiro is 5'3" ft

Hunter is around 5'6" ft

Zebruh is 5'3" ft (if you ask he'll say he's 6 ft lol)

Sebastian is 6'2" ft

11. Does your F/O know how to cook? If so are they good at it?

Sir Pentious is a surprisingly good cook and baker! He follows every single instruction on the dot, and if he's ever missing any ingredients he'll stop whatever he's doing to go get what he needs

Simon can cook pretty well, he also makes tea and coffee as delicious as they can be! He has some family recipes that he always loves to show off as well

Napstablook can only make ghost food, which sadly just phases through humans if they try to eat it, but they say their food is alright, so I'm sure it's wonderful, since they're pretty hard on themselves

Tokoyami can cook basic meals like noodles, soup and omelettes, but he usually doesn't feel the need to make himself anything fancy. His diet is very balanced and he prefers to just have raw fruits and vegetables for nutrition

Muichiro can cook if he focuses on it, but he'll usually forget one or two steps and end up with a result that's completely different from what he originally planned. He hates wasting food so he'll eat it anyways

Hunter thinks he can cook but he usually makes his food a bit too burnt or salty, but he always keeps practicing and he's slowly getting better at it!

Zebruh can't cook at all, he's the type to order takeout and try to pass it off as his own cooking...

Sebastian can cook a thing or two, he usually sticks to frozen pizzas, coffee and cup noodles though

12. What is your F/O favorite flavor?  (sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami (savory))

Sir Pentious enjoys salty food, especially most meats!

Simon loves bitter drinks and candies, dark chocolate is one of his favorite treats

Napstablook enjoys all flavors as long as they're mostly mild, they get overwhelmed fairly easily

Tokoyami enjoys spicy food and sweets the most! Though he's not a huge fan of sugar, he prefers more natural flavors

Muichiro loves sweets and will even forego meals to snack on candies and desserts

Hunter likes salty food, it's mostly what he's used to because of his training, but he absolutely can't handle spice at all

Zebruh has a huge sweet tooth but he balances it out by eating extremely sour foods as well, especially considering Alternia's cuisine

Sebastian likes a little bit of everything, he also enjoys mixing and matching different food combinations, which can sometimes be very... Interesting

13. If your F/O could be a fan of any video game what do you think it would be?

Sir Pentious would enjoy Assassin's Creed, mostly for the historical aesthetics, because he wouldn't be very proficient with the controls...

Simon would like relaxing and puzzle games, he'd get addicted to games like Stardew Valley, Minecraft and Terraria

Napstablook would enjoy rhythm games, but mostly because of the music itself, their coordination isn't very good

Tokoyami is a huge fan of horror games, he likes Layers Of Fear and the Resident Evil franchise the most!

Muichiro would become bored with any games really easily, but sandboxes would be the ones he'd enjoy the most, like Minecraft

Hunter would be a fan of RPGs and space themed games like Subnautica, Baldur's Gate III and Star Wars Battlefront

Zebruh would collect some... Unique games that I can't quite describe here, like HuniePop and such

Sebastian would love RPGs, especially ones with customization options, it'd be a battle to drag him away from the computer if he started playing Baldur's Gate III

[adasknife]

The issue i have is when people try so hard to make an argument how they're definitely canon by saying everything leads into damnation and re6. Which is like the dumbest argument one can come up with yet.

CGI movies are meant to connect more to OG games and it's storyline, no one can convince me that the way remakes have been written csn ever be connected to how damnation director was hoping to write their relationship, it's just not the same idea, not the same vision at all. And not to mention that tiny miniscule of second that threw in a line that may or may not suggest Leon and Ada were about to get it on was only thrown in because Shotaro Suga wanted, whilst he also proceeded to explain how there's no definitive meaning behind it, yet when rabid fans create arguments they still go out of their way to claim these two fucked when it makes no sense at all. For OG, maybe. For remakes? Fuck no.

