#it makes me feel nostalgic for the ps2 games :')

[edgepunk]

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart (dev. Insomniac Games)

[electricea]

also yet another series i'm long long behind on, but thinking of finally checking out kingdom hearts! honestly looks like a fun series.

[oakdll]

i finished persona 4 golden !!!

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR PERSONA 4 GOLDEN AHEAD

It’s lowkey insane that they made the final villain a gas station employee, but it was super cool. I really love the story, almost as much as P5R, although the gameplay was definitely worse for me.

Obviously there are differences because of the release dates, but there were a lot of quality of life issues and inconsistencies. The last 5 dungeons or so felt comically easy, none of them took me more than 2 hours, especially with Marie and Izanami’s dungeons which took me less than an hour each, even with exploring every floor to the max.

The lack of Safe Rooms really hurts the level design here. You basically have to do every palace in one session (at least I did because I don’t like Goho-M’s). Being able to have save points before different sections in each P5 Palace was a stroke of genius, and returning to P4 where every floor is basically identical is just boring. I like how each floor is randomly generated, but it also really takes away from the individuality of each dungeon. Pretty much every dungeon has the same random layout, the only differences are the visuals and occasional conditions like with Adachi not allowing you to fight shadows in one of his floors. Compared to P5, the lack of puzzles and insight into the characters really hurts. In P5, the design of each palace gave you insight into its rulers psyche. In P4, you really only get the occasional confrontation with the character and some dialogue at the start of each floor.

There were also WAY too many chances to mess up your ending. There isn’t anything really wrong with having a lot of endings, but having so many points where you can accidentally get a bad ending because you picked an option that wasn’t obviously wrong was ridiculous. I had heard there were a lot of chances to get a bad ending if you aren’t careful, so I used a spoiler free guide. Having to pick like 7 of the right answers in a row to get a good ending is insane.

If I wasn’t spoiled on Adachi before playing, I never would have guessed it. That is good for the story, but having to deduce it yourself is a bit too much to ask of the player. I think P5 did good with prompting you to save your game before game changing events happen. A mix of that and confirming with the player when they are going off-course from the true ending makes the game relatively simple to play through with no guide. with P4, you basically have to look up a guide for the true ending. Having to say “no” when prompted to leave Inaba to get the true ending is insane, if I didn’t know beforehand I would have messed up my entire playthrough. It makes no sense unless you know the story beforehand, especially when no other Persona game asks you to do something like that.

The game is also shockingly bigoted, which goes entirely against the themes of the Persona series and the game itself. Ironically, in a game about pursuing the truth, the made Naoto deny his truth of being trans. They wrote such good queer characters and then came to entirely the wrong conclusion and ruined it all. I still think if you can look past the homophobia and transphobia, the game has phenomenal writing, but it gets really uncomfortable at times.

The nostalgic feeling Inaba gives off and the PS2 graphics really help the vibe of this game. It feels so much warmer than P5, and I am ALWAYS a sucker for a murder mystery. The fog is such a good visual element to the game, and I have a strange obsession with electrical poles, so having those be a frequent set piece is awesome.

The characters are so wonderful, I really wish I had more time to max out all of the social links here, but I think I would have had to skip out on helping Nanako with her homework and I would never do that to her. Nanako and Kanji are both some of my all time favorite Persona characters, they are both so sweet and I would do anything for them. Marie is also one of my favorites, I have no idea why anybody could hate her. Yukiko is amazing, Chie is a lot of fun, and Yosuke is hilarious. Teddie is a freak but I love him but I HATE his blue eyes, Rise is super nice, and Naoto is so cool. The Investigation Team is debatably better than the Phantom Thieves as a main cast, but they are so close for me. The main characters are all just great.

As for social links, I think P5 still has it beat here. The social link cast in P4 is still good, but there aren’t any benefits like in P5 and some of the characters here I REALLY don’t like. Sayoko is an outright pedophile. With Kawakami at least if you don’t choose to romance her in-game she isn’t as much of a creep, while Sayoko actively sexually harasses a high schooler. I also did not like Eri, I didn’t get to spend much time with her but she really could have treated her kid better. I know she’s struggling but she would lash out leave her kid at daycare because he was having more fun there than at home. Naoki was cool, I barely got to spend any time with him but from what I did see he was nice and seeing the grieving process of one of Adachi’s victims was super interesting. For the club social links, I chose Kou and Ayane. Kou was great, one of my favorites but I ended up prioritizing party members and couldn’t max him out. Ayane was nice, I like her arc but her voice acting really ruined a lot of the social link for me. Ai was also nice, but I couldn’t spend too much time with her and I didn’t like her romance subplot. I actually liked Shu a surprising amount, he was one of the few I maxed out because I had extra time in the evenings and I really liked how his arc ended. Hisano was one I really missed out on, I only got to rank 3 with her and from what I saw she was one of the most interesting in the game. Dojima is one of the best social links in all of Persona. He is very similar to Sojiro, but he’s a lot darker. There’s a lot more drama with him than with Sojiro, both of them are amazing, and Dojima’s relationship with Nanako is so sweet. Nanako as well might be my favorite Persona character. She is the sweetest thing ever, and I would do anything for her. Marie’s social link was also great, but I really didn’t like Margaret’s. I don’t like any Persona social link that requires you to go on quests. I didn’t like the Strength confidant in P5, and I don’t like Margaret or the Fox in P4. The fox is better by default because he’s a fox, but neither are super interesting to me.

The music is phenomenal because it’s a Persona game, but the P4 OST might be my single favorite Persona soundtrack. Pursuing My True Self, Signs of Love, Heartbeat Heartbreak, Heaven, Alone, Your Affection, Like a Dream Come True, Youthful Lunch, Reach Out to the Truth, Time to Make History, and Omen are some of my favorites. The only Persona game soundtrack to compare with P4 is P5, Whims of Fate, Beneath the Mask, Alleycat, Our Light, When Mother Was There, Price, and Butterfly Kiss are also up there. P4 is more nostalgic for me, so I think it might take the edge for me.

The story of P4 is also much more complex and interesting than P5. If it weren’t for Maruki’s palace being so good, I would say that P4 definitively has the better story. Adachi being the antagonist was such a phenomenal twist, and I loved him so much up to that point that it hurt even more. His social link is a phenomenal addition, I can’t imagine the game without it. Having so many endings is partially a result of flawed game design, but also the depth in the story. It really feels like an investigation team solving a mystery. Pushing further and further towards the truth throughout every suspect, from Kubo to Namatame to Adachi, and even Izanami if that counts, the game really accomplishes its goal. I haven’t done the accomplice ending, but I might do another playthrough to get it after I finish P3R.

P4G is a really great game, I think it’s a bit more flawed than P5R, but it’s still phenomenal and it’s not like P5 has no flaws either. P4 really excels with the story and I think the primary issues with it are just a byproduct of being over 10 years old at this point.

