#unlike other charas i've been compared to

[mishkakagehishka]

I could accept being Nazuna-coded tho, i respect him

[twisted-nox-sidus]

Hello Nox, I have a question for Strix when she meets Skully J. Graves. Upon seeing the end of the new TWST Halloween event and upon learning of Skully actually being a NRC from centuries ago before Crowley was Headmage, it makes me wonder how her interaction with Skully would be like when he’s like a true gentleman compared to the boys who are, shall we say, prideful and somewhat childish in their own way?

(Twst could never make me hate Skully, the silly billy of a guy. This is ripped straight from my draft for the event, so consider this a teaser. Can you tell the self-indulgence from this? Skully is prob ooc but he didn't get the memo of twst not being an otome game so whatever he does is beyond normal twst chara behavior anyway.)

Skully turns to the Ramshackle duo, seemingly oblivious to the mayhem and grief his victims are suffering from behind his trail. "Strix-san and Grim-san, once again, let's get along."

Without skipping a beat, Skully swooped in for a kiss on Grim's paw. His gray fur stands rigid from contact.

"You! Layin' one on my fine coat of fur!" Grim yowled.

Last but not least, Strix remains the only one unmarked by his affection. However, unlike the others, his face comes dangerously close to her own.

Her eyes widen from the abrupt proximity and the sight of his lips that have kissed the hands of many.

Skully plants a peck on Strix's cheek.

In the barren space of withered trees as far as the eye could see, the public display of affection is more of an exhibit at this point. All the boys stood stupefied by Skully's brave (pretentious) move, screaming and yelping in her place.

Meanwhile the texture of his cracked lips on the girl's skin sent shivers down her spine.

Strix reflexively shot her hand up to where the invisible kiss mark lingers with prickly electricity warming her now tinted pink cheeks. "Wh-Why did you...?!"

"Pardon me, my dear. I usually do my greeting kisses on the hand for everyone regardless of gender, but your knuckles have chains on them, I'm afraid. It's a first for me." Skully says, lifting her gloved hand decorated with chains linking from her rings to her wrist cuff. He appears perplexed on how to approach its design awkward and uncomfortable for any lips a gentleman may lay them on.

He placed a hand to his chest while still holding her hand. "My sincerest apologies if you are offended. If you truly have any concerns about my behavior, please tell me what I can do to remedy that. I simply couldn't deny you a kiss like I've done for your friends."

The shock of an intimate first impression rendered her speechless. First she was in his arms unconscious, next a greeting kiss on the cheek?

Is this an otome game or not?

"What an equal-opportunity gentleman." Is what Strix concluded out loud.

A pair of footsteps knocking peculiarly loud on the wooden ground don't take it lightly by comparison.

Leona stands between Skully and Strix, obscuring the girl from the mysterious boy's sight. He glowers at the taller male. "Shall we bind your hands and feet on a stick and roast you?"

Jamil uses a wet wipe on Strix's cheek, the chemical scent rubbing on her. "Are you alright, Strix? Say the word and we'll blast this guy."

Strix sweatdrops. Could he be looking for an excuse to start beating someone black and blue?

"I didn't really mind, I was just surprised." Strix says, internally trying to calm down her blush.

"This must have been why Vil-san and the others were shouting. Wh-What a pretentious guy..." Epel sighs, emotionally exhausted from the kiss.

Seeing Malleus still raising his limp hand in his stupor, Sebek burns the sight into memory and gasps loudly, "...Ah! Could you have, without permission, taken Lord Malleus' hand and...?! There's not a chance that I will forgive you!"

(Meanwhile Malleus was silently staring at Strix with an unreadable expression.)

[ilikekidsshows]

I saw many people comparing miraculous with shugo chara, including one of my friends, so I decided to see how much similarity these two series have by reading the comics (since the anime has many episodes).

the first is the protagonist Amu and Marinette, they have magical items that can transform them into magical girls (miraculous and humpty lock)

Amu and Marinette also have a crush on their classmate who has the impression of a prince (Adrien and Tadase). besides that later these two girls are also the ones who give their friends the ability to transform (Marinette shares miraculous and humpty lock gives its power so that everyone who has shugo chara to be able to do chara transformation).

then the cat boy of the series, Adrien and Ikuto. they have a very strong bond with the main villain, which they are the children of the villain himself (step son for Ikuto) you could say they are the "connector" and key characters in their respective series because of their connection with the villain.