That's all for my rant, I've seen you make valid points about Ada, kudos to you. Not many are able to without being attacked with pitchforks and torches. I just wanna think of Ada and not have to picture Leon in the circle. But i also blame Capcom for writing her that way, so here's hoping that remakes are here to rectify that mistake.

like, it should be, right? the harsh differences of ada and leon in the og and the remakes should make it obvious. this remake talk reminds me of the legend star wars and canon star wars

it should be common sense, in a way, that the cgi movies are made for the original. especially if we look at the timeline of aeon to re6. in 2009, they released darkside chronicles, which was pretty aeon powered, and re6 was under production (according to wiki) like this was fueling the ship, especially damnation (came out in 2012) and the live action resident evil where ada and leon appeared (came out in 2012 as well)

the remakes share what in common the old canon? parts and moments. ada and leon moments... not super really. they didn't even fluff it up like old canon.

it seems pretty cut and dry of the highest possibility of it being reconned.

i hope for a day where ada is chilling without leon lurking behind her

[averydavery]

The Good, The Bad, and Everything Inbetween of the Playstation 2

Intro

To me, the Playstation 2 is the best video game console ever. Period. Its catalogue is undeniably strong but I am definitely very biased as well, not to mention that the dualshock remote looks almost exactly the same from PS2 to PS4... But mainly, there is a reason many iconic titles from famous series are from this system and era of video game history. The PS2’s time in the spotlight (1999- 2011) was the real start of the hayday of video games.

So, in honor of my love for the system, here is my rankings for the games i’ve played so far and why!

***I will only be judging games that originally launched on the system, including bridge games, NOT PS1 games that are backwards compatible. So sorry MGS1 and FFVII

From Top to Bottom

1. Shadow of the Colossus

5/5 stars. One sentence review: I’m sobbing.

2. Metal Gear Solid 2

4.5/5 stars. One sentence review: “No, that is NOT the real Solid Snake!”

3. Resident Evil 4

4.5/5 stars. One sentence review: Fixed camera and gun controls making me want to get the Las Plagas fr.

4. God of War

4.5/5 stars. One sentence review: I don’t know what’s more unforgiving: the game itself or playing it on the PS2.

5. Bully

4.5/5 stars. One sentence review: I really wish people gave Bully more attention than GTA.

6. GTA Vice City

4/5 stars. One sentence review: For some reason my PS2 had a hard time running Vice City and this game is significantly smaller than others on this list.

7. Onimusha

4/5 stars. One sentence review: I really enjoyed this story and I would’ve loved it a lot more if the controls didn’t feel like I was committing a felony.

8. Devil May Cry

4/5 stars. One sentence review: “I should’ve filled yoUR DARK SOUL WITH LIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT!!!!!!”

9. GTA III

4/5 stars. One sentence review: Just didn’t do it for me story wise as much as the others, i dont know.

10. God of War II

3.5/5 stars. One sentence review: Least favorite God of War game besides Chains of Olympus, not that it’s bad it’s just okay.

11. Crazy Taxi

3.5/5 stars. One sentence review: Very fun but only for about ten minutes.

12. Yakuza 2

2/5 stars. One sentence review: I’m a diehard Yakuza/RGG/Like A Dragon fan but I stg this is the worst game in the series, I never even beat it.

13. Devil May Cry 2

2/5 stars. One sentence review: Bad mechanics and bored me.

The Superlatives

The Best Title in a Series

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

An easy pick for this category and a game that is second only to Shadow of the Colossus, is Metal Gear Solid 3. It is a fantastic game as much as it is a great entry in an amazing series. For those who don’t know, MGS3 is a prequel for the entire series and takes place even before the old 8-But Metal Gear games. MGS3 follows Naked Snake who becomes the infamous Big Boss, the notorious antagonist for the rest of the series, and is the first game in the series to really perfect the stealth combat with the addition of an over the shoulder camera and new camouflage mechanics. Other notable aspects of MGS3 are that graphics for the game still hold up today, the characters are some of the most memorable in the series (I LOVE YOU BOSS!!!!), and the boss fights are engaging. Not to mention that if I had to guess, you’re probably humming “Snake Eater” to yourself right now.

MGS3 is such a good MGS title that I believe it sort of set Kojima up for failure with every game that came after it.

