#they only had like 8 switch games which... isn't of any use for me.

[darkdragon768]

Went to the library with my kindergarten group today.

I was reading a book titled "useless facts for gamers" and while I was going through the "in the mushroom kingdom" chapter one fact made me happy.

"Mario Tennis 64 had a scrapped character, Warupichi"

And I went "WAPEACH SPOTTED" so hard in my mind. Common W for the W-Family.

Anyway, most of the facts I was able to read did I of course already know, ha ha.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Bpp I'm dying to know your song rankings in chapter 2 now they've all debuted. What are your top picks this year? I miss your writing and hope I can coax you back with 'a fun ask'

***

Okay. :)

Since you asked...

Top 10 Non-BTS K-pop Songs in 2023

10 - Watch It - The Boyz (this song just dropped and it's already in my top ten, yes)

9 - Seoul - H1-key

8 - Ay-Yo - NCT 127

7 - Sweet Venom - ENHYPEN

6 - Neverland Farewell - TXT (Say whatever you like about BigHit, they know how to make good music. Soobin sounds incredible on this song. Beomgyu too. Really, they all do.)

5 - Cool With You - NewJeans

NewJeans isn't going anywhere, so everyone else really should get comfortable with the idea of seeing them at the top. That's all there is to say.

*

4 - Crying - BOYNEXTDOOR

I don't know where my head was at when I ranked this the worst song on the album. Clearly, I was wrong. This song was a pleasant companion during the autumn months, and I can't wait to see what else they come out with.

*

3 - Chaconne - ENHYPEN

Do you know what a chaconne is? That's not a rhetorical question btw. No shade either, I'm just curious. For those who don't know, a chaconne is a rhythmical and harmonic motif over a pronounced bass-line. That's my leftover understanding from music classes taken a lifetime ago. According to google, a chaconne is also "a slow, solemn dance in 3/4 time, of Spanish or Moorish origin, similar to the passacaglia." For a non-k-pop example, I recommend Hilary's rendition of Bach's chaconne (more leftover knowledge from a lifetime ago).

Anyway, this likely isn't important context. The use of "chaconne" in the song probably has more to do with how it sounds in the song, than what it means. In any case, Enhypen earned a gold star from me with this pantydropper anthem.

*

2 - Criminal Love - ENHYPEN

I'm not sure how many of you were here when Heartbeat and Dream Glow were released. What I remember was shock, pure incredulity that BigHit would release songs of that quality for game OSTs. From ARMYs and k-pop stans alike, this was the sentiment. It was like a flex that BTS had such a peerless discography they could make songs like this for a side gig.

That's immediately what I was reminded of when I first heard Criminal Love, released as the OST for Enhypen's webtoon. It's moody, vampy, seduction in a song. That's what that song is. Sad too, when you hear the lyrics. Watching the live performance only drives it home.

*

1 - Blind - ENHYPEN

This song has given me one of the best auditory experiences I've ever had in k-pop. Which is a bit odd because yes a lot happens in the production, but the switches are so subtle you almost don't notice it.

Heeseung, Ni-ki, Jay, Sunoo, Sunghoon, Jake, and Jungwon - all outdid themselves on this song. Vocally, they sound incredible. The writing, (again) is top notch. This is one of the only songs released this year that I genuinely struggle not to loop.

*

Top 5 BTS Solo Songs

5 - Yes or No - Jung Kook

This is one song I'm praying and begging that we get thousands of remixes of. HYBE, please work your magic and give us 10 remixes of Yes or No. I need it. This is the perfect pop song in that it makes you crave more. I know it's got a predictable, common almost, chord progression in VI -> V -> I -> IV, but it's perfect in that it's impossible to get sick of it. It just worms itself into your head and all you can think of is all the ways to sing all over those chords.

Jung Kook's vocal work on that song is irreproachable. He's really set himself apart with this album and I'm glad he did it.

*

4 - Snooze - AGUST D, ft. Ryuichi Sakamoto & Woosung

HUH?! should be here, as should Amygdala so consider this a triple entry: HUH + Snooze + Amygdala. The reason why is self-evident (I hope).

Anyway... I want to talk a bit about Snooze.

Yoongi loves using the piano. He likes the sound of it, and you can tell in songs like Snooze. He has such a profound love and respect for that musical instrument that it only makes sense a man like Ryuichi acknowledged Yoongi before he passed.

With everything that happened this year, remembering Moonbin, and knowing that Yoongi made this song for his juniors... the first time I heard this song it completely destroyed me. Anyone who hasn't paid attention to the lyrics yet should check it.

When I casually listen in to TXT, SVT, Enhypen, BoyNextDoor, and see the work they're doing, putting out easily some of the best music and performances in their generations, I hope and pray they develop a support system that genuinely values them, soon. I hope they survive this industry, and thrive in it.

*

3 - All Day - RM ft Tablo

Not to be that person (since he's canceled for reasons and it actually makes sense why), but when I first saw the song title All Day, I immediately remembered All Day by Kanye West - one of the sauciest and meanest songs he's ever made. I was worried, given the tone of the album to that point, that Namjoon was going to give us his take on Ye's original. Joon is more than capable of dropping a track just as mean if not more. I didn't put it past him to pay homage to the Kanye joint by taking a spin on it. But, thankfully, All Day is nothing like Kanye's song, and it's my favourite song on Indigo because it's the best.

Joon's diction on this track is *chef's kiss*. His voice.... that outro, and thank goodness, Tablo came through. He actually has a presence on the track and made it even more worth the listen.

It kills me that we don't even have a visualizer for this masterpiece.

*

2 - Set Me Free Pt 2 - Jimin

Thank you for giving me another chance to talk about Set Me Free Pt 2.

One reason all the anxiety and fear-mongering around Jimin seems insane to me is because Jimin dropped this song and ended k-pop in 2023. He literally has no real competition. He came in, showed out, and left. That song is the sexiest joint out of Korea this year. It's so nasty. He's absolutely disgusting on this song in how brutally he makes rubbish of everything beneath him. Like, he literally has people bowing down to him in the choreography. Bobbing their heads like Funko Pops, while he sings to be set free. I'm going on a bit of a tangent here, but I want to say something. There's a cruelty in the way Jimin speaks. Whether to someone else or to himself. It's often (somewhat) restrained, born of the way he sees the world I think, and it was especially brutal in their early days, but he's toned it down significantly since 2016. It's virtually non-existent in his speech patterns and word choice now. Jimin of the last few years communicates gently, directly, tactfully, and at worst, bluntly. A lot of that cruelty is toned down but he unleashes a whisper of it on SMF Pt 2. Just listen to what he's saying on that song. That autotune effect on his voice was for our benefit and safety. Nothing can convince me otherwise. And we haven't even yet gotten into the full symbolism of the MV and his lyricism...

The moment I heard this song I knew I would bias Jimin. He's a man who knows what he's doing.

Jimin is a one of a kind wonder. Real magic in a person. An artist. He proves it on Set Me Free Pt 2. Kudos to PDogg too - the GOAT.

*

1 - On The Street - j-hope ft J. Cole

When it comes to song construction, I have to give credit where credit is due and the fact is Hoseok outdid himself with this song. It is perfect, my top pick for a k-pop song in 2023. Jermaine did good on it too. But, you know... Hoseok.

The whistle melody he came up with, the beat, the vocal layering, the mixing, the MV direction - all of it is perfect. If we were giving scores based on separate components, OTS would get 10s in every category.

Honestly, Hoseok coming out at number 1 is kind of expected of him lol.

[whatevertheweather]

an ask game for writers to procrastinate working on your WIP(s)

Thank you for the tags @bookish-bogwitch @aristocratic-otter @youarenevertooold I've been in search of ways to procrastinate <3

1. 🦈Tell us the name of your/ one of your WIP(s):

I'll go with one that isn't being posted yet: Callous.

2. 🍄Describe your WIP/one of your WIP(s) in the format of “___ + ___ =___”

Touch starvation + poor communication = Baz's No Good Very Bad Night

3. 🌍What tags or warnings will one of your WIP(s) need if you intend to share it?

PTSD, disassociation, and, uh, emotional hurt/comfort?

4. 🧭An alternative title to one of your WIP(s)?

Bold of anyone to assume I'm good enough at coming up with titles that I have multiple to choose from. Oh! But actually I do for Bait and Switch, thanks to Dre brainstorming fishing idioms with me. There were 4 alternatives, but my favorite is All is Fish, because it makes no fucking sense.

5. ⚠️Which WIP your most likely to finish or update next?

It had better be Musical Chairs.

6. 💾What is your document of your WIP/ a WIP called? (not the stories actual title but what you’ve saved it as)

In an uncommon turn of events, I only have one (active) WIP right now that's not already named as it will be posted, and that's "yeah sure let's just write some shit that's way later and not finish the other that's fine"

7. 🖍Post Any sentence(s) from your WIP.

It’s just…there’s also some deer in the headlights energy to him, which, mixed with the general aura of barely tamed violence, is throwing Shepard off. Truly, it’s been a good long while since he’s done this kind of pinballing over what he’s seeing when he looks at someone.

He does know what he’s seeing when he looks back at Simon. It’s the sort of face that has him politely averting his eyes to examine the bland thread of Simon’s shirt instead. He thinks walking in on the two of them tangled up without a stitch of clothing wouldn’t feel half as intrusive as looking at that expression did.