like ladybug and black cat miraculous which are a pair, Ikuto also has a pair for the humpty lock that Amu has called the dumpty key.

like miraculous ladybug, humpty key also has the ability to purify negative energy.

villains target magical artifacts (miraculous and humpty-dumpty key/lock) to ask for a wish.

the similarities between the two series are even greater because the protagonist ends up with the cat boys (at first Amu didn't like Ikuto because he was an antagonist, but over time Amu realized that Ikuto was only used by his stepfather).

the striking difference between the two series is, although Ikuto's role here is quite flip flop between antagonist-anti hero, and in the climax Ikuto who was brainwashed was forced to fight against Amu, the power of love is win. Amu managed to free Ikuto from the brainwash and finally they both fought together at the end. Ikuto who was also finally able to solve his family problems was finally free from his stepfather's clutches. unlike Adrien who was not even given a chance in the final battle or even knew who the biggest villain who had terrorized Paris all this time was.

and that was the strangest thing about miraculous. theme song says "the power of love is so strong" but many times the power of love fails them, chat Blanc and ephemeral for example. Marinette's love for Adrien can't save Adrien at all like Amu's for Ikuto and Adrien doesn't even want to transform in fear that he'll destroyed everything, isn't that weird? for a show that emphasizes love and friendship, I can't see either of those things in miraculous at all. love and friendship fail Adrien, big time.

honestly after watching shugo chara, I feel very very disappointed with the ending of s5, because shugo chara gave what I've always expected from miraculous, for ladybug and cat noir to fight together in the final battle and also prove that the slogan "the power of love is so strong" and "you and me against the world" are true. I feel very disappointed, for years I spent time hoping for a happy ending for Adrien and Marinette, but it wasn't like this.

I will console myself by reading and maybe watching the whole season of shugo chara, at least the power of love save my traumatic cat boy there.

---

I used to think the SentiAdrien plot concluding with: "Gabriel will control Adrien with the ring and Marinette will free him and kick Gabriel's butt, with Adrien's help if we're lucky" was the worst way the SentiAdrien plot could go, since it would have made Adrien being a Sentimonster just a reason for other people to fight over him instead of the story focusing on him. Then the showrunners had to prove me wrong by going beyond the pale on how badly they cloud handle a story about a character who's been created to be controlled by others.

However, how Shugo Chara really differs from Miraculous is with its treatment of Ikuto's character in that his story is actually his story and revolves around his desire to break free from his abusive stepfather. His wish is to find freedom, and the Tuning Fork Tsukumo uses to control him isn't tied to him, but is a separate creation the villain makes for this purpose in an unquestionably evil act. And the main reason the Tuning Fork is a separate, evil artefact is because Ikuto is actually a real person and not a remote control robot with a kill switch.

Yeah, Shugo Chara is another one for the recommendation pile for people breaking up with Miraculous and its nonsense.

[anxiously-sidequesting]

Hiiii

I'm curious what you think about Pirate101 - specifically, if you think there's a distinction between "young pirate" and "young wizard".

In both games the protag is referred to as "young" by lots of characters, but in Pirate this was already old enough to be (infamously) arrested for brawling/smuggling/treason/dueling/hoodoo, as well as lead their own crew. Personally that feels like an indication that being called "young" doesn't make them a kid, or at the very least it feels very older teenager/young adult-ish. In a similar vein, I feel like the wizard wouldn't be elementary school age or anything (although no matter how old they are they're still under-equipped to be saving the world but that's not really the point).

I hope I don't offend you, and you're free to headcanon what you like of course, since they will never have a canon age so to speak. But personally given that context I just can't see the wizard protagonist being as young as everybody says that makes what they're being put through so much worse.

HIIII THANK YOU FOR THE ASK and please don't be afraid of offending me!!! Literally the only way to do that is to break into my house and kill my family so you're good 💖

So first thing's first my first answer will disappoint you because I don't play Pirate101 and so I know fuck all about it HALANDIEKE I get the general gist of the tutorial (i played through that) and everything but I could not tell you anything about what I think about how the YP interacts with people or how they feel or what the general vibe is because I dont know that. Like at all. Feel free to send me stuff about canon I'd love to read it and form my own opinions 💖

As for the ambiguous age of the wizard yeah it can be confusing. Because since the game is primarily designed to have the protagonist be You instead of any set character there's no consistency as to what the canon age of the wizard is. It really just all depends on what you WANT the Wizard's age to be; whether that's your age when you started, your current age, a separate age for a separate OC, etc. Like you said other than the prefix "Young" we really have no idea just how "young" young really is