[stillsolo]

GET TO KNOW THE MUN. respond to the prompts out of character !

what made you pick up the current muse(s) you have? oh, where do i even begin?  well, i suppose i should start with how long sw has been in my life.  ANH was the first movie my mother ever saw when she visited the USA; she saw it with my grandmother ( and subsequently developed a massive crush on harrison, so indiana jones became a huge part of my childhood too lol ).  for this reason, my mother introduced my brother and I to sw when we were actual babies.  then, when the prequels came out, it’s all me and my brother consumed.  from the movies themselves to the original clone wars cartoon to the PS2 games to the novels/book series.  we watched it on a tiny portable player for every trip, and every time my relatives needed us to go away to let the adults talk lol.  it also helped our comprehension of english so much. i can’t recall a time in which sw hasn’t been present in my life! before i joined the tumblr swrpc, i kept to myself in the prequels community, wrote fanfic, and rped anakin on skype.  he’s always been a character that hit a little too close to home in one too many ways.  the main parallel i have with him (that doesn’t relate to his mental issues haha) is his love/devotion/attachment to his mother.  it’s difficult for me to explain without getting into the aspects of my culture (孝順 / filial piety), but in short, i am cantonese; if my mother asked me for my thumb tomorrow, i would give her my arm today.  anakin’s love for his mother, his determination to free her from slavery at an early age, was very touching.  EPII has been memed to oblivion, yes, but the pain i feel when anakin doesn’t get to hear his mother tell him she loves him one last time before she dies, and knowing that it haunts him for the rest of his life (eu), makes me want to throw myself out a window lmao  i have an extremely close relationship with my parents; this sort of pain is absolutely gutting for someone like me. anyway, when i joined the tumblr swrpc, writing han solo was never the plan.  i originally wanted to write luke but ended up changing my mind at the last second.  I’d written well over a dozen fics with han at that point, but was nowhere near confident, so i thought of it as more of an experiment. guess that doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things, because if you really think about it, since the day i started writing him in fics, he hasn’t stopped butting into my brain.  in fact, he’s been harassing me ever since—to the point that i even switched from writing luke to him… lol given my upbringing and my mother’s love for him, han has always been my childhood hero, as well as my brother’s.  our dad was our han solo.  the nostalgic and familial associations run so deep, it’s difficult to articulate.  we share many traits, right down to his universally agreed-upon zodiac sign (sagittarius); i know han solo like the back of my hand—and it’s probably because i wanted to be just like him when i grew up.

is there anything you don’t like to write? character death.  if i have to say another, it’s when people conflate harrison with the character he plays and then decides to address that in a thread.  harrison was a ladies man back in the 80s, and that’s fine, but that doesn’t mean the same for han.  i hate seeing the conflation between the two.  not sure if this happens as often anymore, but there was a time when fics/threads/even han rpers would lean into it, by default, thus totally destroying his character in my eyes.  i mean, write it as a storyline, that’s cool and fine, but infidelity has never been inherently part of his character.  i will die on this fucking hill.

is there anything you really enjoy writing? most unpopular opinion ever: action sequences.  critical situations, fast paced action, thriller scenes featuring immediate, life-threatening circumstances.  i love writing that which exhibits a sense of urgency and tension, with sprinklings of emotional depth and contemplative introspective moments.  scenes with internal conflict combined with aforementioned external events.  even evading enemy forces, sustaining minor/major injuries, dressing wounds.  dunno why those are always the most fun to me.  aside from that?  romance/romantic angst.  i’ve had many writing partners over the years, and each one thought they could outdo me in writing romantic angst.  sometimes, the psychosomatic pain of heartbreak isn’t far from feeling like you’ve lost a limb in battle.

how do you come up with headcanons? by being the most annoying, meticulous person ever.  i’m extremely detail oriented; when i see incongruities in my own work, i perish.  so, when i come up with headcanons, i have to consider all factors that may affect the outcome of whatever question i’ve posed in my mind and feel the need to justify my choices, for whatever reason, by tying it back to XYZ.  my headcanons must align with my muse’s personality, their environment from childhood to adulthood, their current circumstances, and if it’s an AU, how it mirrors canon events.  canon/eu is everything imo, because they are their own choices; it’s what shaped them into the character we know them as.  ofc, this is my process and opinion, so make of that what you will.

do you write in silence or do you play music? no music, no tv.  sometimes people talking is too much for me.  i have adhd and my medication only helps so much.  i will absolutely start writing down the conversation or lyrics playing in the background lol

do you plan your replies or wing them? plotting vs planning replies is different to me.  plotting gives me a foundation, but it can’t be too confining.  to plan a reply is to block out each moment.  if you trap me, i will always deviate; so i wing everything, even when i have a foundation.

do you enjoy shipping? yes, absolutely!  i’m not sure why people tend to assume otherwise, but i’m more open to it than people think.  i’ve never cared about who you write, if they’re in the sw franchise, or even what era of sw etc etc  never given a shit about what people think; if our muses click, they click.  honestly, some of the best ships i’ve had with han, as in the most enjoyable and enlightening of his character, have been ‘crack ships’.

what’s your alias/name? vin, vince, vincent.  vincent van hoe.  trash bin vin.

age? 27!

birthday? dec 2!

favorite color? silver.  if that’s not a color to you, then blue.

favorite song? you can’t expect me to… well, ‘in your eyes’ by the weeknd has been up there for a long time.

last movie you watched? star wars: the clone wars (2008)

last show you watched? … the clone wars lol

last song you listened to? billie jean - MJ.

favorite food? my mother’s 番茄炒蛋 ( egg and tomato stir fry ), unagi, freshly baked breads, fresh fruit …

favorite season? i get mostly tropical weather, but i love a cold winter.

do you have a tumblr best friend? unfortunately, so many people have left the site over the years, but i'm grateful to call these people some of the closest friends i have in the rpc: @techniiciian @desiccation @vibraea @rcvanchist @sgterso @voxcrystallis

tagged : @debelltio thank you for thinking of me!! tagging : if you're still reading this, i tag you!