8. ♻️A scrapped idea for your current WIP.

I had to abandon about a page of the above misnamed WIP (now to be succinctly abbreviated as YSLJWSSTWLANFTOTF) because it no longer fits the tone of the rest of the fic at all, which is sad because it made me laugh. It's too long to put here in its entirety, but here's part of one line, which shall function as the dead darling's eulogy: "I know you have a dick, Baz, I’ve fucking well been thinking about it!”

9. 🤔What’s a story you’d love to write but haven’t even started yet?

Okay there's one I don't want to say much about because, selfishly, I want to be the one to write it, but it's related to truth spells. (Technically I've started it because there's a document with 10 scattered lines of dialogue, but I haven't started it started it.)

10. 🤡How many WIPS are you actively working on?

I'm trying to focus on 3, but I might have to say 4 here.

11. 🛠Is there a scene or anything in the WIP you are struggling with right now?

I have rewritten the same 4 pages of Musical Chairs about 5 times. It's absurd. I know what's going to happen, I have the ending written, I have almost everything that gets us there written, and yet this section is u n d o i n g me.

12. ❤️Not a question, just a second Kudos to send.

I'm gonna take that as me sending kudos to all these lovely people: @cutestkilla @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @artsyunderstudy @fatalfangirl @whogaveyoupermission @iamamythologicalcreature @thewholelemon @facewithoutheart @martsonmars @ileadacharmedlife @ivelovedhimthroughworse @larkral

[epicspheal]

Would love to read all your thoughts on Leon and Raihan's rivalry across all the media

HI there Anon! Ooh this is a good ask! In general I can say I really like Leon and Raihan's rivalry across media but I do wish we got some more attention to it. Starting with the games (SwSh + DLC) I do think that they did a solid job at establish that Raihan and Leon are rivals. I do wish we could've gotten to see more of their rivalry beyond the beginning cutscene but I think at the very least establishing it as a competitive but cordial rivalry was a good step in the right direction. It's one of those things though that makes me yearn for a SwSh prequel so we could see more of their rivalry because at the end of the day, SwSh wasn't focusing on their rivalry (compared to their gen 1 counterparts Red and Blue where the story is indeed based around their rivalry) but rather the player and their various rivalries. Now let's get into Twilight Wings, I think this is where their rivalry really begins to shine. Granted we only see it in the last episode in a small animated battle but I think it did real wonders in establishing that Raihan is actually a genuine challenge for Leon. We see in the 3 on 3 matchup that Raihan actually can knock out a good chunk of Leon's strongest Pokemon (and yes I know it's mentioned in the rare league card but it's nice to have that visual proof for backup). It establishes Raihan as a challenge but also why Leon is as strong as he's claimed to be. And then there's Pokemas which in my opinion the best portrayal of their rivalry. I really like how we get some backstory from Raihan's lodge story about their gym challenge. But more importantly I really like how they managed to in some ways even out their rivalry by having Raihan knock out Leon's Charizard in the Galar Neo Champion Event. Sure ultimately his team loses but this is the first time we see Charizard get knocked out by anyone other than the protagonist (Ash in the anime, and then Victor/Gloria). It's something I really want to see more of in rivalries in Pokemon where it doesn't feels so one-sided which I feel like a lot of Pokemon rivalries end up being. Now for the Pokemon Adventures manga, I can't really say too much about their rivalry there because it just wasn't really touched upon much. I do appreciate Kusaka expanding the relationships among the young adult cast (Leon, Raihan, Nessa, Sonia, and Piers in particular) but given how the SwSh arc was set up there wasn't a lot of time to really get into Raihan and Leon's rivalry. Lastly the Pokemon anime...*sigh*. I have mixed feelings on the anime portrayal of the rivalry. On the one hand I really loved the baking episode with Opal. It was nice to see their rivalry translated into something other than Pokemon battles and that they were both competent at baking. That being said I think their rivalry (and Raihan in particular) was done dirty when it came to the PWC. Their only battle being a 1 on 1 didn't help matters much as a 1 on 1 battle isn't useful for assessing the relative strength of two long-time trainers at their caliber (and this of course is a critique I have of many of the early PWC battles). There should've been at least 3 on 3 like the Twilight Wings episode to show that even though Leon is stronger, Raihan can truly pressure him like no one else (bar Ash). I also personally would've switched the masters ranking so that Ash would've faced Alain (and finally triumphed over him) to get into the masters 8 with Raihan taking Alain's spot. Don't get me wrong I think Alain is very strong and in a revised PWC Masters final (which would've been 16 people if I had any say) he'd still be in it. It's just with this Journeys still being the introduction of Galar, and Raihan being hyped up as a champion level gym leader I think Raihan being among the other league champions would've made a huge statement not only for his character but his rivalry with Leon as well.

[dorizardthewizard]

Galactik Football season 3 rewatch, eps 16 - 18

Episode 16:

Nice levitation trick Simbai, but she's just allowed to use the Breath like that? Maybe because she's a flux society member? It does make me realise, since the wars were not so long ago, how many people are walking around who could previously use the the Breath all the time but now aren't allowed. That's kind of crazy!

I do like the idea of them actually learning how to use the Breath in more creative ways!

This soundtrack for Tia's training session is pretty cool

Well done Mei for wearing more weather-appropriate clothes this time!

Mice telling Mark to get it together kdjfskfd time for lover boy to get dunked on for once

FSJHDFKDSF ARTEGOR BEING A COMMENTATOR NOW I LOVE IT

Callie: Do you miss playing when you see your friends on the field? D'jok: Um, I- Callie: Certainly you must think they are still bitter towards you after beating them on Paradisia?

Callie those are some horrible questions leave the man alone 😭

I am once again asking for more Lun-Zeara action. Btw has she ever spoken a line? Fucking Stevens may have spoken more than her

I support the Snow Kids but I love seeing the Wambas winning and having fun <3

GOOOOOAL MICRO-ICE!

Artegor: Listen Barry, to be frank, I'm not a fan of your work

HE'S SUCH A BITCH LOOOL after my rewatch I want to make a compilation of Artegor's commentator moments

Lun-Zaera is CHILLING lmao, also I just checked the wiki for the spelling of her name and it's about as consistent as the Wamba's hair colour.

Why is Woowamboo being such a dick. She's trying her best!

Awwww D'jok cheering on the Snow Kids

Mei is carrying the defence in this match like the queen she is <3

Artegor contributes a more technical analysis of the game which is pretty cool

WOOWAMBOO FOULING?? I mean fouls aren't really rare but still, he's being far more aggressive than before? Sure, the Wambas aren't going to just be fun-loving when the GFC is at stake and they're as competitive as any other team, but when you combine this with the way he was talking to Lun-Zia it's just jarring?

Also WAIT. Woowamboo is ginger? So the player that switched to the Lightnings for the Paradisian tournament was just someone else? Fair enough as you wouldn't switch your star player, but yeah my bad. Actually wait, he literally has grey hair in the Netherball scenes in season 2. WHAT IS THE TRUTH

OK WHAT. SO LUN-ZIA TELLING THE WAMBAS WHERE ROCKET IS MOST LIKELY TO SHOOT IS PERFECTLY A-OK BUT D'JOK TELLING TEAM PARADISIA A LITTLE TIP ON HOW TO BEAT AHITO IS A BETRAYAL?? PLUS, in the last episode Aarch faces the SK in the holo-trainer and says he can beat them because he knows how they play, and that everyone else does too. WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT I WAS SAYING WHEN I WAS COMPLAINING ABOUT THE AHITO BETRAYAL BS. WHICH IS IT, WRITERS?!

Well at least Woowamboo seems more accepting of Lun-Zia now that he's seen her give it her all. Nice to see her settled in with the rest of the team!

I just had a thought, where is Maya in all this? We've seen Mama-Ice pop up and check on (scold XD) Micro-Ice but we didn't see Maya interact with D'jok at all? Wouldn't she have gone to see him instead of only hanging with the Snow Kids?? And now that D'jok's “retired” and hanging out by himself at Genesis, isn't she gonna look for him? She knows football was so important to him, so to give it up is a big deal! Ah well, we'll see.

Episode 17:

Yaay more Tia and Mei being besties

NOT CLOVER GIRL DOING THE MARYLIN MONROE

Side note I like Kim-8's vibes, she's just cool

That scene in Ballow's restaurant where he's talking about leaving dirty business behind, all while henchmen are constantly coming up to him with dodgy items like stolen paintings is so hilarious jfdskmn

aww I love Artegor trying to convince D'jok to come back, especially with him telling him how hard the SK took it when he left. It's also interesting to see Artegor refer to playing with the Snow Kids as a responsibility - they're a symbol of hope for the people of Akillian, who didn't even want to go to their first match in the stadium due to the trauma from the glaciation.

He also reminds D'jok he's a Snow Kid, which reminds me of their conversation in season.... 2? Where Artegor tells him he'll always be a kid from Akillian. It's also nice that once he's voiced his opinion, he changes the subject instead of pressuring D'jok to answer. He's really developed from the demanding Shadows coach he used to be.

THE PIRATES!! CRUSH THE RED TIGERS!!!!

Poor Artie, he can never watch a full match LOL

FOUR GOALS FOR STEVENS!!! WOOOOOOOOO PIRATES BEAT A FLUX TEAM! TAKE THAT!!!