So yeah I've heard that the Pirate is arrested for crimes and is in jail, and you're right it's hard to imagine someone like 5-11 being in jail for organized resistance of the Armada. And like, in my opinion, that's only because a little child would most unlikely have that intelligence or be cognizant enough to do things like that. So yeah a teen or young adult would work better in my opinion

But like here's the thing, and this is my personal opinion - I don't consider P101 and W101 protagonists to be parallels. Like just because the P101 protagonist may be in the adolescent stage doesn't mean the W101 protag couldn't be any younger, or older.

Especially since there's a difference between the canon protags already. While the Pirate was canonically organizing and participating in the resistance by themselves or with a skilled team, the Wizard was just all of a sudden poofed there. The Pirate has prior training and homeland advantage. The Wizard does not.

I don't really like comparing traumatic experiences between people personally (even though these charas are fictional) but I feel like. Subjecting someone to a war when they've had war experiences vs. someone who has never been in a war before/has no idea how to practice magic is a HUUUGE difference. Not like the former isn't bad by itself but yeah. The Wizard came from Earth, INVOLUNTARILY, and without their permission is thrust immediately into a bad and dangerous situation with no prior experience, training, or preparation. It seems like the Pirate, to me, chose willingly to fight in the Resistance and knows how to defend themselves. There is a huge difference there

And whether or not you headcanon the Wizard to be a child or not I do half agree with you that subjecting such a young person, OR ANYBODY for that matter, into a situation as dangerous as war is a terrible thing to do I get it. But, and this may be unpopular, I'd have a bit more sympathy and alarm for someone who was forced/pressured into it, someone who was unprepared, rather than someone who was already used to it, training for it, organizing plans for it.

So yeah regardless of age, there's a huge difference between both canon protags of both games. I personally feel what the Wizard has to deal with is much worse. Their only "support" system to start out with is a complete stranger who (in post-update) gives them no choice, decides their fate FOR them, and expects them to HURRY UP about it. The Pirate AT LEAST has a crew and other people who literally care about them and back then up and fight WITH them. The Wizard starts out with no one by their side.

So yeah that's just my personal opinion. And this isn't to like bash anyone on the head who thinks any different or has a different story than canon at all 💖💖💖 this is just how I feel. BUT THANK YOU FOR THE ASK IT WAS A VERY COOL ONE TO ANSWER!!!!

[undertale-data]

[Image Description: An Undertale chat box that has “WHY FANS LOVE UNDERTALE” at its center. Next to it are a line chart and an Egg from the Dating Hub on its left, and a CRIME measurer (also from the Dating Hub) on its right. End I.D.]

[Image Description: a pie chart titled, “LEVEL OF LOVE FOR UNDERTALE.” The textbox on the top right reads, “On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the least and 10 being the highest, how much do fans enjoy Undertale?” From the top going clockwise, 12 or 0% chose 5 and below; 23 or 1% chose 6; 98, or 4%, chose 7; 325, or 12%, chose 8; 529, or 20%, chose 9; and 1664, or 63%, chose 10. End I.D.]

It’s clear from all of the data analyzed so far that fans who took the time to answer our survey love Undertale. It is unlikely that they would have taken the time to answer so many questions if they had not, and even less likely that they would have come across our survey in the first place. Naturally, it comes as no surprise that 63% of our responders gave their love for Undertale a score of ten out of ten. 95% gave their love for Undertale a score of eight or higher, and only 12 responders responded with five or below, a number so small that their responses had to be lumped together to be visible on the pie chart. Of those, only 3 responders gave their love for Undertale a score of 1, and based on those responders’ other answers, it is likely that they were only intending to troll. We are very fortunate that the vast majority of responders took the survey seriously, enough so that responses like this are barely a blip in the data.

Now, for our final analysis post of the event, we will delve into the reasons that fans love Undertale so dearly.

(Essay and highlights under the cut.)

There have been countless essays on the impact that Undertale has had on people’s lives. I can hardly add more on the subject than what has already been said, but I hope this summary can provide a brief overview of what stood out among the over two thousand answers given in response to this survey. That said, due to the sheer volume of answers, I could not read every single one in depth—however, I did skim all of them, and some that stood out or were representative of several responses have been highlighted below. If you would like to see what every fan who consented to share their response had to say, you may view the full list of responses here. Note that these responses have not been edited in any way. This document may take a long time to load, as it is over 100 pages long.

