#the world sucks let me have my hedgehogs | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

tenebraevesper · 10 months ago

Text

Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Final Conclusion)

''It's been a long, rough road and I'm finally here. I move an inch forward, feels like a year. Everything I feel seems so unreal. Is it true? Is it true? I take one step forward and two steps back. Got a hundred thousand pounds sitting on my back. Up, down, all around, don't know quite what to do to get through. Well, I'm on my way...''

(Never Turn Back, Shadow the Hedgehog (2005))

Welcome to the Final Conclusion of my Shadow the Hedgehog's character analysis! It has been a long, rough road for me, but now I'm here to give you my final thoughts on Shadow the Hedgehog as a character in Sonic Prime.

So, shall we dive in for one last time?

I started this character analysis with the statement that ''Prime!Shadow is peak Shadow'', making it my mission to re-watch every episode of Sonic Prime to back up my argument, and I believe that I have succeeded.

When I had learned that Sonic Prime would have Shadow in it, I made sure to keep a close eye on him, as we know all too well just how tight SEGA's mandates around Shadow's character are, having seen him at his worst in the Sonic IDW comics. I had been hoping that Sonic Prime would let Shadow have more room as a character, let him breathe a little. He doesn't have to be just the grim Vegeta-type Stock Shonen Rival to Sonic, but he can also be a hero on his own.

So I waited and I hoped, and, oh boy, did Sonic Prime deliver!

With the placement of Sonic Prime in the mainline canon being deliberately vague (aside from obviously being set after Sonic Advance 3) we only had the knowledge of Shadow's backstory to figure out how his character might be utilized in the show, and let me assure you, I did not expect that Shadow as a character would actually go back to his roots.

As TV Tropes puts it, Shadow is the composite character of ''the intelligent, perceptive, and pragmatic (with good intentions) of Sonic 06'' self ''with the wrathful but good intentioned disposistion of Sonic Battle'' self.

In short, he is exactly the Shadow people wanted to see for so long, ever since Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), which is considered to be the peak of his character (not counting Sonic Adventure 2). He is the grim rival to Sonic, but has a kind heart and the will to protect the world regardless of how people see him. He is not above using violent methods to achieve his goals, but has primarily good intentions, and will clash and work together with Sonic depending on the situation.

That alone is very impressive, but what makes Prime!Shadow stand out even above his Sonic 06 self is the fact that he actually undergoes through subtle, but legitimate character development.

As I had stated in Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 1), Shadow starts out as a loner who prefers to stop Sonic from causing the end of world by fighting him instead of talking to him. This is kind of understandable, since Sonic also sucks at communication and listening to other people, including his friends, which is how the whole Shatterverse event starts in the first place, and gets punched by Shadow for causing this whole mess.

In Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 2), I had been pointing out how, after both Shadow got all the frustration he felt towards Sonic out of his system in the first half of Episode 09: Avoid the Void, he manages to convey to Sonic just how much damage he had caused by breaking the Paradox Prism, leading to the two to actually start communicating properly. Of course, it is not perfect, and Shadow certainly gets annoyed by Sonic over the course of the episode, but he is willing to talk rather than to fight.

However, it takes until the second half of the same episode, aka what I covered in Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 3) for Shadow to finally realize that he needs Sonic if he wants to fix reality. But before that, we have a good old fashioned rival fight, where Shadow decides to save the world on his own, showing us that, even if the world is at stake, he won't miss a chance to enjoy his fight with Sonic. However, upon his failure to enter the Shatterspaces, he understands that he won't be able to do this without Sonic's help, as he's stuck in The Void. Of course, this is just the beginning of their attempts at proper teamwork and they still won't miss a chance to banter with each other.

Speaking of bantering, we slowly start get more and more of those, as covered in Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 4), with Shadow snarking at Sonic while also trying to keep him on track. Not only that, but Shadow also plays a role in stalling the Chaos Council, showing that even if he cannot travel through the Shatterverse, he can still support Sonic in his own way.

When the Chaos Council arrives at Ghost Hill to take the Prism Shards, we finally see what it looks like when Shadow and Sonic team up and it's glorious. Even if their relationship hasn't started out well, you can see how they slowly become better and better as a team, protecting each other and coming up with plans to protect the Shards.

One thing that gets pointed out, however, is Shadow's distrust of other people. In Sonic Prime, Shadow has no friends, which is something Sonic teases him about when Shadow shows clear distrust of Nine. Shadow is right to be distrustful of Nine, pointing out to Sonic how he's not the same as Tails, especially due to how Sonic is projecting Tails onto Nine and treating him as if they were the same person.

However, Sonic is not wrong either in regards to his statement how Shadow needs to learn to trust people, and rest assured, it appears that Shadow actually takes this to heart, as he begins to trust Sonic.

This is seen in the first half of Episode 17: Grim Tidings, which I covered in Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 5). Not only does Shadow not blame Sonic for losing the Shards to Nine, but he also keeps reaching out for Sonic, who is grieving the loss of Ghost Hill and his friends, protecting him from danger, reassuring him that they will get the Shards back and comforting him by complimenting him. It's incredibly sweet to see that side of him, a kinder, softer side which he appears to show only around Sonic.

This extends into the second half of the episode, covered in Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 6), where Shadow keeps up with his mission to protect Sonic as they try to recover the Paradox Prism from Nine. Not only has their teamwork significantly improved, with both being incredibly in sync, but the moment Shadow realizes that Nine is after Sonic, he abandons the Paradox Prism and instead focuses on saving Sonic from Nine, eventually throwing him out of The Grim and basically sacrificing his own life for Sonic.

I absolutely loved seeing this protective side of Shadow, showing just how much he cares about Sonic and how much he has grown to appreciate him.

(Also, note how Shadow once again has beef with Tails, having fought him in Sonic X and Sonic Boom before).

What follows next is the battle against Nine, covered in Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 7), which shows us Shadow and Sonic's contrasting personalities and ideals bouncing off of each other, while working perfectly together. They have now reached a new level of trust, respect and understanding, with Shadow showing complete loyalty towards Sonic, even if their initial methods of reaching their goals clash with each other.

Also, Sonic introduces Shadow as his boyfriend to his Shatterverse friends.

''Probably gonna regret that.'' ''I heart you too, Shadow.''

Oh, did you really think I wouldn't talk about the blatant Sonadow subtext in Sonic Prime? There is a reason why fans nicknamed the show Sonadow Prime.

These two dorks have so much chemistry in this show that it is hard not to ship them together, even if all instances of them working together as a couple were unintentional. Sonic Prime definitely shows the appeal of the Sonadow ship, and if you go by The Sonadow Special Bumblekast Interview with Ian Flynn, these two are probably one confession away from dating each other (even if the ship will never become canon, because SEGA says ''No'' to romance in their Sonic media - a wise decision).

Why am I saying this? Well, Ian says that, in order for Sonadow to be executed, there would have to be an understood vulnerability to Shadow, and he would have to open up to be more accessible at a personal level. He notes how it doesn't take much for it to happen, and that it just has to become established to build that bridge, especially with Sonic being so casual and accepting enough as he is, and he would allow Shadow to be who he is, which is kinda prickly and stand-offish. They would have the occasional moment where Shadow let's his guard down and is more empathetic and emotionally available, but otherwise, they would play it fairly cool and aloof.

Also, how would it be made official that they're together? Ian says how they're so cool and aloof in their own way that he cannot see either of them making some dramatic declaration or turn all mushy and lovey-dovey, as that's not who they are.

''[...] The adventure concludes, and they're standing side by side on the hillside looking at the sunset and the wreckage, and they share, y'know, a compliment, and instead of like, a fist bump or a 'See ya next time', and one of them runs off; maybe they throw arms around each other or something, just kinda stand there. [...] I see them just being very chill about it all.''

So, let me ask you something - in Sonic Prime, which character is starting to show his more vulnerable side, letting his guard down and and reaching out for Sonic, either to comfort him or to protect him?

Yeah, a simple screenshot speaks more than a thousand words.

Also, if you don't care about what Ian Flynn said, just take note of how affectionate Sonic is towards Shadow and Shadow in turn just let's him do whatever he wants. Sonic hugs him, and Shadow doesn't push him back. It's absolutely adorable and it gets even better when we get to the finale!

Episode 23: From the Top (covered in its full form in Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 8)) concludes the battle against Nine, with the whole Shatterverse being reduced to nothing. Sonic decides to sacrifice his life to restore the Paradox Prism, and we see Shadow completely heartbroken when he sees that Sonic isn't moving, probably believing that he is dead. I don't think Shadow had ever shown an expression like this in any media.

Fortunately, Sonic is still alive, but barely holding on, leading up to a race against time, where Shadow carries a dying Sonic towards Green Hill.

''I never knew you were a hugger.'' ''Do you want me to save you or not?''

*shouting from the back* Just kiss already!

Hey, I mean, it isn't them throwing arms around each other, but we do have Sonic flirting with Shadow and Shadow responding before the sense of panic sets in when Sonic goes limp.

Fortunately, the day is saved, with Sonic and Shadow retaining their memories of what had happened and remembering what their learned from each other during their adventure (with the Shatterverse probably being wiped out because Sonic doesn't shatter the Paradox Prism).

''I am the Ultimate Lifeform. I go wherever I want.'' ''Wh-huh?'' ''CHAOS CONTROL!''

One thing I don't believe I had mentioned is how there is three times when Shadow declares his status as The Ultimate Lifeform. The first time is a response to Nine's comment about him and Sonic being twins, with Shadow pointing out his uniqueness. The second time he states it is when Nine is shocked to see him defeat Grim Alpha Sonic, with Sonic quipping how he's ''modest too'', showing off that he is adept to battling and will win the fight no matter the odds. And lastly, he states it once again before he teleports the Paradox Prism, noting how he can go wherever he wants, which I believe is him declaring his won freedom to not be tied to anything (like a certain promise) and doing things his way (not to mention the fact that he spent a good chunk of the show floating in The Void, unable to go anywhere).

Unfortunately, as I said before, the ending kinda feels like it's missing something, and while people might point out how it's either perfect the way it is or list a bunch of flaws or seek signs of an nonexistent sequel, the one thing I wanted to see is for Sonic and Shadow to have at least one more conversation.

''If knowing you has taught me anything, there is always another way.'' 'Wait, was that a compliment?''

I wanted them to meet up again and reflect on their adventure, as well as talk how much they have grown closer as a team, with Sonic even offering Shadow to join him and his friends at the beach for a couple of chili dogs. I'd have Shadow be reluctant for a moment, before accepting.

Maybe have Sonic ask Shadow what happened to the Paradox Prism and Shadow assure him that it's in a safe space. Perhaps they could also ponder on what happened to the Shatterverse, and whether it's gone or it still exists. As for Sonic's friends, they would probably wonder since when Sonic and Shadow are now close buddies, with Sonic about to tell them about their adventure in the Shatterverse before Dr. Eggman returns with another scheme and the adventure continues.

I really wanted some kind of finality to show their newly formed bond. After all, there is so much to talk about, like the fact that Sonic definitely had a traumatic flashback to Sonic Adventure 2.

Or have Shadow admit that he doesn't want to lose Sonic by just telling him not to get so reckless again when around another world-shattering stone.

*sighs dreamily*

Oh well, being a writer, I guess I might as well write this alternate ending by myself then. I might let these two have their moment, showing appreciation for each other in their own way.

Also, Shadow is a hugger. That's definitely canon now.

One last thing to mention before I finish this is - what did Shadow do with the Paradox Prism? Well, I have an idea for how this adventure might continue, albeit in a different universe:

Sonic Boom Shatterverse (Sonic Prime/Sonic Boom)

So, does anyone want to see how Boom!Shadow and Boom!Sonic handle their own universe shattering into pieces? Coz I do!

#Sonic the Hedgehog Analyzer (Masterlist)

#Ten's Thoughts #sonic the hedgehog #shadow the hedgehog #tails nine #sonic prime #sonadow prime #sonadow #sonic boom #boom sonadow #boom sonic #boom shadow

247 notes · View notes

essycogany · 8 months ago

Text

Hot Take! Nine’s Redemption Arc Was Rushed

I’m usually positive on this blog, but I believe it’s important to have a balance. This’ll be my longest post yet, so buckle your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Quick Positive Points

I like the idea of an antagonistic Tails. Nine’s amazingly voiced by a VA I recognize. His design is awesome. His attitude and sarcasm can be entertaining. Nine saving Sonic’s skin when dealing with the Chaos Council was nice. The scene with Nine and Mr.Doctor Eggman talking about Sonic is one of my favorite moments. The thought of creating robots who look like the other characters as if Nine still wanted friends was neat. (even if he tried to kill with them) And despite my grievances, I thought Nine’s hug with Sonic at the end was adorable. The animation is what helped with that.

Introduction

While I do like Nine, I’m going to talk about my glaring issues with his character development. I can see both sides of the argument, but let me tell you why there’s more proof of Nine not being well written. I will implore you to think for yourselves regardless of what I have to say. We all have our opinions and I’m only here to share mine.

Nine’s Characterization

This is how the fox carry himself throughout the show and why most of it isn’t written well. I’ll state my issues with Sonic in certain moments too.

Season One

Nine’s reasonably defensive at first when Sonic came to his home out of nowhere. He became annoyed by Sonic’s immaturity yet concerned for him once they’re captured. After they meet the Rebels, his sassiness begins to show. Replying “You’re welcome,” after saving Sonic by taking control of Rusty. Having a direct and harsh tone when advising others to take the Chaos Council’s shard. And not seeming to care about the rest of the group who gets trapped with Mr. Doctor Eggman.