NO. NO NO NO NO NO. THE CYCLOPS CANNOT FREEZE PEOPLE. THAT'S THE XENON'S FLUX. TRY AGAIN. ACTUALLY WATCH THE PREVIOUS SEASONS. TAKE IT FROM THE TOP.

Do you ever watch an old video and get jumpscared by a comment you don't remember making? Because I wrote this on another upload 9 years ago and I still don't know how they messed that up LOL.

I mean yeah sure it COULD be a new ability they've unlocked like how the Snow Kids are finding new ways to use the Breath. But they don't show the Cyclop's hypnosis thing at all, the animation is exactly the same as the Xenon's flux, and Callie even mentions their "hypnotic" flux and how the players can barely stay on their feet, which doesn't really match what's on screen sooo yeeeeeaahhh this is just an animation error. A pretty big one though.

So team Paradisia have no problem using their flux? Which was a synthetic one to begin with? And the technology for it is no longer available? Or do they just get it implanted once and that's it? So what was up with them going into those pods to “charge”? How does this work???

sfkdgfkjdf Mark went too hard on the sauerkraut, I love this gag about Mark and food

YESSSS SONNY! FATHER SON BONDING TIME FINALLY. His speech about the Pirates always being by his side even in tough times is sweet, and makes sense for D'jok. He's been through a lot with the Snow Kids and they're basically family now, and family wouldn't truly turn him away if he was sorry for what he did. At least, they wouldn't stay mad forever.

BENNETT YOU LEGEND. But also a bit reckless of Sonny to stand with D'jok right in the middle of an open area

Sonny: We're trapped!

Um no you're not, there's a staircase right there

Poor Cyclops, always getting clowned on :( ARTEGOR IS A SAVAGE IN THIS MATCH

BALLOW OUTING THE CON ARTISTS FDKFDKJDF I'm sorry I know it's a tragic moment for Sinedd but THAT'S SO FUNNY

The way they animate Sidney rolling around is hilarious. Also Thran only thought of finding Harvey just now? Wow, talk about second-class citizens.

It's so funny how this is the last episode in the official playlist, like they just gave up uploading HD episodes 2 years ago. Unless it's a regional thing? I'm editing this in Austria rn and the official English uploads aren't available unless I use VPN, are the French eps all uploaded in HD at least?

Episode 18:

Aaaaand I'm back to 480p uploads from 10 years ago. Thank you for your service youtube user lykaon868

I do get to see the intro and outro now though yaaaay

Wait what? We ended last episode on D'jok wanting to talk to the Snow Kids and with this one we just skip ahead to him being on the team again? I mean... they were building up to that moment for sooo long and we don't even get to see it? What???

It seems Tia and Rocket have accepted D'jok back but Micro-Ice and Ahito aren't so enthusiastic. It's strange to see Ahito so resentful but it's a refreshing change to see him react like that.

Micro-Ice's reaction on the other hand isn't taken very seriously and it's presented as them squabbling immaturely but like... he's right to feel hurt! We could've had some good Micro-Ice angst topped off with a heart-to-heart between two guys who canonically consider each other brothers, but here we are.

Sinedd's parents were... I M P O S T E R S ?

Sharky why are you revealing this as a scoop when it just puts you into hot water for not doing a background check before inviting them on the show

OOOO SHADOWS SPEAKING HISTORIC MOMENT

This is the serious - silly contrast dynamic I had in my head for the Shadows LOL. Although it's sad this kind of implies the Shadows only care for Sinedd as a player and not a person, telling him to get a grip after something like that? Although maybe their whole thing is that they TRY to act tough but really they're all feeling like that one guy who ran out crying lol. It IS a bit weird to insert comedy like that into this kind of scene though, kind of undercuts it for me.

Artegor just having tea and biscuits 🤣🤣🤣

CALLIE ACCEPT HIS OFFER FOR TEA DON'T BE RUDE. He looks sad after her reaction fskdjfskds honestly Artegor is probably the best character this season

STOP HAVING THEM SCORE IN THE FIRST MINUTE SFJKDFSKS

Tia squaring up to Sinedd I LOVE HER

Also wtf Sinedd, but he was about to go to Mei so I wonder what he was gonna do? Taunt her? Or maybe he regretted it? I guess we'll never know

This is a match with the Shadows, the Snow Kids' biggest rivals, and yet the first half is over in a few minutes of the episode! The matches just aren't as interesting in this season and feel too rushed

TIA CAPTAIN MOMENT YYYEAAAAAAHHH SHE DESERVES IT!

I am not immune to some D'jok vs Sinedd action

Not Maya focusing on Sinedd when she hasn't interacted with D'jok this whole time 😭

Mei is such a savage, it reminds me of Stevens handing Sinedd the ball that one time when there was seconds to spare LOL also pls forgive the shit quality gifs, demonstration purposes only folks

Sinedd: Do like everyone else Mei, don't worry about what I do and just forget me. Mei: But Sinedd- Sinedd: I lost, Mei. I lost everything. Everything.

Oof Sinedd really goes through the ringer every season, huh

Mark is smooth as butter on the pitch but so incredibly cringe at flirting

Warren: The team. The group. That's all that counts, D'jok D'jok: Being a team player Warren, that's what I want to improve!

Sure D'jok, until next season. But it's also kind of weird to portray his arc as if he just needed to learn how to be a team player again, when a big part of why he left was the emotional turmoil from the breakup and him lashing out because of it. That's never really resolved, although I guess the season is trying to say that D'jok became obsessed with winning again, which is what drove Mei away in the first place, but again I'm just speculating here! They had the means for a really good arc for D'jok but fumbled it and decided to retread old paths instead.

Is Harvey alive after all?

I do love that Clamp is still working alongside Sonny. And yaaaay Thran gets to do something!

Wait Paradisia is a dead planet, it didn't blow up or anything. Harvey is a robot so is it that surprising he's still there? Why not look for him earlier?

[purplesurveys]

1957

Put your music player of choice on shuffle and list the first 10 songs. I'll use my 2024 top songs for this --

Credit Roll - RM

mon amour - Gemini

Figure 8 - Paramore

Escape Route - Paramore

Neva Play - Megan Thee Stallion, RM

Be Mine - Jimin

High Speed - Coldplay

everythingoes - RM, Nell

Don't - eAeon, RM

Welcome to the Show - DPR IAN

Do you have connections to any celebrities (even minor)? Like, family ties? No. But if we're talking loosely and can count any kind or any level of connection, then yeah. I work in PR so working with celebrities is pretty much routine. The most high-profile I've gotten is Red Velvet.

Name 3 items you could pick up from where you are. Cup of coffee, vape pen, a box of nama chocolates.

What kind of headphones do you use? No headphones but I use a pair of Airpods.

What musical artists have you seen perform live? Sooooooooo many if we're counting major concerts, music festivals, school fairs, free mall shows... but for the sake of this question I'll list major concerts - Paramore, Agust D/Suga, Seventeen, Coldplay, One Direction, Se So Neon.

What gaming consoles do you or your family own? We've got a PS4, PS5, and a Switch.

Name at least one book you loved as a child. The Septimus Heap series.

What’s your native language? If that language has distinct regional variations, which variation? (eg. AU English, US English) Filipino, but I can only speak basic, white-ass Manila Tagalog.

What’s your favourite number, and why? 7, just because BTS.

Earliest moment in your life you can remember? Waking up in a tent with my sister, inside my parents' room. We went 'camping,' haha.

What’s your favourite candy/chocolate? Reese's! Alfort is also pretty addictive.

How would you describe your sense of humour? Witty, laced with pop culture references...sometimes offensive/dark, sometimes crack/dank/Gen Z. Idk it's all over the place as I can laugh at anything haha.

Do you wear much jewellery? No.

Longest drive you have ever been on? Oh man - as lovely as our trip to Sagada was, the drive was brutal distance-wise and road quality-wise. We left home around 8 PM and got there 2 PM the following day. I'd SO go back there, though, especially since I haven't been there since 2015.

Furthest away from home you have ever been? Probably Japan.

What programs do you currently have open? Just Chrome, but I do have multiple tabs open.

Last strong smell you can remember smelling? Bleach.

Ever written fanfiction for anything? I took a shot at it but holy shit did I realize how much I suck and how creative writing isn't for me hahah. I focused on my essay/non-fiction writing skills not very long after, and accepted the fact that I'd much rather enjoy fanfiction written by other people.

Do you track any tags? Nah.

What are some media that epitomize an ideal relationship to you — be it a platonic relationship/friendship, a  parental relationship, a romantic or sexual relationship, etc.? I love Chandler and Monica soooo much. They started out as friends and even when they got together they had the most non-toxic, buddy-buddy relationship there could be.

Have you ever hit your significant other? Has he/she ever hit you? No and no.

What colour is your hairbrush/comb? It's a purple comb.

Do you care about anyone that doesn’t care about you? Not that I know of, lol.

Which one of your relatives is most likely to embarrass you? My mom.

Do you usually get popcorn or soda at the movie theatre? I don't like either of those and have had a consistent snack of choice for years - Potato Corner. Malls seems to notice that it's also a habit of most people because there's always a Potato Corner conveniently placed beside most cinemas hahaha.

The one time I tried to ~shake it up~ and try something different was when I got sushi for RM's docu. I ended up eating the rolls by hand because I grossly underestimated how difficult it was going to be to use chopsticks in the dark HAHAHAHA

How many bank accounts do you have? I have two accounts witin the same bank.