(Warnings for mentions of suicidal thoughts in the following essay.)

Several responders loved the theme of choices mattering in Undertale. Whether people played the pacifist, merciless, or neutral routes, they enjoyed how the game reacted to their actions. For some, it even made them consider their own morality. One touching response explained the impact that the theme of mercy made on them. “I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.” Many fans left similar comments about how the themes of Undertale made them better people.

Undertale changed how its fans treat others, and it also changed how fans treat themselves. The theme of staying determined and the messages of hope in the game were a light to a very large portion of fans. I cannot list all of the fans who said that Undertale helped them out of a dark place, or that they would not be alive if not for Undertale. “DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.”

Undertale brought fans together in unexpected ways. Some said they met friends or significant others through the fandom. “I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale,” one fan said. A different fan who is non-native English speaking mentioned that the game and the fan community helped them to learn English.

It would be impossible to discuss Undertale without mentioning the fan community. Whether for good or bad, many responders mentioned the fandom in their responses. Overall the feelings towards the fandom seem positive, though many made references to “toxic” parts of the fandom without specifying which parts they consider toxic. Others rejected the idea of toxicity in fandom. One response said: “[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!”

One thing that makes the Undertale fandom unique is the way it embraces various AUs. Some fans are tired of AU content, but the majority of responses show a love for the creativity behind AUs. “Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.” The lack of a judgemental atmosphere seems present in the AU community, according to the responses we saw. There is an interesting balance between AU and canon (sometimes referred to as “classic”) content that another responder pointed out: “The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertale fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)”

Regardless of the many AUs the fandom has created over the years, the original game of Undertale still feels like home for many fans. They wished they could reclaim the feeling of playing the game again for the first time, but even though we can’t reset time in real life, there is still a special feeling for fans each time they play Undertale. One fan said, “Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.” This feeling is one that can be cherished time and time again. In the words of another responder: “It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it.” Others pointed out the strength of the found family trope in Undertale, which likely contributes to this feeling of “home” as well.

As mentioned briefly earlier, the music is part of what makes Undertale feel like home for fans. Even when responses focused on other aspects of the game, many would throw in a comment about the soundtrack at the end. One comment focused on the music said “IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.” Like with the game itself, the music has incredible replay value, an amazing feat considering most of the tracks use the same few motifs. “I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story,” another responder said. “They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.”

If the music sticks with fans in their hearts, then the game’s lore sticks with fans in their minds. Even six years after the release of Undertale, fans are still creating new theories and digging up new secrets. The way the game breaks the fourth wall in particular intrigued many fans and has stuck out through all these years. The awareness that the game shows for the RPG genre makes it memorable. The game plays with the player’s expectations and turns them on their heads, all while reminding the player that they’re in a game. There are few other games that do this on such a large scale, so it’s no surprise that fans cite this as one of their favorite things about Undertale.

Lastly, the LGBT+ representation in Undertale has been a huge draw for fans. Especially in 2015, the sheer volume of non-cishet characters was unprecedented, as one fan pointed out: “It's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. Hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. It's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.” The LGBT+ cast including Frisk, Chara, Napstablook, Monster Kid, Mettaton, Alphys, and Undyne each connected with fans in unique ways. It’s clear how important this is from responses such as: “There are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.” “It made me gay and trans so thanks for that.”

Once again I am overwhelmed with just how much there is to say about Undertale. One responder really understood when they compared Undertale to an iceberg, explaining that there are so many layers to the game that there is something for everyone: “everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans—from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers—is the mark of the coolest games!” I would have to agree with them.

It’s been six years, and despite everything, it’s still you. Thank you for reading, participating in this survey, and above all, staying determined.

Highlights:

DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.

I think the coolest thing was having the opportunity to watch the AU community grow from its bare roots. It's nearly insane how big and complex it's gotten, unlike anything I'd ever seen before. Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.

i love how the lgbt rep is so naturalized... there are just gay people! and its nobodys business!

The music is my go to answer, but what I really really REALLY love is how the minor characters have so much personality to them when you talk to them. They aren't incredibly important to the overall story, but they're all so likeable and diverse that you just can't help but like them immediately!

