#played it most on my vita or switch

[87foxeninaboxen]

The PS Vita really is the perfect system for VNs~ it's so compact and cute

[otomegamesandme]

It's been a hot minute since I've done a recommendation post but I am suddenly in the mood for another one! This one for otome/amare games with fall vibes! Some of these are demos, most are complete! Also if you have any requests, feel free to send an ask.

Let's get started!

7'Scarlet

System: PS Vita, PC (steam), Switch edition coming in 2025

This game takes place over summer vacation, but it's also a horror which makes me want to place it here! It's also the only game on this list that isn't an indie title. Follow Ichiko as she ventures into a strange small town in search of her missing brother.

I'm going to be honest, my favorite part of this game is the art/design. The moving backgrounds are super pretty and all the color choices are really nice. Toa's also a sweetheart, and he made the whole game worth it. I know the PC port isn't great, but thankfully Aksys is bringing over the switch version in 2025 if you feel like waiting for that!

Titan Arum

System: PC (itch.io)

You're a writer whose moved back into your old childhood home. Attempt to finish your novel and not lose your mind.

Honestly, one of my favorite indie otomes I've played. I love the art, the atmosphere, and where the game pulls inspiration from. The UI design is also gorgeous and one of my favorites to date. The three LIs are all very fun and distinct from each other, and seeing how the story unfolds in each of their paths was fun to discovery.

Under Your Moon

System: PC (itch.io)

You're in a world where everyone has disappeared except for you. You've been alone for a long time now, until suddenly you're not alone. And this stranger might just hold the answer to why everyone in your world has all but vanished.

Is it cheating to do two games from (roughly) the same team? Maybe, but this and Titan Arum are so good and I feel like after Titan Arum, all their newer releases don't get talked about as much? The atmosphere and slow creeping dread this game has is incredible, and I was so invested in it.

X-note

System: PC (steam and itch.io)

My first otome I played and loved back in the olden days of 2011. I still come back to replay it and it still has a special place in my heart. A mystery otome about a psychic girl whose approached to help solve a series of murders. The atmosphere in this was great, and I love the main character Eri a lot as well as the love interests. It veers more into being sad then anything, and if you want that kind of vibe I highly recommend.

Halloween Otome

System: PC (itch.io)

And finally we got a light-hearted entry! You get invited to a masquerade challenge where you have to stay in your Halloween costume and not have your identity revealed for two weeks, all while completing various challenges.

This feels like an indie otome classic, and the whole series just feels like comfort food? I have a soft spot for it after all these years, and I've personally been meaning to replay myself soon!

Delphine's Discovery

System: PC (itch.io)

Delphine is a streamer who, in an attempt to save her family business, goes to investigate an old orphanage. There she meets a strange man and finds herself potentially stumbling upon a murder mystery instead. This was another game that just felt really nice and relaxing to play in the moment.

ITYH

System: PC (itch.io)

Camille wants Osgoode to notice her, and when he does, everything goes wrong.

This is where we get into more severe horror themes, and I don't recommend this for everyone. With that said, I loved how absolutely wild the plot got and where some of the endings went. It felt like a fever dream, especially on top of all the awful things that happen leading up to the endings. It's such a ride, and it's definitely one of those games I still think about from time to time.

Memory Ghosts

LOL gotta showcase my game somewhere-

System: PC (itch.io)

This follows Clara as she starts community college and joins a paranormal club on campus with her childhood best friend. The paranormal club as an interest in the old humanities building Mariposa del Sol, and whatever seems to be haunting the building seems to have an interest in her.

This was the first game I ever made and released and while I've definitely improved since its release, I have a soft spot for it! It only takes about 3 or 4 hours to play through every route, so if you want something to kill time, check it out!

[shadowblade8192]

well let it be on record that i was asked for this (insert image for ask that was send cause it got deleted somehow. the original asker has said they didnt do that so it was probably on tumblrs end. in the reblogs there will be a screenshot of the original ask)

so, most of this is gonna be out of chronological order because i cant remember the order i got a lot of these in, though i do remember the first two physicals. first one i got was pc steam version. most playtime in this one due to getting it first and still going back to it cause multiplayer is easy, and also free unlike consoles) gifted it to quite a lot of my steam friends.

then my grandad introduced me to gog (and gave me fallout 3 and nv) and i got the gog version of terraria (identical to steam except its drm free and doesnt contain any steamworks stuff like steam multiplayer (though you can direct ip connect) or steam achievements (there are ingame achievements) or steam cloud) we'll get back to this one later as i have more to say

so, onto the physical copies i will not be going in chronological order as i only remember the first two chronologically (also i will note i got the steam and gog versions before any physicals)

Nintendo Switch

so like 2 years ago now i got a switch for my birthday, first console ive ever owned (i was a pc girlie), whats the first game i get for it? Wrong! it was mario kart (thats why i wanted a switch). naturally when i got the switch it did not come with a game packed in so i ended up cycling a couple miles to go and buy mario kart. shortly after i got terraria cause hey i liked the game on pc itd be nice to play it on the go (my laptop was shit and also it stopped working properly shortly before i got my desktop pc the year before my switch). also the third game i got for it was breath of the wild which i thought was worth mentioning

Xbox 360

second one i ever got was the xbox 360. i found this while on holiday in a cex for £1.50 (same time i got botw for the switch, see i said it was worth mentioning), and thought itd be neat to start collecting terraria physical copies for all the consoles because well a £1.50 game is a good place to start. havent played it yet, only verified the disc works since i dont have an xbox 360. it was a couple months (and collected terraria copies) down the line before i decided "hey this collection is cool why dont i get the consoles to play them on and eventually 100% each of them" which lead me down buying broken consoles and repairing them which is how most consoles i own came into my possession. if theres anything notable about the repairs ill mention them alongside the game. you can clearly tell i have no plan on how this post is going im just rambling as i remember something anyways this is where things stop being chronological and im just gonna group similar consoles together, which leads us to

Xbox One

the xbox one version has two different box art variations. why do i have both despite only being able to use one at a time? because theres two of course! the later one (right) is what i got first before hunting for the second one i got (left) because the right one is more common in cex and the left more common on ebay for.... some reason i dont know. nothing much to note otherwise except 100%ing this one was a fucking pain in the arse i didnt actually do it until about 9 hours ago. id basically 100%ed it some months ago (the standard 115 ingame achievements as of 1.4.4.9), but of course the ps4 and xbox one versions dont just have the standard ingame achievements like steam has, nonono thats to easy. they have their own that are more relics from the old gen consoles (ps3/vita/xb360/wiiu), and are xbox live/psn achievements. most are unique but some are just ingame ones (but not all 115 for.... some reason). and now we get to the achievement i was never able to complete until today. pet collector. most of these were fine, easy, completed alongside the others. except pet collector. now it requires you to "get all the pets". this is thankfully untrue, it requires you to get all the pets that were in the game as of when that achievement was introduced. a few i could get easily by looking up "<pet name> seed xbox" and getting the ones from chests, the rest i just got naturally, except, the zephyr fish. random chance from fishing, if you have insane fishing power, the maximum possible in the game, it wont even hit 0.5% chance, and its lower with lower fishing power. thankful xbox one has rolling recording so i was able to quickly capture the moment that i caught it (i was checking the wiki to see if there was anything else i could do to get this fish easier, then returned to the game and caught it there and then): (there was a video here but im cutting it in the hopes that i can actually send the post. its on my blog somewhere). i had a much easier time with this achievement on ps4. speaking about playstation,

Playstation 3

ha you thought i was gonna talk about ps4 werent you, or not i dont know what youre thinking. anyways this one was another cheap one, i got the ps3 version [on the right] for about £2, checked the disc works, and i still dont have a ps3 so i havent played that yet. also found a japanese ps3 version for a couple quid that comes with inlays and all that. cant read a word but its cool to have

Playstation Vita

This was one of the more pricy versions, with it [the english version] being about £15, played on a modded vita that i bought. notable things about that vita, the rear touchpad came broken but it was just unplugged, also the previous owner didnt wipe it and their memory card was just, full of porn (no i wont share it i factory reset it all) japanese version i got from someone selling it from japan, cheaper than the english version which was pretty funny to me

Playstation 4

so. a lot here. first one i got was the (boxed) playstation hits version, which came with a... original print disc? someone somewhere has bought a ps4 original box with the playstation hits disc from a random cex in some city. maybe ill meet them some day. anyways, next i got the original print with original print disc, nothing really of note, then found out there was a newer print without playstation hits on it (this doesnt exist for xbox one i checked trust me), tracked one down and paid a surprisingly low price. it had the right disc. now the odd ones out of the ps4 lineup, the disc in the jewel case is a standalone playstation hits disc (which came as a disc i provided the case myself) because i wanted one since i got confirmation it existed after getting that middle box art variation with its own disc. now, unique thing here, its the usa version. the ps4 is region free with discs, so i could play it. but. different region versions are different applications with different save data and different achievements trackers. i have only played this one to test the disc works im not doing 102 hours all over again to 100% the american version (yeah it was about 102 hours i did on expert mode this time, plus two minutes that i went into a journey mode drunk world to get a kite since it wasnt windy at all on the main save). finally, the bonus collectors edition. this has the box ive shown in the image, plus in the plastic wrap its stealed in theres an original print of the box art in there too. inside the big box is the stickers, poster, and... drum roll please.... the terraria branded pickaxe 2gb usb-2.0 flash drive. its by itself on ebay for like £30 or more and i got this whole bundle for under £20. i do not want to break the seal just for a 2gb usb drive ill use once and never again (american one is cropped, wouldnt upload if it was separate and i cant retake the pic for reasons. i think theres an image limit? or limit for images on separate paragraphs?)