Have you ever had the flu? Sure.

What is your goal for the next few months? Find order and balance in my work.

Have you ever had some kind of sleep-disorder? No.

Have you ever had food poisoning before? Yeah. I've had the kind where it gives you mind-numbing stomach pain and leaves you curling up on the bathroom floor; but also the quieter kind where you just slowly feel fatigued and pale until your body pushes you to throw up, and keep throwing up.

Always terrible experiences, both of them.

What are two things that you have no problem paying full price for? Parking, and the best seats for concerts I REALLY want to watch.

Ever been to a haunted house? How scared were you? Nah.

Would you marry somebody who was intensely religious? I wouldn't and I bet they wouldn't want to marry me either.

Did you pull a senior prank? That's not a practice here and if anything that would be grounds for the school to refuse you from marching, lol.

Did you graduate? I graduated college if that's what you mean, yes.

What was the last song you listened to? Talking to the Moon, Bruno Mars.

Is fashion one of your interests? Not really.

Is acting something you enjoy? Nope.

What was the last thing you broke/sprained? My left ankle, but thankfully it's been nearly 3 years since.

Has a stranger ever yelled at you for your language? Nope.

Whose house, other than yours and your families’, are you most comfortable at? Angela's.

Have you ever burned someone’s picture? No, just threw them out. I'm afraid of fire hehe

Would you ever get a lip tattoo? Nope.

Do your parents smoke cigarettes? They do not.

What does one of your T-shirts have written on it? I barely have clothes with text on them, but I do have a BTS shirt that simply says 'Busan' on it alongside its Korean alphabet counterparts.

Name a pet you definitely wouldn’t want. Lizard.

What did you love the most about the town you grew up in? Life is simpler here and is a break from crazy, fast-paced, polluted Manila.

What’s a book that you read because everyone else was reading it? That's pretty much how I ended up in the Twilight (supermassive) black hole. It was EVERYWHERE when I was in Grade 4 and offered literally no escape so I ended up saying fuck it and reading it too.

Underwater or outer space? Outer space.

Bird watching or whale watching? Whale watching.

What was your best subject in school? History and any variation of it. Asian history, world history, social history...the required readings were pretty much leisure reading for me since I genuinely loved the subject.

What was your worst subject in school? Trigonometry, calculus, chemistry.

Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds.

[random-bs-is-found-here]

Hey everyone! In celebration of Ubisoft releasing Just Dance 2025 edition, I made a little ranking of the soundtracks of different just dance version, from worst to best. FULLY MY OPINIONS, PLEASE DON'T UNALIVE ME.

I'm not going to include spin-offs, such as kids, china or experience.

Let's get started!

16. Just Dance 2025

Jesus Christ. I didn't really pay attention for a few years, ever since it was revealed JD 2023 won't be on Xbox One. I bought the game for the Switch today, and lemme say, I was far from impressed. Sure, coaches, backgrounds and the dance moves are beautiful, but the majority of songs are giving me 'brainrot'. And did Ariana Grande bribe the studio? 6 (including alt and extreme) songs out of the 40 were her songs, which isn't a lot at first glance, but it's still around 16% of the library (correct me if my math isn't mathing). Bang Bang (My Neurodivergent Anthem) or what and Calabria 2007 are pretty cool though.

15. Just Dance 2021

I have good memories about this one. The only problem is that they're pretty forgettable. If I had to pick favorites, I'd say Rare, all the good girls go to hell and Paca Dance were the best.

14. Just Dance 1

Again, somewhat good memories. I never owned it, only danced them from JD unlimited and YouTube. My main problem is that they're not that good quality, and since technology must've been a bit more restricted at that time, there could be only one coach per song. No duos, or anything. Favorites are Hot and Cold plus Womanizer.

13. and 12. Just Dance 2 and 3

I wanted to write about these two simultaneously, and it's for a reaaaly personal reason. It's idiotic, really. While both of these games' soundtracks are good, I would never be able to correctly tell which game they belong to. That's it. That's the reason. Girlfriend and Baby one more time are my all time faves.

11. Just Dance 2015

Boy, did I hate that one. Despite being my second Just Dance game, I barely knew those songs and the scoring system, using Kinect, was waay too harsh on me. To this day, it's the hardest Just Dance version on my mental list. My favorites are Problem, Dark Horse and 4x4.

10. Just Dance 2018

Welp, another petty reason. Soundtrack is awesome, but somebody that I deeply hate now used to (or still) own(s) this version. Many of the songs remind me of them and I hate it. I quite like 24k Magic and How far I'll go, though.

9. Just Dance 2020

The 10th anniversary of Just Dance. I have fond memories of this one. My sis and I competed against each other in a singular song we both exceed in, and I loved the World Dance Floor, where most of the time, the victory was ours as we were so good in these songs. We still join sometimes. If you see Victoria9219, then you've found us🤭 365 is kinda forgettable though. Faves were I am the best, Always look on the bright side of life and Stop movin'.

8. Just Dance 2019

A nostalgic title of mine. The third JD game of my life. I still remember the moments of first launch. The last one to have a pointy edged cuboid as its meter on the left. Just perfection. New Rules and work work raised me into the Just Dancer I am today.

7. Just Dance 2014

My first ever JD game so I'm kinda biased. Still remember playing my very first song (which was Just Dance, hehehe) in clear detail. The only JD game I bought some DLCs for. And, oh, do I wish they kept vs mode in. Those dances between She Wolf & Where have you been, Kiss You& Pound the alarm and gentleman & fine china were awesome. Can't hold us, applause and feel so right took the palm.

6. Just Dance 2024

It's uh... Kinda strange for me, imma admit. When I only had the demo, I took a look at the soundtrack, and it was okay. Not the best, but still better than whatever 2025 is. Since I never danced any of them, I am going to assign How you like that and can't tame her as favorites

5. Just Dance 2023

I had a hard time deciding whether JD2022 or this should be fifth place, but ultimately, I decided it's better to place familiarity over new things. Thus, JD 2023 was placed here. The soundtrack itself is almost impeccable. Except for one thing... In my opinion, Toxic shouldn't have gotten a remake. It was perfect the way it was. Therefore, if I ever buy JD 2023 or JD +, I'm never going to touch the new version. I only danced one of these songs, Telephone, thus it'll be the favorite for this one.

4. Just Dance 2022

K-pop in this generation is perfect. I have a separate list dedicated to just that. Even after all these years, the songs are entertaining, and I scarcely get tired of them. Pop/Stars, Jopping, Black Mamba and Baianá gave me so much dopamine.

--0--

And now, the top 3!

--0--

3. Just Dance 4

Seriously. The amount of songs from that game on my Spotify lists are insane. Words can't describe how much I love this generation, and if it weren't for another version that I came to like more in a short span of time, this would be second place. Here are my top 3 from Just Dance 4:

2. Just Dance 2016

This one was such a hit. I spent long hours, sometimes even days dancing. Because of this sudden hype, JD 4 has been pushed back to third place. Here are my top 3 from Just Dance 2016:

(↑ this one might not be exactly accurate to the one in the game. Best I could find, okay?)

1. Just Dance 2017

22nd of February, 2019. If we don't count a faint memory from a birthday party, Worth it from Just Dance 2017 was the song that piqued my interest in Just Dance. From that moment, my obsession with Just Dance had begun. All songs are hype. So much that I almost broke my ankle while dancing to Don't stop me now. I even got to experience its world dance floor before the servers were shut down. In my opinion, Just Dance should make the newer titles more like this one, including new modes, all time favorite songs and more... My favorites from Just Dance 2017:

--0--

Thank you for listening to this rant.

[kanonavi]

I was tagged by @radellama like a month ago! Even if I don't always keep up with these I still appreciate it <3

~

Why did you choose your URL?

It's a combination of a couple of old jokes I had from middle school, the older of which was actually kind of a mean thing that I won't get into. However, KanoNavi was the second iteration of my old url FritoNavi, and because it rolled off the tongue better I decided to just switch to that full time.

2. Any sideblogs? If so, name them and why you have them.

I've tried sideblogs a couple times in the past, but they never stuck. I prefer to keep everything in one place, even if it means bombarding my non-Genshin mutuals with Genshin all the time (Sorry guys, thanks for sticking with me lol <3)

3. How long have you been on tumblr?

My archive goes back to 2017, but I did change URLs once so I think I might have started in 2016? Sometime around there.

4. Do you have a queue tag?

Nope, I've only used the queue once or twice for particular timed posts.

5. Why did you start your blog in the first place?

Before tumblr, I was on DeviantArt to follow Splatoon fanartists, and some of them mentioned having Tumblr so I decided to join that too!

6. Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

Venti's been my personality for like 3 years now, and this is one of my favorite fanarts of him (I love his smile, he's so delightful <3)

7. Why did you choose your header?

It was a piece done by my good friend and roommate Ham! Their artstyle is like candy for the eyes, I just want to eat it I love it so much ehe (Please go check them out along with the artist who drew my pfp, both of them are linked in my bio!)

