#update I’ve since played and beaten the game and I do agree with this

[forgetmenautical]

Who the hell,

[ohsotwistedwords]

Polybius

By Snapdragon

          It was July when the machine came in. My father had ordered some new arcade cabinets for his arcade; it’d been his dream to run one since he was little and then he was teaching me how to run it so one day I’d inherit it. So, I was working on maintenance and helping him with his finances. But, I wanted a more fun job when the cabinets came in. I’ve always been a kid at heart. Video games and dumb stunts were my thing back then, and I always wore the bruises proudly. So, when dad boasted he’d gotten a rare, one of a kind, arcade cabinet I had to get my hands on it. 

          “We should test it out, make sure it’s actually fun.” I’d said. I was hoping he’d say yes. Summer was almost over and I’d have to go back to mom when she moved back home, after living in France for two years as a tour guide. “Cain, we’ll find out how well-liked it is later. We don’t need to test it.” He said with a grin. “Well, I want to. Maybe it doesn’t even work— if it’s so rare, there must be a reason like the machine breaking down.” I said. “Or maybe there just weren’t that many of them made. Besides, Joey wouldn’t sell me a broken machine.” He said. “Dad, please.” I said. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Fine. You can play after we finish moving the machines in.” He said.

          Moving the machines in was easy. It was kind of strange, putting them in place of the older machines I’d grown up with like Pac Man and Tempest. Polybius, the arcade cabinet, was certainly different in appearance. It was a black arcade cabinet instead of an eye-catchingly bright color. On it, outlines of neon green triangles and circles decorated the side. If I had to pick an arcade cabinet to compare it to, in terms of how plain it looked, I’d probably say Tempest— albeit hesitantly. Even Tempest is more eye-catching than Polybius.

          When the moving was finished, my father went home. We lived right next door to the arcade, so he wasn’t concerned about leaving me behind. So, I booted up the cabinet and took out a stack of quarters and put one in the machine. It booted up beautifully, but the graphics were all geometrical shapes. I played as a triangle, and fired at two triangles superimposed on each other. The two triangles put out circles and squares, which my small triangle had to shoot before being hit. But, it was… out of place. Colors and complex patterns covered the screen each level I cleared, and the lights flashed. I was on a high level, with blue and green lights and a moving diamond overlay when I glanced at the time. 

         It was one in the morning, which was strange. It had only been four PM when I finished moving the machines, and yet I couldn’t remember when my feet started to ache or that I’d beaten more than five levels. Stranger still was that my father hadn’t called me home, but when I asked the next morning he told me I’d been home. I’d come and grabbed more quarters, and something to eat. I didn’t remember any of that, but I’d found another roll of quarters in my pockets and my clothes smelled like hoagies. 

          The apparent amnesia was common when I played, but I chalked it up to having fun. After all, time flies when you’re having fun and I had difficulty remembering what I was doing if I was thinking about something else. I thought I just enjoyed Polybius, and that was why I kept going back when I finished work and playing for hours. I couldn’t sleep, either, but I chalked it up to thinking about the arcade cabinet constantly. I wanted to play badly; something was drawing me in. It didn’t help that I only had one friend, Kyler. It wasn’t that I was disagreeable, but rather that I didn’t care how many friends I had. My parents were divorced, sure, but I had a good family, a good job, and a future. Life was good. If only it stayed that way.

          I didn’t know anything was wrong until I came out of my Polybius-induced stupor and Kyler was there. Which was strange; Kyler was blind. I would play arcade games with him, sure, but I’d have to guide him the whole time by telling him where to move. Seeing him adapt to that was always interesting, but even I had trouble determining where things were in Polybius. And besides, he liked calmer games like Pokémon where he could memorize layouts and only needed occasional updates on what was around him. 

          But, while I stared and wondered where he came from, the triangle he was playing as was blown up by a rogue square. He didn’t speak to me as he inserted another quarter and kept playing. He got hit almost immediately. The silence was odd— if I didn’t say anything, he’d say something to me and tease me for missing something or not talking fast enough. So, I put my hand on his shoulder.