Wii U and 3DS

these were also on the more expensive side, £20 and £15 respectively. nothing much to note about the games themselves, except the wiiu version can be played with the wiiu gamepad or pro controller... and also the fuckign wii remote with nunchuck. this isnt on the wiki. if i knew how to edit the wiki page to add that control scheme in i would. discussion page on the wiki talking about it here and if anyone wants the full inputs so they can put it in PLEASE message me i just want it on the wiki. nothing much to note on the repairs for my wiiu, but the 3ds. well. lets start by the fact that i bought this during a college day when i didnt have a lecture, and one of my friends (coincidentally an ex) had their 3ds xl with them, so i asked if i could just check this game works and it did. played about 5 mins and didnt touch it again. then i bought a broken new 2ds xl off ebay. broken (i knew this) not fixable by me (i wasnt aware till i tried). big problem, it wouldnt boot and also the shoulder button switches broke off and my soldering iron is too big to fix that, and also it was homebrewed and i didnt have the original nand backup cause it wasnt mine. it rotted in my electronics drawer for about two and a half years (maybe three and a half). onto the new 3ds xl i got, the only problem with that was a nonfunctional sd card reader. hey wait a sec i have a 3ds sd card reader on an old broken 3ds (2ds xl) so i swapped those out and its worked fine since. homebrewed it and i have the nand backup for that. so this was early this year. now. lets go up to last month. ive just built a computer monitor using the lcd panel and top case from my old shit laptop, a controller board for the panel i got off aliexpress, a cardboard box to store the aforementioned controller board, the laptops charger (fit perfectly into the dc port on the controller board and also was the right voltage), and some speakers (theyre shit but they work), and thought "hey my electronics repair skills have improved, lets go back to that old new 2ds xl, i found a motherboard replacement. its also a special variant one i have so i could sell it if i wanted to make money". so i bought the motherboard (and a new volume slider cause i lost that little bit of plastic), put it all together, and it worked! it all booted up! and i was so caught up in the euphoria of all that i failed to notice that the top screen was cracked inside that i could only notice now that the rest of the console worked. back to aliexpress, new top screen arrived, some broken glass, a ripped ribbon cable (of the old top screen) and some superglue later and i have a perfectly functioning new 2ds xl. which i am not playing terraria on cause my new 3ds xl is better. but hey i can streetpass with myself now that was worth the £40 i spent on repairs

PC Collectors Edition

first one i got here was the one in the middle, backed up the bunny.exe that activates the collectors edition and then shelved it. that one and the second one i got (left) were both used and thus the steam keys were already used. the later one i got (right) is sealed (thats why i have two of the same box art). there are more i am trying to find, theres one box art variation where the orangey red info box is massive, and one where its not present at all (so yeah theres still more, theres also a japanese 3ds and wiiu version but theyre like £60 and £100 on ebay and im not spending that much on a videogame. im sure the fact im specifying videogame will not come up later) its good, if you can get a good deal on one and want the bunny pet id say its worth it, though since all the exe does is change 1 bit in the registry its easy enough to manually do it even if you dont have the physical collectors edition if you know what youre doing (and on linux and mac you have to do it manually as theres no linux/mac versions of the script) speaking of linux like i did in the brackets, theres a fun bug where mouse4 and mouse5 cant be assigned ingame and arent registered at all which sucks cause i used those to grapple and quick mount. naturally using the windows version via proton does fix this, but provides us with fun new bugs such as all key presses in text boxes are doubles so trying to type anything including world seeds eennddss uupp lliikkee tthhiiss and also steam overlay is just completely broken, though i did find a fna update script for the linux port that updates the engine allowing mouse4 and mouse5 to be used, i got it off github somewhere.

now thats all the game versions, lets move on to some other cool stuff. firstly (and no pic for this because the frame i got makes any pictures look complete pants but its sick as fuck in person) is the "heroes of terraria" poster from the terraria.shop site, also some pins from the same site which i keep on a cork board thing on my wall next to the transgender tardis dr who pin i got, plus a hoodie (the world of terraria one in green and gold) plus some tshirts (like 4 of them, one was a heroes of terraria on a tshirt). theyre cool but you know whats cooler?

Terraria Official Handbooks

if youre my age or a bit older (or a bit younger i dont know) you might remember those minecraft handbooks. well, around 2015 terraria got their own for version 1.3.0.8. these arent really wiki replacements, and i think theyre aware of that (hell they even link to the wiki, and being 2015 they link to the official gamepedia one (before fandom fucked it up) and the unofficial wikia one (which i think became fandom. fuck that website. use the wiki.gg wiki its the new official one)), theyre more "hey show this to someone to get them into the game like a parent or friend or other person". theyre pretty cool, i got the bundle of these for quite cheap in very good condition, i did give them all a read through and you can tell theyre 1.3.0 guides, theres a LOT thats changed. maybe after 1.4.5 relogic will commission more? id like that but then again we have a wiki thats very comprehensive so i doubt it and now one more thing what i would personally consider the pride of my collection the single item i am most proud to have yes, even more so than handbooks and sealed game copies let me show you:

Terraria OST Vinyl

this released in 2021 (and as a result only has the first four volumes, also unrelated to the time it doesnt have the otherworld ost, related to the time it means theres no deerclops and no aether, and no 11 or more tracks that are coming in 1.4.5 which will presumably become volume 5. will they do a reissue of the vinyl if that happens? my wallet hopes not) and is SO EXCEEDINGLY RARE i have only seen a handful of listings, going for £150/160. until i found one for about £100 so i didnt think i just clicked buy and id personally say it was worth it due to rarity and being also SEALED so i havent touched the seal on that (i also dont have a vinyl player and i ripped the .wav files from the game files (i also paid for the .mp3 files from steam) so i dont really need to use the vinyl), and i really wanna get it framed. honestly this is just the thing im most proud of having. anyways i said id get back to the pc version (i think) so now im gonna mention the gog version

GoG.com

gog.com is a website (woah) that sells exclusively drm-free games. tl;dr if you have downloaded the games backup installer (or installed the game from them its still drm free) they cannot do SHIT you OWN that thing you can do whatever you like. install it on one of your pcs. install it on every pc you own. steam wont let you use windows 7 now? thats cool i can use the gog offline backup installer on any os (that the game itself supports). why am i mentioning this? well i thought itd be cool to collect backup installers. downloading them whenever new versions drop (was only really doing it with windows until last year so i only downloaded 1.4.4.9v4 on other oses myself) but i only started playing on steam with 1.4.0.5, and gog with 1.4.1 or 1.4.2 i cant remember which, how can i get older versions now? i can only download the latest version via gog, plus patch exes to patch older versions to slightly less old versions given that i already have older versions, and even then i can only currently download patches for 1.4.4.8 and onwards (i was grabbing patches as i went). so i contacted gog support. they were able to give me linux, windows, and macos backup installers for 1.3.5.3 and 1.4.0.5, which was very cool and 1.3.5.3 was one of the two versions i most cared about since they were right before 1.X.0.0 updates. the other being 1.2.4.1, since gog terraria did release with that version as the first one it released with. even going back to support a year later going "hey i was allowed access to older ones before, do you have 1.2.4.1?" and they could only give me 1.3.5.3 and 1.4.0.5 (and the latest version direct from gog.com being 1.4.4.9v4). so began my hunt. eventually finding the gog version of 1.2.4.1 lying around on the internet archive (thank you internet archive youre a real one), alongside a couple other misc versions i didnt have. i also found a couple i had to torrent (i wish gog let me have them all so i didnt have to resort to pirating a game i paid for but media preservation is at the heart of piracy so thank you media preservers youre also real ones. that includes internet archive im thanking you twice), so bringing me to now where i have basically every 1.4.4.x on windows, a handful of 1.4.x.x on windows, and 1.4.4.9v4, 1.4.0.5, and 1.3.5.3 on all platforms, and 1.2.4.1 on windows (linux/mac didnt get native versions till the beta on 1.3.0.7 and then fully on 1.3.0.8) oh i also have the mobile version but theres nothing really interesting of note there. switch versions better portably (and steam deck too)

and thats my full collection basically. at some point im hoping to get the 2 collectors edition box arts i dont have and 2 japanese game versions i dont have, but waiting for listings to show up online/reasonable prices respectively. if youve made it to the end of this... well done. maybe in the future ill talk about my dr who dvd collection, or the turnip boy robs a bank wii version i have (its real only haters will say its fake). anyways post ended thats all i can think to talk about.

[sewmice]

Hai as a decently new utapri fan I wanted to ask your opinion on how new fans should get into utapri after finishing the anime. Should they play through the otomes games or maybe try listening to the Masterpiece shows instead?

Welcome to Utapri! I hope you're enjoying the ride so far! And as someone who has been here for 12 years, welcome to Utapri hell, this is your life now! (with love of course)

Since the Masterpiece shows are all alternate universes/acting, it doesn't technically matter? So the real question is, do you like the idol side or the romance side more? Idol side, go for the masterpiece shows. Romance go for the games. And honestly switch around as you please. Just get to SOME game knowledge at some point because that's where you really learn about the boys after all. Personally it's best to know at least a little from everything.

Also the next most important thing will be whether you know Japanese or not. Because currently the anime, movies, and Starish special are the only things available in English. So what you can enjoy is more limited. Shining Live was in English for it's lifespan, and has some archives out there. Live Emotion we can only hope will have an English version but we do not know currently.

Now my answer to assist gets real long so gonna put it under a cut for everyone's sanity.

If you know Japanese, absolutely go enjoy the otome games, all of which have updated ports on the Switch! The release order and thus suggested order would be Repeat, Amazing Aria and Sweet Serenade, Debut, All Star, and finally All Star After Secret. And one day we'll have Dolce Vita.

If you want Quartet Night, while you meet them in Debut, their routes start with All Star. Ringo and Ryuuya have routes in Sweet Serenade and All Star if you're looking for them. Mitsuo in Amazing Aria is well....you'll see.

If you don't know Japanese, I still suggest looking into the games, but your options are more limited. ShiningWonderland has a fantastic crew pushing out translations. They're working on Repeat for Starish and All Star for QN currently. Couple of the routes are finished for at least one ending and others seem to be nearing completion. But I can't speak for that team past that. They are all wonderful people though!