[cbedfordart]

Hey! Question from one wannabe game design graduate who is also an artist and wants to make their own (very simple) little game one day - how is it like working on a game set to release one day? Did u feel discouraged learning a new skill (?) after already being a pro artist? Was the game a random idea or have you guys been planning this since a long time? Btw super excited for Sorry We're Closed and I'm obsessed with the retro look and artstyle <33

Firstly THAnk you so much for being into Sorry We're Closed - it's my lil bby pride and joy so I'm glad someone out there in the wider world is looking forward to it! I'll try and answer your questions in order and not ramble too much! I'm a little older now, and gotten to that point where deadlines aren't so scary anymore. There's a point in which you learn to live with what you can make, rather than trying to make something that's not what's within your ability (which is why we always want more time to get better while we work). But after a while you just realise its better for the idea to be out there in the world where other people can see what you were trying to do! Admittedly i will do a lot of hours sometimes if i REALLY want something to be a certain level or if I'm particularly stuck on something , but a deadline keeps me realistic. It allows for the thing to be good and exist, rather than perfect and existing only in my mind. Learning a new skill was actually extremely exciting. I wanted to absorb everything like a sponge. I hadn't done any 3d modelling before 2020 seriously (i tried zbrush once in like 2015 and i kept crashing my computer lol). I just wanted to keep going because it was so fun seeing my creations come to life! I always dreamed of designing game characters and it was literally happening before my eyes. Also, the indiedev community is extremely kind, helpful and resourceful. There's lots of free knowledge out there, and people who are willing to talk to you and help you figure things out! Being trained as an artist honestly only helped the modelling endeavour. Having an understanding of anatomy helped my understand how I wanted to approach the form of my models - what needed to be shaped and what I could get away with painting on.

So my knight is about 934 verts/1,861 tris (sort of like a ps2 character) but painting can give some fun depth. I've found this method to be really tricky though as it's highly prone to unflattering angles - but thats partly cause I'm still learning and relying too much on my skills as a 2d artist I guess. This model I made a bit later on, the Sorry We're Closed models I made were far earlier before i really knew what i was doing so they rely even more on my painting skills

but I felt it was okay since we were going for a nostalgic game feel which means some funny deformities like this

but it's whatever, i think it's kind of cute lol. We started planning the game in 2020 as well, literally after I saw my partner Tom make a character model move around in Unity (it looked pretty terrible) so i said I'll make models and he would code. Then I came up with a story, and from there we came up with how the game itself would play. Game design itself is something we were both lacking and real experience in so that has been the biggest wall to climb so far but its been a really fun and rewarding journey so far. Anyway sorry for the ramble!! I really hope you get a shot at working on a project you really love and want to pour everything into!

[dragon-snoots-a-boopin]

Ranking All The Star Wars Video Games I've Played!

I am going to do a quick ranking thing here where I rank all of the Star Wars videos games that I have played. I am going to be ranking from nine to one, nine being the least liked and one being the most liked.

#9: LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars. This one isn't truly bad or terrible because none of the games on this fall into that. This one is just more of a neutral thing. It does a good job retelling some of the Clone Wars show. There were some levels I didn't care for but it's really not a bad game at all.

#8: Star Wars: The Old Republic. Yes, I have spent a lot of time on this particular one and yeah, that is why it's on the low end of the list. Again, not really a bad game here. However, there's just so much you can't do without being a subscriber to the game. Plus, I find that the combat is just really, really boring. It does have a lot of good though, mostly in the way of it's really good storytelling and unique stories for each class you can play. Not bad but could be better.

#7: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II. Force Unleashed II has a lot of good going for it. But, one major downfall is just how short the game is compared to the first one. Plus, the ending fight against Vader is really annoying. But, the rest of the game is really good and really fun in my opinion.

#6: LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The only Star Wars movie to get its own LEGO game for some reason...okay. There's a lot of good here honestly as a lot of the shooting combat was refined in this game which did get implemented into The Skywalker Saga so, there is that. However, the game overall is incredibly short, even with the extra levels and yeah. Not a bad game though.

#5: Star Wars: Battlefront II (2017). Now, look, I know that when it released there was a ton of issues and I know all the controversaries this game brought to the world of loot boxes in video games and all of that. However, I played this one far after launch and I honestly have had a good time. It's got a pretty decent single player campaign, it's got the arcade mode where you can play bot multiplayer matches and the actual multiplayer matches can be fun too if you don't get hackers in the lobby to ruin everyone's fun.

#4: Star Wars: Battlefront II (2005). Now, this is a really good game through and through. However, there's one mission in the campaign that I could never get through and I hate that. The thing for me is that it doesn't feel all that different from the first game, aside from the campaign actually telling a story this time around. Doesn't make it a bad game but it just kind of makes it more of the same to me.

#3: Star Wars: Battlefront (2004). I can't deny that this is indeed a good game. I do wish though that the so called campaign told an actual story rather than just basically being bot multiplayer matches but, I suppose it's alright. But, I honestly found a lot more fun playing this game over its sequel but that's just me.

#2: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. Now, this one is a little bit nostalgic for me. It was the first video game that I ever pre-ordered and that was a PS2 copy of the game that also came with a four inch Clone Trooper Commander figure, which I still have and I have the Black Series Gaming Greats version of it too. The game is honestly so, so good and the story it tells is so good too. Just a really good and fun game.

#1: LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga. This one also has a bit of nostalgia for me. I don't the exact year but I remember it was Christmas and I opened my first ever Nintendo DS Lite and then I opened this very game. My brother got it too so we could play the game together. Of course, all these years later I own the PC version and it's still an amazing and super fun game to play. Pretty sure most people who game has played this game, it's that good.

[asleepinawell]

i'm in some sort of Mood about finishing the kh series (for a given value of finished) since I've been playing it since kh1 on ps2 a million years ago but instead of dealing with that i'm going to write my mini retrospective of the titles based on my replay

rest below the line

kh1

story - 7/10. it wasn't the most interesting but it was the first and laid the groundwork for the series. maleficent had a lot of screentime which is always a big plus. love her evil ass. it's also the start of the 'kairi never gets to do anything ever and gets kidnapped every time she tries' persisting problem in the whole series

gameplay - 6/10. feels a bit clunky now in comparison to some of the newer ones. it was harder than some later ones, but mostly because of wonky control issues and not great boss fights. but it's very playable and fun still. mushrooms do a little dance and shake their butt at you. i will never not feel nostalgic about traverse town music. THANK GOD YOU CAN SKIP THE PRE FIGHT CUTSCENES ON RETRIES NOW OH MY GOD YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THE ONE BEFORE THE DARK RIKU FIGHT WAS LIKE TEN MINUTES AND BACK IN THE DAY YOU HAD TO REWATCH IT EVERY TIME AAHHHHJHHH *i am tranquilized and removed from the room*

re: chain of memories

story - 8/10. i love the focus on the organization 13 internal drama. bitches are running around bad mouthing and killing each other. larxene is a constant joy. marluxia is pretty and goes swish swish and makes flowers. axel was an instant fave. zexion is a shitty twink and i do so love shitty twinks. there was some disney stuff too i guess

gameplay - 2/10. the first time i played it my brother was crashing at my apartment and watching me play and got very into making cool deck combos. so i had him do that for me and i did the combat and the fun sibling shenanigans got me through it. this time i quit after thirty minutes and watched the cutscenes on youtube. it's just so repetitive and meh