8. What's your post with the most notes?

My meta on Simulanka Day 3 actually passed 100 notes (it has 124 as of this posting), which is absolutely crazy. I'm planning to do kind of a follow-up to that once I work up the spoons because there was some contention in my replies and also Natlan acts 1 and 2 have given me some ideas, so look forward to that I guess lol

9. How many mutuals do you have?

I don't really keep track, but I think that not counting irls I have at least 10? (love you guys mwah mwah <3)

10. How many followers do you have!

105 (i love you guys too mwah)

11. How many people do you follow?

129

12. Have you ever made a shitpost?

Sometimes I've commented about life in a jokey manner, but nothing I would consider a serious shitposting attempt

13. How often do you use tumblr each day?

This thang is like the refrigerator to me (derogatory). Cumulatively tho it's probably only a little over an hour per day because my dash isn't the most active.

14. Did you have a fight/argument with another blog once?

Not that I can recall?? Maybe early on, but it's been too long for me to say.

15. How do you feel about "you need to reblog this" posts?

No.

16. Do you like tag games!

Yeah!

17. Do you like ask games!

Yeah, even though I always feel like I'm being attention-seeking when I reblog them :pensive emoji:

18. Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

None of them, sorry guys. I know Rads probably has clout in the Chrono Trigger fandom though, so that has to count for something?? lmao

19. Do you have a crush on a mutual?

Nah, but I have platonic crushes on y'all for being so damn cool <3

20. Tags:

@rubberbandballqueen, @stardustdiiving, @tempests-bards-and-birds

[aceinacloset]

FNAF Encyclopedia Judgement part: 5

Fave Character Page(s)

As a bit of a celebration for the amount of FNAF content we got this year, I thought I would have an encyclopedia post for my top favorite fnaf characters ( if you've seen my tier list you know who's at the top.) Also if I'm critical it's just because I love these characters so much and have dedicated too many brain cells to these characters. 🫠 so enjoy

Circus Baby- "She gives a haunting performance."

This is kinda unimaginative ( then again a lot of these quotes are.) I feel you could either incorporate a quote of hers into this or at least something creative ( any ideas?)

[Data File]

Circus Baby's appearances seem to almost check out, but the only  "appearance" of CB in security breach is a plush of her, which doesn’t count so yeah she isn't in security breach.

Does a little dance because 'to be beautiful' doesn't appear in the book appearances meaning eleanor isn't CB

💃💃💃💃💃💃

Also just my personal opinion but the fourth closet sucks…any way  moving on-

Also little fact Circus Baby's technical first appearance was FNAF world, but since not even Scott talks about fnaf world I'm not surprised it's not here in the book.

[first paragraph?]

While this basic info on Baby is ok, due to the amount of space in this book getting taken up by pointless images this info is semi un important to the info that should be talked about ( I'll elaborate later.) 

Didn't really need to talk about the closing of CBPW, since the info of it being closed for gas leaks was confirmed to be a cover up and thus isn't too important to her character, this could have been briefly mentioned in the location pages of this book.

Ok now to elaborate (be prepared 'cause this is a long one.) Circus Baby as a character can not be so simply described due to how complex of a character she is, and due to this the encyclopedia does not do her justice ( ̶n̶e̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶d̶o̶e̶s̶ ̶c̶a̶n̶o̶n̶ ̶)  So the best thing this encyclopedia could have done is talk about her actions through sister location, mannerisms, personality, opinions of other characters, and even how she acts as an unreliable narrator, but we can't have nice things in fnaf encyclopedia land. 😊

[second page, first paragraph]

The 8 bit mini game, while important to CB as a character, could have just been replaced with CB's story, 'cause it gets the same point across and if the mini game needed to be mentioned it should have been Brief.  That's just me though. ( also they describe this too much, if you wanna know more about this just find it in the freddy files, much easier.)

Could have taken the opportunity to talk more about CB's deceptive nature but no that would actually make sense.

Liz is more of a presence baby is aware of then actually inhabiting and controlling her body (well atleast SL wrote itself that way. 

Also just gloss over the actual important stuff…. Ok🧍‍♀️…

['ENCORE!']

This isn't that bad, just kinda quick and not too important of info it just talks about her other appearances which is fine but more characterization info could have been nice. 🤷‍♀️ maybe just me eh.

I hate when "always coming back" is used with Circus Baby when it was never her thing… like ever.  She was a determined person willing to do whatever it took to reach her goal even if some that get in the way have to die, that's her thing well at least Sister Location made it so.

Not really related to this but I personally feel Scrap Baby and CB should switch UCN mechanics, I feel switching would fits their different characters better, in my opinion 🫠 also seeing Scrap Baby skate down the hall would make my life complete.

Just gonna gloss over her place in VR and her personality in AR… ok…💢

[First Circus Baby image]

Cute that's it.

Also the dialogue is just…why, she ain't a hit man TF.

Also I feel the dialogue that could have been used could have been all the "abilities" William said Baby had, fits her character and also a nice nod to her game appearance.

Or better one would be 'wolf in sheep's clothing.' Come on, it works.

[Second image]

Image takes up space and dialogue is stupid

This is one of I'm pretty sure every page's example of pointless images that take up space that could be filled with character info.  You would think a character encyclopedia would make the characters info top priority… guess not.

Better dialogue would have been 'Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss.' Nah I'm just kidding… or am I 😈

Circus Baby's pages suck she deserved better from this book and from canon.  Anyway the rating um… 3.5/10 too much filler.

Now onto Ballora.

Ballora- Care to dance?

😳👉👈yea

[Data File]

Wait Ballora appears in Pizza Sim, where?, when? Huh? I wish.

Ballora deserved more book appearances, nay needs more

[first paragraph?]

Not bad, just too descriptive of her design. I a hundred percent understand why this descriptive design info can be good, but since these pages have minimal space, wasting writing space on this is just stupid.

[second page, first paragraph]

Not much to say, just… is this a character info page or a Freddy Files page, it just feels like this is listing stuff from the freddy files.

This kinda just tells of all the nights that ballora appears on, not much else which sucks.

['REPEAT PERFORMANCES']

The minireenas are talked about a lot, even though they have their own page… and the info with them is not really relevant to ballora… My head hurts…

I do like that they talked about her appearance in the Ar DLC

 [First Ballora image]

Could have gotten a better picture… also the text is just…why.

You couldn't have used actual dialogue she says no….mmmmm

[Second image]

That image is great, I want it as my computer wallpaper.

The text confuses me, that's all just what?!

Balloras was ok, just empty in a sense of unique info.  So a 5/10.  I love Ballora but her pages just ain't it really.

Glamrock chica is next.

Glamrock Chica- "For those about to rock!"

[Data File]

Since security breach is her debut game everything in the data file is correct

[first paragraph?]

I actually really like this, the info is detailed and gives us info but also due to the little we know about her, the info about attractions she is in helps fill in those blanks.

Also I love how much space is taken in on the first page, wish every page could utilize taking up space.

I do have one little detail to point out, glamrock chica is technically not the first more feminine version of chica.  Toy chica would take that slot.

[second page, first paragraph]

This is very short and I think it's quite good.

['TAKING CARE OF THE BILL']

This is nice, but I feel more about shattered chica should have been mentioned because I feel that bit of her is a bit more important, but oh well ain't too much of a loss.

[First Glamrock Chica image]

I like the render, but the text is kinda cheesy.

[Second image]

Another image I want as my wallpaper, and the text is good, this is the only image I am ok with having it take up space.

Glamrock Chicas is the best so far, mostly because she is a newer character and there is little info to miss but also she is just perfect in every way, so anyway the rating… 8.7/10

And finally Vanessa/Vanny

Quick thing, I will be bringing up a lot of cut content relating to Vanessa and Vanny since that's where most of their Character and story went. I will leave a link here to the FNAF AR cutting room floor, as well as here for the security breach one… anyway let's actually begin.

Vanessa / Vanny- "Giving you a false sense of security."

[Data File]

Everything checks out, also I keep forgetting Vanessa was in Fnaf AR like damn.  FNAF AR is so forgettable… 

[first paragraph?]

'She's been corrupted by Glichtrap.' really?! I had no idea, but seriously I feel this paragraph is ok…just ehhhhh a little more info about Vanessa in HW would be nice but… eh it's fine it can only get better from here right… right💧…

[second page, first paragraph]

For whatever reason, Vanessa and Vannys pages don't talk about her appearance and actions in FNAF AR, probably because a third of it was cut… yeah… not good because a lot of info about how Glichtrap got into the system as well as more info about Vanessa and how Glitchtrap treated her, ( i'll talk more about this when I get to GlitchTraps pages.) but like I said a third of that was yeeted into the recycling bin for whatever reason so there relevance is questionable at best and irrelevant at worst witch sucks because it is all so good for pre-security breach story AAAAA-

['AGENT OF AFTON']

(Ok quick thing with this title I’m inclined to believe Burntrap was meant to be Afton but due to the fact the internet practically bullied burntrap into the grave, they decided to change burntrap into being the mimic and now I don’t know which one I hate more… any way onto the actual paragraph.)

Why while reading this did I feel like I was being told this info like a child… I’m ok. With this 🙂…

Vanny to me never felt like a person enthralled in Glitchtrap more like a ‘pawn puppeted around on a string’ her movements being eerily similar to Glitchtrap as well as her lack of different dialogue could enforce this idea, as well as the whole obey thing…

This isn’t really any unique character info, more so just info from that security breach files book thing (which I have…not my wisest purchase).  Give me the character, the drama, the pain, the motivations, and goal…No?... oh wait I know why…(you’ll have to wait till the end for my full explanation. 😈

[First Vanessa / Vanny image]

Not a bad image, honestly my opinion of the images in this book are most often the same, a waste or peak image. Ok I like the text there it was a little funny to me.