The Best Game You’ve Never Played/My Personal Favorite PS2 Game

Blood Will Tell: Osamu Tezuka’s Dororo

The only reason Blood Will Tell isn’t number one is because I felt bad putting Shadow of the Colossus as number 2. I fucking love this game with my whole heart and soul, I really don’t know where to begin. The title of “the best game you’ll never play” isn’t one that I came up with myself, many people refer to Blood Will Tell by that superlative and you’re probably wondering why that is. Blood Will Tell was released by SEGA in 2004 and flopped in the Americas despite many looking back on the title fondly, as a result of its recent popularity (largely due to the 2019 Dororo anime and rise of the collector’s market) and little supply, it became an incredibly rare game with the highest selling price for a PS2 game I have ever seen. Blood Will Tell goes for anywhere between $400 to $700 USD, for reference: Silent Hill 2 goes for about $100. Which is why I don’t give this superlative away lightly, even the copy I own isn’t legitimate. There’s no way I’m spending that much money on a game without playing it myself.

So this brings to the second superlative I gave it: my personal favorite PS2 game. It’s the best game you’ll never play for a reason, there is a demand for it for a reason. While the dub is laughably bad, the game itself is incredibly rich. The goofy voice acting adds to the game’s charm and, in my opinion, makes a fantastic game more enjoyable. The gameplay is addictive and one of the most fluid for the 20 year old console, Blood Will Tell is a hack-n-slash that feels like a mix of Sekiro and Ghost of Tsushima to me —which is funny because both of those games came out the same year and fought for the GotW award. You play as Hyakkimaru, a boy with swords for arms who is cursed after his father gave away all 48 body parts to demons in a deal for power. Now it’s your job to get your body back, piece by piece. This plot allows for incredibly unique visual story telling that is astounding for the time it came out in. For example, in the beginning chapter Hyakki is blind. They show this by making the world entirely black and white until he gets his sight back in which color floods your screen in a beautiful way. Since he can’t speak he has a filter that makes it sound like he’s talking in his head… etc. Even some of the 48 bosses are hidden and optional, something I didn’t expect to see in a game this old. On my first playthrough, I missed some bosses because the map is deceptively big. I think my only critiques besides the silly voice acting (personally, I like it) are that Dororo’s sections of the game aren’t great but they don’t drag on either so I don’t mind them and that the music is stale and repeats.

All in all, I can yap about this game all day because I love it so much. If you are unwilling to spend $700 on Blood Will Tell, I highly recommend that you buy a cheap repro or emulate it on your computer. If neither of those are options for you consider watching a playthrough on youtube or, better yet, reading/watching all the other adaptations of Dororo! Blood Will Tell is based of the 1963 manga Dororo by Osamu Tezuka (the mangaka of Astroboy and Black Jack) and there are many versions of this story!

The Best Adventure Game

Okami

I like to call Okami “the game that raised me” because it pretty much did. I first remember playing it in sixth grade and have played a run through of it probably once a year since. I’ve played it on Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Playstation 5, and Playstation 2… and I’ll honestly say that it plays best on Switch. When Okami came out it originally launched on the Wii, which is why it plays so well on Switch as well. The reason for that is because of its unique, never before seen gameplay. Okami’s premise is that you play as Okami Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun in the form of a white wolf, who is resurrected in order to save the world from darkness. Ammy’s special ability is that she can manipulate the Celestial Brush, which has 13 different techniques that allow the player to literally play God by painting onto their surroundings to summon things like wind, water, fire, and vines or to literally stop time or cause nature to bloom. This Celestial Brush is why it plays so well on Nintendo consoles, which is actually why I recommend playing this game on one instead of on PS2. Okami has been remastered and really has no reason to be played PS2. In addition to why it isn’t fantastic on the PS2 is that Okami is most known for its visuals. The entire game is done in a painterly style with cell-shaded brush strokes that outline everything decoratively to aid it’s themes of traditional Japanese mythology… And one thing that makes that style look even better is when it is not played in low poly on the PS2.

So to put the kebash on this one, Okami was the best adventure game on the PS2 despite not being suited for the console itself. So please, play the remaster to enjoy the story even more!