358/2 days

story - 7/10. that's too many soras! put some back! story was a bit slow at times but i did enjoy seeing the daily life of the organization and axel/saïx handling their divorce so so well. needed more demyx

gameplay - it's packaged as a movie now so i did not replay the game and can't fairly rate it. i remember it being not the best combat but not terrible for a ds game

kh2

story - 8/10. it would get higher but the fact the beginning is incomprehensible if you haven't played com and 358 loses it some points....i had not played com when i got kh2 and boy howdy. it made more sense on the replay of course and yeah it's a good story. obsessed with how maleficent remains one of the main recurring characters in this series and just Does Shit from time to time because why not. god forbid women do anything etc. also the gay divorce continues to go terribly. saïx is handling this so well i say as he goes into berserk mode again. needed more riku screentime tho

gameplay - 9/10. huge upgrade from previous titles. it was very fun and fluid. the form shifts were a great addition. there were a lot of options but it didn't feel overwhelming or like it disrupted combat. my only real complaint was it felt a bit too on rails at some parts... like cutscene, battle, walk three steps repeat. oh and i hated the gummi missions but i am a gummi hater in general. oh also antiform was amazing. sora can turn into a feral creature... as a treat

birth by sleep

story - 10/10. fuck i love birth by sleep. aqua my beloved daughter who is the most terrifying keyblade master ever. terra my troubled son who got fucked over by shitty adults on an hourly basis. ven the thousand year old little kid who has never caught a break once. also hey it's xehanort and he also has ex husband drama. only note is that aqua should get to say fuck

gameplay - 10/10. the command deck was right up my alley and command forms were the best form gameplay they've done. i loved how all three kids had a unique style and abilities. i loved melding cards and gems to make new cards. i enjoyed playing monopoly. i thought it was the best game in the series when i first played it and that remains true

re:coded

story - 6/10. it was okay? it was largely a rehash but did add a few things. my friend and i kept saying welcome back alvis whenever data riku used a computer so that was fun

gameplay - this was also presented as a movie in the bundle so i won't score it. i don't even remember how it was from way back when i played it

dream drop distance

story- 9/10. the games that switch between multiple perspectives seem to be my favorites and i think it's partly that it makes the story more interesting. the time traveling norts were a bit wtf but that's just an inescapable part of the series. inspired me to get twewy which i will be playing next. MEOW WOW!!!!!

gameplay - 9/10. flowmotion was really neat and fit the style well. i loved the pokemon aspect so much you have no idea. i was a little sad you couldn't meld command cards but it would have been Too Much with all the other stuff going on. a few fights near the end had some really dumb mechanics (the type where when you look up a guide it just says good luck) but there were also some excellent ones. i do think it lost a little something in the port because the stylus on 3ds was important. however there is nothing is quite as satisfying as seeing meow wow hit xehanort with giant bouncy orbs so I'm willing to forgive it a lot

union x/back cover/dark road

story - 9/10. i was shocked how much i enjoyed the story of these. i got very invested and i was only watching the cutscenes, not playing. really interesting world building and the master of masters was an instant fave. one of the only kh titles that passes (barely) the bechdel somehow. also could be retitled as kh: dead kids, because boy did a lot of kids die! extra points for maleficent managing to set major events in motion twice and being very eh whatever about it. love her for that. and the backstory of the xehanort/eraqus divorce, of course. i love a good divorce

gameplay - didn't play this one, just watched ELEVEN HOURS of cutscenes. no longer available which is hilarious considering how much important lore is in it that is referenced in kh3. hopefully they make it into a single player offline game someday with better gameplay

fragmentary passage

story - 8/10. very short but filled in some gaps. i love aqua so i was predisposed to love this one

gameplay - 8/10. it felt like a rough draft for kh3 and that meant it didn't have all the annoying extra crap kh3 added in and played pretty smoothly. i liked the little puzzles. it was a unique game and i enjoyed it more than i expected

kh3

story - 6/10. the fact i had to sit through entire disney movies worth of cutscenes brings the score way down. we did not need to see 3 musical numbers in frozen. if i wanted that I'd watch the movie. i just wanted to play the damn game. the majority of the game is sora got benched and has to get his groove back which was very disappointing for the climatic finale to the series. once i got into the end game though it was much better (i would rate the later game stuff way above a 6 which just makes my frustration with earlier stuff worse). re:mind added in the bits i felt were missing and i came away satisfied overall with the wrap up. axel/saïx had divorce arc three and then got back together finally 🏳️‍🌈🥂🎉. xehanort/eraqus also got back together as they fucked off to be gay in the afterlife. finally we are free of the norts (OR ARE WE???) and the master and the foretellers are slated to come back next from the looks of things. maleficent continues to hang out in the wings waiting for opportunities to #girlboss and I'm excited too see what cataclysmic events she sets off next

so that's it. i did watch the brief melody of a memory scenes but there wasn't too much new there. i may watch the cs from the missing link beta at some point. otherwise it's back to my life long journey of waiting for the next title to drop

gameplay - 5/10. ugh. i bought the game when it came out but between the full length disney movies and the over saturated gameplay gimmicks i didn't get far. this time i powered through and by the end i was enjoying it for the most part because I'd figured out what things to ignore and how to avoid them. attractions were the worst addition to gameplay ever. everything was too flashy. way too many instances of being locked in a "cool" transition animation instead of actually doing combat which broke up the flow of things. i missed the command deck and how much it let you customize your play style. i didn't like the keys being locked to command forms as much as the bbs forms since it meant if you had a keyblade with better stats but hated the special on it you were kinda fucked. this became less of a problem as the game went but was still annoying. overall felt like a step back from the others. they tried to do too much. oh also why were there ten thousand instances of having to learn new controls for some new mini game in every area??? just let me hit things i am begging you. it really felt like they went for cool spectacles over satisfying gameplay

general notes on all of them: i enjoyed the story much more this time due to being able to play them in order. the fact they all released on different platforms originally made the complicated story even more confusing since i couldn't afford to buy a new system every time a new one came out. i really hope they veer away from that practice in the future but i kinda doubt it especially since they've got another mobile game lined up already. while the disney stories were fun early on it felt like the story outgrew them (except for the characters who were in the main story as well like mickey and maleficent) and they were kinda a drag by 3. i doubt they can move away from those since they're the whole gimmick of the series but it would be better imo. deeply worried they'll start bringing in newer disney acquisitions.

one of my biggest complaints about the series has always been how few female characters there are and how little many of them are used. it got slightly better later in the series but overall was still not great, especially for kairi. i kept wondering if they added stuff for her in re:mind due to complaints about this.... the dlc felt like an apology for several things tbh. aqua was great but she shouldn't be the only one and even she got upstaged in kh3 when she's supposed to be the third most powerful keyblade master. weirdly enough maleficent was probably the best written female character. really wild how much she wove into the plot and affected events so much without even trying to (especially in union x). she should fire pete though (i think she should hire demyx)

I'd like to see them let you play as characters other than sora more often since that was always really neat (he's had a billion games to himself now). I'd love a kairi and aqua game but i can imagine square and disney both clutching their pearls over female protagonists

something i noticed was that playing them when i was older i liked sora much better. when i started the series as a teenager i found him annoying. as an adult i have more sympathy and tolerance for teenaged boys who are Going Through It. growth or something

[detectivereads]

Video Games: reboots or remastered editions I want to see Part 1

Hi everyone,

I am not being paid, this is fan entertainment post.