[Second image]

I would say I like this image but… it takes up unnecessary space like, you could cut out that extra space and have that image replace the first. Not a fan of this images text (I hate it.)

Vanessa / Vanny’s pages felt so much like just a document of info that the character is apart of not actual info that fleshes the character out and I know why that is the case, it is because a third of Vanessa and Vanny’s character and relevance in Security breach was cut leaving so little character left. The only bit in security breach that fleshed out Vanessa's character were the therapy tapes which you can only get after 6AM!.  It wasn’t just security breach either; she got shafted in AR too.  She was hyped up to only be yetted in favor of Crusty Dusty BurnTrap.  I could go on and on but I would rather you just see the cut stuff for yourself.

Ok on to the rating ummm…. 0/10

TADA it is done, my god hope you enjoyed ‘cause AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I struggled to get this done but I'm glad you read this nightmare of text.

[ladyirisreviews]

Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth - Review

This is the second Team Ladybug game on Steam, it came after Touhou Luna Nights, which I reviewed.

Despite being interested in it only because it was a Team Ladybug Metroidvania, it did a great job of making me interested in the source material, which I will be reading into very soon.

To explain the plot of the game, first I need to give some context.

The setting is based on a series of light novels called Record of Lodoss War, they date back to the 80s, and another novel was released not too long ago, 12 years after the last one, and this game serves kind of like an introduction to this new series of novels in a way.

The game does give you some backstory, enough to establish its own, coherent narrative, and even without reading the novels, I feel this game can be enjoyed, along with its themes.

Though I would imagine reading the novels and then playing this game would be nice for the fans since you would know all the characters and their backstories.

The plot of the game is pretty simple, you are told there was once a group of heroes who brought peace to the land of Lodoss, and that the only girl in the group, Deedlit the elf, fell in love with a human.

She wakes up in an unknown place, with her memories feeling hazy, she must travel the labyrinth she finds herself into and discover what she is truly doing there.

As I mentioned, you will find several characters from the original series, from protagonists to major antagonists, but despite the game not explaining each character, you can see a theme in Deedlit's journey, and it's one of sorrow and loss.

The game doesn't have that much dialogue, but in the little it has it's able to convey those emotions at the end of the game, there is not much else to talk about in terms of plot, so it's time to talk about the gameplay.

The gameplay is just a bit similar to Castlevania Symphony of the Night, but there are big differences, for one, you can aim in 8 directions for your attack, and you also have a bow you can freely aim.

Magic works similarly as it does in Touhou Luna Nights, but there is one more mechanic that mixes things up, very early on in the game, you get wind and fire spirits, and you can switch between which one is active.

This changes the element of your attacks, and when you have any of them active, you can level up the other one by defeating enemies, by reaching the max level, you automatically regain health while having that spirit active, getting hit removes a whole level though.

Another property the spirits have is that you completely absorb the damage of the same element, which replenishes your MP, which reminds me of Ikaruga in a way.

I like this system very much, at the start I thought it would make things too easy, but you die pretty fast if you are not careful, and the HP recovery rate is not that high to feel like it removes danger completely.

I especially like this system in bosses that use both of the elements, it's very satisfying for me to learn their patterns to optimally defeat them.

The level design is also alright, it's the typical "unlocking an ability or key to progress" kind of design, but it also takes the spirit changing into account, including obstacles that need it to be surpassed.

While the level design isn't as great as in Touhou Luna Nights, it's still pretty good.

Enemies are also pretty standard, what stands out are the bosses, as I mentioned before, they put the spirit changing to the test, and they all have at least one tricky attack that might need some figuring out.

The boss rush has the same issue it had on Touhou Luna Nights though, they have the original health, making it so the first few die in just a couple of hits.

The game has some extra features though, after you complete the game once you can pick a number of modifiers to the game, like always staying on level 1, 1 HP, spirit levels being always 1, or retaining all of your learned spells.

For me, that increases replayability quite a lot, I kind of wish these types of settings were retroactively added into Touhou Luna Nights, these challenge runs in Metroidvanias are very fun to try, and giving you the choice to pick exactly what you want makes me more willing to try one.

And that is pretty much all there is to the gameplay, it's pretty solid overall.

The only stuff left to mention is the graphics and music, and they are both fantastic.

Team Ladybug did a great job yet again, the sprite work is incredible, just like with Touhou Luna Nights, visually the game is eye-candy, though the afterimage of the Deedlit can be bothersome sometimes, you can turn it off if you want.

And that's pretty much it, I heavily recommend this game, even if you never heard of Record of Lodoss war or haven't read the novels yet, I think this game holds up on its own, And if you are a fan of the series already, it will be a very cool experience.

[maychild]

unintentional love story and its callbacks

so on my first watch through of this awesome bl, i couldn't help but notice that unintentional love story has a couple of callbacks that jumped at me, and grabbed me by the throat. there are also some more subtle ones that you could take as callbacks or not, so i won't get into those, but i do wanna talk about two in particular that sucker-punched me.

first we have this lovely little exchange between taejoon and wonyoung when they meet after taejoon's photoshoot in ep. 8, during the Break-Up™.

taejoon says this:

look, taejoon, i get it: inho really did a number on you. he took a lot of money from your father to never see you again, and we can all see that he hasn't stopped being opportunistic. (he comes out of the woodwork just as taejoon's coming back into the pottery world??? like, merely a coincidence??? I THINK NOT. AND DOING BUSINESS WITH THE RESTAURANT YOU AND TAEJOON FREQUENTED????) and i understand taejoon thinks, upon finding out who wonyoung really is, that wonyoung isn't really all that different from inho. that the only logical conclusion to finding out the truth was that wonyoung must want to use him like inho did (urghhhh, yeah, even writing that made me wanna vomit.)

BUT WE, THE AUDIENCE, KNOW WONYOUNG ISN'T LIKE INHO (like, literally minutes right before this moment, wonyoung switches out the place cards on the dressing room doors JUST TO KEEP INHO AWAY FROM TAEJOON SO TAEJOON ISN'T HURT FURTHER AJFKDLSJFKDSJFKDSFJ I AM COMPLETELY NORMAL ABOUT THAT BEE TEE DUBS)

did wonyoung initially approach taejoon in an attempt to get his job back by getting taejoon to come back to the pottery world?? yeah, but the major difference, imho, is that during the whole previous eight eps, we haven't really seen wonyoung working that hard to get his job back. yes we've seen him taking vice-manager jung's calls and still reporting on taejoon, but...that's.all.he.does. he doesn't attempt to cajole taejoon any one way (and u might say that cajoling him in any one way might have given him away to taejoon much sooner, but i got the feeling that there was something else at play than wonyoung trying to be subtle about his subterfuge, esp. once he and taejoon get closer.)

but ok, taejoon is hurting and he's retreating back into his cold, hard shell we saw in ep 1, so while this is very harsh, i can understand where he's coming from.

BUT THEN EP 10 HAPPENS. for a little context, this is after they get back together and spend the night (IN MATCHING PJS LIKE THE DORKS IN LOVE THAT THEY ARE!!!)

does taejoon think this is a game??? flashing his wealth around like it's no big deal, mr.i'll-take-care-of-you, and use-me-all-you-want.

may i remind everyone that just two eps ago--TWOOOO--he was all, "i wonder if u're still hanging around because you want to use me some more?" and was all broody mcbroody about it. :((((

but wonyoung has something to say about his boyfriend being very serious about getting used:

TAEJOON IS SHOOK. WE ARE ALL SHOOK. this also references, to me, a subtle callback from ep.7 when they first confess to each other and have that talk on the rooftop about taejoon's father. taejoon confesses that he had never felt love from his father--he had felt more like a disciple than a son--which is why i think wonyoung is VEEEERY deliberate in his word choice here. he could've kept up the joking banter, but i think he was very conscious of the fact that taejoon's world is made up of a lot of people like inho, and not a lot of people like wonyoung (by that i mean, people who sought out taejoon not solely for his company or to build a loving relationship with him, but because he had wealth and connections INHO YOU DEMON) so i think wonyoung wanted to make himself very clear. (again! a subtle reference/callback to yeonhee, his friend girl, from ep. 7 also, who was like "you're very honest, and that was why i liked you.")

COULD THAT MAN MAKE IT ANY CLEARER??!!! NO and i love wonyoung for this. (i love them. *cries in single*)

ANYGAY, i am completely and totally fine and totally normal about this bl. everyone needs to watch it already tho.

[gamergirljournalist]

The Super Mario Bros. Wonder: FIRST IMPRESSIONS (PAX Aus Review)

Rating: 4/5 stars (so far) System: Nintendo Switch OLED + Pro Controllers

I got a chance to play Super Mario Bros. Wonder with some friends during PAX Aus and it's pretty good. This upcoming Mario installment had me and my companions talking about what this title has to offer, the news of Charles Martinet leaving his iconic voice acting role, and for some reason, "What if Kirby entered the Mushroom Kingdom."

While the game has yet to be released on Oct 20, we got to play the demo version for 15 minutes and here are our thoughts.