Nine: “Sonic we have to get to the core!” “You heard her come on!” This I understand because Nine doesn’t know them, so they don’t really matter to him. But then Nine dismisses Sonic’s feelings even after he asked “are you okay?” Because he noticed the hedgehog was a little off.

-Because Sonic started remembering the events that happened to him before he broke the Paradox Prism.

After Sonic realized the prism shattering was his fault Nine says, “Snap back to reality! Grab that shard and we’ll sort the rest out later!” Then when Sonic stated the original Tails told him not to touch it Nine states, “Well, I’m telling you the opposite! Now grab it and let’s go!” Not realizing if Sonic is the reason for the prism being small, his original variant might’ve known touching it was a bad idea. I also can’t forget about these lines.

Sonic: “If there’s anyone who’s got the brains to put it all back together, it’s you.” Nine: “That’s the first thing you’ve said that I agree with.” Nice ego for a person who ends up getting Sonic sucked up by the prism after being warned. Back to what I was saying before, Nine seems to only care about stealing the shard away from the Eggmen here. Which is proven later on in season one. His care for Sonic has progressed, but Sonic learns from the Rebels that Nine abandoned them. And it’s never addressed by Sonic.

-Sonic also insist Nine’s “not a traitor” without any proof. Sonic hasn’t known Nine that long. The last time Sonic saw the fox, he ended up getting the hedgehog sucked into another shatterspace. Unless Sonic’s talking about Nine working with the group. But I’d argue it was more for Sonic and his own sake. Especially since Nine left the Rebels and Rusty at the drop of a hat.

When Nine comes to help Sonic, he shows off the Grim and discuss how it’s “Their bright new future.” Wanting to live in the Grim with Sonic. Even after the last time he saw Sonic, Nine knew how distraught Sonic felt about losing his home. Again, Sonic stated he believed Nine could put the prism back together. Meaning his original friends and world would come back. But Nine immediately assumes Sonic would be happy living with him for the rest of his life. Which is sweet on paper but very messed up in execution. I’ll get into why later. To be fair, Nine’s never had a friend before and was bullied for most of his life. His social skills aren’t the best and he isn’t use to caring about others. But even if Nine didn’t understand empathy, he has no reason to believe Sonic would forget about his home just because Nine didn’t care about his.

Nine: “That city hasn’t brought me anything but misery. I owe it nothing.” He hasn’t been around Sonic for long either, but Sonic’s demonstrated his loyalty before. By worrying about the Rebels instead of the shard while Nine did vise versa. Anyways, Sonic explains he needs to save the Rebels. Nine being Nine didn’t care about them, but came to help anyways because he “cared about Sonic.” I’d say Nine only helped because he thought Sonic would join him after getting the other shards, but that’s my opinion.

Nine: “With enough fortifications and enough shard energy, this could be home.” Because of this line, I believe he already knew about the other shards before Sonic. Which is also why he knew what Sonic was doing in season two. He also says, “When this is over, I’m going home and never looking back. Whether I go it alone is entirely up to you.” Still assuming things.

-Sonic doesn’t give Nine an answer for some reason. Only responding with “I knew you’d come back, buddy.” Projecting how he’d expect Tails to act. Which becomes a serious problem later.

Season Two

Throughout this season, Nine helped Sonic collect the shards. Which was a bonus to keep developing the Grim.

-Sonic and the Rebels have another debate on trusting Nine. At least this time when Sonic says “He saved you,” it’s true. Nine took down the Doctors before Sonic and co got killed. I’d still argue it was for Sonic, but Nine still saved their lives despite his intentions.

I’ll also admit when Mr.Doc used Nine, it was reasonable for him to feel as if he had no choice. He even apologizes to Sonic. We even learn how Nine first fount the Grim and see him make a hammock for Sonic. But the positives goes down hill once we get into the shard chase between Nine, Sonic, and the villains. Once away from the Docs Sonic stated, “Oh, things are finally coming together. We’ve got the shards! We can finally fix everything!” He’s still obviously talking about Green Hill and his friends. But Nine doesn’t notice this. Instead he says, “It’s going to be perfect.” Very specific you two. Nine seems to suddenly believe Sonic changed his mind and Sonic still thinks Nine and Tails are one and the same.

Dude even calls the fox “Tails Nine,” while introducing him to another character. What are the odds? Later on Nine says, “If you like surprises, wait until you see what I’ve got going on in the Grim.” Sonic responds with, “Grim? Cool. Can’t wait to here more. But right now, we’ve gotta get to Ghost Hill.” Talking as if if the Grim was an afterthought. Then the two talk about bringing the prism back together without knowing what the other’s thoughts were behind it.

Even if they didn’t have time to discuss things, I think they should’ve explained something to each other during the chase or before Sonic left to help the Rebels in S1. That way the unfortunate occurrence could’ve been avoided later on, but we’ll cross that bridge soon enough. Anyways, after the goose chase, they meet up with Shadow, who reasonably doesn’t trust Nine.

-The Blue blur defended the fox again with his projecting his friends onto strangers self. It’s also weird how often this dude doesn’t listen to anyone while also wondering why no one won’t listen to him.

After Nine put one of the shards back together and it brought everything back for a split second. Sonic: “Reality was flipping out over here.” “Green Hill was back and so were my friends.” Which must’ve went in and out of Nine’s ears because this show has no time for the characters to communicate properly. Instead of listening, Nine interrupts the hedgehog and shenanigans ensues.

After said shenanigans, another argument scene happens. Except somehow, it’s worsts then the last. I’ll criticize both characters. I want to address the “Sonic projecting” discussion first. I know people think Sonic’s wrong for doing it (he is) but I believe he’s doing it as a coping mechanism. Since his friends are replaced by ghost who repeat themselves and a bunch strangers who look like them, he might not be able to help it. I give him a bit of slack because we all know what he’s been through. Prime!Sonic is also a very sincere version of Sonic who instantly feels guilt. Even if he doesn’t completely understand what he did wrong.

For example, in the first episode, Tails didn’t tell Sonic why he was upset with him. He just said, “It’s cool really.” Tails brushes things off instead of discussing them. I can see where Sonic is coming from. What I won’t excuse is Sonic having a terrible amount of trust in Nine. I’ll discuss this in S3’s issues. And the rest I’ll summon up to Sonic never addressing problems which might’ve needed to be addressed. Like Green Hill almost coming back and other stuff I’ve already mentioned. Onto the fox. This argument might be a great time for Nine to explain what his plans are instead of saying, “We’re not making your old world. We’re building a better one.” Implying Sonic’s original world is inferior and he should deal with it being gone.

When Sonic says, “I think we can get it back.” Nine responds with, “You’re wrong about that.” Despite Sonic in the same episode said minutes before, “Green Hill was back and so were my friends.” Did the fox forget? Is he lying? Or does he not care? I’ll go with the writers forgetting about this line since it never gets mentioned again. Which seems to be a trope in this show. I understand Sonic’s done plenty of wrong when it comes to Nine as well, but I don’t see how Sonic wanting to fix the problem he made in the first place as selfish. Especially since Sonic’s not the only one who wants Green Hill back. Shadow’s dealing with the consequences too.

The “what’ll happen to me when you bring your friends back,” issue is never explored. There’s no confirmation on what happens, so this comment basically means nothing. Also, Sonic living with Nine forever is messed up. It implies Sonic and Shadow never going home. And their friends would stay ghost forever. Dead to be specific. Not to mention Nine’s home would be a copy of what Sonic use to have. You’re telling me Sonic The Hedgehog would allow his freedom to end because of a self centered fox who wouldn’t care if he wanted to go home? I could continue, but I’ll stop here. In the end, Sonic and Nine were both wrong. You could argue Sonic never said “no” to staying with Nine, but Sonic saying in S1 “It’s not going anywhere” was all Nine needed to hear. Sonic thinking Nine would love Tails and discussing Green Hill was prominent when talking to Nine before getting to Ghost Hill too. Dude was completely set on getting home and he wasn’t subtle about it.

To be fair again, Nine hasn’t been in enough good relationships to know who to trust. Then finds someone he thinks he can trust. Then gets treated like a reflection of someone else instead of a different person entirely. This goes to show I actually don’t hate the idea of the miscommunication. I only feel the show doesn’t give them enough time to breathe and only focuses on rushing the plot. Therefore having contradictions and forced conflicts.

Season 3

Nine’s first statement in this season is, “This could’ve been everything he ever wanted.” I wish Sonic had a moment to explain why creating a new world is a nice but bad idea. That way Nine could get a better understanding of how close Sonic is to his home and friends. Giving it a sense of importance. He could choose to stay selfish or to be reasonable. Nine tries to capture Sonic in order to get his shard energy throughout S3. In the next scene Shadow says, “So, it was all about power?” (Shadow is the MVP of this entire show) Then Sonic defends Nine for the millionth time.

Sonic: “No, that’s not…” Nine: “Exactly!” Wonderful.

Moving on. Sonic tries to reason with Nine again. Nine: “You were only using me to get what you wanted.” Sonic: “That’s not true.” The hedgehog doesn’t elaborate before or after this conversation. I love how the two barely have a coherent conversation. It’s honestly my favorite thing in the world.

-Sonic tells Shadow if reasoning with Nine doesn’t work, he’ll be “theirs .” Probably implying they’ll have to hurt or kill Nine if necessary. Then Sonic never follows through with it and doesn’t actually fight Nine. Sonic only uses his shield powers or tries to convince others not to hurt the fox.

After that Nine tries to attack both hedgehogs with a robot copy of Sonic and states, “This time, you’re on your own.” Shadow: “He’s not on his own” Nine: “We’re all on our own.” Describing his perception on loyalty is a detail I actually like.

Later in the season Nine tries to disrupt the bystanders worlds to get Sonic, so they disrupt their agreement. Nine attempts to kill them again and wonders why they wanted to protect Sonic. Almost as if Sonic has been helping them since the fox met him or something.

After constant fighting and begging on Sonic’s part, he tells Nine to, “LOOK OUTSIDE!” And that’s when Nine at last sees the shatterverse breaking and realizes what he’s done. All of this mess lasted 7 episodes by the way. The big fight took up 6 of them. Nine knew beforehand the shatterverse was ending and it didn’t phase him as long as his world was safe. Now he suddenly he feels guilty?

Sonic apologizes because he didn’t listen to what Nine wanted. Or appreciate what he was trying to do. This is Sonic’s words not mine. Nine doesn’t apologize for trying to kill everyone, but to Sonic instead. Sonic asked everyone to leave Nine alone. And asked Nine to not cause anymore trouble. Knucks: “How can we trust him?” Nine: “You can trust me.” Outstanding dialogue. Plot needs to occur, so we’ll skip the part where Nine and everyone else gains trust in a none forced way. Great.

Nine finally helps Sonic even if those problems could’ve been avoided a few episodes earlier and say their goodbyes. The End.

I hate how Sonic had to apologize to Nine about wanting to go home. It’s absolutely unfair. Then Nine doesn’t apologize to everyone else for the havoc he’s caused. What I believe Sonic should’ve apologized for was treating Nine like Tails, but it never gets brought up. But my biggest issue is the only way Sonic called out Nine on his actions was by saying, “This isn’t you!” “Don’t do this!” “I care about all of this. You, the shatterverse, and everyone inside of it. I know you do too.” The last bit being a huge lie.

I don’t make these kind of comparisons often, but Game!Sonic would have everything nipped in the bud. I’d assume by telling Nine, “What you’re doing is wrong. This is why it’s wrong. If you don’t quit, I’ll do everything in my power to make you quit.” He’d understand Nine needed to be stoped and act accordingly. I’d assume everyone would have to make him surrender and he’d be forced to fix everything. No, it doesn’t reform him, but I wouldn’t have minded if he didn’t get reformed because sometimes you can’t change people. This might not have been the perfect solution, but I tried. Yes, Nine is a child who was treated terribly, but it shouldn’t excuse his actions.

What’s hilarious is during his last talk with Sonic, he unreasonably guilts the hedgehog and called him selfish. Saying Sonic didn’t save everyone because he actually cared about them. But because Sonic feels guilty about breaking everything from the start. Except Sonic actually admits to messing up which was shown in the third episode of Prime. And took the time to right his wrongs. It’s the most hypocritical and short sided statement in the entire show. And if that wasn’t enough, Nine gets upset when everyone came to attack him. It admittedly was a dumb idea, but Nine made himself the enemy. He didn’t give the gang a reason to trust him before or after his deal with Sonic. Yes, including the end of the show. It made no sense.

Why Nine’s Reformation Was Rushed

First of all, I’m not saying I don’t like Nine because of his negative traits. That’s the main reason he exists. He’s a antagonistic or I’d even say evil version of Tails. Nine is suppose to be distant, selfish, and such. I simply don’t believe after all he’s done and how his character was established that he suddenly changed into a good guy.

Nine’s focus was on his own pain while he ignored everyone else’s. Including the one person who saved his life on multiple occasions and who (even if it’s wrong) still tried to stick up for him. Giving off the, “I suffered so everyone else should suffer,” mentality. Then blames Sonic by saying he, “Put him into this position.” As if Nine didn’t already make terrible choices before going evil. Sure, the shards could’ve been corrupting him, but it’s never explored and can only be assumed. Which are too different things.