If you don't mind getting a shortened, not amazing experience. There are some old summaries floating around from Breadmasterlee. Those, plus some friends who could understand enough, were how I learned parts of the games back in the day. Not the preferred experience though.

You could also technically struggle your way through with like Google Lens translation? Definitely not recommended though.

As for the masterpiece shows, again if you know Japanese, just enjoy them. If you wanna know what order they released in, the sets were as follows: Masquerade Mirage, Tenka Muteki no Shinobimichi, and Joker Trap Bloody Shadows, Pirates of the Frontier, Every Buddy!, and Polaris Lost Alice, Trios, and The Forest of Lycoris Dreaming of OZ, Never Again Neverland, and Faust Last Cantata

I know that next to last set, the Shining Masterpiece Shows, have translations by Kanasmusings. You can also find translations for some other dramas there, and subtitles for a majority of the stage plays (you will need your own file or DVD/BD).

The most recent Dramatic Masterpiece Shows seem to be works in progress at the moment. I know utapri-translations-uuuu is working on Heavens! And the CDs can be found in my masterlist.

The older ones I don't know off the top of my head if translations exist at all.

There are also Discord servers amongst the community, some public and some private, with resources and amazing people. But I'm not sure on how appropriate it would be to post the public ones. They don't allow piracy so as much as I push buying legally, uh, understandably linking from my blog publicly feels wrong. You can very likely find said discords via the Twitter fandom. Or talk to me in DMs.

This is a lot of info I know. Trying to cover as many bases as I can off the top of my head! Enjoy Utapri!

[kyndaris]

The Hylian Grind

My first few hours in Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom left much to be desired. At first, I couldn't quite see the appeal of the sequel to Breath of the Wild (and unlike those who played it on Switch, I played and finished the game on the ill-fated Wii U). It seemed like more of the same except, of course, with a slightly different set of tools on Link's belt. Weapons still broke frequently and he was severely underpowered against most enemies in the world save the humble bokoblin.

But, much like how I tackled the Talus enemies in the game, something shifted and I began enjoying it a bit more. Was it the fact I now had semi-decent weapons or materials to fuse Link's decaying weapons to? Maybe it was the accumulation of hearts to serve as a buffer against the damage my armour was failing to cushion.

Or, perhaps I was suffering from Stockholm Syndrome, a la Sorrengail's assertions. Which, in my estimation, is a little extreme. After all, I'm not being held prisoner by Tears of the Kingdom. I can put it aside at any time. I...just...simply choose not to (but also because I like to finish the games I play unless I completely don't click with them - see Soul Sacrifice on the PlayStation Vita or Codename: STEAM).

Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom released in 2023 to critical acclaim. However, unlike many others, I was unable to scrap together a decent enough portion of time to put a dent in the massive game. After all, I was still drowning in many other releases and desperately trying to play catch-up.

Come August 2024, though, and I was ready to take on saving Hyrule from Ganondorf. Little did I know, the game would end up sucking up hundreds of hours and it would not be until the end of September that I'd be able to complete it.

Although, given my completionist tendencies, I should have known better when I finally descended from the the Great Sky Island and began my trek to the Rito village in Hebra.

From a story perspective, Tears of the Kingdom keeps it simple. The opening moments see Link and Zelda descending down into the depths of Hyrule Castle. There, they stumble upon a ruins containing several murals that tell of a great war before their time. It isn't long before they find the desiccated body of an ancient creature. When Zelda reaches out to it, and the secret stone it holds (should have honestly named them sacred stones but maybe they didn't want to have it confused with Fire Emblem), the creature wakes up and attacks the two with its corrupting red tendrils. In a bid to protect Zelda, Link's right arm is sucked dry of vitality. Worse, the Master Sword is damaged beyond repair.

Before Zelda and Link can even think to flee, the ground beneath Zelda plunges down and whilst the rest of Hyrule Castle is sent skywards. Though Link tries valiantly to reach for his princess, Zelda plummets into the depths before vanishing in a flash of golden light. Before Link falls to his doom, however, he is saved by a floating sentient arm. Losing consciousness soon afterwards, Link awakens on a floating island, his withered right arm replaced.

How such a thing is possible, we will never know. It simply does. We'll call it Zonai magic for now. But, given this is a Zelda game, many of the larger mysteries of the world will remain unanswered. Rather, Link is focused on simply finding Zelda and saving Hyrule (or what remains of it) from the encroaching threat of the Demon King (seriously, they haven't even rebuilt the castle and the people are scattered all across the map. These people don't even have a standing army!)

Link's first order of business is heading to Hyrule Castle before Purah, a Sheikah descendant, sends Link out to figure out the regional phenomena plaguing the rest of Hyrule. It is only after Link manages to resolve the issues plaguing the Rito, Gorons, Gerudo and the Zora - collecting more secret stones along the way and unlocking the power of the elemental sages - that Link is then requested to find the Fifth Sage.

With Mineru at his side, Link is directed to find the Master Sword to finally banish the darkness that is Ganondorf.

Along the way, Link must traverse the width and breadth of Hyrule. I know I certainly did in my playthrough as I unlocked each of the Skyview Towers and committed myself to completing all the shrines scattered across the world.

Then, of course, there were the Dragon Tears, or, in this case, the titular Tears of the Kingdom. Visiting each of the new glyphs that had suddenly cropped up around Hyrule, Link was able to relive Zelda's memories from the time she had vanished in a shower of golden light.

Having taken the secret stone, Zelda travelled back in time to the very beginning of Hyrule. There, she befriended King Rauru and his wife, Queen Sonia. It wasn't long before she, too, had to contend with Ganondorf and his quest for more power - and thus shedding some backstory to the enigmatic villain found underneath Hyrule Castle.

Of course, besides a thirst for power, there isn't much to Ganondorf's character. His is not a sympathetic story of a downtrodden Gerudo boy who struggled to become king. And frankly, it's enough. Although why he wants to take over Hyrule is anyone's guess given how many of the Hylians, Gerudo, Zora, Gorans and the Rito are still struggling to rebuild their once great civilisations following the Calamity.

Heck, their current societies aren't even very advanced except for the the Purah Pad (which allows Link to teleport to any shrines or Skyview Tower).

From a gameplay perspective, there is little that has been changed from Breath of the Wild. Link has shields, bows and a myriad of weapons at his disposal. Just like the last game, they will break after frequent use - an annoying design decision but at least was explained in the narrative this time round.

Then, of course, there's the new suite of powers Link has at his disposal like UltraHand, Fuse, Ascend and Recall.

And here, I believe, it is important to return to my Battle Talus analogy. You see, when I first started playing Tears of the Kingdom, I struggled to take on the Battle Talus in a meaningful way although I was always determined to do so. The Battle Talus, fortunately, had several platforms on its shoulders. Once the bokoblins were killed, it was simply a matter of getting on to the platform.

My problem, of course, was how?

Like an idiot, I started the game by trying to lift myself higher by creating fire. This worked for a time, although Link still had to dodge all the boulders thrown his way as one unlucky shot would kill him instantly.

Unfortunately, starting a fire meant I could only take these creatures on in places with burnable material. Like grass.

Up in the Hebra mountains, there wasn't as much available.

Of course, that was when I remembered I had a slew of special powers I could use. The first one that came to my mind was Ascend. Once the Battle Talus had thrown its boulders, I could run up close to it and Ascend up to where its weak point was located.

This also worked for a time. Until I encountered the other Talus in the game: Frost, Fire and Stone Talus. None of these creatures had platforms and climbing up them whilst they were trying to actively kill Link was not an easy task.

And that was when it finally clicked.

Link had the ability to recall objects and send them back from whence they came. And it was this that turned out to be the key in taking down the Talus minibosses in the area.

Should I have kicked myself for taking so long to figuring out the best way to take down these creatures? Probably. But given I was playing through the game blind and had found alternative (albeit less effective) ways of taking them down, it was certainly an adventure. One that remains in my mind because of how challenging I initially found them.

Beyond these tools, Link can also sneak around, flurry rush and parry (although without the guardian death beams to worry about, I tend to dodge more). It's nothing overtly complicated from a combat perspective.

What is different is the player's approach to problem solving. Which, with Ultrahand and Ascend, is a lot easier because should one have the materials on hand, it's quite simple to brute force various answers instead of struggling to find the one intended by the developers. For example, if you simply can't get the timing just right to leap off a moving minecart to reach the ledge above you, why not simply tape together blocks of cooled lava to create an unwieldy bridge you can simply run across?

It is this flexibility that is Tears of the Kingdom's greatest strength. Yes, the weapon breaking is tedious and the cooking is somewhat novel at the start, but it's the possibilities of what one can create to solve their immediate problems that enthralled me. I mean, I'll never be able to create the complex contraptions others have to deal with mobs in as quick a farmer as possible to farm materials for crafting, but I've been able to navigate my way around Hyrule well enough to enjoy the time I've spent in it.

Were I to give it a score, I'd give this game a solid 7.5 out of 10. There are some mechanics here I've enjoyed but I'm also fatigued by the very large nature of the open-world.

In fact, much of the music never did stand out to me. Most of my adventure around Hyrule also involved listening to video essays from the likes of Shanspeare, Tara Mooknee and Haley Whipjack (as she recapped Season 4 of Once Upon a Time) as a means to distract myself from the very real grind Tears of the Kingdom requires to explore each nook and cranny.

It probably didn't help that this was the sequel to the beloved Breath of the Wild, which was the very first open-world Zelda game. And because of that, despite adding in the depths and the sky islands to explore, the awe I found in the first game was no longer present. I'd already been to Hyrule and saved it.

Now I had to do it again but with additional places to explore? Hylia, no!

And, let's be real, who, in this day and age, has the time to hunt for 1,000 korok seeds? Certainly not me. I didn't even reach a fifth of the total number!