          “Kyler? When did you get here?” I asked. He spun around, eyes just slightly off from where I was. “What do you mean? You called me and told me to come here?” He asked. Then he paused and took out his phone. At the press of a button, it started reading off his notifications and the time. It was six in the morning, and he’d had seventeen missed calls from his mom and dad. “Six in the morning?! I could’ve sworn it’d only been five minutes…” he said. “I don’t remember calling you; when did you get here?” I asked. He paused again, then rubbed his face. “Uh… seven, maybe seven-thirty. Shit. I need to go home.” He said. I knew he lived a few blocks away, and I didn’t want him walking home alone at night. Not with his white cane, which I couldn’t help but think would mark him as a target for would-be muggers. “Let me drive you home. It’s pretty late.” I said. He agreed, and we got in the car.

         “Cain, I kind of remember a little bit now. Not much, but… the cabinet apparently spoke, I think.” He said halfway to his house. “It did?” I wouldn’t doubt it, even if I couldn’t remember it speaking. With a little more effort, though, I remembered faint words on the screen, though the memory was too blurry to make them out. “It did.” He said with a sigh. I was very concerned, at that moment, that I couldn’t remember what just happened or that Kyler and I had been hanging out for almost twelve hours. Or could only remember a picture of the machine and not even know when I saw it.

          Either way, I had work in an hour and a half. And I wasn’t even tired. I tried not to think about Polybius, not to play it again, but I found myself inserting a quarter into the machine as soon as I was done with work. With a quarter already in the machine, I resigned myself to playing just a little bit. I don’t remember what happened after that, but I came to in some tunnels underground. Kyler was there, arm linked in mine and his free arm sweeping the ground with his cane. I didn’t even know there were tunnels under the town. Neither did Kyler. We wandered for hours, and exited the tunnels about an hour later. 

          Days had apparently passed from the time we played the arcade cabinet and we ended up in the tunnels. We were declared missing in the time we didn’t remember, and our  parents were upset. Kyler’s, because they thought he’d been kidnapped, and my father because he assumed I got hurt and stranded alone somewhere. He was mad when I told him I didn’t know what happened, that Kyler and I ended up in some tunnels under the town. He said there were no tunnels, that I was lying. I know I wasn’t, and I knew I wasn’t lying then either. I saw things, then. Shapes, mostly, flitting across my vision and people in my peripheral vision who weren’t even there. It went away after I slept. And things like that just keep happening.

          I have to destroy the machine.

          So, I stand with a baseball bat I’d hidden in the supply closet. The machine flashes to life, as if it knows I’m here. “Salutations, Cain.” The words appear on the screen. I take a step closer as my arms and legs feel like jello. I just have to get in one good hit, one good hit and this nightmare is over. But, then, against my will the bat falls out of my hands and clatters to the floor. My legs move of their own accord, and I stand in front of the machine. “You think you can mock me, Cain? I cannot be destroyed so easily.”

          I’m curled up in a corner, next thing I know, and I’m being shaken. “Cain, have you been here all night?! You had me worried sick!” It’s my father. “What time is it?” I ask. My words are slurred, and it feels like there are dull needles just behind my eyes. But I’m still not tired. “It’s eight in the morning!” He says. I’ve been here for… over twelve hours. Have I been in this corner all night? It can’t be; my limbs aren’t stiff. “Are you sure you’re good to work today? You’re really out of it, Cain.” My father says. I look around; the baseball bat is nowhere to be found. “Uh… y-yeah, I think so.” I say.

          So, I stand and get to work opening up. Footsteps shuffle behind me. “Maybe taking the day off would be good for you. I don’t think you’re up for working today.” My father says. I shake my head and refrain from wincing at the ache it causes. “I’ll be fine. Just need to move around a bit.” I say as I unlock the front door, our early gamers already waiting outside. Well, I suppose it’s less that they’re early and more that we’re half an hour late. I stick near Polybius today, and what strikes me more than anything is the long line. It’s so orderly it’s baffling, and then anyone who has played stumbles out quietly. Without touching another arcade cabinet. Maybe the machine is affecting more than just me. The thought sends chills down my spine. It feels… right. I have to try to destroy it again tonight.