-Also other characters like Thorn and Dread made bad decisions before they had the shards. So, there’s zero proof regarding that theory.

These are obvious toxic/red flag behavior and it never gets properly called out. Things are only fixed because the plot demanded it. Not because there was a natural progression. The only thing that progressed was Nine’s uncaring attitude until it magically fixed itself…at the last minute. And I hate that for him because he deserved better. Sonic deserved better. All of the Sonic Prime characters deserved better. But they all fell into the pit of unsatisfying conclusions.

Side Note: What also bothers me is how Sonic is almost the only character Nine interacts with. No wonder he doesn’t care about anyone else. Nine barely talks to anyone. Like Shadow, the blue blur is the main center of Nine’s attention. At least most of the other characters don’t have the same problem, but it’s still ridiculous.

How The Show Is Flawed In General

I have more glaring issues with this show. Sonic Prime’s plot almost never stops to breathe. The repetition is unreal. None of the characters (especially the OGs) get enough attention. Some things are both over and under explained simultaneously. There’s reused animations.

Reused conversations and dialogue are especially prevalent. “This isn’t you, Nine!” “It’s over, Nine.” “Gotta go fast!” “Game over.” “We’re gonna end/fix this together.” “We’re friends.” “Me Beauty.” “We have to take the fight to them.” “You’re even dumber then you look.”

This isn’t half of the repeated lines unfortunately. Some of them aren’t only said by Sonic either. It’s almost as if they ran out of dialogue. I am only scratching the surface of problems, but I won’t go any further. At this point “the show’s writing” is the main issue of Nine’s arc. It’s also why other parts of Prime feels rushed.

Conclusion

Yeah, I have a love hate relationship with this show. It’s seriously hard to watch sometimes. I know this has been a bummer, but here’s what Sonic Prime does right. I adore Sonic Prime in terms of how it looks and sounds. With the outstanding animation, voice acting, music, editing, and sound design. I’ll even say it’s one of the best looking 3D animated kids TV shows I’ve seen. There’s so much attention to detail and quality of the character facial expressions and movements. Furthermore, when the lighting is really good, it looks near movie levels of quality. Not to mention great writing still exists. All in all, Sonic Prime may not be the best written Sonic show, but it does have the most polished animation. Even with its plethora of flaws and lost potential, I’m glad Prime exists to prove 3D TV shows can look fantastic when given enough care.

Stay Creative! 💜

82 notes · View notes

martinsaenz96us · 28 days ago

Photo

R.I.P. LittleBigPlanet

It's been a really sad year for "LittleBigPlanet". First the servers for LBP3 PS4 just shut down (servers for previous entries are also shut down), and not only the digital copy of LBP3 PS4 (digital copies of previous entries have already been delisted), but all the DLCs that's ever been released from LBP1 to LBP3 are being delisted from the PSN store. It really sucks that this once beloved franchise is being butchered to death in favor of bland realistic graphics cinematic games, live service games and catering to the so-called "Modern Audience" (*cough*cough "Concord" *cough*cough*). It's just not right how this franchise has been treated lately. The last game in the franchise "LittleBigPlanet 3" has been released about 10 years ago at this point. All the franchise has going for it now is just a spin-off named "Sackboy: A Big Adventure" released back in 2020, which is nothing like LBP (it's basically "Super Mario 3D World" but LBP themed). Sackboy, a worthy mascot for the "Playstation" brand in the PS3 Era is now gonna be known as Sackboy from "Sackboy: A Big Adventure" (a spin-off mind you) instead of Sackboy from "LittleBigPlanet" (where he's originated from). Sackboy has always been in a special place in my heart growing up, I even used to draw him (besides Sonic) in my journal a lot during high school. Back in junior high I was in special needs because of my autism (I even rode the bus and took field trips with special needs kids). I played a lot of video games and I was also a bad boy (I used to get in trouble a lot by giggling and misbehaving during class). My homeroom teacher had a Wii with "Wii Sports Resort" (great game) and even my all time favorite "Super Smash Bros. Brawl" (better than Melee, change my mind). He would let us play when we were done with our assignments (we even got to stay after school to play and eat pizza in homeroom if we had good behavior). I never knew about LBP at the time and if you've been following me through the years, you know that I've been a big fan of "Sonic the Hedgehog" ever since kindergarten. So when I first heard LBP featured Sonic the Hedgehog costumes as DLC, I immediately wanted to buy the game for that sole reason (the same way I first got into Smash starting with Brawl). I was also into games that would let you create your own character or levels, that factor also drew me closer to wanting LBP and even "ModNation Racers" (rest in peace) too at the time. But I had a PSP instead, I got both LBP both and ModNation on it and I was a bit disappointed. LBP on PSP was my least favorite version, it felt so limited customizing Sackboy (not being able to place stickers on him too was a drawback for me), or customizing in general (ModNation on PSP is in the same bane too). Once I beat it 100% I wanted to start creating a level, and oh boy it all went downhill from there. The options were limited, the game kept crashing at any given time while creating. So needless to say I did not like LBP on PSP at all, and all it did is made me want a PS3 even more that I kept begging my mom to buy one for me. Around maybe my 8th grade year, I finally got a PS3 (I think it was a birthday gift, I can't remember). I became so happy that I immediately bought LBP at "GameStop" (I also bought both LBP2 and ModNation Racers at the same time). Upon booting LBP for the first time I immediately got so hooked. I wanted to beat it 100% but the only drawback was that I only had 1 controller, and there's sections in the game that require 2 to 4 players to get the prize bubbles. I felt kinda let down since I wasn't able to obtain those prize bubbles without multiple controllers, but I some how managed to get through a handful of 2 player sections using only 1 controller (like the "Construction Site"), which took dedication and dying a lot. I was so proud of myself for accomplishing sections that were only meant to be played with 2 people. The other 2 player sections however I wasn't so lucky, so I begged my mom to buy me more controllers, I didn't tell her why thinking she wouldn't agree with me. Then after beating LBP 100% I became obsessed with making costumes for Sackboy and showing them off while playing online, even in LBP2 I did the same thing. LBP2 is easily the best in the whole franchise. During the release of LBP2, the franchise hit it's all-time peak (I got a PS3 soon after the release of LBP2). LBP2 has also the best story mode. They were difficult at times (mostly ACEING all the levels, even in LBP1 it was difficult), but I still had a blast playing through it all. I also 100% the story mode and went on to complete all the level kit DLCs (which I did eventually). Fun Fact: At the time of LBP2's peak, "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic" was also at it's all time peak (on the internet of all places). So while playing LBP2 I saw a bunch of levels related to MLP I got so annoyed by it. I played one of the levels I came across just for the sake of it, then I became intrigued and wanted to see what the whole fuss was about at the time. So one day I turned my TV to "The Hub" (R.I.P.) and the first episode I've ever watched was "Party of One" (you know, the one that featured Pinkamena who spawned a bunch of creepypastas). After watching the episode, I instantly fell in love with the show. The characters, the art style, everything about the show was so appealing to me. I've always been really really shy IRL, but then "Fluttershy" caught my eye since she's the one I can relate to, so she became my all time favorite pony to this day. I loved MLP so much I even drew ponies in my journals during my freshman year in high school (I was the quiet kid). And that is how I became a Brony. So back on-topic. I made so many memories with this game in particular that I will cherish forever. The community levels was a big step up from it's predecessor. Even when playing community levels online with random people made it so worth while (back when online play was FREE). All in all, LBP2 has become one of my most favorite games of all time. I loved the enjoyment of coming home from school to hop on straight into LBP2 (and also ModNation Racers) to play online with other people. Even one of my cousins enjoyed playing it, and would play together every time he'd come over. During my freshman year in high school, I heard about the PS VITA and I instantly wanted to buy it because LBP was on it. So eventually I got it with LBP (and because I love handheld gaming minus mobile gaming). I played it non stop, even between switching classes I would walk while playing. LBP on PS VITA was also great (not as good as LBP2, but way better than LBP PSP). I really liked it, and with the use of the touch screen and the back trackpad. The story mode was good, I liked how it had a slightly darker tone to it, compared to the previous entries. The characters were wacky and interesting (and some ugly tbh). And just like the previous entries, I 100% it all the way through. Online play was pretty cool too (but very laggy at times) and community levels were kinda good but a bit disappointing (not LBP2 good but it's passable). I also had fun making costumes everywhere I went (I even uploaded some on my DA page). LBP Karting however was OK (not up to LBP2 standards). I played through the story mode and 100% it too. The community levels were actually pretty interesting, there were even remakes of "Mario Kart" tracks that were spot on (but no custom music like LBP2). My biggest complaint however was the inability of customizing costumes like the previous entries (just changing outfits and placing stickers on doesn't cut it either), even the kart creation was barebones. Overall, the game just feels like a blatant rip-off of "ModNation Racers" (despite being made by the same developer "United Front Games" R.I.P.), which had better character and kart customization and you can even download custom made ones by other people and upload your own. LBP Karting does have better track customization however, but that's not saying much. And adding insult to injury, the fact that a full blown "ModNation Racers Sequel" got canceled in favor of LBP Karting is just a big punch in the face from Sony. A ModNation Racers sequel would've been miles better (pun intended) than LBP Karting in my honest opinion. Around probably Junior year, I got a PS4 with "LittleBigPlanet 3". From what I heard however it's been called the worst in the franchise, since the game was rushed to meet sales for Black Friday. So as a result, the game released with many bugs and glitches turning alot of people off from the game altogether (So I guess it's the "Sonic 06" of the LBP franchise). I bought it around maybe a month or 2 after it's release, and from what I played I really haven't experienced any bugs or glitches. In fact I really liked it, it felt more fleshed out and about as good as LBP2. Basically it's LBP2 but more expanded with new playable characters and creative additions such as expanded layers, new gadgets etc. I also liked how you had the ability to play every community levels ever made in both LBP1 & 2. I actually did play LBP3 on my PS3 first, but I then gave away my PS3 to my cousin to buy a PS4 (which I regret doing). What turned me off however wasn't the game itself, it was the fact Sony was charging for online pay (which killed online play for me) despite the fact it used to be free. At the time it costed $60 just for one year of online play, I could buy a full price game from retail then play & keep it for as long as I want. Paying for playing online is just a scam altogether. I did pay for one year just to play LBP3 online, then never payed again because what was the point. I did however registered my cousin's account to my PS4 to play online, so I played LBP3 online again then lost interest since the damage has already been done. Now I can't play it online anymore if I ever wanted to since the online servers recently got shutdown, and yet they still expect us to pay monthly/yearly for this (I did recently hear that Sony not only increased the price but added 3 tiers to pay for. The most expensive tier however is $120 a year, if that doesn't sound like a scam then I don't know what does). And recently I got myself a "Steam Deck" as a personal birthday gift about 2 years ago. Best decision I have ever made, and I would go as far as saying it's way better than the "PS5" (millions of games to play, it's a handheld, it's fully backwards compatible with everything via emulation, and best of all free online play). Lately I've been replaying LBP1 (and ModNation Racers) on a PS3 emulator and immediately fell in love with LBP all over again (although it's not perfect running on the Steam Deck with minor graphical issues and crashing every now and then). I've enjoyed every minute of it just like how I was when I first started played it back then, and now with a custom server is giving me the ability re-live those moments playing community levels and playing online without spending a single penny. Thank you "Media Molecule" for giving us a gem that will forever be in our hearts. Your love and passion that you created has brought joy to all of us around the world and will forever cherish the moments we spent playing your game. And lastly, thank you for giving us the power of playing, creating, and sharing our creations with the world. Rest in peace "LittleBigPlanet", you maybe gone now but will not be forgotten. Here's hoping for "LittleBigPlanet 4" in the near future (if Sony is willing to, and getting their act together) .

Posted using PostyBirb

12 notes · View notes

soliloquent-stark · 6 months ago

Text

this is a bit all over the place, don't mind me. and don't keep reading if you dislike gooey stuff.

as you might know from the lovely asks i was sent (thank you, everyone 💗) it was my birthday yesterday. and unfortunately, as it often happens, some things didn't go so well. i won't go into details, but it was tough, and it sucked to cry on my birthday more than usual (teenage trauma throwback, am i rite) though i admit it was really handy to have a cake to absorb all the tears right up. 🤭

but good things happened, too! and almost all of them had one common denominator: k! (typing it out like this is so silly. she has a name. but for all intents and purposes, she's simply ✨k✨).

without even getting into the actual gifts that my fiancée got me this year—which are as always perfect and thoughtful and useful and just magic—or the cake, or the flowers, or anything else, i wanted to specifically showcase the marvel related stuff that put such a smile on my face:

yes, that balloon gave me heart attacks whenever i walked into the room. yes, i pretended to hate cringy cowboy seb then ended up giggling and blushing every time i looked at him. yes, the spiderman gift bag is from the children's section and we've gifted it back and forth at various occasions for over a year now.

also a superfamily celebration:

i loved feeling like a four year old little boy with my spiderman cake topper <3.

and i obviously won't share the rest of what she wrote, but the card included some sweet quotes i genuinely was so moved by, then i realised they sounded familiar, then i realised it's from my hedgehog fic (which was a gift to her, so honestly we're just throwing the same quotes back and forth pretending it's about steve and tony. it was never about steve and tony).

quoting my own writing back to me?? hello?? queen behaviour right there. also peak moment for me.