All in all, Tears of the Kingdom is a good game. A great game, even. But for me, it simply didn't quite reach the heights of what I've come to expect from video games. And that, dear reader, is certainly an opinion on the internet. One from a humble blogger who has played a large variety of games over the many years of her existence.

But it is important to note that my opinion is by no means, the definitive stance on the game. Sorrengail, I hope you'll read this one day and realise I wasn't taken hostage! Despite its best attempts, I wasn't entirely swayed to its side.

But also, FINISH THE GAME!

As for bleachpanda, FINISH Final Fantasy XV, YOU COWARD!

[gaysheep]

Touching is Good: A Retrospective

My trusty Nintendo 3DS, which has held out since I was gifted it for my 15th birthday, has turned one decade old with my 25th birthday this past November. Given new life with custom firmware and nds-bootstrap via TWiLightMenu, the 3DS is stellar for visiting any past handheld title or console title up to (and somewhat including) the N64. (Quick plug for the CFW/hacking community for the less popular PS Vita, too, which has accomplished some pretty crazy-cool stuff this last year.) I use my 3DS more often than I use my Nintendo Switch most weeks.

The Nintendo DS (minus the three) launched in late 2004. The second display and stylus support were novel tools for developers to experiment with, and the NDS is best remembered for its robust catalogue of RPGs and visual novels. Where it lacked in power, narrative-focused games flourished under its technical limitations.

That being said, while browsing the ROM archives on Vimm's Lair to pick up some titles, I was reminded of what an interesting era the mid-to-late 2000s were for games. While Sony and Microsoft were fighting over the "core gamer" demographic, who had outgrown Nintendo mascots, Nintendo led a series of wildly successful marketing campaigns for its hardware after the light failure of the Gamecube, where the Nintendo DS and then the Wii were targeted at...everyone else.

[Image source. Image description in alt text.]

If you look at ads for the DS and the Wii, you'll see that adults are featured much more prominently than children, especially women and seniors. (This did not go unnoticed, as I found this ancient relic of misogyny while looking for images for this post.) A Nintendo handheld was already an easy sell to parents with small children (though I think it's also notable that ads which do focus on children often prominently feature girls. Munchlax is pretty hot...), but Nintendo's angle for the DS and Wii was that their hardware wasn't just for children. The Wii was a way to get up off the couch and to play board games with grandma. The DS was a great gadget for a working woman to keep in her pocketbook.

This worked. The Wii and DS were two of the best-selling consoles of all time. In particular, the DS's marketing campaign only worked because it came out in the perfect window of time. PDA-phone hybrids had been around since the 90s, and the Blackberry had been kicking around for a few years, but the iPhone wouldn't be introduced until 2007, and the 4G LTE standard wouldn't be released until 2009. While the Blackberry was popular with businesspeople and the PDA was out of style, smartphones were luxury toys for several years; they wouldn't become near-ubiquious until the mid-2010s. I didn't get my own smartphone until probably around the same time I got my 3DS, a full handheld generation later.

Browsing the software library for the Nintendo DS and DSi with that in mind is really interesting. Many titles released for the platform serve the same purposes that would be fulfilled by simple smartphone apps less than a decade later: planners and diaries, fitness trackers, calculators, language learning and SAT prep software, even a guide to the then-most-recent version of the driver's test in the UK. These proliferated with the release of the DSi's virtual store, but they existed even with the base model. You could go to a brick-and-mortar store and buy them on physical cartridges. (You might be wondering, "Why would you bother carrying those around over just buying a Blackberry?" You can't underestimate how expensive the service bills for a smartphone were before companies realized they were the most powerful spyware tool in history.)

There was never a time where every single businesswoman in New York carried a DS Lite, but adults did buy and use them, and a not insignificant portion of the DS's software library is aimed at a casual adult audience. Another niche covered mostly by smartphone games these days—games designed to be picked up and played in short sessions on-the-go, in places like waiting rooms and subway commutes.

Nintendo made crazy bank in the seventh console generation. Publications of the time talked about a console war between Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, but the real battle was between the PS3 and the Xbox 360 over the gamer demographic. Nintendo was producing hardware for a niche who would quietly disappear once smartphone sales began ballooning by hundreds of millions per year over the course of the early 2010s.

After the failure of the Wii U, Nintendo's marketing strategy pivoted again, though I doubt they'll ever completely abandon their family-friendly image. Currently beat out only by the PS2 and the DS, the Nintendo Switch may very well climb to a status as the best-selling console of all time before the end of its lifespan, but the "gamer" demographic is much bigger than it was two decades ago at the dawn of the DS. As more and more devices become consolidated into the Swiss army knife the smartphone has become, consoles can only carve out a role as dedicated gaming machines.

I'm not sure we'll ever see anything like the Nintendo DS or the Wii again. I think they're worth looking back on for their uniqueness in that way as much as they are for the more celebrated parts of their libraries.

[i-am-vita]

Hello Vita!! I absolutely loved your headcanons with a partner from a different culture.

Being Spanish (Andalusian specifically, which is a exaggerated and stereotyped version of Spanish, hahaha), I think you nailed it with a Spanish and a Mexican as a couple. The accents are... aaaaaaaaah I love them, I don't know if you like the Spanish accent, but I really like Latin accents (by the way, did you know that the actor for Sanji is from the Canary Islands and in the Spanish dub he dubbed himself with a Canary Islands accent? so cute...).

And that idea of big families, that feeling of knowing the ingredients in a meal and thinking we control what we're going to eat but then... it's SUPER SPICY aaaaaaah!!!! water!!!!!, hahaha you made me laugh with that.

By the way, the fact of asking if we're pregnant I think is international! You also made me laugh with that!

I totally buy into the idea that Mihawk has a Spanish mom and a Romanian dad. Honestly, when I watched the live action without any prior knowledge of One Piece, I was blown away seeing that handsome character with that Spanish music in the background! The music fits so well with his aesthetics... and the cross on his chest... being Spanish, you may or may not be religious, but we can't deny that crosses are part of our culture.

By the way, I went to a show in France where a Frenchman fell in love with an Andalusian woman in the XVII century (a beautiful story), and the soundtrack was this. Specifically, starting from the minute I've shared with you, that instrumental part totally gives me the vibes of Ghost Rose and Mihawk, I hope you like it and it inspires you to write more about them!

Greetings from Sevilla! :D

Hello, Jin!! Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts with me 🥰

Yesss, the accents 😚 It's always so much fun to hear all different spanish and latam accents. Ohhh, Taz Skylar's voice was 🫠 I started watching OPLA first on english but I switched to latam spanish pretty soon. Iñaki was sooo cute and they let him talk in mexican (there was a Chapulin Colorado reference!!!) and then ch 5 came and Sanji spoke... My god, his voice is so sexy... It's so rare to have this variety of accents in latam translations, they didn't even gave colombian accents to Encanto 🥺

Big families, salsas not-spicy (lie, they are), medium spicy and totally spicy, a wall full of crosses... That's some of the mexican package 😂 Pro tip: just water don't make the trick, drink milk to get rid of the spicyness in your mouth sooner. Horchata water do it too, there's a reason that's the beverage they would have by default at any restaurant, even street food.

I've been munching for the longest time about Mihawk's heritage with all the little information we have about him and the vibes he gives. If not for the crosses, including Yoru's shape, he would have been more musketeer alike, but the composers definetely felt the spanish vibe too and chose flamenco as his theme because of its intensity and passion. Their video here.

Ohh, I need to see that show and music! But the link is not connecting, like if it's broken or something 😢 Youtube links exclusively are giving me trouble today, share me the title of the play and I will watch it full!!!

I don't know if you were aware (I was told last year) but most of the spanish culture and people that migrated to latam during the colony centuries came from Andalusia! We were fed the most exaggerated and stereotyped version of Spain🤭 and don't make me start with all the MENA influences 🥰

[jessicaloons]

Chapter 23.2:

Freedom felt like summer then, on the coast…

Masterlist - Part 1 - Next

TW: spicy; implied smut; 16+

"Sardinia?" I asked and Charles nodded "I love it!" I climbed in his lap and hugged him.

"Yeah? Good choice?" Charles asked and I nodded.

"Best choice!" I kissed his cheek and he smiled "Beautiful beaches, good food!"

"Yeah, that’s what I thought as well. 4 days just you and me. La Dolce Vita." his eyes lit up "Now come on! Let’s go!" we got up and left the jet, walking to a grey SUV that was already waiting for us, getting in.

"We start off with another surprise." Charles was all giddy and his excitement was contagious "Close your eyes! Open them when I say so, okay? No peaking!" he helped me out of the car and then stood behind me, covering my eyes. We walked a few steps before we stopped.

"Look!" Charles took off his hands from my face and I opened my eyes. A beautiful 1962 LaFerrari in bright red stood in front of us. My favourite Ferrari as Charles knew.

"Woooow! Now that’s a beauty of a car." I said and walked around it "They didn’t have a F40 for you?"

"Unfortunately not. But this one’s beautiful too, look at the seats! And it’s a cabriolet, perfect for today!" Charles smiled at me and I looked up from where I was bending over, beaming at him.

"Yeah? Well you didn’t tell me what we’re doing today?"

"We’re having a little road trip today, from Cagliari down the coast to a little special place… you’ll see! Come on!" Charles opened the door for me and I hopped in.

"You’re the driver, that means that I’m the DJ and responsible for the music…" I smiled but when I saw that the car had the original radio set up, I was a little disappointed.

"Open the glove compartment…" Charles looked at me and I opened it. A new radio inside "The old one only works to turn the volume up and down and switch to the next or previous song…"

"So we can listen to my special road trip mix?" I asked excitedly and he nodded.

"But it’s not a Taylor Swift play list? Like just Taylor Swift and nothing else… right?" he looked at me and I didn’t answer at first "Lizzie…"

"Would you just give her a chance!" I pouted and Charles sighed.