          So, after a long day, I dismiss everyone in the line like I’ve been doing every day since Polybius showed up. But, once everyone is gone, the urge to play comes back. I fight against it and fill a bucket with water before going back to where Polybius stands. Dropping water on it may break some other cabinets, but I don't care. I just want this one gone. It flashes to life again, showing a laughing face. I feel like jello again, and stumble forward only to carefully put the bucket of water down. This time, when I come to, I’m in my room. There’s blood on the floor, and a hot ache in my arms. My arms are covered in blood, so I take a dirty towel to wipe it away. I’ll clean them after they stop bleeding. Except, when I wipe it away, more oozes up out of my arms. There are cuts in my arms. I pause. I don’t remember doing this, either. But, it feels right. Like all the other times I’ve come to in odd places, from the tunnels to alleyways.

          I really can’t keep doing this. Polybius needs to go. But right now I need to clean up all the blood on the floor and get my arms situated. So, I take a few more dirty towels and wipe up the blood and take turns pressing down on each arm to stop the bleeding. When it stops, I throw on a long-sleeved shirt and head to the bathroom. I examine the wounds more closely, as I wash them with soap and water while ignoring the stinging. They look like clean cuts; I think a knife made them. But I don’t know. There wasn’t a knife around me when I came to. 

          I go to work again, like every day, but I stop a group of three teens. “I have a job for you, if you’ll take it. You’ll make a hundred bucks each.” I say. They squint at me. “What kind of job?” One asks. “I’ll give you the spare key to the arcade, and you’ll destroy Polybius after hours.” I say. The stout one shrugs. “Pay us first, then we’ll do it.”

***

          I come into work, like everyday. And immediately walk up to Polybius. It stands, with its screen smashed in and dents in its sides.

[rebelsarestrongashell]

A Complicated Profession - Part 2

A/N: How amazing was episode 3?!? Not my best writing but really wanted to get this update out, still getting use to reader inserts! Also, this is way longer than I thought it would be! Hope you enjoy!

Binders still on, the Mandalorian quickly shoves you into the cockpit of his large, beaten down ship.

“Who hired you?” You ask with little patience

“If you’re asking who put the bounty on your head, I don’t know, take a seat,” Mando replied sharply, pointing to the chair behind the pilot's seat and not even bothering to look at you.

“Well, who gave you the puck?”

The Mandalorian ignored you as he messed with the controls and lifted the ship into the air.

“Greef Carga. I’m in the guild; he gives me the pucks.” He finally responded.

“And what were you told I was wanted for?”

“Smuggling.”

You couldn’t contain the laughter that erupted from you, finally causing Mando to turn his head towards you.

“Smuggling,” You repeated through the laughter, “That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. Please tell me you saw straight through that when I saw I lived on a farm.”

“Yes. It doesn’t change that you’re the highest bounty I’ve seen in some time.”

“How much?”

“That’s nothing you need to worry about,” Mando had run out of patience with you, “Now keep quiet before I make you.”

He turned his complete attention to the controls has the ship left the planet’s atmosphere. You set your thoughts to the events that had just occurred. Somebody is lying to get to you, and whether it’s a careful friend or foe wasn’t clear yet. Cases could be made for each. Silence had taken over the cockpit when the hologram of an older man appeared on the dash.

“Mando! Have you obtained the quarry yet?”

“Yes, not without some trouble from other hunters, though.”

“That’s what I was afraid of. Another bounty has been placed on her, and it’s twice as high. They want proof of death.”

Your heart plummeted, the wind completely knocked out of you. The Mandalorian’s head was again turned towards you, just over his shoulder. You did your best to keep a neutral expression, but who exactly was after you was starting to click into place and you couldn’t push the fear away for much longer.

“I’m bringing her in alive like I was hired to do.”

“Good. The client has offered to bump up your reward if you bring her straight to them alive. Safe passage, Mando.”