Ok lately I have been feeling nostalgic about games I used to play when I was younger. The other day I found a game playthrough of Cartoon Network Summer Resort, that game there reminded me so much of the old computer flash games I use to play, I then found Trick or Treat Beat! Courage the Cowardly Dog Creep TV and a few other games as well.

That got me thinking about the old game station game that I used to play all the time.

Now that I am older and game stations have advanced to the point where some of the games are a little harder to play on, I wanted to write down my thoughts and see if people have played the games I used to play and also wish that they would get remastered or rebooted for the game stations of today.

So, basically, I would love anniversaries packs where it would have all the games or a set number of games for like the switch or other game stations. (I would like it if they had physical releases as well.)

The Hamtaro games- All of them- I remember getting the first game for the Game Boy Color, I played the heck out it and my sibling also loved this game too, I remember we were trying to figure out how to get the last hamster back to Boss’ clubhouse and Cappy was the hardest, until by total accident we figure it out (and it open a whole new can of worms to get him.) I also loved playing HamHam Heartbreak, I love the story and how we had Bjiou helping us. I would love to have a physical copy that had all the games for the switch.  Some of the other Hamtaro games I haven’t played because I remember it was so hard to track them down for affordable price. So, yes, I want all the game Hamtaro games for the switch physical copy.

The Scooby Doo games- I remember when my family got a PlayStation 2 and we got a bundle of games, I remember Dark Cloud, Scooby Doo Night of 100 Frights were the two games I play the most of. But I also remember Scooby Doo Unmasked, Scooby Doo and the Cyber Chase, there are so many Scooby Doo games I would love to see a bundle set for the new gen consoles.

Xena Warrior Princess- This was one of the first video games I have ever played, this game was for the PS1. I remember fondly sitting with my older sibling we would take turns watching and reading to whoever was playing the strategy guide that we had directing them to find all the power ups so we could see what they could do. We both grew up watching the Tv show of Xena and Hercules. This game is one of my all-time favorites. I still get scared in the Labyrinth level with all the spiders and then the Minotaur coming around the corner boding Xena if you weren’t fast enough to hit him with the chakram and all the wrapped victims that we had to use to trigger puzzles. My favorite level was the Hades levels. Seriously, WE GOT TO GO TO THE UNDERWORLD AND MEET HADES!!!!!!

SpongeBob SquarePants- Much like Scooby, I remember playing games from the PS1 and PS2. The big one I want is them to make SpongeBob SquarePants the Movie for the Switch.

Coraline- one of my favorite books/movies I have both the PS2 and the Ds game. I loved how they differ from each other but the PS2 was my favorite. I want to have that version on the Switch.

Dark Cloud- As I said above, these were some of the first games I played on the PS2, I loved playing this game so much. I did remember when laying out the town after the antagonist and poofed everything, I didn’t understand how to put down the buildings, but once I did that open more game play of talking to the people that lived in a town and seeing how they wanted their house to be built. I remember one of the requests was someone wanted their house facing the sunrise or something like that.

Now here are some ideas for games I want to see

Scooby Doo and the Ghoul School- I seriously would love to have a game where we got to go to Miss Grimwood’s School.

Ever After High- I loved watching the web series of Monster High and Ever After High and was disappointed that they stopped. One of the Monster High games gave an Easter egg to Ever After High.

I would love to have a new Hamtaro game. I loved the old games, but I really want to see a new game with all our favorite Hamsters.

Now, I will probably add to the is if I have any more ideas other games, but for now these are the ones that I would love to see get a new updated version of or if they just ported to Switch or something.

[partially-controlled-chaos]

I was asked by both @beardedladyqueen and @thoughts-of-bear about 5 things that make me happy and my dumbass completely forgot these were in my inbox so I’m so sorry for the delay in actually answering. BUT with that being said, I finally have answers! Thank you both so much for the ask! ❤️

1. Spooky shit. I LOVE spooky shit. Halloween. Horror movies. Ghost stories. The paranormal. Graveyards. The occult. Everything. I was absolutely watching horror movies I should NOT have been watching at like 5 years old and “Friday Night Scary Movie Night” was a staple in my household. Popcorn, really poorly made B rated horror movie, staying up late, and trying to not get scared was a weekly thing and I miss having those movie nights. But because of that my love for anything spooky has bled into my adult life and now it’s just a way of life. So if you ever want to swap ghost stories I’ll be your best friend. 👻

2. Early mornings. I mean like that wonderfully quiet time between 3am and 5:30am. If it’s staying up that late or waking up that early (exception being when I have to wake up at that time for work), I love that time of night/early morning. Things are usually quiet and peaceful and it’s just a really nice time to kind of just exist without the hustle of daily life. As given by my username, my life can be absolutely chaotic at times so it’s nice to be able to have moments to just kind of be. And in relation to the above point, late nights mean spooky times. And as a side note, that time of morning in Animal Crossing New Horizons is amazing.

3. Relaxing in spring/fall weather. Kind of related to the above topic, but when I can’t be up in the super early mornings, I love sitting outside when it’s nice weather in spring or fall and just unwind. I don’t do it as much now because I don’t have a yard, but when I was a kid I loved just laying out in a hammock in nice weather and either take a nap or read. I could get a hammock for my back porch but if I did that I’d have to fight off a horde of spiders and I would just rather not.

4. Playing nostalgic (to me) games. So in addition to spooky movie nights, playing video games was HUGE in my house. My mom started playing Crash Bandicoot on PS1 in the ye olden days of 1996 so I grew up playing that and Spryo the Dragon mostly. So now when I have down time between other games I play or am super stressed, I’ll replay the hell out of those games. I was overjoyed when they did the trilogies of both games for PS4 so now I can play them whenever I want and it’s fantastic. My PS2 and all my games were stolen so for a long time I didn’t have the ability to play my favorite games, so when they were remastered for a system I owed it was the happiest day of my life. Also grew up on the Sly Cooper series that became an absolute obsession for me for a solid decade so when they remastered it for the PS3 I was in absolute heaven.