"Stop pouting!" he groaned.

"Please, Charlie bear… there are some amazing songs for a trip like this…"

"Fine. Whatever. But cara mia?" he carefully grabbed my neck, his hand flexing around my throat gently pulling me close to him, our lips almost touching "Stop pouting!" with his warm breath on my lips and his hand around my neck I swallowed hard and nodded "Good." he pressed his lips on mine for a quick kiss and let go of me, starting the engine. I leaned back in my seat, catching my breath, while I could see the devilish grin on Charles face.

"Cat got your tongue?" he chuckled, his hand resting on my thigh.

"No." I mumbled and pulled my phone out and connected it with the radio "Alright. Ready to become a Swiftie?"

The only answer I got was Charles squeezing my thigh as we drove along the beautiful coastline. I sang most of the songs. While Charles was looking at me every now and then, a content smile on his face. We stopped after an hour in a little village right at the water and Charles looked at me, waiting for me to finish the song. As the last tunes of August played he took my hand in his and kissed my knuckles gently.

"You’re right… she’s growing on me… but maybe it’s just because I love to see you sing along? Your voice is beautiful, cara mia!" Charles smiled and I felt myself blush "Now come on. I have a nice little something prepared for us!" he got out of the car and walked around it, opening the door for me, holding out his hand helping me out. We walked inside a little restaurant with only a handful of tables, all empty.

"Umm- Charlie? I think they’re closed?" I said as I looked around but Charles only chuckled, leading me behind the counter to a door "Seriously? We can’t just barge in here!"

"Just wait, cara mia!" he said and opened the door, walking through.

"Ciao Charles!" an elderly man said and grabbed Charles by his shoulders, kissing both his cheeks "And this beautiful lady must be Lizzie!" he looked at me, his face lit up in excitement as Charles nodded "Ciao Lizzie! I’m Gio! Welcome to my kitchen!" he gently kissed my cheeks and I smiled at him.

"Ciao Gio! Thank you for having us?" I said a little hesitant and Gio grasped his heart.

"And she speaks Italian! Oh Charles! She’s the one!" he slapped Charles arm and he laughed.

"I teach her now for some years. I love it, when she’s speaking it." he looked at me and I just knew that I blushed again.

"Now come on come on! We have a lot to do!" Gio clapped his hands and took mine, leading us outside to a beautiful terrace underneath a big olive tree, a huge wooden table in the middle, full with cooking ingredients "Today we’re making different pasta with pesto, ragout and different sauces! Don’t worry, Lizzie, I know that Charles is not quite the cook yet! But as I heard, you are?"

"Umm- I mean I love cooking? Am I good? It’s okay I…" I began but Charles interrupted me.

"Her food is amazing! We’re here mostly because of me!" he said and I smiled at him "I want to cook dinner for my beautiful girlfriend in the future!" I looked at him with big eyes but he only shook his head "Don’t worry! Gio won’t tell anyone!"

"Oh no! Never! I could never stand in the way of love! Ask my wife!" Gio said and I smiled at the way he said wife, with so much love and adoration.

"She’s a lovely lady!" Charles said and I heard a woman behind me laughing.

"Oh Charles! You are too charming!" an elderly woman walked around me and hugged Charles, kissing his cheeks.

"Valentina, this is Lizzie." Charles introduced me and Valentina looked me up from head to toe.

"She is beautiful. She has kind eyes, a bright soul. I know now why you spoke of her for years so dearly! She’s everything that other girl wasn’t." she said to Charles and smiled at me.

"And she speaks Italian." Gio said and Valentina looked at me with big eyes.

"Even better! What are you waiting for! Marry her!" she said and kissed my cheeks "Ciao Lizzie! I’m so happy to finally meet you, after Charles talked about you for years and years!"

"He did?" I asked a little embarrassed and the older woman nodded.

"All the time. When he brought that other girl along? I told him that she’s not the girl he always talked about. She’s not the girl he loves. And I was right!" she said and I smiled at her, feeling myself blushing even more.

Although I had to admit that, despite Charles’ idea of us having a cooking lesson together was romantic and beautiful, the thought that he brought Camille here before left a bittersweet taste on my tongue.

"Cara mia?" Charles gently took my hand in his, cupping my cheek with the other "Camille was never here. Gio works for Ferrari, he’s one of the cooks from catering. He’s Alessio’s father, that’s why Valentina is in the hospitality every now and then, there she met Camille. She didn’t like her one bit and I guess I should’ve listen to her straight away…" I looked up at him and he smiled.

"I’m sorry I didn’t want to be jealous or whatever…" I whispered but he shook his head, kissing me gently. Gio whistled and we pulled away, having forgotten where we were for a moment.

"Mamma mia! We should start the cooking lesson, before you two start eating each other!" he laughed and my cheeks burned with how hard I kept blushing. Charles chuckled and grabbed one of the aprons, handing it to me, before putting one on himself, he helped me tying mine and I did the same with his.

"Ready? Then we start with a hearty ragout! It will take the longest… and I know that you don’t eat meat Lizzie, so we’ll also make something just with vegetables…" Gio explained us the next steps and we all started working on our assigned tasks, after the ragout it was time for the pasta dough. While we were kneading it Valentina opened up a bottle of wine, pouring us some glasses.

"You always have to make sure that the wine you cook with, tastes good! If you wouldn’t drink it, don’t cook with it!" she explained and we tried the wine. I tried my best to keep a straight face but Charles only chuckled.

"She’s not really a wine drinker… she uses plenty of it while cooking, but drinking it? Only a few rare ones…" he said and Gio laughed.

"It’s okay! You’re young! Maybe when you’re a bit older you start to love it!" he said and I nodded.

"I wouldn’t mind!"

We spent the next hours with making different shapes of pasta, some fillings for ravioli, more sauces and even some salads. The smell was mouthwatering and whenever we tried something I almost fainted at how good it all tasted.

I browned some butter with sage leaves and tossed some ravioli in it as Gio and Valentina watched my every doing.

"Bellissima Lizzie! Well done!" Valentina said as I plated the ravioli "Now crumble the sage leaves, put some bread crumbs into the pan and lightly toast it and then mix it together with the sage leaves and a little bit of parmigiano and sprinkle it over the ravioli." I did exactly what she told me and the smell of it all together made my stomach growl.

"This looks all so good!" I said as Charles snapped some pictures and videos.

"Now come one come on! Let’s eat! We’ve earned it!" Gio said and we sat together, Charles loaded my plate full of pasta and salad, also some focaccia.

"Cheers! To a wonderful day!" Valentina said and we toasted our glasses, then we indulged in the food and I felt like I was in heaven. It tasted all so good, I couldn’t even say what my favourite was. We talked about the food, the island life, then a little bit about F1, Ferrari, Italy, and lastly we ended up listening to the beautiful love story of Valentina and Gio, both looking at each other with nothing but love in their eyes, while sharing their life’s with us.

"My mother always said, that I will know that I’ve found the one when even sitting together in silence fills my heart with joy… and today I know that she was right… although this old, stubborn donkey is never quiet!" Valentina said and Gio grabbed her hand squeezing it "Staying together through all this years, through all hardships, that is love."

"L'amore è un viaggio non una destinazione." Gio said and I smiled at Charles, who held my hand the entire time in his, softly tracing patterns on the back of it.

"Love is a journey not a destination." I repeated quietly and he kissed my knuckles.

"And what a beautiful journey it is, with you by my side, cara mia." he whispered.

After we said our goodbyes to Valentina and Gio, a basket full of leftovers between my legs, and the promise to come back before our departure, we left the picturesque village, continuing on Charles planned route for the day.

"One more stop before our final destination!" he smiled at me as the soft ocean breeze ran through our hair. I only nodded and took in the beauty that was Sardinia, while another Taylor Swift song played faintly in the background.

As the sun slowly began to set at the horizon, Charles parked the car at a little secluded beach, grabbing a blanket from behind the seats.

"Watching the sunset at the beach? How very romantic!" I said and Charles intertwined our hands. Leading us down to the water where he spread the blanket out on the sand before sitting down, holding out his hand for me to take and sitting down between his legs. We watched as the sun slowly began to disappear, the soft waves of the ocean and the songs of the seagulls above the only sound.

"Magnetic force… why do I feel like I’ve heard that before?" Charles asked after a while and I looked up at him "The last song with the guy? She sang ‘I take this magnetic force of a man to be my lover’? I’ve heard that before?"

"Yeah… I mean, it’s one of my favourite songs? I’ve sang it quite often I guess?" I thought and he shook his head "No? Then I don’t know?"

"Hmm… I’ll figure it out!" he kissed the top of my head and I snuggled into him, the beautiful sunset at the horizon bathed the sky above us in soft red, pink, orange and purple hues. As the last lights of the day slowly faded away around us and I was dozing off a little, Charles gently stroked my cheek.

"Cara mia? Let’s go…" he whispered in my ear and I nodded, slowly getting up with Charles holding me, to not tumble over. He pulled me close to his side, leading me back to the car.

"We’re almost there. Only a short drive." he started the engine and drove off. After not even 15 minutes we drove through a big iron gate, covered in ivy. A long driveway up a hill with a beautiful stone cottage at the end.

"It’s beautiful!" I said and Charles opened my door for me.

"Wait until you’ve seen the inside. Our luggage is already here." he grabbed the basket full of food and we walked inside.

I was speechless. Light and natural colours, elegant and yet simple furniture, modern and clean touches here and there. But the highlight was the wall made entirely out of glass, opening up to a beautiful terrace with a view over the ocean.

"Wow. Charles this is wonderful!" I turned around, facing him.

"And it’s all ours for the next 4 days." he smiled at me and I kissed him. His arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me into him. The kiss full of tenderness and passion, as we lost ourselves in the moment. We had to pull away to catch our breaths and Charles gently pushed his forehead against mine.