I think it was the first videogame I have played that broke the fourth wall that much. Of course there has been other videogames that broke it but just for one or two tongue-in-cheek jokes. The guilt of killing mama goat was also something intense as well that I appreciated as an experience and that I didn't think a videogame could cause on someone.

I love how no character can be seen as completely bad! Everyone builds up Asgore as some horrible villain, but he turns out to be a 'fuzzy pushover' who's broken and just wants his family back by the time you meet him. Then you think Flowey's an irredeemable killer who engineered the suffering of the monsters across many timelines, and he is... but he also used to be the kind and beloved Prince Asriel Dreemurr, traumatized by his death and subsequent rebirth, projecting his best friend onto you.

The fact that choices matter in the game. Your first playthrough and getting the golden ending for the first time. I can never replicate those feelings again, wish I could erase my memories and replay the game from the start.

I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale.

(Toxic parts of the fandom aside) The community is possibly one of the kindest I've ever met. Cringe culture is completely dead, and I feel like I can be myself. I felt a very close connection to many of the characters, and I loved consuming content about them when I was in a rough patch in my life.

just everything, the whole game has just impacted my life so much. i know it sounds really lame, but when the game first came out, i would purposely put my hands in my pockets and sway slightly, like sans' idle animation. of course i dont do that anymore haha, but undertale still really impacts me to this day, and i wouldnt have it any other way :)

it made me gay and trans so thanks for that

I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.

The thing I love most about Undertale is no matter how many times I play or watch a playthrough it always makes me genuinely happy. It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it. Toriel still makes me feel all warm and cozy in her home, the Skelebros always make me laugh, and I still cry on the inside watching Frisk comforting Asriel. And on the flip side the No Mercy run still invokes the negative emotions in me as well. In short Undertale just feels like a second home to me and I always wish I could stay.

The reader inserts are my favorite way to decompress after a hard day

I think Undertale helped me discover my love for 8-bit games, and made me realize how IMPORTANT music is in video games.

the worldbuilding and character design are my favorite parts of the main game apart from the music! I’m also a huge fan of the random AU music- not for like underswap or underfell i like the stuff where someone makes a megalovania for a random au where gru from despicable me replaces sans as the character. i think its funny

Just... the vibe, honestly? Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.

there are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.

[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!

There's a scene where Frisk (the player) is going towards what is presumably going to be their death. They will fight Asgore and he will use their human soul to break the barrier and free his people. The music, despite the player's impending doom, is... triumphant. You are not the triumphant one here, and yet, the score invites you to experience the monsters' joy and happiness as they tell you the tale of their subjugation. The monsters are going to be free. This is their victory, but they don't hate you or want you to die. They're just... happy. That scene has always struck me very deeply. I feel it represents the best parts of Undertale.

I loved how well thought out the Geno route was. It really made me feel like I was doing something horrible, and the characters were very obviously reacting to dire circumstances.

I dunno? I like Undertale for it's characters, story, music, secrets and many more. I am not good with Headcanons but I also like the neutral endings and how different they can depending on who you spare and kill

I was very bad at english before, i thought i couldn't progress because i was very shy and not confident. But my sibling and i wanted to have the best experience with this game so we wanted to play it in english. It's this game and the fandom which helped me to make huge progress in english !

THE SOUNDTRACK. IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.

to avoid writing an essay i will say one word. Mettaton

It is like Toby specifically made the games to fit the iceberg meme and it's awesome, everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans - from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers is the mark of the coolest games!

I love almost everything about Undertale as a game on its own. The music, the art and especially the characters and how they interact. They made me feel at home. Undertale means a huge amount to me. (I even got a tattoo of the castle when you and MK walk together!) The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertake fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)

the mystery. toby fox refused to give answers to anything and i think thats very sexy of him.

I just feel guilty for liking it so much when I'm in my 30's. But I recently got diagnosed with ASD, so I guess it explains things a bit. Many ppl consider Papyrus to be neurodivergent, and some adult fans are too, so seeing that makes me feel a bit better.

i think about "Despite everything, it's still you" everyday of my life.

I like how it's just as funny as it can be serious. All routes are this way. I laughed as much as I cried when I played the Pacifist route and then once I opened the game again and Flowey was telling me to let them be happy, I immediately turned off the game. I somehow felt bad.