5. Writing fan fiction. So this is not something new for me, but it’s something I’ve rediscovered (thank you Baldur’s Gate 3). I wrote fan fiction yearsssss ago when I was in high school, so like…2011-2016 I think is when I stopped? Really I think I stopped in 2014 but according to the trusty fanfiction account I posted one thing in 2016? Anyway, not important. I stopped writing when I got into college because things because more hectic, I was busy, life was absolutely kicking my ass, and the fandom I wrote for was dying down so eventually I just lost the desire to write. But now that I’ve gotten settled as an adult and thanks to the glory that is BG3, I’ve regained the desire and want to write again and it’s honestly so, so nice. I can’t write as frequently as I did when I was in high school, but damn do I enjoy it. I’ve found it’s a way I can express myself in ways that I actually feel confident in what I do. I can’t draw to save my life, but I do feel that writing is where I can be creative and feel good about it. May not always be the best work, but I have fun doing it. I also love reading fan fiction. Reading how people take genres and reimagine them or completely twist it is always so fun so look into. Creativity for the win, my dudes.

Anyway, thank you again for asking me and I’m sorry it took so long to actually post this!

[local-lamppost]

Feel free to ignore this, its just me gushing about how important Code Lyoko is to me.

I'm not one of those people who gets nostalgic and for multiple reasons, A) I'm very rarely emotionally sentimental towards media, B) I am a bit stunted emotionally, and C) due to a childhood/teenage years of a number of head injuries my memory is absolutely shot.

But through it all, Code Lyoko-the weird show from France with its stilted animation and repetitive plot-is what gets me. Not my favorite movies, games, or even other tv shows will do this to me.

Now, I started watching Code Lyoko when I was pretty young. I'm more or less a year older than it. So, when it was dubbed into english for the states, I was just old enough to catch onto the plot and some time later be enthralled with the later seasons/reruns. I have two older brothers and we all have vastly different taste in media, but for a solid part of my childhood we all agreed on a shared love for this show. We would meet in the den to watch the episodes every day and get along as only kids watching cartoons can.

When we moved states the subject I was most upset over was that CN for some reason didn't have Code Lyoko in this new area. Which, considering the move took probably about a day or two, really confused me. But for years this show lived only in my memory, not even my friends at school-in grades above or below-knew what I was talking about.

Some years pass, Code Lyoko is this shiny little memory that sits in the back of my brain, and I'm given a gen 1 iPad. It's slow, it dies quickly, I didn't even have my own headphones, but I didn't have to share with my brothers and had Youtube.

Now, for any young folk reading this for some reason (first off, good on you for getting into Code Lyoko) Youtube had been around for a few years at this point and had only really started getting traction circa 2008-09. The fun thing about early Youtube was that you could watch anything. Very few restrictions, no concept of enforcing copyright, it just had to be ten minutes or less and even that was beginning to change(I think). This was the era of watching a lagging anime in 3-4 parts an episode, and this is where I was able to finally watch Code Lyoko again.

I remember very specifically marathoning the show in the kitchen, sitting oddly in an arm chair, utterly engrossed in this show. It had action, it was 3D animated, the characters were cool and funny, and I would've done anything to have a hangout like the factory. Not to mention the intro was the best thing I'd ever heard and still is to this day one of my favorites.

But why do I love this show? Well a couple reasons...

Thing 1: Animation

Now I know the jokes and the jabs and the fact that its old and dated are what anyone unfamiliar with the show is quick to point out. If anyone has even passing knowledge of Code Lyoko its usually the weird character designs. If you watch the show you get used to it and sorta come to notice that it fits the characters much better in the 3D world more than the 2D and Lyoko is where all the cool action scenes are so.

And, I don't know if this is a hot take, but I like the 3D animation a lot. It looks like the ps2/3 games we would play as kids, and the premise is basically kids fighting monsters in a video game in 2003. It's an aesthetic that I appreciate for better or worse.

Thing 2: Stakes/Story

Code Lyoko is one of the few shows (cartoons especially) with the unique ability to be episodic in a serialized way. Things build up, connect, and whatever big changes happen in the past seasons continue on in the following. This was kinda insane to young me, shows were episodic or serialized, not both. Not to say there was nothing else (Teen Titans, Generator Rex, X-Men Evolution, Avatar, etc.) nor to say that Code Lyoko was the best at doing this, but no matter how repetitive the usual episodes are it more than makes up for with the stakes of those epidoes.

I don't think many cartoons put the kids in as imiment danger as Code Lyoko. Military satellites, Nuclear collisions, plagues of rats and hoards of wasps, using nano tech to give people amnesia that spread like the flu, being drowned or boiled alive, molested by plants, haunted by internet ghosts, Jeremy messing up a code so badly the antagonist needs to help the heroes out, feeling what it is like to be killed every time they are devertualized, having gravity turned off, having to deal with the fact that they are all months to potentially years older than their peers due to time travel, stressing over keeping everyone alive because time travel doesn't fix that, and so much more. Keep in mind they are all 13-15 years old and also in boarding school, on their own those are experiences that will deeply scar and change you without the cyber terrorism.

Thing Last: Characters

This is the real kicker and probably something I'll dedicate an entire series of things to talking about in depth, but for now.

Code Lyoko was the first show with characters I truly cared about. My young brain would be so absorbed in those stakes that I could forget that a cartoon for children would not kill any of its main characters(at least back then).

Individually, each character had something going for them. Jeremy was smart, witty, and made me feel better about being a nerd; Aelita was all that and more, being one of the kindest characters in media but still managing to hold her own both verbally and physically (no sequence was cooler to me than in season 1 when Aelita had to avoid monsters without aid and managed to kill a bunch using only the terrain); Yumi was the groups strength in the real world, a bit older and down to earth, it's weird she had no friends prior to the series; Odd, what to say about Odd? He is the only emotionally intelligent person in this whole cast with only Aelita coming close. He is happy, funny, proud, and kinda carried the team in the early episodes when Ulrich wouldn't go to Lyoko for whatever reason; Ulrich, my boy, the best fighter in Lyoko and a contender for best Lyoko design, my relating to him as a child was probably the earliest indicator I had mental health problems, but I will always remember him taking down Kolossus. Lastly, XANA. For a villain with maybe a line of dialog, XANA had a strange sense of character to him. He was a malicious, ruthless, powerful entity that wanted freedom for itself and the destruction of those who imprisoned him. XANA was meant to be a helpful AI, but it got out of hand and was persecuted by the men in black due to its capabilities, even scaring Hopper, his creator. XANA's death in the second to last episode is shown as a smoke being of him contorts in agony and dissipates; so close to being free.

More than anything, the Lyoko Warriors are friends. They goof around, get a virtual Aelita a birthday cake, know when to tease and when to just listen, they will do anything for each other through thick and thin, but they can also just hang out. A lot of stories have groups that feel like they only spend time together to achieve something, for a purpose, the Lyoko Warriors are friends who like being together.

To wrap this up.

Code Lyoko has numerous problems, most of which can be seen in Miraculous Ladybug the current popular French cartoon created by a former Code Lyoko storyboard artist, but it had heart. It showed me how far animation could go, how a world could be created. It motivated me to improve my writing and taught me that no story-no matter how good the visuals or plot-is anything without lovable characters.