(side note, that's not even all the marvel stuff i got from her this birthday. i didn't include any gifts in this post. also, i wish there was a way to show everyone just how many marvel things we own (including fanmade posters, stickers, zines etc. support creators if you can. ❤️) and how much that shocks some people who visit us because it doesn't seem like it goes with the sapphic-grandma core we got going on. oh well, it does now.)

it would be impossible to list why k is the best person in the world without writing actual novels (believe me, i have tried and it was very long) and sharing way too much about her story. but just trust me when i say she is the best friend you could ever have, and she makes me feel so loved and appreciated every single day, which makes special occasions even harder because how do you even top that? well, she still manages to. every time. 🥺

i guess the point of this was to share some appreciation and further my k propaganda, because i can see all the effort and care she lovingly puts into everything she does for other people, and to let everyone know just how much of an angel she is. i don't care if it's corny. and if you've ever seen a comment written by whinysteve, or read her excited tags on a reblog, or directly talked to her, or simply perceived her existence in any form, you already know she's the fucking best. it's not an act, it's all real. should get my shit together and finally wife her up. 🥹

tl;dr: she makes any moment better by just being there; and when she sets her mind to it, you will feel the power of her kindness. at the end of day, to be loved is to be seen. and she's got the world record for best vision. ❤️‍🩹

#getting personal on main sorry folks ✌🏻️#did i just make my birthday post all about her? yes and what of it #i am a simple girl. i see whinysteve and i fall in love

36 notes · View notes

n-odditty · 4 months ago

Text

My Sonic Teams (1)

Hey, what do people think of odd team-ups like Blaze, Sticks, and, Bunnie [Sonic Heroes fan team-up]? I've always wanted honest feed back on these team combinations but never really got a good amount and would love to see the opinions on them! I have been having a hard time finding good amounts of feedback or places to have further discussions [I am a small acc so that's a given] but does anyone wanna give their honest thoughts?

Team Paramount: [Blaze, Sticks, Bunnie]

Tried to find good parallels to Team Primary[Team Sonic] with already existing characters . Sticks being more similar to Sonic and Blaze more similar to Tails, Bunnie being more mature and motherly as opposed to being more naive and brotherly like Knuckles, the gals set on specific goals rather than have danger come their way [Sonic's team usually has danger come their path and that's the next adventure their dealing with], Blaze met Sticks the same way Tails met Sonic and both girls met Bunnie when fighting Blaze's equivalent to Eggman.

I chose Sticks instead of keeping Marine because I think Sticks would fit better in Blaze's world instead of Sonic's. I also believe her personality would better bounce off someone like Blaze who is usually uptight and Sticks who is very free spirited and unhinged but also kinda uptight in her ways of viewing the world [or well, more paranoid than anything] but Sticks' overall kindhearted, blunt, and fearless personality is why Blaze loves her dearly and cherishes her as someone who saw her as a friend and not princess. Sticks' could care less about such titles so long as you aren't trying to suck her brains out for some weird science experiment. [I'd also like to add that Marine is very much still in the picture, just not in the main team dynamic. She's now Stick's adopted lil sister. How she came to raise her is similar to how Tails and Sonic met in the old Sonic The Hedgehog cartoons!]

Bunnie was roboticized by their version of Eggman and suffered a great deal of self-hatred thanks to it. While she doesn't regret doing what she did that led up to it, that being saving her smaller siblings, she hated how she was now essentially "a freak" and felt more alone than she did before the tragic event. How she overcame it was before meeting the other two, but they did help solidify her new found strength withing herself. Her family helped her overcome her loss, and facing her new life and reminded her that she still speaks, acts, fights, and loves like their Bunnie, and no change in her body removes such core aspects of herself. So when she ends up fighting side by side Blaze and Sticks, those reassurances couldn't be anymore evident. The girls help remind her of her strength and determination each time she feels any different, and so, their bond grew stronger and stronger.

So what do you guys think? Is it sound? I'd like to see how people think of some of the ideas I've come up with! ^^ If there are any oddities that people wanna ask about, please let me know! I also have an idea for who Blaze's Eggman would be but I wanna make that a separate post! Hopefully this catches your eye and that many of the things I've listed intrigue you enough to ask questions!

#sonic the hedgehog #sth #sonic fandom #sonic fanfiction #sonic writing #blaze the cat #sticks the badger #bunnie rabbot #sonic au #marine the raccoon #robotization #robotification

11 notes · View notes

dr-spectre · 4 months ago

Note

Hey Spectre, got a simple question for ya this time. Did you like either of the story book Sonic games?(I think that's what they were called. I'm talking about 7 Rings and The Black Knight)

Ah.... Sonic and the Secret Rings, and Sonic and the Black Knight huh. THOSE games hmm?

Well, i feel like these two games share the same positives and negatives. Both have really great narratives, presentation, music, art style, etc. But the gameplay is just.... Uh... Not the best the series can offer you know? To say it lightly....

Secret Ring's story is kinda crazy because it's actually about the toxic relationship between Shahra who is the guide of the game, and the villain Erazor Djin (yes that's his name). A Sonic the Hedgehog story actually being about an abusive relationship between two genies and Sonic helps Shahra overcome her troubles and eventually defeat Erazor Djin is crazy to me. I'm not joking around btw. And it's actually done very well and in a subtle way too...

The cutscenes too look phenomenal and hold up very well cause you know, it's just artwork and it looks DAMNNNN GOOD! The ost is just MMMMMM!!!! Look it up if you get the chance, it has a lot of vocal tracks and they are very catchy. Same with Black Knight.

However the gameplay.... oh man... Now look, i played this on the wii and didn't use a regular controller on dolphin. And let me tell ya, by the time the game was done, i was so happy it was over....

Sonic doesn't stop running and you control him by tilting the wii remote... Everything is shaking and tilting and sometimes it just does NOT work! The level design somewhat accommodates for it and you know what, sometimes the game can be.... fun... It's kind of a guilty pleasure for me but that doesn't mean it's a good game gameplay wise, hell naw. It sucks.

The final boss WILL hurt your arms and give you a damn good workout lmao. Also, you have to UNLOCK BETTER CONTROLS VIA AN RPG LEVELLING UP SYSTEM! WHY!?!? WHY DO I GOTTA UNLOCK BETTER TURNING AND EQUIP IT?!?!? If i have to slog through hours upon hours of grinding just to get better controls then I'm sorry, that's a bad game in my eyes tbh. I don't care if it "gets good after 20 hours." You can fuck off with that shit.

However Black Knight on the other hand, that's a pretty good game and i can say that with confidence. The story of Black Knight is even more crazy and surprisingly mature. It's about this clash of ideologies as Sonic believes that everything comes to an end, but it's about living life to the fullest in the time we have, to run head first to our problems and solve them before we die. To have fun and enjoy life before it's over. And the villain is scared of death and wants a world that lasts forever, so that flowers may never wither and that the kingdom the game takes place in won't come to ruin. Sonic can be seen as the bad guy of the story in a certain lens as if he wins, the kingdom WILL die. He even says himself "i don't mind playing the bad guy every once in a while." LIKE THAT IS SOOOOOO FUCKING RAWWW!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!

Sure the story rushed and short but... oh my god the story and fan service is truly amazing idc. It marked the end of an era, the end of the "dark age" of Sonic, before we got games like Colours, Generations, Lost World, Forces, Boom that took such a drastic turn in tone and got rid of the 4Kids cast of voice actors. This was the final time Sonic felt like it truly gave a shit about it's story and was made by people who cared and had something to say.... Well... until Frontiers of course.

Sonic's characterisation is some of the best it has ever been in both games. He's snarky, confident, energetic and cheeky, but he's also gentle, kind and loving. It's so well done.... literally the final line he says "Every world has it's end. I know that's kind of sad but... That's why we gotta live life in the fullest in the time we have. At least, that's what i figure." breaks me into tears every time i hear it... I'm not joking.

Black Knight also has moments where it plays certain themes from previous games when certain characters show up and that shit makes me grin ear to ear and laugh in autistic excitement i tell ya. Hearing It Doesn't Matter before Sonic takes on the final boss is so. DAMN. GOOD!!!!! AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The only other time i can recall getting giddy and excited over a Sonic game is... Frontiers? The first titan boss made me scream. I was screaming and in pure happiness. And the final boss from update 3.... Made me cry dude... But that's a topic for another day. i can go on and on about this blue rat....

Yeah Black Knight is a good game... but.... the gameplay is uh... just okay? It's not bad but it's not great either. I think what really kills the gameplay is that there isn't enough platforming in the levels and a lot of the sword moves kill Sonic's speed which makes the sword combat feel so sluggish and ughhhhh.

Also a big issue between both games that they have a mission system and not standard acts and it kills replayablity for me. If the games got remastered today and had 3 acts and a boss in each area it would be 10x better I'm telling you.

Anyways, yeah, the storybook games are awesome... aside from gameplay. I recommend only playing Black Knight and configuring it on dolphin to tie motion swings to button presses. And putting the pointer controls on the r stick as well.

Don't play Secret Rings unless you are a diehard Sonic fan and are curious to see the game.

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic and the black knight #sonic and the secret rings #modern sonic #super sonic #rambles #ask me stuff #ask blog #ask me anything #ask #hes so cool #the goat #story analysis #character analysis #actually autistic

10 notes · View notes

midnightshard06 · 2 months ago

Text

Fictober Day 6: "I'm not giving up"

You can check it out on ao3 here if you prefer.

Summary: The Black Arms return to earth in order to take it over. Shadow finds himself feeling conflicted about the whole situation.

Set in my Lost and Found AU

Warnings: None

Word Count: ~850 words

Shadow sucked in a deep breath as his head was filled with a familiar chatter. Something he hadn’t heard for a long time. It was overwhelming in a way. Around him the Black Arms swarmed the city yet he was frozen in place. Somewhere out there Sonic and Tails were no doubt fighting off the invasion but Shadow felt rooted to the spot.

“How does it feel to finally see these pathetic creatures getting what they deserve Shadow?” Black Doom asked from somewhere behind him. Shadow’s ear twitched at the familiar voice, he felt conflicted about the relief that washed over him at hearing it. “Speechless I see. I imagine you’ve waited a long time for this.”

Shadow’s mind brought up memories from the few times Black Doom had managed to bring him to the Black Comet when he was still living on the Ark. Those were memories that had always held a special place for him. They were some of the few happy memories he had about his time on the Ark. Those and every time Maria managed to visit him. Looking at the destruction the Black Arms were wreaking though truly had him feeling conflicted. Black Doom had never told him the Black Arms’ goals all those years ago, but now that he knew he wasn’t sure what to think. He also hated to think that perhaps back then he would have agreed with them.

He raised his hands to speak but quickly put them down. There was no point when he both didn’t know if Black Doom would even understand him, and when there was a much more convenient mode of communication that didn’t need him to speak out loud. “Is this all necessary?” Shadow looked back finally as he asked the question through the Black Arms’ hive mind. It felt odd to access it directly like this after how long it had been and how used to functioning without it he’d grown to be.

“The humans must be properly subjugated.” Black Doom folded his arms behind his back. “That requires them to be properly crushed.”

Part of Shadow wanted to agree, but he wasn't sure how much of that was due to his own feelings and how much was due to influence from Black Doom. There was only ever one human that had been kind to him. Well at least on the Ark. Sure Sonic wasn’t a human but he’d shown Shadow that people could be kind and accepting. Ever since the blue hedgehog had found him Shadow had been learning that not everyone was like the people on the Ark. Did the whole of humanity really deserve to pay for the sins of a few no matter how much he may want to take revenge?

Shadow flicked his tail in annoyance. “No…” He spoke out loud, his voice rough from general lack of use.

“What do you mean?” Black Doom mostly sounded curious but there was an edge to his voice.

It was in that moment Shadow realized just how much he’d changed, how much he’d really let Sonic and the others into his life. He turned to Black Doom, standing tall and face set into a defiant frown. “I’m not giving up on this world.” He snarled. “I’m not giving up on all the people who’ve given me a chance.” He allowed chaos energy to crackle around his hands dangerously.

Black Doom’s eyes narrowed. “Do not defy me Shadow. You are one of us, you have no need for these lower creatures.”

“I may be one of you, but that doesn’t mean I have the same goals.” Shadow felt anger rise in him. Red hot and sudden. “You failed your end of the deal that day. Why should I listen to you!?” He’d not spoken this much possibly ever at one time, but the anger in his system had overridden any hesitation he may have had in that moment. “You’ve had your chance, but now I have something to protect.”

“Shadow-” There was a warning tone in Black Doom’s voice but Shadow didn’t let him finish. He chaos controlled away, somewhere deeper into the city. He needed to find Sonic and help fight off the Black Arms. Luckily the background chatter of the hivemind came in handy as Shadow followed the reports of a “blue blur”. He sped through the city, grateful he’d elected to use his air shoes today. Once he found Sonic they’d figure this out together.

Black Doom stared at the spot Shadow had been a moment ago in mild bewilderment. Just what had happened? Last Black Doom had seen the little hybrid he’d been completely on his side. Now he suddenly wanted to defy the only people which had shown him kindness? “How unexpected…” Black Doom hummed. While he’d been rather certain Shadow would still be on the Black Arm’s side by the time they returned, perhaps he’d underestimated the influence from the hybrid’s other DNA. Luckily he had someone who just might be able to appeal to Shadow’s more… emotionally driven side. “Eclipse?” He reached out through the hive mind. “I have a mission for you…”

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic fandom #sonic au #fictober24 #lost and found au #black doom #ao3 link

6 notes · View notes

skyler-moose · 1 month ago

Text

ok so like, infinite. right?

so we are coming up to the release of SXSG and i want to talk about this guy, cus he might be in it. I talked about this very topic on a different thred and twitter.