With the ship now on autopilot, the Mandalorian spun his seat towards. He didn’t speak, just stared, seeming to study you and wait for something but you weren’t sure what.

“Are you expecting a thank you?” You asked firmly, wanting to break the growing tension.

“Who wants you dead?”

“I don’t know.” You lied.

“For some reason, I don’t believe that,” He leaned in closer, “I also don’t believe you’ve been a quiet farmer all your life.”

“Well, I’m not concerned about what you believe.”

In a flash, he has his blaster drawn and aimed towards you “I could use a vacation, and the reward for your proof of death would be more than enough.”

“Oh stop with the dramatics, you’re not going to shoot me or you would have done so already,” You leaned in even closer to the Mandalorian, so you were only a foot away from his helmet, “Besides, you don’t seem like the kind of man who is fond of vacations.”

There was a pregnant pause as he seemed to calculated his next move before slowly placing his blaster back into his holster and turning his attention back to the controls, quickly sending the ship into hyperspace.

“Whatever it is you actually did, you’re lucky those you set the original bounty seem determined to keep you alive.”

“I don’t think it’s that simple. It’s never simple.”

In your few experiences with bounty hunters, they never seemed to ask questions like this one does. Most wouldn’t give a second thought about who would want you dead. Even more confusing, most would jump at the chance for a high bounty. You should be dead by now, but here you are, still among the living. Maybe it was just a Mandalorian thing. This was your first time meeting one.

Neither one of you speaks for the rest of the journey, but he does occasionally look over his shoulder at you, making sure you didn’t magically disappear, you guess. He exits hyperspace, and you’re not sure what city, let alone what planet you’re descending on. The sky is clear, but yet a gray fog seems to cling to the air. As the ground comes closer, you can make out a handful of figures appearing to be awaiting your arrival.

“Those the clients?”

“Yes.”

The ship is now close enough that you can make out their faces, and the overwhelming feeling of panic takes over. These were no friends. You haven’t seen him since the day the Death Star was destroyed, and the Empire fell when he helped you escape and parted ways. His face tells you everything you need to know. He knows the truth, and there is no way you are walking out of this alive.

The ship lands, and you are desperate. “You can’t hand me over to these people please, please listen to me!”

Without a word, he effortlessly lifts you out of your seat, and the door of the cockpit opens. You try to plant your feet, but it is no use. You spin so you’re face to face with him, “Look, I’m sorry I called you a shitty bounty hunter and have been overall very aggravating, but these people will kill me, and I know bounty hunters never care, but there is something bigger at play here!”

The Mandalorian pauses, seeming to take in your words before body stiffens, “You’re right, I don’t care.”

You squeeze your eyes shut, preparing for what is lying ahead. You take in a few deep breathes, thinking about your peaceful farm, the clear skies, and wind blowing through the crops. You think about the handful of happy memories you had before the war. You guess this is what it is like to have your life flash before your eyes. You try your best to hold back the tears you feel forming, but one escapes anyway. You knew the dangers of the game when you agreed to play, and now you are meeting them face to face. Lifting your chin, you open your eyes to see the Mandalorian still staring down at you but with a tilted head of confusion.

“Let’s get this over with, show you I’m right.”

You turn to leave the cockpit when something catches your eye in the corner, “Can I at least have my staff and blaster back?”

“No.”

The ramp descends, and you feel him right behind you, grabbing your arm and leading the way because apparently, you can’t handle walking on your own. You roll your eyes and take a quick peek at him behind your shoulder; his body is still tense. He’s on edge, and you can tell he trusts this situation as much as you do. You feel slightly less annoyed that he is holding on to you.

You used to be the best of the best, that is why they sent you, but that was years ago. However, as you make your way down the ramp, you start calculating the possible outcomes, and you can feel the old training beginning to kick in. You counted eight of them with your old pal, Ragnar, in the middle. All but Ragnar had their weapons drawn, clearly ready to take you in peacefully.

“You’re going to want to get out of here as soon as possible after you hand me off.” You whisper to Mando.

“Yeah, tell me about it.”