"Why don’t you get outside, sit down and I mix us something to drink?" he whispered and I nodded "Yeah? Sounds good? Then I’ll see you in a bit." one last featherlight kiss on the tip of my nose and Charles pulled away. I walked outside and looked around. A large pool with hot tub waiting for us. Together with a beautiful fire pit. I sat down on one of the loungers and watched the waves rolling into the bay in front of me, the water reflecting the starlight from above.

I sat down on a lounger and looked up, the sky full of stars. Each one sparkling brighter than the other.

Charles walked out, set our drinks on the table and sat down behind me on the lounger, pulling me into him.

"… after a tough week you pulled through with such a magnetic force, there was no doubt that this wasn't the outcome…" he said quietly "Your post. After I won in Baku… after dad… that were your words. Magnetic force…"

"Yeah, because you were just that… you were confident and strong and it was like you were magnetic, attracting all the powers to bundle together and force your way from the back of the grid right on top…" I said and he hummed.

"How often did you use lyrics for posts? Do I need to check every single thing you posted to look for subtle clues?" he asked and I chuckled.

"I mean… I do use her songs quite often as captions… but not this time… that post was in 2017… the song was released in 2019… but damn what a good song it is…"

"A very good one indeed… it’s almost like fate… you used that phrase and later that exact phrase will be in a song about lovers… and it’s one of your favourite songs too…" Charles began to hum the melody of Lover and I smiled. Maybe I turned him into a Swiftie.

The next 2 days went by in a blur, each morning spent in bed, breakfast in the sun, a little morning swim in the pool, sun bathing. It was a freeing feeling to hug Charles whenever I wanted to, or give him a little peck when walking by. He loved to pull me into him, hugging me tight to his chest, littering my neck with tiny kisses. Or he just squeezed my waist when walking by, or cupping my cheeks. But most importantly we could kiss and cuddle without being scared anyone could see. We spent hours on the sun bed or in the hot tub, body’s entangled, making out like horny teenagers. On our last night, after a romantic dinner, Charles prepared a hot bath in the luxurious and gigantic bathtub for me. He helped me in and kissed my head.

"You’re not joining me?" I asked him and he shook his head and I sighed a little disappointed.

"I have to prepare something for you…" he smiled and left.

I leaned back and relaxed, soaking away. The gentle sloshing of the water lulling me in. A gentle touch to my cheek and I opened my eyes, Charles kneeling next to the bathtub.

"Oh, hi…" I yawned a little and he laughed.

"Did you fall asleep? Yeah? That’s dangerous, cara mia…" he got up and grabbed a big, fluff towel, helping me up, before wrapping me up.

"It was just so cozy and comfy…" I mumbled as he lifted me up and pit of the tub, to stand in front of him.

"Understandable…" he gently rubbed my skin dry with the towel, his eyes never leaving mine "I prepared a little something on the terrace. Do your little night time routine and then join me outside?" he kissed my cheek an I nodded "Perfect." As soon as Charles was gone I sat down in front of the mirror. What could he have prepared on the terrace? I quickly brushed my hair, massaged my favourite body butter into my skin and lastly applied my face cream. Back in the bedroom I rummaged through my suitcase and put on a little surprise for Charles. I threw a morning robe over, let my hair down and left.

The house was dark. All lights switched off. A faint glow was coming from the terrace and as I turned around the corner my heart skipped a beat. The whole terrace was scattered with candles, Charles standing at the door, illuminated by the soft glow of the candles. His smile was breathtaking, eyes sparkling, dimples on full display. As soon as I stood in front of him he pulled me into his arms, our body’s pressed to each other, he inhaled my scent before pressing his soft lips on mine, capturing them in a sweet kiss. He then kissed along my jawline, all the way up to my ear.

"Come with me…" he whispered and grasped my hand, pulling me with him to the edge of the terrace, overlooking the sea was the huge sun bed plastered in cushions and blankets, surrounded by more candles.

"This is beautiful, Charles." I said almost breathlessly.

"You are beautiful, mon amour." he stood behind me, pressing his front into my back.

I turned around gently stroking his cheeks and carding my hand through his hair, before they settled around his neck. Our eyes interlocked before I sealed our mouths shut in a searing hot kiss, our tongues dancing with each other. As we both had to pull away to take a breath my cheeks were flushed and my heart was racing. I pulled my hands away and pushed myself off of him, my hands fiddling with the knot of the morning robe. I let the soft fabric slide down my shoulders, pooling around my ankles and Charles gasped as he saw the red lace lingerie set, apparently his favourite outfit on me.

"Oh mon amour…" he whispered and took a step closer, eying me up from head to toe. He reached out his hands and his fingers touched very delicately over the edge of the bra straps, near my collarbone but instead of pushing them down and off my shoulders, he ran his finger slowly along the upper edge of my bra, the rise and fall of my chest becoming faster and faster. He smirked a little, my reaction amusing him as he traced the outline of the bra all the way around, his eyes following his fingers. I watched his face, he was fully focused on his hands movements’. His soft touch felt intimate and as he outlined my breast once fully he looked up at me, his eyes full of lust and hunger. He devoured my lips in a passionate kiss before he gently pushed me down on the sun bed, his lips trailing down my throat, kissing along my collarbone, down the valley of my breasts and back up again, by the time when his face hovered above mine again, the heat pooling in between my legs was almost unbearable and I began to squirm. Charles grinned and gently stroked along my thigh, all the way up to my middle, before he stroked back down to my knee.

"Don’t tease…" I whined and he chuckled, his fingers running up again, softly brushing over my covered heat.

"Always so impatient, pretty girl. You know I like to take my time…" he kissed my nose, his fingers pushing my panties to the side and his eyes widened "That all for me?" he whispered and I nodded, a loud moan emanating from my mouth.

"Charles, please…" I whimpered, his lazy strokes keeping me on edge.

"If you ask this sweetly." he kissed my lips softly before sitting back on his haunches, his hands on my waist, pulling down my soaked panties. He looked at me for a moment, as if he was committing the sight before him to his memory "You are so beautiful, my sweet girl." but he didn’t look me in the face, his eyes were plastered to my throbbing core and I blushed, he looked up "You both are." and he launched forward, burying his head between my legs, my head falling back in pleasure as I sighed blissfully, my eyes glued to the stars above us, as I reached my high, screaming out Charles name into the night.

"Thank you, Charles." I took his hand in mine and rubbed circles on the back of it "For this trip… I mean the whole past three weeks… it was… perfect. Yeah. Perfect."

"I’m happy when you are." he pulled my hand to his lips and kissed it.

"More than happy. But that could also be because my stomach is full with pasta from Gio and Valentina! I will have to put in some extra work out the next days." I giggled a little and Charles laughed.

"Oh come on! We worked out a lot over the past weeks!" he wiggled his eyebrows and I gently nudged his shoulder.

"We did." I looked out of the window as we took off and sighed a little "I’m gonna miss this. Us. Apart from Ibiza we could almost be a normal couple, doing normal things."

"Yeah maybe, but who wants to be just normal? Kinda boring." he laughed and I turned around, looking at him. His suntanned skin, hair a shade lighter, carefree smile on his face.

"You’re right. Normal is for boring people!" I leaned over and kissed him.

"Exactly."

Coming back to Neuburg, working in the simulator and having meeting after meeting was a harsh reality check. It was tiring and I caught myself more than once drifting away to the memories of the last three weeks, but especially the days alone with Charles. All cozy in our own world. Away from the prying eyes of the public. Away from all the negativity. Away from reality.

"See you tomorrow in Spa then? Lizzie? Hello?" Pete waved his hand in front of my face and I looked at him.

"What?"

"Summer break is over, little one." he laughed and I sighed.

"Yeah unfortunately."

"Oh come on! Aren’t you happy to see us again?" Pete asked and I chuckled "So? See you tomorrow in Spa?"

"Yep, I’ll be there!" I hugged him goodbye and got in my car, sending Charles a quick text that I would drive now back home now. Then I drove off and luckily there was almost no traffic and I made it in little under 2 hours. Shooting a text to Charles that I arrived and a quick scolding that I was way too fast and probably broke a ton of laws, which I didn’t do, I opened the door and walked in.

"Lizzie?" Mum asked from the kitchen and I walked inside "Are you hungry? There is some leftover veggie lasagna in the fridge?"

"Maybe later, I just want to unpack my suitcase first and then pack it again and have a shower." I yawned a little.

"Was it a good idea to come here? You should’ve stayed in Neuburg and then leave tomorrow directly for Spa." she sighed.

"No it’s fine. I need new clothes. I’m okay, just a little tired." I left the kitchen to walk upstairs when Mum followed me.

"There are some letters for you." she nodded her head to the sideboard and I smiled at her, grabbing my suitcase and the letters.

Back in my room I looked them through. A big, brown letter, with the sender Silverstone Circuit caught my eye and I opened it confused, a single sheet of paper was inside, I checked the envelope for more and a business card fell out in my lap. I grabbed it and was confused. A lab in Madrid? I looked at the letter and my stomach dropped. I stared at the 11 words and made it just in time to lean over my rubbish bin, emptying the contents of my stomach in it. I leaned back, wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.

Tick Tock. Your time is ticking. I’m running out of patience.

Little Note:

Chapter 23.2 - SUMMER BREAK Part 2 ♥️ 🥰 Ohhhhh the fluff and looove… and then well 👀

Please leave a comment/ like/ reblog/ message and tell me how you liked it! I'm dying to hear your thoughts!

If you want to be added to the taglist, drop a comment!

Last but not least, English is not my first language and although I tried my best: please excuse any mistakes I made!

Taglist:

@silkenthusiasts @eugene-emt-roe @sunny44 @itsjustkhaos @glitterquadricorn @aundercover @kakorrhaphiphobia @alittlebitofbooksandmagic @ru-kru @glitterf1 @janeholt3 @maeve-wileyy @18754389 @chiliwhore @hellowgoodbye @queensassybitchsworld @skynel09 @harrysdimple05

All the images I’m using are from Google, Pinterest and Instagram (or self made).