The Found Family Trope

The True Pacifist Ending is just...man. And the fanworks about saving everyone even when the game doesn't let you? MANNNNNN

I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story. They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.

there's honestly a LOT to love about this game, but i think one of my favorite things about it is just how many lgbt+ characters there are??? i can think of alphys, undyne, frisk, chara, mettaton, napstablook, monster kid, asgore, mad mew mew, the dress lion, the royal guards, and arguably even papyrus off of the top of my head, but im sure i'm forgetting a few from just undertale alone (there's even MORE in deltarune)!! it's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. it's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.

[Image description: A wordcloud in the shape of the capitalized word UNDERTALE. The text is white on a black background, and uses the font found in the game. Some of the most visible words are: Game, Love, Music, Life, AU, Store, Friend, and Feel, which represent the most common words in the essays people wrote about their love for the game. End of ID]

[retrograde-orbit]

since we're about to hit the end of the year soon, and since i've been too busy with dev work to draw much recently, i've been putting some of my thoughts together on my relationship with art, social media, and all that.

like a lot of kids, i did some drawing and painting during my middle and highschool years. unlike a lot of kids, i was homeschooled. not having a social circle to pick up interests from meant two things: i rarely had to deal with people on a day-to-day basis unless they were my family (yay), and my life felt very boring (not yay). the art subjects, and being forced into a dichotomy of acrylic and watercolor as my main options, did not help.

it took me until the middle of college to start drawing for real. that year was the start of a lot of things for me, and tbh a big part of it was simply having other people that i didn't mind being around, even if i never truly connected with them. anyway, i made some assets for a tabletop game, and at that point i was following enough artists to know at least vaguely the kinds of things that i wanted to draw.

if i look at my files, i've been drawing for a bit over 2 years now. and there's undoubtedly a lot of improvement from when i started (i can only stand to look at like 2-3 drawings from back then, aside from the studies).

i do still want to go back to painting things like this eventually, but for the life of me i cannot figure out how to render a character or a full scene like this.

anyway, that's year 1. i started posting some stuff to twitter, and did mostly fanart or studies where i could find the time. i definitely noticed that i had a bit of an unhealthy relationship forming already with social media (i may not be diagnosed with ADHD, but the way notification indicators make me behave is a big reason i suspect i have it). i also started to fall off of drawing fanart of large, popular vtubers because, well... i'm not sure actually. the artificial interaction inflation from a vtuber fanart is definitely one part of it, but i also started to make friends within an indie vtuber's fanbase/friend circle which made me realize i was being a bit parasocial about one or two larger vtubers and hit the brakes there.

also, this was from an event from an art server where we did blind/telephone style chara design iteration off a picture of jewelry, and that opened my eyes to how much fun having an OC can be compared to being constrained by an existing design. (i do still have issues with fanart because i don't entirely understand how to adapt an existing design to my style the first few times i draw it.)

now, to take a slight detour, all this was happening on twitter or discord. i had used tumblr back in the day, but i barely posted anything and never really kept up with the popular stuff happening. until recently it was also still sort of weird memories because i never the friend group i had from back then... not going into detail, but there are some interesting types out there, and we all kind of grew apart until the group fractured and just sort of fell apart.

coming back here to start posting, even if all i have at the moment is reposting older art, is super comfortable and a bit nostalgic. that return also fell at a time where i had time and a proper idea for updating my personal site, and i do think that i'll be implementing a bit of a blog there as well. i don't mind getting personal on social media, but it's impossible to do easily on twitter and even here i'd prefer to never get notified that people i don't know interact with my more personal posts.

so that sort of brings the story to the current year. having a job makes it pretty hard to keep up with the friends i've made the way i want to, but i don't see myself ever going fully freelance because of how easily i burn out from outside pressure to create. i have a few OCs that i want to continue to flesh out, and i think my main goal for the near future is to evolve my art more with their designs until i can really say i like my ability to render a character and a scene at the same time (i have some ideas, but i need the time to tackle them, and to do a lot of studies).

next year, i want to focus on streaming at least a couple times a month after i get some graphics finished (or even before, and just work on those on stream). i want to just get a lot better at art. illustration is a lot of fun once i can get out of the sketch phase, and i also have dabbled a bit in animation, but 3D is also on the table for game dev purposes and also just character modeling (it's really cool i want models of my OCs and i'm a very DIY kind of person). oh and VR too.

basically, i guess next year is my year to push for being a little more "self-sufficient" and also self-indulgent, i suppose. also been picking up the guitar again recently, and might be buying a bass soon. the more time i spend having fun/working on things and the less time i spend looking at socmed notifications, the better it is for me.