I went to go read the comic, read the song lyrics, and watch all the cutsenes (i haven't played forces). Studying* all of this leads me to one conclusion. they forgot to make it all connect.

so like squad jackal, they look like they could be family since they look so similar (fir and eye colour) but that is mostly just speculation. even so i think he does care about them (keep this in mind) and he likes them.

i feel like he wants them to have a better life and hes a little sick of this life. (even though he wants to be the ultimate mercenary ¯\_(ツ)_/¯) and thats his motivation some lyrics in his theme even point to this "When everything you know has come and gone (You are at your lowest, I am rising higher) Only scars remain of who I was (What I find in the ashes, you lose in the fire) When there's no one left to carry on (This is an illusion, open up your eyes, and) This pain persists, I can't resist But that's what it takes to be infinite"

"'Cause if you're messing with me I am a dangerous weapon I am the sharpest of blades I'll cut you down in a second 'Cause I was born in this pain It only hurts if you let it So if you think you can take me Then you should go and forget it"

but here is the problem. In the game he seems like nothing other then "i want to rule the world cus evil" there's some dialog saying that his whole squad was k!lled and he get orders from egg man to go take out shadow who just took out squad jackal.

but now he has no motivation, like you would think hed want to kale shadow but he doesn't really do that, its mostly just kida floating around breaking all the phantom ruby prototypes. and yeah he could recreate squad jackal with the ruby but they wouldn't have like a soul so i dont think hed so that.

and yaknow that one part were shadow calls him weak? yeah that left a bad taste in everyone's mouth just thinking doesn't like being called weak and thinks hes strong. But the context is so bad thanks to the righting. none picked up on the fact that HIS WHOLE SQAUD WAS JUST KILED BY SHADOW, AND CALLED USELESS.

he doesn't sound (or even look) very sad but i don't think he would be a sopping mess of tears for anything.

Alright i should have said in the start that i suck at righting on the fly, but im going to try to tie all my points together.

First, infinite was very likely born into life of killing and being a nomad. second, he has been doing this a while and has grown sick of this life. third, he wants a better life for himself and his squad so he can be the ultimate mercenary without having too worry about being forced to do it. fourth, the people he wanted a better life for are all dwead thanks to shadow, and now he has to go and face shadow not in the right head space to do so or be prepared for a teleporting hedgehog who is the ultimate lifeform. and now he puts a mask and a very powerful rock. to get revenge (even tho he doesnt really go after shadow idk man¯\_(ツ)_/¯).

follow all that? yeah the game explains nearly NON of this to the player. in base forces infinite is just generically evil and wants to rule the world with or without egg man. in episode shadow, hes treated like a joke who hates being called weak. yeah squad jackal is mentioned but the player knows nothing about who they are just that infinite is there leader.

i feel like infinite is and can be good but they just didn't make him good just put a bunch of things that WOULD make him good but didn't put it together.

if you read all of this and somehow followed it. thank you so much. i want to make it clear that I'm an infinite fan and do like him.

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic forces #sonic x shadow generations #sonic infinite #infinite #word mess #im fairly sure im dyslexic #should get tested for that just haven't yet ¯\_(ツ)_/¯#sorry if this was hard to read

3 notes · View notes

m1ckeyb3rry · 1 month ago

Note

I’m ngl I just scrolled through your blog to look at your “controversial takes” posts to find those haters wait was it the Rin additional time one because bro the age gap might not be big but the maturity one is…like especially with Rin and how he acts too omg

Bro the itoshi sibling angst was never that deep im ngl i never thought it was super sad or anything either i mean it doesn’t help that i didn’t care much for them but when you think about it its just two brothers beefing like yeah it sucks because they once had a nice relationship but i mean id arguably say i think kaisers backstory is sadder than that and i don’t even care about kaiser either…idk there’s also something off about when they did get along im not really sure how to explain it but I don’t find anything special about it either so uh

NO FR im crying at the craziness in their profiles KIYORA AND THE TWINS AND THE ASS WASHING??? WHAT aikus had me SENDING like bro being like “i like drinking! Oh haha i mean I WILL love drinking…when im 20….and of age….nope never drank before hahahahaahahah” it’s so Aiku I’ve seen people going insane over the “finding playmates” response too and HES THE MIDDLE CHILD BETWEEN TWO SISTERS just like otoya i fr read that and lost my mind like what are their sisters doing and why aren’t they teaching them respect LMFAO kuronas is so cute wdym he’d bring his hedgehog with him as his only thing to a deserted island im crying also the saga of hioris celebrity crush had me losing it from “congrats to her marriage” to “she inspired my broken bone fetish” WHAT I fr can’t wait for more tabieitaken Barou crumbs though im surprised this is all out so early!!

Oh yeah me neither LMAOO like we don’t even see bro later idgaf I also can’t imagine him playing that important of a role the main story either I also feel like chigiris injury would only happen again in the World Cup or something not mid nel so…..

CRYING FR PNGLOCK agreed at least the pngs were drawn nicely for the most part but the animation and like the effects they added to try and make it look better had me laughing maybe they’ll sneak in more Karasu scenes in the u20 match at least we’ll have a couple moments of him facing against sae plus the Rin and Shidou carding thing LOL

LMAOO epinagi fr cooking with Karasu but we seriously need more panels of him in circulation because you’re so right

AHAHSG TAKE YOUR TIME LMAOOOO omg brief touching grass moment I know the feeling LOL

Also wait Karasu x WHO NOW?? SUKUNA???????? This reminds me of that era of Sukuna and hello kitty or Cinderella or something what the

- Karasu anon

LMAOAO PLS I POST SO MUCH that’s some dedication fr…although what else should i expect from resident goat karasu anon SDKLJF 😭 anyways i try not to vague post or get into drama or anything so i won’t say which post i was referencing in specific but considering how synced up we are let it suffice to say that if you found something silly during your scrolling that’s probably what i meant HAHAHAHA

OH MY GOD OKAY THANK YOU tbh angst in blue lock is so hit or miss for me like sometimes i’m just like okay was it really ever that deep…it’s not to devalue people irl who have experiences like that and have it impact them but like in fiction i’m just like ok??? i think the only backstories that have genuinely made me feel sad have been kaiser’s, lorenzo’s, and snuffy’s literally NO one else made me mega emo (reo and hiori get honorable mentions because i feel bad for them but it’s not ANGSTY to me yk?? idk maybe to me it’s not angst without death literally looming in the background SLDKJF perhaps that’s a mira problem) and yeah ofc part of it is that i’m not rlly an itoshi stan like that but kaiser is also a part of the core four opps and i found his backstory really sad so i truly do think it’s just a personal preference thing idk

KIYORA HAD ME GASPINGGGG lowkey he’s so funny i bet he was just saying all of that with such a straight face too…truly king of goofiness i have no choice but to support LMAOAOOA omg aiku’s had me cracking up he’s actually lowkey real this is just further proof that he would be a really fun bestie SDKLFJSD like he’s just chill with truly anything…nah because the bllk phenomenon of one older and one younger sister + absolute villainy MUST be studied!! actually wait i think kunigami disproves that because he’s nice but still 2/3 is not a great look 😭 KURONA AND HIS HEDGEHOG HAD ME CRYING PLS the way it was just called hedgehog number two the entire time…okay hold on when i read that hiori had a fetish for “fractured” girls i thought it was more of like an “i like girls who are traumatized and broken” in an #icanfixthem way not him actually being into broken bones HAHAH it’s insane either way though

yeah exactly that’s the one thing w epinagi being so far behind is that so many things lose their hype because we know how it ends…imagine how much more fun team tabieita vs team nagi would be if we didn’t know that nagi wins and they steal kiyora?? honestly i find myself enjoying the epinagi chapters more so i do sometimes wish that there was that element of surprise that bllk main manga can pull off…but anyways yeah agreed i would be surprised if they injure chigiri already ig anything’s possible but who knows

AHAHAHA PRAYINGGGG WE GET GOOD KARASU SCENES IN U20 however at least my nagi and barou sides will be fed well hehe anyways yeah the effects lowkey had me giggling ik everyone’s taking it seriously and crashing out but like i’m chilling it’s just not that deep it’s like reading the manga but i get to hear karasu’s fine ass voice instead of having to imagine it yk

BRO HOLD ON HERE’S THE LINK I NEED SOMEONE ELSE TO SEE THIS 😓 i was literally so taken aback like where did this even come from??? the sukuna x cinderella (and in fact all of the disney x jjk) stuff was really random but at least disney princesses are like relevant to pop culture?? i’m so confused at how KARASU got involved SDKLFJSD idk who the og artist is either but it’s like VERY OBVIOUSLY karasu omg i wish i was there irl to see your reaction it’s just the most bizarre thing (but like i said…if that’s what the artist is into good for them ig)

HELP OKAY i finally finished i just need to proofread and then post!! i lowkey might fall asleep beforehand though so who knows if it’ll actually be posted soon or not we’ll see LMAOAOAO but anyways i will be freed at last ngl it’s kinda ass but oh well it is what it is

#answered asks

3 notes · View notes

pico-digital-studios · 6 months ago

Text

Into, Across and Beyond! Scripting: Home or Hero?

In One More Hero Chapter 1, after OMT!Tails, CR!Sonic and Nine got their transport vehicle sorted out, they began their flight over New Yoke City.

Nine: So, do you have a Sonic back where you came from?

OMT!Tails: Well, I did.

Nine: What happened?

OMT!Tails: Some supernatural monster tried to ravage my home, and Sonic sacrificed his life to destroy it. I know everyone else has been able to move on, but it's been near-impossible for me to maintain the promise I gave him. *sigh* Guess I just suck at moving on, I suppose…

Nine: I'm sure he'd be proud of how far you're coming, Tails. I mean, you can gradually learn the steps needed to take up his mantle and keep those in your land safe. And you've got my support as well, through whatever you endure from here on out.

OMT!Tails: Thanks, Nine. That really means a lot coming from you.

Nine: Anytime!

CR!Sonic: Alright. Next stop-! Hey.

CR!Sonic had noticed a hedgehog figure standing on the ground in one area of New Yoke.

CR!Sonic: Is that-? Oh, boy! Tails, slow down, quick!

OMT!Tails: Huh? What’s up?

CR!Sonic: STOP THE SHIP!

OMT!Tails: Okay, okay! Hang on!

Tails did so, landing it as the three hopped out.

Nine: What’s up, Sonic?

CR!Sonic: If it isn’t bleedy eyes himself! Haven’t seen you since Corrupt and stuff.

The figure, Exegod, turned back to CR!Sonic in response.

Exegod: Oh, Sonic. Never thought we’d cross paths again.

Nine stepped in front of Tails to protect him, mainly due to the latter having not yet gotten over seeing an evil Sonic.

Exegod: Still shaken from whatever ordeal took hold of your dimension, huh?

OMT!Tails: Yeah...

Exegod: Hey, it's alright, kid. My killing days are long behind me.

CR!Sonic: So, what brought you into this Shatterspace?

Exegod: I felt there was a lot of unusual activity going on and tried to cross through here, but I guess we crossed paths sooner than I had anticipated.

CR!Sonic: So you experienced those weird portals too, huh?

OMT!Tails: I... think I know what really caused the issue.

Nine: Huh?

OMT!Tails: Back in my dimension, me and the local hero there uncovered an interdimensional energiser in an old and abandoned Death Egg.

Flashbacks are shown to the sequence.

OMT!Tails: I felt an urge to figure it out, though during the fight, the energiser fired up proper, and Detective Ghost was caught in the beam. We both managed to escape, though I've now got the responsibility of the world on my shoulders, since I need to be the one to shut it down.

Back in the present...

CR!Sonic: Oh, NOW you tell me how I got in your dimension proper?

OMT!Tails: I could've explained it to you before you went and ran off ahead of me before.

CR!Sonic: I ain't one for long talks, though, kid. You know who I am, right?

Exegod: He does have a point, though. Don't you remember? With great power always comes great-.

CR!Sonic angrily pushed Exegod back.

CR!Sonic: Don't you dare finish that sentence... Just don't do it. I'm sick of it.

Nine: Sonic, cool it! What do you even plan to do?

CR!Sonic: Well, go back there, and when it runs again, I'll just jump in and get back to my life-.

Exegod: Doing what? Wasting away on chilli dogs whilst lamenting about breaking your Sally's heart?

CR!Sonic: ...How the hell did you know that?

OMT!Tails: Look! We can't let the guy behind it run it! I'm supposed to destroy it so that it never runs again, or everyone's gonna die-!

CR!Sonic: (mockingly) -or everyone's gonna die! (normal) That's what they always say. BUT! There's always a little bit of time before the end of the world, and that's when I do my best work!

OMT!Tails: Before we head back... Aren't you gonna be needing this?

OMT!Tails pulled out the little device Kaede had passed to him before.

CR!Sonic: Ah, you have a goober! Give it.

He tried to take it, though OMT!Tails just flipped his back to Sonic with some cute pouting.

OMT!Tails: Not so fast! Kaede called it an override key.