[1eos]

Miss kendra would u reccomend getting a switch? Ive been think of getting back into video games but im not sure if i should get a handheld or a home console.

if a majority of the games you're interested in are switch exclusives its worth it, but if you want to play games that are also on steam, ps4/5, xbox etc i would recc getting a console bc the switch is the worst abt planned obselescence. like its the least durable system ive ever encountered in my life its actually infuriating.

good points:

if u like handheld gaming the switch lite is excellent. you can save $150, there a cute colors, and the battery life and graphics are excellent. going back to my ps vita after the switch is like whoaaa the display on the lite is just that good.

memory cards for switches arent too expensive and u can get a big sized one for a good deal and not have to worry about space

good game library. i got the switch to play persona strikers, botw, animal crossing, and god eater 3 and it was worth it....and most of these games were worth it

since the switch is super popular its easy to get pre owned units for a decent discount from reputable places

bad points:

the joycons on the switch WILL go out. like no ifs and or buts they get terminal levels of drift in a year, year and a half of any kind of regular play. nintendo knows this and they don't give a fuck. if you have a switch console they used to send u joycons replacements for free but if u have a lite they have to fix it and YES they will charge you :) i got a discount only bc i said i wasn't gonna pay $80 for their negligence.

also 4 or so years later the flap on the game slot has broken and the left trigger doesnt work on my lite. mind u my first ps vita is almost 12 years old and had NO hardware issues (only a memory card issue) and i put more work into that vita in one year than i have in 3 years w my switch. so just be mindful that you will have hardware issues guaranteed

-game prices. switch games rarely if ever go on sale even if theyre 400000 years old and its actually evil. if there are a lot of games u want to play im honestly gonna recommend getting a ps4/ps5 first bc u can get games on sale digitally and physically at a MUCH better price

-a LOT of switch exclusive games drop half baked. this is true of a lot of consoles but with the switch its even more egregious bc of the insane price point. i regret getting animal crossing when it dropped out of nostalgia bc it arrived w virtually no content. one of the newer story of seasons was wayyyyy too empty too easy etc etc. with switch exclusive games in particular you should always wait for unbiased reviews bc most of these games beyond botw dropped bare bones as hell

[sometipsygnostalgic]

I'm playing The Force Unleashed… for Nintendo Switch.

You would think it was a port of the Xbox 360 version, like how the PC port is, but actually, no - It's the first ever attempt to port the Wii version.

The Wii and PS2 version of Force Unleashes is a different beast to the Xbox 360 game. The "last gen consoles", as they were at the time, didn't have the graphical capabilities of the 360 and PS3, so they had their own special game.

What makes this earlier gen version of the game special is how different it is. The opening mission on Kashyyk is at night instead of day, the ship operates as a hubworld in itself, there are lots of missions that were missing from the 360 version, there are some missions NOT in this version, and there is a Multiplayer Versus Mode.

It also used motion controls, specifically on the Wii version. This made the game a bit easier than the PS2 version with its unforgiving button commands.

I have turned off the Switch motion controls for now, because they are not nearly as smooth as the laser pointer Wii controls were back in the day. Also I am no longer 12 years old.

The company responsible for the Wii version also did this Switch port. They added some HD textures onto the SD models. I think that this has the weird effect of making some characters like Darth Vader too shiny, but there's nothing outrageous about it. At least they didn't do a FF10 and replace all the models with poorly designed HD versions.

The game has much clunkier combat than its Xbox 360 counterpart, but The Force Unleashed was never a 10 out of 10 game anyway. It looked absolutely gorgeous at the time, and still looks nice, but if you replay the HD version today you can see most of the issues.

The story has a higher reception on the Wii version, which is probably why this Switch port is worth a visit if you haven't played the game in a long time.

The definitive edition might actually be the PSP port, which had everything from the Wii version, as well as special cinematic missions from the star wars universe where you could play as Anakin vs Dooku, and some special challenge modes.

It's not likely you'll find a PSP to play this on, so it might be worth emulating the game. Especially if you have a steamdeck or a modded PS Vita. It might be one of the best PSP ports of all time, since that console usually got inferior versions of games.

For now, I'll use the switch version to scratch my itch.

[callmearcturus]

Arc Plays Games: Nayuta no Kiseki

listen i just really like fan translated games, okay

so I've been playing what i think is a side-game to the Trails In the Sky sprawling megaseries of games, Nayuta no Kiseki. It's a PSP game that was translated by fans before an official translation came to the Switch. PSP/PS Vita and DS/3DS are my favorite game libraries right now by a whole lot.

And man I really liked this game.

It's an action RPG from the era before spectacle action became de riguer. It looks really lovely and painterly at 5x resolution on my Odin.

Basic pitch is this kid, Nayuta, is coming home for summer vacation from his time studying in university. He lives in a world that seems to be an actual Flat Earth and beyond the known boundaries is the literal End of the World, and it's vaguely common knowledge that the End is closer than its not, and a major apocalypse may happen.

The game establishes all that, then is like "here is your hometown on Remnant Island! gosh its so pretty and sunny!"

In the first hour of the game, Nayuta and his buddy Cygna stumble into another world that the locals call Terra but mythologically seems to be Lost Heaven to Nayuta's people. He misplaces his best friend Cygna but gains the fairy Noi, and Nayuta and Noi have to work together to save Terra and find Cygna.

The thing I enjoyed about the game was the gameplay loop, which is immaculately tuned. This is, to me, a Cozy Game, but I say that with the caveat that I'm allergic to what most ppl call Cozy Games these days.

The loop goes like this.

The areas of Terra are separated into medium-sized levels that take about 5 to 10 minutes to complete, tops. Each level, you run around swinging your sword, solving v basic puzzles, and using magic with Noi.

The tastiest part is that each level has a little objective for you to do to get star points that can be used back on Remnant Island. There's also money and museum items to locate.

When you collect a bunch of stuff, you go back to Remnant Island. You trade in your star points to the local swordmaster to unlock new abilities. You drop off your stuff at the local museum to get more money. And you spend money on new equipment.

You can also stop by your house to pick up lunchboxes from your older sister, and every meal is different and has special bonuses and buffs.

While at the Island, Nayuta has this job as a Handyman, so everyone on the island leaves request letters in his mailbox for him to do menial quests for them. Often, you have to help people around the island, but sometimes you need to use the other world to solve problems.

Example: the attendant at the blacksmithy wanted new fruit to make into alcohol, so she gave Nayuta a seed for a peach tree. Back in Terra, Nayuta can plant the seed then use plot magic to change the seasons and get the fully grown peach.

The game just feeds into itself really well. You get quests that lead you back to the battle stages that lead you to collect stuff that leads you back to the questgiver and helps you gear up better over time.

I've put about 17 hours in, I think? And at this point I'm happy setting it aside as not completed but done. I'm close to the ending of the game, but the plot is focusing more and more on characters that had not grabbed me in any way, so I'm having trouble staying invested in the story.

(This is another fairy creature, I love his design)

But if the game was just the main loop of island quests to battle arenas and back, I'd play it for another ten hours. It's good! Solidly 6 or 7 out of 10.

Now I want, like, the same game but better writing.

[humblemooncat]

Happy 10th Anniversary to what has become my favorite MMO I've ever played.

I went into why and when I started playing here, but I figured I'd go more in-depth on my characters (and why Ki'to is my main) in this post since it's finally Rising time again.

Warning, long ass rambling post ahead

As I had mentioned, I started playing in late 2020 when a couple friends I played D&D with introduced me to it.

At that time, I created my first character Suna Amantius (Whom I still have for nostalgia, but don't play). Since au ra were free to play at that time, I made her a pink raen Arcanist. Yes, back when carbies gave every arcanist heart palpitations because they used aoe without asking. Thus why it took me a long time to pick it back up again.

The very first screen I got in cc while making her. <3

We only played together a few times, but since I was so deep into Genshin, I ended up uninstalling since XIV's a massive space-hog.

When I picked it back up for the free 30 days after my other friend bought me the game & expacks, I ended up making a viera named Bunilla Chai over on Faerie since my little brother was playing over there at the time. She was a WHM, and another I have kept for nostalgia's sake. (I sadly don't have a screen for her, but she's cute. uwu)

I kinda main-hopped for a while after I got back into the game and actually subbed in September of '21. I played with Bunilla for a little while, but when the option to make male viera came out with EW, I ended up making one by the name of Kieran Vashanti (The surname being an homage to my old TERA character of the same name; Kieran actually went on to become Seire, and now Vikesh). I co-mained him alongside Orias, my longest-standing OC, who actually started out as an Elezen.

Kieran / Seire / Vikesh

Orias

How it started > where it went > where we are now

I also ended up making a lalafell since I saw how much fun my mother seemed to be having with her own. My dear little Sprout Arboris. <3

The best pic I have of her. xD

I rotated through this menagerie of mains for a while until I fanta'd and renamed Sprout. Her new name? Nox Vitae.

Yup. My horrible son was initially a sweet lalafell lady. xD Though he did go through one hell of a transition, from fem lala, to fem viera, to fem miqo, to masc viera (this was about when I had come out to my friends, so I embraced it in my main at the time as well. As such, he started out looking like a self-insert, but took on his own traits after a while. This is also why he is canonically trans ftm, as I see both viera transformations as canon for him. His fem form being what was canon in appearance for Vitae when he and U'nhea were sprouts)

(I did miss Sprout after a while though, so I remade her on Zalera later.)

Alongside Nox, who was my main for a while, I also had an alt on Siren I used to play with other friends, A'razi Tia. He was my first introduction to Monk, as well as catboys. To say I took maybe too many pictures admiring him is an understatement. Before Ki'to, he was my most gposed character. xD

We ended up moving data centers a little while after last rising, and then is when I created Y'rhala and Ki'to, whom I played as alts while I switched back to A'razi for most things.