Players have the chance to play as Mario, Luigi, Daisy, Peach, Toad, and Toadette. It also has options for those who are inexperienced with platformers via the Yoshis as they don't get damaged by enemies. However, if you want to use the power-ups, you need to use the main characters.

I chose Toadette and my friends chose Daisy and Mario. We only had 15 minutes to try the demo before the "thank you for playing" message popped up. We dashed through the Flower Kingdom and it's pretty cool. For starters, each world tells you the difficulty level through the star ratings. Aside from the familiar characters, like the Goombas, there are new foes that add flavour and an interesting challenge to each level.

Now let's talk about the ELEPHANT in the room - the Elephant power-up. As expected it's super weird to see our favourite characters LITERALLY TRANSFORM TO ELEPHANTS. But it adds to the comedic and whacky elements to the game. It also has a unique ability as well, where you can use your trunk to get through the level, which I thought was pretty neat. It was like a stretchy long arm. However, due to your size, you can't crawl down to the secret levels if the path has a tight entrance. So you need a friend who's in their default form to access them.

There are also other cool power-ups as well that are exclusive to certain levels, like the drill power-up, which allows you to move on ceilings. However, you can only get it during underground levels or ones that require drilling obstacles. Wonder has a feature where you can save up to three power-ups that you've collected and it can be carried throughout each level. So if you want to use certain abilities in other areas, you can if you want.

Based on our gameplay experience, we only got the chance to use the new abilities and didn't get to see the classics like the Fire Flower in the game. The regular mushroom was there though, so that's good.

Another cool feature the Wonder has added is the "Badges" system. According to one of the staff (and the Overview trailer), Badges will be something you can collect in the final game, and each of them has abilities that can help you through the level. In the demo, we were offered at least 6-8 badges to choose from. Due to the limited time we had, I couldn't properly see if had any effect. I guess we'll find out once Wonder gets released.

We also got to experience "The Wonder Effect," which made our gameplay feel a bit trippy. It gave us a more entertaining experience to get through the Flower Kingdom. However, one of my friends thought this might be a reference to "illicit substances" based on how it's presented and how the kingdom goes haywire.

Due to this being the demo, some things weren't available during this showcase. One of them was the Online Multiplayer feature where you'd get to see "live shadows" of other players. Makes sense since the game isn't out yet. Also, we couldn't collect more badges and had to stick with what we were offered.

Of course, not all games are perfect and here are some of my gripes that I had during this demo session. First of all, you need to be way ahead if you want the screen's attention. So if you're way behind, you need to move as fast as you can so you can see your character.

My friend managed to find some sort of secret area but just like the original Super Mario Bros, the screen does not adjust so you're kinda blind until you move into an area where you can be seen. Lastly, warp pipes follow "majority rules." So if you have three people playing the game and two want to go to the next area and one has unfinished business, through luck. You're going up to the next world regardless.

Overall, one of my friends plans to get the game so looking forward to a game night at some point. There were moments in the game that felt trippy and you need to be a quick thinker during certain moments in the difficulty level. Super Mario Bros. Wonder left a good first impression during my time at PAX Aus and I'm keen to see what more this Flower Kingdom has to offer.

[thatoneguy031]

I've heard that people are making pinned posts, so I thought I might as well do it, too.

Heya. Y'all can call me Guy, and I'm the head honcho for this(more or less) ask blog, and I think there's a few things you should know about me:

-I'm currently in my junior year of high school, and posts happen... basically, whenever I feel like it. If I don't get to an ask immediately, don't take it personally; I'm just a bit busy with other things.

-I'm bisexual, with a heavy, heavy male lean. I'm single too, but I'm not really taking any suggestions at this point. It'd be unfair for someone to show me their face and not have me show them mine. He/Him pronouns, too.

-This is also a Pokemon IRL blog. I only evolved recently, and I'm still getting used to being a Samurott. I'm currently learning about how to battle and act... y'know, like a Samurott. What does that mean, I don't know. But I'm trying my best!

-I like making stories. Like, a lot of stories. I have tons of characters, all of which are all available for asks.

-I'm a really dedicated memer. If it isn't about anything regarding plot development, don't expect it to be taken very seriously.

-I am a huge anime and VG fan. Current playthroughs/playlist of games(Reminder, I only have a Switch): The World Ends With You(Final Remix, the Switch release) Pokemon Scarlet Hollow Knight(I'm lost, please help) Rivals of Aether(Orcane main, Forsburn and Eliana secondaries) Super Smash Brothers Ultimate(I change mains every other week, honestly) Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 4(Kakashi, Obito and Minato main) Mario Kart 8 Deluxe(I'm a Dry Bones main, who would've thunk?) Brawlhalla(I'm a Mako main, and Ragnir and Onyx secondaries) Pokemon Unite(I main Alolan Ninetails, but I've been dabbling in Garchomp due to personal reasons you'll see in later posts) The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild(I'm lost, help me)

That's about it for me. I don't really involve myself in any political conversations, and I begin to feel uncomfortable when I have to talk about those kinds of topics with people. But, for those who want to know: Pro LGBTQ-whatever, obviously, but I don't pay attention to current events too much. I'm also not racist, if that had to be said.

If you're into the whole p3do or zoo thing, please leave. You genuinely need help, like, now. Oh, and bigots, racists, homophobes and all that jazz can get the boot, too. And I'll slam the door on your fingers on the way out.

I'd prefer if NSFW accounts didn't pay mind to this blog, as I'm trying to make sure that anyone can enjoy this place safely. I'm just want to make sure this place isn't the next Twitter.

As for my ask thingie, the reason why I even made this thing in the first place:

There are some obvious rules here that the public have to follow:

-No NSFW asks. A majority of my characters are children(About the same age as me), and I don't feel right putting them in such risque situations.

-If a character chooses not to answer a specific question. They might have some personal demons they need to fight before bringing up the topic, or they just might... not want to answer directly.

-I'm occasionally gonna be busy making updates to a character's story before I get to questions, so as mentioned before, answers won't be given out in a timely manner. I apologize in advance if there's any delays.

Here's some ask hints, I guess(Color-coded to associate the characters with the stories)*:

-Delta: Ask him about how he feels about Hertz or his living situation

-Hertz: Ask about his "academic" "performance", or why he decided to take Delta under his wing to begin with

-Jason: Ask him about his past experiences with Pokemon or something about Jayden, or something about his friends

-Jayden: Basically the same thing, or something about being the older sister of the family, or how she feels about Cheren and Bianca

-Cheren and Bianca: How they met Jason or Jayden in the first place

-Chris, or any member of his team(Stephanie, Wave, Lucas and David), for that matter: Try to get them to talk about their background or early childhoods

Smudge, Charles and/or Katie: Their hobbies, how they feel about each other, or how college is treating them

Trevor: His music career, and/or how he got into the music bandwagon in the first place, how his current job is going and stuff

Bryant: How he met Trevor, why they're friends, or their general connection

*Obviously, you can ask them anything, but these are some good starts if you don't know what to ask them.

Also, don't be afraid to ask me any questions, either, I won't bite. I'm just a dude tryin' to develop some social circles. Ask me about anything, really. Heck, you can even send anon asks, if you're too shy to show your face(Don't worry about it, I do the same thing all the time). If anything, I'd love to get some kind of advice with how to deal with evolution and all that stuff.

That aside, there are going to be tags on this post that can help you filter what and who you want to talk to, for both your sake and mine.

Now, without further ado...

Welcome to the show!

And I hope you enjoy your time here!

[joeys-piano]

Writer Ask Game: 4, 8, and 11

Thanks for the questions, peep!

4. When did you start writing? How?

December 2011. So I've been writing for about 12.5 years at this point. In the summer of 2017, I started writing more consistently. I believe in the summer of 2020, I had a personal challenge of completing a story from start to finish in one month so I could get used to sharing my works and how to finish things. In April 2022, I switched my posting schedule and made it a free-for-all; this gave me the opportunity to work on longer, more ambitious projects without me trying to kill myself to get so much done in one month. And well, I'm a slow writer - so this change was such a big help for my physical and mental well-being. Publicly, I've shared over 200 stories across fandoms in my writing life. There are some original poetry here and there, but all of that energy goes into fanworks because I feel more of a connection there. I started writing in December 2011 because when you're a young Asian who is not good at math and can barely draw and feel like you're a black sheep amongst the Asian kids, there's writing. Writing was the one endeavor I never heard any of the other Asians around me doing. Essentially, I pioneered this hobby in my early grade school life because I wanted to do something that I could do and know that no one else I knew did it, so that translates to being cool. (It doesn't work like that, but kid!me was convinced) I liked telling stories already, so I just had to put it down onto paper or something. And that's how I started. I basically felt like a failure Asian child for being so average, which I didn't have a name for at the time but it was something I could tell because of the people around me, so I went out to do a thing. And while the thing is hard and ugly and has tried to murder me, writing is stuck with me. It's just how it is.