CR!Sonic: There's always a bypass key, a virus key, a who-cares key I can never remember. Since I don't have my Tails available for this, I just call these things goobers for consistency. Hand it over!

OMT!Tails: I need it to destroy the energiser!

CR!Sonic: I need it to go home!

Tails quickly put it in his mouth, glaring at Sonic.

OMT!Tails (muffled): No! I'll swallow it if I have to. Don't try this on me!

CR!Sonic: What was that?

He walked slightly ahead, knowing he would provoke a response.

OMT!Tails: I said-!

And he quickly swiped the device right out of Tails's mouth.

OMT!Tails: Hey!

CR!Sonic: The energiser created a portal that brought me into your dimension before, so I have to g-. ... Did you break this?

OMT!Tails (sweating): Oh, no... It must've broke in the middle of that crazy chase away from the SIGU.

CR!Sonic: *sigh* This is why I never had kids. This is why I never did that!

Nine: We got my workshop, haven't we? Can't we make another one?

CR!Sonic: No, Nine. We can't do anything! Thanks to the whole thing back at Tails's world, I have to re-steal what his girl stole from that Death Egg and make another one of these.

OMT!Tails: Okay, look, Sonic! If I don't turn off the energiser after you leave, everyone on my South Island, Knuckles, Amy, my little sister, my aunts, my uncle, my big sister-in-law, and millions of others are going to die! And you're just gonna trail right back into a crummy apartment without making meaningful changes and leave ME to figure it out all on my own?! Are you seriously good with that, Sonic?

CR!Sonic: ...yeah? *sigh* I'm gonna take a small walk. Call me when you're ready to cruise off again.

He walked off.

Exegod: Urgh, come ON, Maurice! This isn't the blue blur I once knew!

CR!Sonic: Yeah, and he ain't comin' back!

Exegod followed him as OMT!Tails sighed in frustration.

OMT!Tails: How come I'm now stuck with the angsty, older, broke Sonic?!

He punched a nearby girder to vent out his anger, only to look in surprise when the punch actually knocked it out of shape a bit.

OMT!Tails (surprised): Oh. That's new.

Nine: *sigh* Yeah. That Sonic's not been in the best state, even when I first met him last week. I'm sure there's still good in him deep down. It's just that it's currently buried deep under a lot of trauma.

OMT!Tails: Yeah, I get that. When we're on the move again, I'll try to see if we can awaken that in him again.

Nine: Heh, good call.

Nine got to sorting out the engine for multiversal travel while OMT!Tails waited for CR!Sonic to let off his steam.

#sonic exe #sonic the hedgehog #spider verse #sth #sonic #sonic fandom #sth au #sonic au #spider man #sonic prime

4 notes · View notes

nuttyrabbit · 2 years ago

Note

I’d like to hear what you have to say about IDW.

Alright, let's do this then! I'm not gonna make a big mega review, because frankly I don't think I need to, but I'm just gonna run down some things I like and don't like about the comic just to get it out there, and I'm gonna do it in a "Like-Dislike-Like-Dislike" format just to make things interesting.

With that being said, let's rock and roll

LIKE- The Art

For whatever problems IDW may have, one the most consistently good things about the comic has been its art. Whether it be Archie vets like ABT, Yardley, and Skelly or newcomers like Mauro, Thomas, and Foundraine, IDW has looked consistently fantastic! Some of the action scenes in this comic are some of the best action scenes I've ever seen in any Sonic media (especially anything drawn by ABT. Y'all accuse me of having Ian as my husbando, but the closest thing would be ABT because that man physically CANNOT FUCKING MISS)

Many of the covers especially are some of the best Sonic has ever seen, PERIOD

This cover in particular is something I'd love to have framed

IDW is just a consistently gorgeous comic, even moreso than Archie at its peak with a few exceptions. Also helps that IDW has multiple good inkers and colorists to help the lines pop out, which was an issue I had with Archie

DISLIKE- The Setting

The thing is, I don't inherently dislike the setting of IDW. Setting it past Forces was a good move and setting it in something similar to the games was also a really good call. While I greatly prefer the mix and match setting of the reboot, there is a charm to a more simple, gamelike setting

The problem is that the setting, at least to me, is too simple. At any point it feels like there's maybe 4 locations on the planet: Resistance Base, Eggman Base, Sunset City, and Forest. There are a couple other named locations like White Park, Angel Island and Spiral Hill and that one camping site, but for the most part it feels like the comic ping pongs between these fairly generic locations. As a result, the comic world feels shockingly small in terms of scope and wonder, which is something weird to say about Sonic of all things, a game franchise which has done wonders in taking the hedgehog to various weird, wacky, and cool locales.

It also doesn't help that unlike the games or other comics or even stuff like the OVA and Prime, a lot of the locations don't really have a tangible history or interesting visual motifs, so they just kinda fall flat

I'm not expecting the comic to go full Archie reboot and have a MASSIVE world full of named locations established with DEEPEST LORE from day 1, since that was an extraordinary situation that kinda hurt the comic long term, but having a bit more variety would help the comic loads.

As is, most of the comic's settings just kinda blur together for me to the point where something like Eggperial City just seems like another Eggman base to me. Unfortunately, given what Ian's said about developing the setting (I.e he won't for asinine reasons), I doubt this'll change any time soon, which is a crying shame

LIKE- MOST of the New Characters

While I'm known as an Archie diehard, I'll fully admit that I do like quite a bit of the IDW newcomers. Tangle, Whisper, Starline, Surge, and Kit are characters I've all found to be enjoyable or compelling to some degree. Other characters like Clutch, Rough, and Tumble are also quite enjoyable, though severely underutilized.

IDW has done a pretty solid job (FOR THE MOST PART) of introducing and establishing new characters that add something interesting to the comic at large, and I'm glad to see that some of them have begun making the leap to the games

DISLIKE- Belle

Yeah, I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, I think Belle sucks hard. The concept is fine, but the problem is that A: you know where this shit is going the moment she shows up and B: it takes fucking FOREVER to get there.

Like by the time Belle has her big confrontation with Eggman in issue 50, I'm just rolling my eyes because we knew this was coming and it's just kind of a lame part in an otherwise really cool issue.

Also she just feels like a lesser version of at least 3-4 different characters, including IDW Mecha Sonic. Scrapnik Island is just Belle's arc but actually interesting

Yeah, I just don't think Belle works and is probably the only major dud of the new roster, but man she is a BAD dud. Like the kind that drags down every arc she's in.

Like- Some of the Canon Portrayals

When it comes to portrayals of the canon cast, IDW is a fairly mixed bag, and I think a fair deal of them are abjectly weaker than both game and Archie portrayals (Team Dark being THE most egregious example of this, but Eggman also kinda falls into this)

With that being said, I still do like some of the canon cast in IDW.

Sonic: For all the flak Sonic gets and despite how annoying some of his long-winded speeches can get, I do for the most part like his portrayal. I think having him wrestle with morality, while a bit tedious at times, is interesting, and he still has quite a few moments that make me go "That's my Sonic!" Still inferior to post-SGW Sonic and ESPECIALLY Adventure-era Sonic (who is my eternal GOAT)

Amy: Despite people accusing Amy of being a Sally clone (an accusation which I always find hilarious because it's thrown at ANY female character in a leadership position), she also gets a few pretty solid moments throughout the comic (mainly before and after the Zombot arc). Not as good as Archie Amy but still aight

Silver and Blaze: It's nice to see Silver and Blaze have consistent characterizations and for the latter to not job horrifically. They have good chemistry with each other and the rest of the cast and are a pretty welcome presence, especially since they show up more than once every 600 issues.

The Chaotix: I also like the Chaotix and think they get a lot of really strong moments. Probably one of the few abjectly great parts of the Zombot arc was how they were done

Zavok: Turns out the moment you take Zavok away from the D6 and put him with real characters he actually becomes mildly interesting

The Others: Characters like Cream, Tails, Vanilla, Orbot/Cubot, etc aren't amazing but they're perfectly fine so I'll put them in the good side.

But yeah, I think a few characters get pretty decent characterization with some really strong moments here and there. Though the issue is that none of these portrayals are really the peak of these characters. The most I can say for some of them is that they're good, but there's rarely a moment from most of these examples where I'd point to them and go "This is the perfect way to write this character

DISLIKE- Other Canon Portrayals

Here's what you were probably here for, so let me do this bulletpoint style

Eggman- Isn't as menacing as Archie nor as goofy as his best showings in the games. He has some pretty great moments here and there, with him mulching Starline being a highlight, but he's kinda disappointing overall, especially compared to what's been done before

Knuckles: It's cool they remembered his duty to the Master Emerald and got rid of that dumbass "military leader shit" (which they still kept in Frontiers for some weird fuckin reason. Dunno why they're pushing that). Shame that means he basically sits in the background for most of the comic because there's no Sonic Universe equivalent (which I'll get to). His characterization is okay but MAN compared to all the cool stuff he got to do in the reboot it's very disappointing

Omega- He's still funny, but god it just ain't the same. This is a case where I think the Archie version was just flat out better. He, Amy, and Shadow are the biggest cases of "Archie just did you better"

Shadow: Do I even need to explain this? It's discount Vegeta/Sasuke/Vergil. He's an arrogant prick without anything that made him interesting. Comparing him to Archie is comical since the latter clears so hard it isn't even funny. But fuck, I'd even take Prime Shadow or hell, Boom Shadow over IDW, because at least the former has a reason to be pissy and the latter is at least funny. IDW Shadow is just miserable every fucking time he shows up and I can't tell if it's because the restrictions are that bad or it's because he's just not fun to write, but it sucks. I love Shadow, he's a great character, but every time he shows up I groan. It seems like Sega's gonna be a bit more lax with him, so hopefully that changes things but yeesh

The Deadly Six: It's a shame that Ian couldn't make the Deadly Six outside of Zavok worth a shit, especially since he decided to show them into two separate fucking arcs. I'm not gonna pin my dislike of their portrayal entirely on the comic because I just don't like them, but I am gonna give it shit for using them twice, once in an arc where they didn't belong

The Babylon Rogues: I'm not a fan of the Babylon Rogues, but even I can tell that outside of Jet's sacrifice in the Zombot arc, they've been done exceedingly dirty. That one annual story with Jet and Whisper may be one of the worst stories in IDW Sonic that shit was BAD

Metal Sonic: He's portrayed okay in these comics but my issue is more the shit around him. Sonic trying to redeem him and getting rebuked the first time was interesting stuff. The 2nd time made sense. Beyond that it's gotten obnoxious

LIKE: The Minis

While I dearly miss Sonic Universe and think the comic could use an equivalent (more on that next section), I think the minis we get each year are pretty damn good!

Tangle and Whisper, Bad Guys, Imposter Syndrome, and Scrapnik Island have ranged from good (T&W) to some of the best stuff IDW has put out ever (Scrapnik Island). They're paced well, drawn well, and have really cool shit happen in them. Scrapnik Island in particular was really, really cool and I found Barnes' pacing and character work to be even better than Ian and Evan in places and think he should get a shot at writing some mainline stories.

Also the specials have been pretty good, with the 30th Anniversary Special being extremely pleasant

DISLIKE: Plotting (Or lackthereof)

Now we're getting into some of the nitty gritty.

The big issues with IDW's plots are threefold, so I'll tackle each one individually

Pacing. Evan and Barnes are generally fine with this, but my god Ian Flynn still doesn't know how to pace a story that's more than a couple issues. The Zombot Arc is the absolute worst fucking caes of this (You could cram that entire story into 6 issues and it'd be significantly more effective), but stuff like Eggperial City and even Surge's storyline are also examples of this. So many of the things he plots just drag on and on and repeat themselves ad nauseam in terms of plot beats and even what the characters talk about.

It's an issue that's more readily apparent when reading on a monthly basis as opposed to on a trade basis (where the pacing is less noticeably bad because it's written FOR trades like many modern comics are, much to their detriment), but it's still really bad nevertheless. The only times it hasn't been with Ian are during the minis where, surprise surprise, having to do your story in 4 issues means you gotta actually tighten things up and cut filler.

Again, Evan and Barnes don't seem to have this issue, so a lot of this is on Ian. I like the dude's writing but holy fuck he is still SO bad about this

2. Repetition. I talked about this in a sense in the pacing section by talking about how repetitive Ian's plotting and dialogue can get because of the poor pacing, but I wanna talk about it in a different sense. A lot of IDW's plots are uh, very repetitive, especially as of late. It boils down to "Eggman is doing a thing, go look into it/stop it" a LOT. I know Eggman's the main villain and all but I swear the schtick of "We gotta go check out the Eggman base and fight badniks" has gotten very, very old. Even the Surge and Kit arc ended in "Go to the Eggman base" Arcs like Chao Races and Camping are welcome breaks because they involve the characters doing other shit.

It also ties into my complaints about the setting being small because it often feels like characters just have nothing better to do than go raid Eggman bases and fight Badniks. I know it's an action comic and all but maybe actually utilize some of your smaller villains? Maybe make some new ones? Or maybe even invent some weird new locations for your characters to check out and switch things up? Just an idea.

I keep bringing up that this comic needs a Sonic Universe equivalent and I really believe this because it'd not only give characters like Knuckles, Shadow, and the Chaotix more time to shine, but it'd also give some fantastic diversity in terms of plots. Like while Sonic is fighting Eggman for the billionth time, maybe the Chaotix are doing actual detective work or Knuckles is exploring some ancient ruins and finds a weird new thing he's gotta deal with or an ancient secret he's gotta unlock.