More than anything serious, Code Lyoko was fun. It gave me time to spend with my brothers, an introduction into internet media/culture, and the first ending that I ever found satisfying as a child. I love this show, if someone came up to me and said 'if you quit your job and studies that your actually happy with and come make a Code Lyoko reboot/sequal' I wouldn't hesitate.

I love you Code Lyoko and here's to another 20! Let's live in a world without danger.

[kikithedetective]

I don't know I have such an interest in ps2 horror games because I never grew up with them. I grew up with a GameCube and in a household that didn't let me play anything past T rating. Never really interacted with that media until like a few years ago through YouTube and only just two days ago did I finally grab some Resident Evil games.

Ps2 horror games make me feel nostalgic in a nonsensical sort of way

[furrygalactaknightpaws]

*deep inhale* 5, 7, 8, 11 (I know you have many things so maybe one of your favorites or one you're fixated on right now!), 16, 17, 19, 20, 22 (I think I know the answer to this), 23, 24 (I also know some of the answer to this), 26, 27, 28, 29 and 30: least favorite Animal Crossing villager and least favorite Pokemon!

YAY lots of questions!!! This will prolly post a while after the other ask you sent me cause it’s gonna take a bit XD

5. favorite form of potato?

I have never been the biggest potato person, I thought I hated them as a kid but I have realized in the last years I do like potatoes just not a ton. Anyways I enjoy baked chips, crispy shoestring fries (If fries ain’t crispy I don’t want them), my partner makes yummy homemade fries too >w< but my fave is prolly sweet potato, including sweet potato fries and also sweet potatoes baked with brown sugar, that shit is heavenly -w-

7. what animal do you look forward to seeing when you visit an aquarium?

ALL OF THEM!! I adore water dwelling creatures so much and have always had a special interest in marine biology! But I, especially at our zoo, love seeing the penguins (they’re so interactive and love to play with you by the glass) n also sharks n stuff, but yeah I love them all <3

8. do you change into specific clothes for the house when you get home?

I always change into pajamas right away if we have no other plans to go out! Lounging around in normal clothes feels uncomfortable to me, pajamas feel so free and safe -w-

11. anything from your childhood you’ve held on to?

Lots of things as you said!! x3 I’m a very nostalgic person!! My fave plushie I own is a bunny named Mocha and I also have lots of games I’ve owned since I was a kid and a childhood ps2 I cherish, the old copy of KH1 I have for it, I dunno I have so much XD I also have a collection of pony figures from mlp g4 that I love, and I still have and wear this shirt I got in hot topic when I was 12 ⬇️

16. thoughts on mint chocolate chip?

Hate it! Ew! Disgusting! I’m sorry for me personally it’s the equivalent of eating toothpaste on chocolate and I’m just not into it x3

17. an anxious compulsion you do everyday?

I feel I bite my nails, also I anxiously stretch x3

19. the veggie you dislike the most?

I fucking hate beans like maybe all types of them, I dunno. It’s a sensory thing I hate the bean skins or whatever it is -w-‘ I also don’t like celery it’s boring and gets stuck in my teeth which is another sensory thing XD

20. favorite disney princess movie?

Beauty and the Beast!!! I also love Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, and Mulan for many reasons hehe. I love Disney history, art and such so the older movies are my cup of tea x3

22. do you have an emotional support water bottle?

I do!! You know this hehe but it’s an animal crossing one with Mabel, Sabel and Label all over it :3 water bottles I tend to get attached to and this one my mom gave me after my other one broke earlier this year. I try my best to take care of my bottle cause they’re important to me 💖

23. do you wear jewelry?

Not really a lot, I do occasionally wear this sunflower bracelet that matches with Luma’s 🌻 and I have a necklace also from them that is a rose one and I love both of those! Otherwise I don’t really wear jewelry!

24. which do you find yourself using, american or british english?

It depends XD I mostly use USA English cause I am from the usa, but on the other hand I type lots of words with spelling that is not typical usa spelling such as colour and defence. Some terminology I use out loud too but not a lot :3

26. how’s your spice tolerance?

Preeeetty low XD I think higher than others who have like NO spice tolerance but I can mostly handle some spice in like, sushi, spicy mayo, that kind of thing? But I can’t really handle a lot of it or very slowly cause not only do I get sick from spicy food but my mouth burns so fast -w-‘

27. what’s your favorite or go-to outfit?

I’m not sure if I have one! :0 going vague tho I like wearing loose t-shirts with my interests on it especially like games or whatever, I love baggy pants but I mostly only have pajama baggy pants. I guess anything comfy and casual is my go to :3

28. last meal on earth?

Gimme an all you can eat sushi platter with my favourite rolls covered in eel sauce and spicy mayo and I’ll be happy :3

29. preferred pasta noodle?

Hmm I love tortellini and ravioli a ton :3c for non filled pastas I love shells, mini shells, rotini (especially garden rotini), gnocchi, and angel hair!

30. Least favourite animal crossing villager and least favourite Pokemon!

AC villager easy!! I hate Barold and Yuka. Barold cause he’s ugly and his design just feels racist and I hate that :/ for Yuka it’s cause of personal reasons, she’s a bitch in my ACPG town and I can’t stand her XD

Least fave Pokémon.. it’s hard I don’t like saying I hate any Pokémon but I like really don’t like these Pokémon..

[mistbow]

スタン「ディムロス……」 ディムロス「最後に一つだけ言っておく」 ディムロス「私は嘘をついていた。おまえは選ばれた存在などではないのだ」 スタン「…………！」 ディムロス「元々、人間にはお互いに意志疎通を行う力があった」 ディムロス「だが、長い時間の中で、天地戦争が始まった頃には、人間はそれを忘れていた」 ディムロス「おまえは私と出会う前から、その資質を目覚めさせていた」 ディムロス「それは非常に希有な事ではあったが、特別な事ではない」 ディムロス「その資質は誰の中にも、眠っているものなのだからな」 スタン「なんだ、そういうことか……　気にするなよ、俺は別に気にしてないからな」

STAHN: Dymlos.... DYMLOS: I want to say one final word to you. DYMLOS: I lied to you. You were not chosen. STAHN: .........! DYMLOS: In the beginning, people were blessed with the power to truly understand one another. DYMLOS: However, this power was lost by the time of Aeth’er Wars. DYMLOS: But you found that quality within yourself even before you met me. DYMLOS: It was very unusual to find someone like you, but your abilities are not extraordinary. DYMLOS: This is because this power, this ability lies dormant within everyone. STAHN: Is that all? Hey, don’t worry, it doesn’t bother me at all.

When people (usually English-speaking people, because Japanese fans of Destiny often have this attachment to the original game because of nostalgia) ask me if I seriously prefer the original version to the PS2 remake of the game in terms of overall narrative and characters, I really mean it unironically.