8. What do you love about your writing style?

This sounds cliche, but my style is unique. I come from a literary fiction background. Or let me rephrase that: I'm inspired by the old-school classics and the pre-WWII British and American writing styles. Francis Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck, Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, and the such. And I'm inspired by the Beat Poets of the 1940s and 50s. So that cheddar cheese potluck of queer and strange things did a doozy on my writing style. The best way I can describe my writing is that it's indulgent, in that I've been force fed writing rules from the internet and stopped giving a fuck in my 20s so I could tell the stories I wanted to tell. And my writing is a love letter to the things I love about writing - it's pretty much poetry disguised as a narrative: you have the meter, you have the rhythm, you have the techniques more commonly see in poetry than prose writing, but in the format of a story with characters and arcs and tragedy. Somewhere about that isn't typically seen in the fandom scene, unless you're in a fandom that pulls on that through the canon material. And that's what my writing style is. Granted, I didn't start with this style. It was one I started developing in 2020 and have matured it like a rich wine since then, and will continue still with every story I try. I've only ever found one other fanfic writer whose style was really similar to mine. So I guess that's a bonus.

11. Character/WIP Lore! (blabber about character/ WIP of choice)

I think I'm at the skill level I want to be to fulfill a writing bucket list item that I've had since 2020 or 2021. I've been wanting to write a story that features the critiques I have about the Christian religion and more openly, write about a story of why people are gravitated towards having a faith even if it makes them do things they don't normally do and how they grapple with that and eventually, if they choose, deconstruct from those ideals. And Black Polish, my current WIP, is a culmination of personal projects in the past that had to fail before I could get here. And in its own way, it is finding closure and closing a door on something I'd rather choose for myself than be nudged into just because I was a kid at the time. It's all about finding the right fandom for the project you want to do. I'd say I struck the land mine with Trigun.

Writer Ask Thingies

[aro-luigi]

Lets-a-go! [For context, Phantom is answering these, and others will reblog with their own answers]

---

1. Phantom is my name! I have several sources but the ones I'll be referring to in this are Phantom Wantstobattle, LM!Luigi, and Paper Luigi

2. Multisourced fictive :D

3. Very connected to those three

4. A *lot*, my fav exomemory is probably leaving the hotel at the end of LM3

5. The NWTB fandom I don't interact with, so I don't have anything to say. As for the LM & Super Paper Mario fandom(s), I have mixed feelings.

6. Only SPM sourcemates and LM doubles (or other Luigis from an AU)

7. I met Mario and Luigi (from another system) once, but we didn't really talk. I also met two Natemares a while ago which was fun :]

8. Several times over on discord, it only got answered once and that's how I found one of the Natemares I talked about in the last answer.

9. My Luigi source - I'm very alike to him, I have anxiety issues and I'm very much in my siblings' shadows, I actually use him to describe my own personality sometimes. As for for Phantom - I talk like him, but other than that we aren't really similar.

10. Simple answer - yes. It makes me feel seen as myself rather than 'just some guy who thinks he's these characters'

11. LM! Luigi - I *love* the spooky aesthetic LM1 & LM3 have, and I really like the level design in LM3. I have a lot of good things to say about the LM trilogy tbh. Paper Luigi - well, other than the character development? Other than the amazing new characters? Other than the good writing? I adore Paper Mario (the first three), and I don't think anything can change my mind. Phantom - banger song, great music video, cool outfit, need I say more?

12. LM - the memories, tbh. Now, in this world/life/reality, I'm not afraid of ghosts, but whenever I remember that source, I start to panic. It's... Not fun. Paper Luigi - knowing what 'i' did as Mr. L, it makes me feel like I betrayed Mario. Phantom - the fact there isn't much canon, but considering he's a character in a music video that was made into a character by the fandom... I can't really complain about that-

13. A lot. Here are some of my favorites from each source: LM - between LM2 and LM3, Mario and I played some games together, and when I beat him in game, he tripped over the carpet trying to dramatically rage quit. Paper Luigi - the furby-like thing I had at some point, it's not canon, but it was so funny. And terrifying. Take all those funny/creepy furby stories from online and put them into a cat-like robot instead, that's basically it. Phantom - the police finding Natemare. I laughed my ass off, he was so sure he'd get away with it.

14. Yes and no ^^. I look like Phantom, and I can't change my form. So yes, I do look like my source self (Phantom), but also no, I don't look like my source self (Luigi)

15. I'm mainly a host but I'm also memory holder for dormant alters (those that have important info in their memories)

16. Probably only for Phantom. I don't think I'd be able to handle another haunted mansion or paper adventure, those are exhausting.

17. Yes, yes, and yes. For Phantom, it was a reality alike to this one but the multiverse was connected and you could freely travel between universes, so I am actually not originally from the universe I live in. For LM, afaik ghosts, boos, toads, koopas, and all those creatures don't really exist here! For Paper Luigi, I think it's pretty obvious, this world isn't 2D or made of paper.

18. Easy, Luigi hat.

19. Yes, I have a Luigi hat, Luigi figurine, Mr. L pin, and a Luigi controller for my Nintendo Switch. I don't have any Phantom merch, sadly.

20. All the time.. mostly what I do for my LM source is play LM3 or LM2HD, because I have the games, but it doesn't feel the same. For my other sources, I can't do much. I don't have any Paper Mario games, and there isn't anything I can do for Phantom. It gets tough sometimes, but my headmates help comfort me and help me through it.

21. For Phantom it's pretty obvious, Phantom by Natewantstobattle. For LM & Paper Luigi, I actually have the same song, which is Control by Halsey.

22. Writing, mostly. In all of my sources I did writing in some way. Whether it was a diary, or a story about different universes, it was always writing.

23. For the longest time I would've answered no to that for both my Luigi sources, because of the amount of trauma there is. But now, I really do like interacting with source-related media, it comforts me a lot ^^

24. Yes, for all of them ^^ I drew Luigi three times, and I write fanfics of all my sources' media all the time

25. It's odd, but I'm alright with it. You kinda learn to accept it when your whole system has Luigis sprinkled everywhere- (I'm not kidding, our brain really likes the guy)

26. This was fun ^^ I forgot how much I like sharing my experiences, I should do this more!! Can't wait for the others (/sys) to do this too :3

Introject Ask Game!

We've seen a lot of these, but never one directed specifically at introjects (fictives, factives, fcktives, etc), so we decided to make one!

1. What's your name and source?

2. What type of introject are you? (Fictive, factive, etc.)

3. How connected do you feel to your source?

4. Do you have any exomemories? What's your favourite one?

5. What do you think of your source's fandom?

6. Do you have any sourcemates in your system?

7. Have you ever met any sourcemates outside your system?

8. Have you ever posted/sent a sourcecall anywhere? Did it help you find sourcemates?

9. What do you think are your biggest differences from/similarities to your source?

10. Do you like being compared to your source?

11. What's your favourite thing about your source?

12. What's your least favourite thing about your source?

13. Any funny exomemories?

14. Does your appearance differ from your source's appearance?

15. What other role, if any, do you have in the system?

16. If you could go back to the life you had in your exomemories/source, would you?

17. Does this universe differ at all from the one in your exomemories/source?

18. What's your favourite clothing item/accessory that the system owns?

19. Do you have any merch of your source?

20. Do you ever get homesick? If yes, what do you do to deal with it?

21. What songs remind you of your source?

22. What activities/things remind you of your source?

23. Do you like engaging with your source/content about it?

24. Have you ever created content related to your source? (Art, fanfiction, etc.)

25. How do you feel about doubles?

26. Talk about anything you want, relevant to rhe rest of the questions or not!

⚠️ This post is inclusive of all system origins ⚠️

[lorz-ix]

Bunch more Mega Men

Mega Man (1987)

The classic series of games are the ones I was the most familiar with already, and ones I tend to prefer. I was merely revisiting a few for contrast, after playing through everything Zero. I'll spoil the surprise already: this marathon didn't go nearly as far, I was a bit burnt out, though I did go out of my way to get all the legacy collections they released.

MM1 is a bit rough around the edges, to be fair. Mainly on a technical level, the visuals are not as polished, the mechanics are barebones, there are only 6 robot masters rather than the usual 8, and so on. The level design can be a bit of a pain in the ass at times, but the first half of the game isn't so hard, even less so if you know in which order to fight all the bosses. The second half is home to some infamous segments like the yellow devil, but luckily and unintentionally, there are ways of getting through that obscene boss fight easily. In the end, nothing is quite so bad, so it's a fun time, for what was, on release, a completely new experience.

Mega Man 2 (1988)

The glow-up is INSANE. Mega Man 1 was a baby taking its first steps, the sequel is the blueprint that would guide the entire franchise going forward. The visuals are cleaner, the level design is more interesting and memorable, the whole adventure is more satisfying and fair to the player. Our main character might be missing a few of his now trademark tools at this point, but as far as my opinion goes, this might already be the best of the NES 6.

It's peak bro it's peak I dunno what you want me to say.

The alien thing was wack though lol. The whole subtitle for the game in Japan was a bait and switch.

Mega Man 3 (1990)

I had a bit more of a negative experience with this one, though I don't want to be unfair to it. Rush and Protoman are fantastic additions, the robot masters are good, I like the story...

The two things that made this feel like a bit of a chore are the special weapon selection, which is gimmicky and not as fun to use as previous games, and that weird part where you have to fight clone robots or some shit. Since all you do is revisit stages (but they're harder this time!), it felt like padding to me.

I know some fans think MM3 is the best one or whatever but I dunno, I would rather play 2 any day. 3 isn't one I'm itching to replay.

Aaand this is as far as I got. I think at this point my overall burnout from playing so many games in a row did exacerbate my negative feelings towards 3, but I chose to take a break from the series. There are so many more I never even tried, and getting to all of that would take a while. I don't want to make it feel like an obligation.