Post reboot Archie benefitted greatly from this since while the main comic was mostly Sonic and co doing shit with Unleashed, Universe was exploring and expanding the world and giving the side characters way cooler shit to bounce off of, making the setting not only feel larger, but also making it feel more varied.

3. Long Term Plans (Or lackthereof)

This one ties a lot into my complaints about setting, but it's strange seeing a Sonic comic do so little in terms of setting up mysteries or future plot threads (that aren't solved IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE CURRENT ARC ENDS), and it also results in a comic that feels more constrained. It gives so little to really talk or speculate about. Maybe it's more a fandom thing for me but I enjoy it when media drops cool background stuff for the viewer to speculate about and make the world like a puzzle the viewer has to piece together. It adds so much to a story and narrative when a viewer can pick up on little plot threads and watch them come together over time.

LIKE Action

This one's simple. IDW has a lot of really well drawn, really interestingly written action bits. Any time there's an action scene, no matter how mundane or banal, it's always gonna look fantastic

Like DAMN. And that's not even an ABT action scene.

DISLIKE: Too Self-Contained

Okay this is a weird complaint but I really don't like that the comic can't explicitly draw on locations and plot elements from not just the games but other side stuff. I get why, but it's also lame because one of the coolest parts of reboot Archie was seeing what insane stuff the comic would pull from and reinvent.

Also it's absolute bullshit they can't bring back the Hooligans and Battle Bird Armada. Like come the fuck on, those are good villains

RAPIDFIRE TIME

Okay so I've been typing this up for way longer than I anticipated so I'm just gonna rapidfire a bunch of other shit I like and dislike

Like: Neo Metal Sonic being the first villains rules and that arc is really fun

Dislike: The Zombot Arc. It's got cool ideas but it goes on for fucking ever and devolves into misery porn pretty hard. Also I don't care if the Zeti were always planned, them being there sucks **IAN**

Like: The fact that Ian isn't the only person writing. I've been saying since Archie that a revolving team of writers would be cool and lo and behold, we've gotten that. Very cool stuff

Dislike: No Off-panels. It's a crime we don't have those because they're funny

Like: The cool outfits the cast wear in Chao Races. I love alt outfits

Dislike: "No alt outfits outside of very special exceptions". See above

Like: IDW actually puts out trades on time.

Dislike: Wispons are overused as FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK. I get randos having them and Whisper specializing in them but I don't think Lanolin needed to have one. It's creative yeah but just give her sound powers

FINAL THOUGHTS

Okay so clearer I had a lot to say about IDW Sonic, and I was deliberately being as general as possible to try and write this up fairly quickly. It's a comic that I find to be decently enjoyable, but also very noticeable flawed and ultimately kinda lacking in some key aspects. I like the comic well enough but it's never clicked with me in the same way other Sonic media like Archie did. I'm hopin in the future that some of these issues I've listed are remedied and that the comic continues to find success.

But yeah, this was fun, albeit exhausting, to write up. So to close this out, I'm gonna give it a numerical ranking

As of now, March 21, 2023, I give IDW Sonic a 6/10 (For context I'd give the reboot a 7.5 overall and the pre-reboot a 6 as well)

#IDW Sonic #THE IDW SONIC MASTERPOST #asks

25 notes · View notes

ikatakoirl · 2 years ago

Text

How To Write A Comic Relief Character That Doesn’t Suck

So. We all know the comic-relief character trope. The one who doesn’t do much but tags along because of their “loyalty” and falls on their face every now and then for us to laugh at whenever the tension gets too high. But then at the end they have their heroic moment and prove wrong everyone who ever doubted them! Only for them to go back to exactly how they were before in the resolution. Right?

NO! WRONG! THROW IT IN THE GARBAGE! In this post I’m going to give some ideas of how to add comic relief elements to a story without devaluing any of the characters! First of all, let’s start with some examples! I'll explain most of my choices throughout the post. I'm hoping I provided enough examples that everyone can recognize at least one in each category! I’ve also done my best to make direct comparisons.

Comic Relief Characters Done Poorly

Ronald Weasley (Harry Potter)

Neville Longbottom (Harry Potter)

Haymitch Abernathy (The Hunger Games)

Lance McClain (Voltron: Legendary Defender)

Loki (MCU, before the Disney+ series)

Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Miraculous Ladybug)

Luigi (Super Mario)

Goggles (Coroika)

Comic Relief Characters Done Well

Fred and George Weasley (Harry Potter)

Percy Jackson (Percy Jackson and the Olympians)

Peeta Mellark (The Hunger Games)

Sokka (Avatar: the Last Airbender)

Peter Parker/Spider-Man (MCU)

Chat Noir (Miraculous Ladybug)

Sonic the Hedgehog [depends on which show/game ofc]

Skull (Coroika)

Reki Kyan (Sk8 the Infinity)

Kai (The Hollow)

No Laughing Matter

It’s great to have a character who struggles with clumsiness or feeling incompetent! But what if you tried actually taking those concerns seriously? Instead of the divert-with-comedy-and-never-readdress approach, make your character turn angry or sensitive. (Or the best of both worlds, tsundere!) Really get into their head and explore how that incompetence is affecting them. Bonus points if they actually fail something of consequence! How do they react to this failure? Do they have people supporting them, and if so, how? And if instead the character is on the outs and constantly the butt of jokes, how does that affect their psyche? Maybe they’ll throw themselves into training or practicing to become better, but maybe all they need is a reminder of where their strengths do lie so that they can use them better to their advantage next time! I actually challange you to separate the klutz character from the comic relief character! It may be funny to watch people falling down on Reddit, but it doesn’t make for a compelling character that people will remember! I love Marinette, I really do, but I have to admit that she could be written better because she falls right into this sort of trap.

Himbos Are People, Too

Okay, okay. I know we all need to have our himbos sometimes. And that’s great! A character who’s a bit out of their element can be endearing for a lot of readers! But in order to get there, the character needs other personality traits, too! Comic relief is not a personality. It’s something you can stack onto a personality, but you need to create a whole character first, complete with hobbies and interests! Which means that, yes, you have to let your character be good at something. It doesn’t have to be the same as their interests, though! This is a great opportunity for a reminder that you can still find joy in something even if you’re not very good at it, and just because you're good at something doesn't mean it makes you happy.

And it should really be more than one thing they’re good at! Don’t write the Ron who’s only good at chess or the Lance who’s only (somewhat) good at flirting!

Tell Me What You Want

This also goes for character motivations! Each character needs to have either a clear motive or a clear lack of motive! Bonus points if it’s multiple complex but identifiable motives! Sokka is a perfect example of this! He wants to live up to the legacy of his father, find his place in the Gaang, and maybe pick up a girl (or a guy) along the way. And most importantly, he uses his humor not as a selfish way to avoid his feelings or for plot convenience but rather to lighten the mood as part of the duty he feels to keeping his sister safe and happy! His Voltron doppelgänger, Lance, has no clear motivation… ever, pretty much. He's implied to like Allura, but it's treated as more of a joke. Same with Ron, or Neville, or Luigi, or even Loki. What do they even want? You could say that Ron saw his greatest desire in the Mirror of Erised (to be recognized and respected), but does he ever take steps toward this? Does it ever even get brought up again? Or was it just meant to contrast with Harry’s greatest desire? After all, Ron ends up as some Auror as an adult but doesn’t show any regret or longing for a higher status.

(Another hint: Not dying is not a character motivation!)

However, I did give another option, which was a clear lack of motivation. We see this in Percy, Reki, and Kai at certain points, and they all express that they don’t understand exactly what they want. And that’s perfectly okay, too! I actually really love writing characters like this! That being said, this is typically a temporary thing, and you should have something in mind for the character’s endgame. I want to stress that this is actually the harder one to pull off correctly, so you can’t just use it as a cop-out.

So yeah, there’s your crash course in character creation and development! Maybe I’ll do a separate post for that in more detail!

According to my Calculations…

Yes, I know that can all feel like a lot. But it's no excuse to fall into stereotypes. Especially this one, which is often done as an Asian-American caricature. Going the other route with a conventionally unattractive, glasses-wearing, acne-having white kid is bad, too. It's cringe. It's harmful. Don't do it.

And this goes not just for the stupid-nerd caricature, but also for any other stereotype out there. This one is just the most annoying one I can think of.

The Loyal Lapdog

Another sort of random trope is justifying a bland character by claiming that their virtue is their "loyalty." If you're going to use loyalty as a personality trait, be very careful about it. You have to be committed to upholding that personality trait even if it messes with your plot. You don't want to end up like Ron, who is actually arguably one of the least loyal characters in the series, abandoning his best friends in an apocalyptic situation just because he was jealous and constantly getting in fights with Harry over things out of his control. It is good to test and even break the limits of your character’s loyalty, but if they give up at the slightest inconvenience they’re clearly not actually loyal at all. (I’m sorry I bash Ron so much. It’s not what it sounds like, I actually hate him much more than I’m letting on.)

Comedy Communism

Guess what? You can have more than one character be funny! In fact, why not make all of them funny? Even your dark, serious character can be accidentally hilarious, and Skull is a pristine example of this. And giving a brooding loner character a surprise one-liner can be a great way to mark character development as they become more comfortable in their environment.

Overall, spreading out the role of comic relief across multiple characters is just a plain good idea because it forces you to fully develop each character and makes your comedy less predictable.

Or here’s another idea: make the comic relief character the protagonist! It’s an unexpected move that Percy Jackson pulls off immaculately! It’s also another strategy to help you avoid writing flat comedic relief characters because your protagonist should be the easiest character to fully flesh out.

Don’t Ruin the Moment

Using comedy to lighten the mood can be a good thing, but it has a time and a place. I've seen so many truly moving, deeply emotional moments completely gutted by a stupid joke. It's so devastating to see a writer put in all this effort to build up to a big moment, only to ruin it. It’s up to you to decide what counts as a “big moment,” but once you decide, fully commit to it. If you really feel like it’s too much for the reader, you can use a scene break, which will provide relief to the readers with less bleeding over of the lighthearted mood into the serious part.

But it can also be hard to maintain that tension, especially if a comic relief character is involved. Having them tell a joke that falls flat can actually be a great way to further increase the tension while staying in character!

With that, thank you for reading! Go forth my friends and make people laugh with complex and memorable characters! And look out for my next post about How to Write a Truly Bone-Chilling Villain!

#writing #writeblr #creative writing #comic relief characters

9 notes · View notes

twin-books · 2 years ago

Text

This is just a vent. I just thought I would talk about it because I never see anyone else talk about it. So, in case it wasn’t obvious, my current hyper fixation right now, and for the last 5 or so years has been Miraculous Ladybug. The problem with this? I really don’t enjoy Miraculous that much anymore yet I feel the need to consume any and all content of it. If it’s brought up in discussion you can bet I’ll be jumping in. And I really hate that. It’s not even just the fact I probably scared so many people off with it... it’s just how much it drives me insane that I can’t drop this thing that I don’t particularly enjoy anymore simply because I seem to hold onto the ideas and concepts I love or I keep getting excited over things I eventually realize I don’t care about anymore. I don’t even know why Miraculous speaks to me so much. Much like I didn’t know why Sonic the Hedgehog spoke to me so much. Grant it, I had very few moments where I didn’t enjoy Sonic. I’m not sure why. That hyper fixation lasted way longer than I originally thought. Apparently like 10-11 years. That was until Miraculous came along and suddenly Sonic was just an interest. Do I have to wait like another 5-6 years until I finally find something to come along and replace Miraculous? Why can’t I just find something else now? There’s plenty of other things I like enough to obsess over that I would much rather be my hyper fixation so I don’t have to ruin someone else’s interests in Miraculous because I’m apparently just so bitter or focus on things that don’t seem to matter. I absolutely adore the concepts of Miraculous. I have collected any concept I can find and have it saved in a file. This is actually something I like about it but I feel like I just can’t talk about it. I feel like I overwhelm people whenever I try to talk about it. And understandably, most people don’t really care too much about the concepts and would rather focus on the actual produced product. It’s kind of aggravating being so sucked into something you either don’t enjoy or the stuff you do is not something a lot of people care about. I don’t blame those people either it’s just particularly painful because I can’t just... let it go. And don’t get me started on the comments. “Well... if you don’t like it... just don’t watch it or interact with it.” They make it sound so easy. Why isn’t it easy for me? It should be easy! Comments like, “You... talk about this a lot. I’m just not into it as much as you.” with that look like I’m weird. It shouldn’t bother me as much as it does. But it does. Especially because to me it’s just normal. Why is my normal not normal? Why can’t I just move on? It’s aggravating that no one else seems to get it. It’s aggravating that I’m treated like this is some sort of crutch or escape from reality that I just refuse to let go of. It’s aggravating that, if I mention this frustration, all I get is pity. It’s just aggravating. I know ultimately it’s not going to kill me and it’s not the end of the world. I’ll find something new eventually and one day I can look back on my interest in Miraculous appreciate it for what it was. Of course there’s a lot of good that’s come out of it and I’m not discounting that. But right now I feel stuck and I don’t like it. Had a similar feeling with Sonic the Hedgehog even when I mostly liked it. That’s probably why I was so grateful for Miraculous Ladybug in the beginning. Sometimes I just don’t like feeling stuck.