The Best Fighting Game

Yakuza

I know a lot of you might disagree with me on this but please know I am only going off games I have played and that I also don’t care about what others think. I love this series. There are 8 Yakuza games, 10 if you count Like A Dragon 8: Infinite Wealth and Gaiden, 13 if you count Ishin, Ishin (Remake/Remaster), Kenzan!, and Dead Souls, 15 if you count Kiwami 1 & 2, and 17 if you count the Black Panther games… but it all started with this one game. Yakuza is a beat ‘em up that was advertised as “Japan’s GTA” which I think is an apt description only for the street fighting you do. In actuality, Yakuza is a game that follows the ex-yakuza Kiryu Kazuma as he fights to save the people he cares about and struggles with his loyalty to his former life a made man. The combat is fun and engaging with its use of combos and cinematics, however the controls are a bit finicky but nothing that will drive you up the wall. Another drawback of this title is the voice acting for the same reason as Blood Will Tell, it is a horrendous English dub. But I think it’s enjoyably bad, Mark Hamill and John DeMagio jumpscared me when I first heard their voices.

Although, I don’t necessarily recommend Yakuza to anyone who doesn’t have a PS2 at all, really, and that is because Yakuza Kiwami exists —which is a remake for modern consoles of this game with a million new things, better graphics and combat, and no English dub. This remake highlights everything that was so good about the original.

The Best Horror Game

Silent Hill 2

I think I can keep this one short because Silent Hill 2 is a game that needs no introduction. It practically invented the psychological survival horror genre as we know it be today and still is an amazing game that manages to always unnerve me. From its multiple endings to its atmospheric environment, Silent Hill 2 sets the bar for what should be a good horror game and inspires many series still. But above all else, Silent Hill 2 has the best soundtrack out of any game that I’ve mentioned so far. Akira Yamaoka is a genius songwriter.

The Worst Game I’ve Played So Far

Fullmetal Alchemist 2: Curse of the Crimson Elixir

I love Fullmetal Alchemist (if my account was any clue into that haha) and I thought that my love for that series was going to help get through this game. But I was so wrong and I should’ve listened to my gut. FMA works really well as video game if you actually try to make it one or else it doesn’t work, the ingredients are there you just have to follow the recipe. But Fullmetal Alchemist 2: Curse of the Crimson Elixir takes this way too seriously. Not only does it harp on the most boring episodes of the original series, it does so in the worst manner possible. The game itself looks like plastic, it’s cellshaded blandly. The music is loud and at times annoying, the fighting is stiff and uninspired when alchemy could be so much fun if done right, and it follows a clunky visual novel style in cutscenes for no reason. Even in the menu you can see that it was trying to be an RPG but never committed and I think this game could’ve shined if it was one, instead of the lame fighter it is now. The only benefit I see in this game is that the voice acting is all the original cast. So that’s nice… everything else? Not so much.

Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions for me to play!

[indohyus]

Call Me Indy

This is my main blog. I am a 20 y/o architecture student and costume designer living in the midwest. I'm really cool and interesting I promise :| Hablo algo de Español.

Sideblogs:

@crinkleysilverleaves unorganized photos and some art I like. I reblog art on main too.

@quarantwilight thoughtful twilight appreciation. books first. kill the cringe. fuck smeyer.

@lokitherighteous some superhero stuff, comics, some Star Wars, the occasional relevant video game (often older stuff)

@parksandmarvelquotes long-inactive marvel incorrect quotes blog.

possible sitcom sideblog coming soon idfk

other than architecture and art reblogs, you'll also see random personal posts, typical freaky queertrans angst and shitposts, some music appreciation, and a bit of fandom stuff. I read and I have a strong interest in human/environment relationships, ecology, and all that jazz.

fandom stuff is tagged by ip. my posts are tagged with #hespeaks. postes en Español están etiquetado en Español.

fandoms that you will likely encounter include Resident Evil (Biohazard & Village), the fan game Resident Lover, The Addams Family (incl. Wednesday), Community (six seasons and a movie!), occasional Victorious brainrot, and who knows what else. I'm a big nerd about sitcoms for some reason.

My favorite band is the mountain goats. My music interests are all over, ranging from classical, jazz, folk rock to hardcore, post-punk, new wave, video game OSTs and video game-like stuff, and "angry girl music of the indie rock persuasion."

incandescent ruins glittertext by my4lg1c-p1err0t ghoul whip sticker from missrottenstein band blingees from anemiic-dreams