I feel like in the bigger picture, the message of the original game (like why it was even called Tales of Destiny, for instance) had truly been lost when it was remade, and I lament for this loss more than anything else. In terms of gameplay, yes, it’s more polished and I’d argue they had turned one of the most horribly-aged games to something that’s so damn fun to play, and I know that’s what matters the most when it comes to videogames in general, but I wish it had retained what made the original game so special to the people who have played it, despite of all of its faults. (As a disclaimer: I started with this game, however, I don’t have nostalgic attachment to it like a lot of people do; that nostalgia is for D2 in my case, as it was the first one that wholly captured the magic of Tales to me. However, that doesn’t mean I didn’t appreciate D for what it was at the time.)

Sure, you can say more details are fleshed out (debatable for the characters, as I feel they have become more of flanderized or even outright contradictory versions of themselves at worst, and ‘softened’ at best, not allowed to act truly like humans at times, compared to their original counterpart with all their 人間臭い qualities), but is it worth it in place of muddying or even distorting the message it was meant to convey in the first place? I’ve said before that in my opinion, overcomplicated worldbuilding just for the sake of it is overrated. In trying to explain how the Swordians work in the remake, they changed the setting, but then the above doesn’t work anymore in this context. It’s gone. Just like that.

Making the characters more ‘palatable’ beats the purpose. I deliberately used the word 人間臭い because you know what? Yes, they stink, but you can feel the humanity exactly because of the stink. Humans are good, but humans are also bad. If you’re gonna say Stahn (or anyone for that matter) is not that special, then show it to me, show how human he can get. I’m not saying the original version of the characters are that well-written either, because honestly, they could’ve been fleshed out more... just not in the way how the remake does it, if you can call that fleshing out the characters. There are so many ways you could’ve expanded on them without truly erasing what made them charming in the first place. As well as, again, I want to believe the characters were created and written that way for a reason, and getting hung up in the details of these characters make a lot of people miss the point.

(There’s a beauty in Stahn having done all the things he did in the game because he believed he was destined to do so, but deep inside, even if he wanted to tell himself that, he was still doing all of these because he believed in what he had already believed, long before even meeting Dymlos. That’s an admirable character.)

(By the way, I know a lot of these issues also stemmed from how D2 tried to expand on the world of D though they can't even be consistent with D2 despite coming after it; for the record, I’m not absolving D2 for these problems either. However, at the same time, if you let my bias speak for just a moment, D2 is there to tell its own story. It doesn’t try to override D. The remake of D’s raison d’être is to be the definitive version of D. That’s the biggest problem there.)

These details don’t matter much to me, what matters is if these details truly serve their purpose, which in my opinion is the themes along with the messages. For me, everything has to begin with an intent, with a broad idea, as well as end with that intent, that idea. And I’m not sure if the remake manages to expand on the idea the original game represents... it just seems like they were confused about what D was really about in the first place. Applied to things like world and characters, it might make it seem like I don’t really care about the individuals, that it might make me seem so detached, but on the contrary, I want to appreciate something as a whole, and to appreciate that whole, I need to appreciate every individual element that is there, that is needed to build it. Because the individuals, when divorced from their contextual whole, mean almost nothing to me. They shine more because they work together to make up something that is whole.

[mysorokuheart]

Just some SoRoku thoughts

With SoRoku week right around the corner I’m thinking back to when I first started shipping Sora & Roxas. Its almost a head scratcher of why? Why do I ship two characters who have barely any screen time & to some people still problematic to ship? Why put myself through that? & to end up putting myself out there with spending countless hours making SoRoku edits to running a fan blog with some friends I’ve made along the way.

Friendship

To answer that question isn’t of course due to much of the actual games lack of screen time which I could harp on but started from a simple thought I had while playing kh2 vanilla ps2 in 06 ish at 16 . I’m like wow who the f is this kid? He needs to meet Sora & teach him to skateboard & share this odd ice cream so at first I wanted them to be friends because didn’t have the idea to ship them that came later then forward to my utter somewhat of a disappointment, I really didn’t want them connected like this or at all. So I fell out of playing or caring until later as younger adult of feeling nostalgic from ABC’s once upon a time made me want revisit another Disney crossover Kingdom Hearts so I replayed kh2 on my still working ps2 at the time lol then played catch-up by watching play throughs of every game up to that point. kh3 had not yet this was 5+ years prior to that. I learned I don’t have the patience to play games anymore or can’t because I was starting to get early on arthritis in my right hand. I was in tears to learn of ddd’s Sora & Roxas scene on YouTube not from playing that game. Suddenly I was ok with them being connected because that one scene was my payoff for suffering years ago. It was also that one scene that changed them from friendship to romantic to me. It’s special.

Yeah Sora can’t get the beautiful blond boy out of his mind after that lol every brunette needs a blond😅🙊

Romance

Oh yeah I’m still trying to answer the question why ship them? The potential chemistry they could of had, star crossed lovers. Sora desperately wanted to save Roxas his quote “it’s not darkness not if it helps him” to xemnas & Ansem seeker of darkness didn’t go unnoticed by me but Sora’s determination to at least save Roxas is heartwarming it’s okay he was thinking of Roxas it’s interesting that something isn’t darkness bad if it helps someone who you care about 🤔 the I don’t care attitude of it is telling at the end but it started here! 😄🥹😅❤️ but it’s my 2nd fav quote from kh3 referring to Roxas when he isn’t even there the desperation & determination of it is beautiful

im with you in San Fransokyo is my 1st😭

I have no straight answer as to why I ship them lol sorry to have wasted your time 😝

[slunberparty]

Did you find coding hard to learn? I've been thinking of making a game for a while, but every time I decide to try it's always the coding that holds me back. Game design I understand, modelling and animation I can learn, but I've always struggled when it came to coding. I understand it more now than I used to, but it still feels like trying to stick a square peg into a round hole sometimes. (Also your game looks very good so far! Like Spyro on the ps1 or ps2, it's very nostalgic.)

Hi! YES I found it super difficult! (and still do depending on what I'm doing) My main thing was that I had no idea where to start and felt super overwhelmed by it. I was really lucky to have someone who I could ask for help and to explain things to me, but I also think a really great way to learn is to focus in on something specific you really want to do. If you're trying to make a game, I think the character controller is the most important piece. It's how the player experiences the entire game! So I think if you started with that you could learn a lot from it and keep going from there! It also really helps to write out in plain language what you want the code to do, then write the actual script Also thank you! I'm absolutely going for that nostalgic vibe. I'm going for something that's kind of more like how you remember a ps1 or n64 game than how they really are. Anyway, good luck!!

[r6ixphyve]

I gots the Bratz game on my ps2! So happy and nostalgic, it makes me feel small ☺️ playing it pretty much makes me feel little lol :3 also got some cute cuppies for my little space💕 cant wait to show them here soon!