#hyper fixation #vent #slightly annoyed #frustration #guess I thought I would share #in case anyone feels the same #I never really see anyone talk about it #perhaps it's just me #might delete later #don't know #i don't mean for this to sound depressing #it's more just an internal annoyance

9 notes · View notes

bahamutgames · 1 year ago

Text

AFTERTHOUGHTS - ROUNDUP ROUND 5

July 2023

Here we go again! I did NOT expect to play so much this month but I... yknow... kinda... got back into gaming in a special little way. I gave it up for a bit cause I was using a hand me down laptop that couldn't run games well, and I was having some phobias about data loss. Then I got a new laptop and while I did do a little bit, I mostly starting focusing on finally playing actual PC games and more indie games that were always out of my grasp as a dedicated console gamer.

Anyway I played a SHIT TON of games and hopefully I'll be able to play more and more. I have a gaming laptop, I have a big ass hard drive, and I have NO MONEY! SO LET'S PARTY!!!

Pikmin (October 26, 2001) - Gamecube

Ah, Pikmin. I've actually had a huge soft spot for this series for a long time. I always loved the world and characters. I remember writing an essay on Pikmin 2 in elementary school, and my mom convinced me to start journaling by telling me Olimar kept a journal lol. But you'll probably be shocked to learn that I NEVER beat this game! I've always been really bad at it and would get sad when my Pikmin died so I gave up on it. But with the power of save scumming, I was able to get the confidence needed to clear through it.

For positives this game is GORGEOUS. Even for gamecube trying to look hyper realistic (in the environments at least lol) I'm actually blown away by how good it looks! Playing on Dolphin may have helped but damn this game's graphics have ages AMAZINGLY. The whole game is also just so charming. Everyone's designs are really cute and delightful. From the Grubdogs to the SS Dolphin itself, their designs are lovely and everything is filled with such personality and charm. I love how goofy and squash-and-stretchy the Pikmin are. It's all so adorable even when facing themes on the cruelty of nature lol. Music is also FANTASTIC, gameplay is fun, I love the story and ending (the part with all the onions was SO cute.) I loved figuring out ways to get parts quicker and trickier, like one part is being guarded by 3 Burrowing Snagrets but you only need to kill the farthest to get it. So I had a bunch of Pikmin grab it and carry it out of the arena while I distracted the other two with a smaller army. It was very neat.

But I will say for all that praise this game is fucking ANNOYING! The Pikmin are so determined to die! I'll be doing everything in my power to keep them safe and they just gloriously run into any body of water or explosion they can. It's so frustrating and is a big reason I decided to emulate it despite owning the game physically. This could get especially frustrating when trying to precise things to get certain ship parts and having to deal with Pikmin stupidity combined with annoying hyper aggressive enemies. But despite that, every day since beating it all I can think is "damn I wish I was still playing Pikmin." So you can expect me to try Pikmin 2 very soon!

Sonic the Fighters (June 1996) - Gamecube

Sonic the Hedgehog? Check. Fighting Game? Double Check. Somehow I've gone my whole life and NEVER played this game!! I've had friends talk about how good it was for ages and it's literally two of my favorite things combined. So I'm very happy that I finally gave it a whirl. I played through Arcade on the easiest difficulty as Sonic!

And may I just say, I only played a little bit. So maybe I didn't get the full experience, but the gameplay in this SUCKS. In general I'm not a huge fan of 3D fighting games over 2D ones. But the enemies are so ruthlessly brutal for NO reason and it genuinely made some fights IMPOSSIBLE to get past. Particularly Tails and Metal Sonic. I am not proud of the swears I shouted at this game just trying my hardest to clear the Arcade mode. And it's endlessly frustrating to me that this game seems to get so much more love and be more popular than Sonic Battle which is LEAGUES better! WHY ARE SO MANY OF SONIC'S SMASH BROS. MOVES FROM THIS AND NOT BATTLE!?

But, I will say. I totally get why people like it. Pretty much everything outside of the combat totally fucking rules. The character models are cute, charming, and full of personality. The menus are nice, the music is GREAT. The plot is cute and works. The level backgrounds are AMAZING, seriously they look WONDERFUL! And I particularly really loved the final boss. Where the Death Egg is exploding and Eggman comes out with a self destruct timer, and then that timer turns into the match timer. SUPER cool touch. This game is really cool in spite of being kinda annoying to play.

Anyway, new Sonic 2D Fighter made by Arc System Works next please!!

Soul Calibur 2 (July 5th, 2002) - Gamecube

Oh boy, another 3D Fighting Game. Here we go. Soul Calibur is a series I've only played once before with SC6. And while the whole aesthetic and concept of this series absolutely RULES, it just doesn't really click with me. I love the weapons, Nightmare is SUCH a bad ass and so is the Soul Edge, I love the over the top narrator who says so much, the edgy fantasy aesthetic rules, and I love the weird guest characters. But it just never fully clicked sadly. BUT, I've heard LOTS of people say it's one of the best fighting games ever so I figured I'm overdue to check it out.

Just like SC6, this game looks great and has great character designs. I'm particularly a big sucker for these gorgeous Gamecube graphics. Lizardman was my main even though I played the arcade as Nightmare (since you can't do arcade as Lizardman which fucking blows.) But yeah I'm just not super into the gameplay. Neat game though. This and Tekken are both neat games I may sit down and try to play all of some day.

Super Monkey Ball (June 23, 2001) - Gamecube

You may be shocked to learn that I've barely touched this series in the past. I've played a Monkey Ball Arcade Machine at a Chuck E. Cheese once... I played the phone version one time... And that's about it! I know it's a really loved series but for whatever reason it just never came into my life before. But I've had a friend tell me I should play it for a while now so I decided, what the heck? Since I'm here I might as well give it a shot.

And yeah it's neat! I totally get why people like it! It's tricky, but honestly a ton of fun. Love the graphics and level aesthetics. Music is nice (I LOVED the final area's music with the rock soundtrack in that edgy colosseum). The characters are all super cute (my favorite Monkey Ball character is that one with pigtails and a raccoon tail but she wasn't in this one sadly.) I love the random Dole cross promotion stuff that was genuinely funny. And I like that you actually control the stage that was neat. My only major issues aside from it being, generally frustrating is that the camera can actually REALLY fuck you over, it tries to kinda hang towards your back. But this can really influence your delicate control over the stage. I had some levels where the camera swinging it around genuinely made it impossible to get over some hills.

Frustrating as it was, I actually remembered that my sister bought a Monkey Ball game on Switch recently, so I can absolutely see myself playing more of this series later.

Guilty Gear X (July 13, 2000) - Playstation 2

Ah, one of the last few Guilty Gear games I haven't played. I'm not sure why, but this one just never seems to get ported anywhere. If I had to guess it's cause it's very similar to XX, but it does have a very unique look to the menus, exclusive stages, and it's own story. So I really think they're overdue to put it on Steam. But oh well, that didn't stop me, I finally sat down and gave it a shot! I of course played through the Arcade as Sol and had a pretty good time with it!

It's GG so of course you already know the music and graphics are AMAZING, it feels great to play and is overall a fantastic package. I actually thought the menu aesthetics this time around were CRAZY good. Everything looks really cool and good and I know the character select is a bit notorious for being kinda difficult to see everything. And yeah that's true but I thought it looked awesome! Overall this game rules and I think it's worth checking out even with XX being a thing. It's interesting to see just how far the quality in sprites and backgrounds improved from Missing Link to X in not even that long of a time (though ML will still be one of my all time favs aha)

My only major complaint is that I thought the Arcade Mode was relentlessly brutal this time around. Once I reached the second half I was massively struggling to get through and I could not beat Dizzy to save my life, it was nuts. I never had this trouble with Missing Link or XX! Maybe it was just the version I was playing or my controller. But this game seriously whipped my ass. Oh well. Still cool.

User Unknwn (July 17, 2023) - PC

It's okay for me to write about games made by friends of mine right? That's cool? It's my tumblr I'll shout out whoever I want. A friend of mine recently released a visual novel and I think you should give it a read! User Unknwn is an interesting and in my opinion, unsettling little visual novel about a strange homebrew app for PSP that causes... Problems let's say.

It talks about dysphoria and struggling with presenting and how people treat you when you're trans. I think it's best you read it yourself to see how you interpret it, but I found it to be very relatable with how it handles these topics and also makes it very creepy and bizarre in a good way. It's got nice visuals, I liked the use of real world photos and scribbles, it's a nice combination. It's got an interesting story and it's actually got an original soundtrack! Which is very good but also cool that they made the effort to include that! Most small indie games will just forgo music altogether or use free music, I'll admit I'm guilty of most of my games being silent. But no, here you get a full soundtrack! Which is honestly awesome! My favorite might be, and I'm sorry I have to type this... "Music That Will Make You Cum Your Pants"

Seeing as how it's a visual novel there's really nothing to complain about. My only complaint is that I'm also an original trilogy Paper Mario guy and I would NOT act like gabe, I'm better than that.

Super Mario 64 Star Road (December 24, 2011) - N64 Mod

Hey! Would you believe that this is probably the first Mario Romhack I've ever beaten? I've played TONS of Mario Fangames in my time. But never any Rockhacks oddly enough. But I recently played Super Mario 64 CO-OP with some friends, and I LOVED IT. You can set it to not boot you out when getting a star, let Mario access moves added to later games, and improve his swimming which makes the game feel SO good and new. It also natively runs fullscreen and has modern controller controls, it feels SO good to play this way (and you can customize Mario's color scheme.) So I did a quick 30 star run in the base game, and wanted more. It came with Star Road so I decided to play through that, and here we are!

STAR ROAD RULES!! It's a brand new game with a fully original hub world, all new stages, 120 brand new stars. Nothing is copied from Mario 64 except for the characters and the base engine and what not, of course. It's literally a whole new experience, and I loved it! I loved the new worlds, my favorites were probably Bob-Omb Island and Fatal Flame Falls! There's tons of areas to see and I don't think I even found them all! The game also has original boss battles like a bunch of big piranha plants which was very cool to see! And I was blown away by just how big the game is. I rushed the to beat the first boss, and then was shocked to see a second hub world! Then the same thing happened and there's a third hub world! This game is crazy massive! It's also got some new enemies, some visuals and stuff from other Mario games, and it was super cute hearing different video game tracks put in the SM64 soundfont for the OST!

The game isn't perfect though. In my opinion it's too long. You need 80 stars to beat it which is already 10 more than the original. And I feel like there's less stars in each world than the original game so you REALLY have to 100% a lot of worlds in order to get everything you need. I 100% cleared almost every main level to get 80 stars which is just a bit too much. I also felt like there were too many instadeath locations. The big bully in the snow world, the piranha plant boss, ect ect. Gloomy Garden was especially guilty for having SO many places to fall off and feeling SO big while also being so empty. That was easily my least favorite stage. BUT aside from that, this was an amazing romhack! I may even come back and 100% it some day!

Pac-Man World 2 (February 24, 2002) - Gamecube

And last but not least, Pac-Man World 2! I played the first one last year I believe, so of course it's only natural we jump into the sequel this year! This one I basically knew nothing about, never watched any videos of it or nothing. I just remember seeing the cover a lot at my local video rental store... I'm not old shut up. (I miss you so much, Screenplay Video...) But I finally gave it a go and I'm glad I did! It's a neat little game!

The game looks very nice, controls nice, I thought the music was good. And I love the story honestly. Spooky is cool and the whole concept with collecting the gold fruit, while simple, is cute and works perfectly. The game also isn't too long, it's shorter than even the first one. Speaking of which, I was really shocked to see how similar it was to the first one. The Rev Roll is still there and it has a lot of the same mechanics with finding fruit and what not. Idk why I just wasn't expect it to be so similar to the first! I do think I might prefer this one though? And the final boss was cool and the first boss was FANTASTIC!!

Speaking of bosses though, this ties in perfectly with what WASN'T that good about it. Dude. The middle 3 bosses are the EXACT same bosses and this boss fight fucking SUCKS. IT'S AWFUL, so I have no idea why they recycled it 3 TIMES but the cool frog boss just got left in the dust. It's so stupid. In addition whole the game itself is short that's only the case cause there's so few levels. Which they had to do cause the levels are SO LONG!! They drag on FOREVER and especially some of the on rails ones can just go and go and go. It's not too hard so it's not that bad but it can noticeable when you're playing a single level for what feels like forever. I also felt like there were a lot of jumps that were just slightly too far to make, I kept ALWAYS grabbing the ledge and rarely landing on platforms, and if you do that on the tons of platforms that fall, it's an instadeath every time. And then the final level felt completely broken. I had no idea what was happening in that stage I would constantly make progress, and then my reward would be being sent back earlier into the level. Wormwood fucking rules though so that's okay.

Regardless! Now that that's over there's only one more game left! Pac-Man World 3! THAT'S the one I've been looking forward to! It's the only one I played as a kid, it's edgy, and Pacman PUNCHES PEOPLE! I can't wait to play it!

---

I also played 2 other games, but really didn't have much of anything to say on them. WarioWare, Inc. Mega Party Game$! which was, neat but really boring without friends. Cutscenes were particularly goofy though. And Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001 which was a very cool fighting game I've heard people rave about for ages! But I only briefly played it so I'd like to learn how to play it better and give it another go later, particularly after I play more KoF. But hey, look at my funny custom Morrigan color scheme:

#2023 #thoughts #roundup

2 notes · View notes