Once I hit the CT ARs with Razi, my social anxiety got the best of me, and I decided to run an alt for a while and redo ARR. So I picked back up with Ki'to, whom I had made as a pretty ashen moon keeper simply to grab the moonfire outfit last year.

He wasn't meant to be more than an alt. Honestly, he looked like a fuckboy and it made me laugh when I logged him.

Look at this fuckin' nerd. I do miss his ashen kitty days, truth be told, but I can't fanta him now. He wouldn't look right any other way.

He looked like this until I reached post-ARR. I ended up using his ARR fanta to make him a self-insert, thus his baby-faced face 3 catboy era.

Thankfully, with the FC he joined, I ended up getting help powering through CT and finishing ARR fully. It was post-ARR that I got another fanta and gave him more defined features with face 4, and gave him the face he's known for today.

As I put it on my personal discord:

It wasn't too long after this that I made this blog and captured his adventures through HW and beyond. It was then that I committed to making him my main, as the story had sucked me in and he was my protagonist. I couldn't imagine any other in his place.

Though, the story isn't the only reason he's become my most robust OC ever, that came through story and interactions over here. I'm constantly thankful that I decided to make this blog when I did, because using it as an outlet for headcanons and getting asks from the friends I've made during his journey has made him such a well-rounded character with a clear personality and character arc.

I am very grateful for those of you I've met here, not only have you been some of the best people I've met through this game, but you've all helped to shape Ki'to in some small way. The man fights for love because he was made from love. <3

Hope you enjoyed my rambling about my journey, and happy Rising my friends! Here's to 10 more years! /toast

[brainless-moe-white-lotus]

I think the real reason why pdx flopped is because it's a psvita game and the arcade port was a PS4 game :') I wanna play them so bad but I can't get a vita. u can get a PS4 for like 20 bucks (or free) but Vita's are like. 150 for some fucking reason

Yeah possibly, I lucked out getting a vita back when they were still kinda obtainable. But like pdx was a bad game, like hilariously bad, like what were they thinking kinda bad. But I think the designers for like the note patterns themselves went all out with that title in a way I never saw replicated in like any other game in the series.

The arcade port is everywhere now, I think that's what most people play cuz it's readily available. I'm not a hater for it I just don't enjoy playing it that much because they took out hold notes and technical zones which were like, such a big dopamine hit for me. I find I get bored quickly with the arcade port. Also it's on my switch and I just kinda dislike the switch button feel. Had the same issue with project Mirai where it's a great game, very fun, but the 3DS buttons just feel terrible. The vita is easily my favorite control set to play on.

If ur interested pdf 1 and 2, the PS3 versions, are very easy to emulate and the game settings for both has the option of adjusting for screen delay which works well for emulator delay also. The PS4 controllers have PC connection and that's what I use to play them on the emulator. Unfortunately I haven't found a good emulation option for pdx.

[suzuran777]

Koshotengai no Hashihime ~Noma~ (Adelta) Review

I just finished playing Koshotengai no Hashihime ~Noma~, Hashihime's portable version which is available on the PS Vita and Nintendo Switch! This game does contain some extras the PC version did not have, like some post-game content. This includes the short stories which are also available in Japanese on the official website. I did read these before, but they added voice acting and many new CGs, so I had a lot of fun playing these!

I was surprised when I saw that the game was also available in English and Chinese because all the other Nintendo Switch ports I've played so far were only available in Japanese. I decided to play the English version this time and the translations almost seems exactly the same as MangaGamer’s version of the game? I noticed a few differences when I compared both versions, but in general I think the translaton was quite good! 

Because most routes didn't have that many 18+ scenes in the first place they really didn’t cut a lot of content if I compare it to the original game, though I still recommend playing both versions if you want to get the full experience. I also like how VN Switch ports in general allows you to skip forward and backwards really easily, so you can always go back and re-read lines.

The five routes (contains some spoilers!) It has been a long time since I played this game for the first time but I had a lot of fun re-playing it and understanding references I missed the first time. Minakami’s route is a good introduction to Hashihime’s story and worldbuilding, I remember I couldn’t stop playing the first time because I was so curious how Tamamori was ever going to prevent his death. The extra story was interesting too, especially the one in which you see everything from Minakami’s perspective.

Kawase’s route remains my favorite route because I just love his attitude and slowly discovering more about the character. Kawase and Tamamori’s arguments are also always funny and I like how they secretly both care a lot about each other. The extra story was super funny, Kawase I can’t believe you let some creep record your ‘’intimate moments’’ with Tamamori only to take the recording with you and watch it at home... (of course Tamamori did not appreciate that). Is this the real reason why he asked for help setting up a home-cinema...?

Hanazawa’s route has always been quite controversial, but I do think his route is interesting in its own way. In the final route it's mentioned that Kawase, Minakami and Hanazawa are all based off the works of real authors (Kyouka Izumi, Ruikou and Oshikawa). Oshikawa, whose work inspired Hanazawa's route, was a writer who would write many stories about the Russian - Japanese war, but he was also the pioneer of Japanese science fiction writing and seemed to love kaiju stories. I think his style can definitely be recognized in Hanazawa's route (the military parts, but also his ending when they end up in the past and fight monsters), so I think those are some really interesting details. 

I think Hikawa’s (Or Hakase’s) route is very unique because it’s the first route in which another character can immediately time travel together with Tamamori. The extra story shows how their relationship is still very awkward even after the good ending, but I think that’s expected from Hakase who likes Tamamori a little bit too much lol! I miss Hitotsurugi and Sazan... They were such nice characters so it’s kind of a bittersweet ending.

The last route (or Kaoru’s route) is pretty short, which is a bit of a shame because I do think it’s an interesting timeline in which all of the other main characters died a long time ago. Kurosawa Rinko confirmed that it's not like the other routes didn't really happen, they just take place in different timelines (although Kaoru route seems to be the original timeline). It definitely adds some variety to the routes and endings and I enjoy seeing older Tamamori...! 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Overall I definitely think this game becomes even more fun if you're familiar with some of the novels and authors the writer references in the story. It's not a necessity of course, but to me personally it was even more fun than the first time I played this game years ago! I also like how the Switch port now has a full glossary, the PC versions did explain terms, but the glossary is even more useful. 

I love Taisho era Japan VNs so I definitely think it’s great this game is available in multiple languages, even the Switch port. I own a few other portable versions of BL games like Taisho Mebiusline and Omega Vampire, but these versions are a little bit hard to recommend to people because of the language barrier. When you play on PC it’s at least possible to use some kind of translation software, but I don’t think there’s a way of doing this on a console.

[auronlu]

what’s a good place if I wanna dip my toes into Final Fantasy, or RPGs?

( I already play Pokemon (

Hmmm. I'm not sure. A lot of the old one have been reissued on Steam and iOS/Android but are obviously a bit dated now.

i've actually fallen behind on recent games (gasp) and may not be the best person to recommend.

My very favorite is Final Fantasy X, now available as a remaster along with its sequel on Windows (download it through Steam), Nintendo Switch, Playstation 3-4 and Vita, and XBox One. Unfortunately they only came out with an iOS/Android version in Japan.

Final Fantasy IX is a good classic game with a lot of heart, which I think would be an easy jump for a pokemon player. It's been adapted to iOS/Android as well as most of the above, so you can play it on a tablet or phone.

Final Fantasy VII Remake is a modern retelling/adaptation of the most popular RPG of all time, with great graphics, gameplay, and beloved characters, available on Windows through Steam or Playstation 4-5. I haven't had a chance to play it yet, but the main knock on it seems to be that it's a bit linear, which might actually help a newer player (it naturally steers you in the direction of plot).

Or, if you want to dip your toes in a very simple Final Fsntasy game with retro graphics. Final Fantasy Dimensions is a phone game in four chapters with the first chapter free. The graphics are in the style of the very first Final Fantasy games when they were on the Gsmeboy or other little portable consoles, but the secret to Final Fantasy's success is that the gameplay, magic system, types of characters, and storytelling style tends to remain the same, even as game consoles and graphics evolve —much like Doctor Who, there are core elements, even if it changes a lot over the years! (except, unlike Dr Who, each Final Fantasy game number is a different universe with a different set of characters, the way Jago & Litefoot are different from the Sarah Jane Adventures.)

Anyway, I'm going to invite my followers to make recommendations because they are probably more up-to-date than I am.

[hellcatinnc]

My Back Log Of Games/Otome

I Updated So You Know Most Are In English Only A Few Are JP Only

The stress is real like I don't understand how everyone does it. I see all these games I either want or I have and just haven't the time to play them yet. Like most otome games are nearly 40 to 80 hours easily to finish all the routes which I would be ok with if it wasn;t for some otomes I buy for one or 2 characters then they end up being end game and I can't play them til like 60 hour mark within the game its like OMG. Like I have so many games in my backlog I will post them below and the time I have put in them and it leaves me overwhelmed not to mention the animes I want to watch and god forbid if I watch a anime that has an otome because then I get that too and no time to play it due to the rest of the backlog. How do some of yall prioritize ones you want to play or if there is more than one how do you choose etc.

Backlog/Games In Progress/Done (games with chat bubble in progress, star is done and the rest i have not started but own

PC/Steam

(JP only - Dance With Devils All Others In English Or Subtitles)

Switch

Only Brothers Conflict Is JP Only better off using it on ps vita for patch

i also preordered Radiant Tale that I will have soon too.

PS Vita

Brothers Conflict (JP)(EP)

libra of nil admirari/Nil Admirari no Tenbin (JP)

kamigami no asobi (just started but not in english so taking longer with translation guide) (JP)(ET)

All The Diabolik Lovers Games (Haven't Started Any) (JP)(EP)(ET)

Uta no Prince Sama Game Series (Haven't Started Yet) (JP)

Magic Kyun! Renaissance (Haven't Started Yet) (JP)

I'm pretty sure that is everything based on the systems and this is just otome games I have more games coming