You couldn’t help but smirk at the sarcasm.

The two of you came to a halt a few feet in front of the group. Ragnar bore holes into you, waiting for you to blink first, but you didn’t, you refused.

A sudden smile appear on his weathered face, “Well there you are,” He held out his arms like he was about to embrace you, “I’m so glad we found you before those who wanted to harm you, I couldn’t even imagine.”

The Mando pulled you back, just out of Ragnar’s reach. Acknowledging Mando’s presence for the first time, he gave him a quick look of confusion before clearing his throat, “Ah yes,” He nodded towards one of his men, “You want payment before handing her over.”

A large man stepped forward with a steel case, setting it down in front of Ragnar.

“It’s not as much as the bounty put out for the others for proof of death, but it is higher than what you were promised. We appreciate your integrity.”

Mando’s grip on you tightened just enough for you to notice, and you heard a faint click from your binders. You kept your eyes locked on Ragnar, steel demeanor unchanged. A few tensioned filled seconds passed until Mando slowly started pushing you forwards to Ragnar.

An unkind shove officially transferred you to your enemies. Without another word, Mando turned and made his way up the ramp of his ship, picking up his payment on the way.

One of Ragnar’s men grabbed hold of your arm. His grip had a roughness to it that Mando’s did not. No one in the group moved, but all blasters were aimed at you, seeming to wait until the Mandalorian was good and gone before they killed you. But instead of the ship lifting off, Mando reappeared moments later with your staff in hand.

In the blink of an eye, he tossed your staff to you and while everyone was caught off guard, you spun and struck your captor across the head before swiping Ragnar off his feet. Your unlocked binders fell off with ease, and the sounds of firing blasters rung out around you.

Mando had already taken out two men by the time you grabbed Ragnar’s blaster, taking out the two men that were charging and firing at you.

“Get back on the ship!” Mando yelled at you.

Before you did, you looked back down at Ragnar, his eyes now filled with rage.

“They are coming for you,” He spat, “You will burn for your treachery.”

“Give it your best shot.” You spat right back before firing the blaster right at his chest.

“Let’s go!” Mando yelled as more of Ragnar’s men were charging at you from the city.

You sprinted up the ramp as he fired upon the incoming attackers. Suddenly Mando yelled in pain. You turned and saw him clutching his arm, struck by the incoming fire. You sprint towards, firing back at the men getting closer, giving him cover to get on the ship.

Arm now profusely bleeding, Mando closes the ramp and stumbles into the cockpit.

“Let me help.” You said, right on his tail.

“No. Sit.” He grunts, clearly in a tremendous amount of pain.

The ship roars to life, and you fall back into your seat as Mando roughly lifts the ship into the air. He ascends as quick as he cans before anyone can follow you. Within moments he had made the jump into hyperspace. For a moment there is peace in the silence, the calm beeps of the ship soothe you but still feel like you haven’t exhaled. Unsure of what to say and still trying to comprehend what just happened, you aimlessly stare at the back of Mando’s helmet.

“If I’m going to continue to risk my life for you, you’re going to have to tell me why.” the Mandalorian’s smooth voice behind the helmet brought you out of your trance.

Clearing your throat to respond, you notice the blood on his left arm, “Your arm needs looked at, do you have a medkit somewhere?”

“I can take care of it myself.”

“But you don’t have to.”

He turned towards you, and you could feel the frustration emanating from him.

“I need answers.”

“Sometimes it easier for me to talk when my hands are busy. Less thinking goes into it.”

Mando, once again, tilts his head and studies you, trying to figure you all out.

“Just outside of the cockpit, on the wall.” He sighs.

You give him a small smile and make your way to the hallway. The medkit is precisely where he said it would be, and he is already on the bench waiting for you.

You take a seat next to him and starting cleaning off his wound, ignoring his winces of pain, his helmet staring down at you the entire time.

“So…”

You let out a deep exhale. You don’t recall telling the full story to anyone before, but this bounty hunter that you’ve been on the run from for months, just risked everything to save your life. He deserves to know.

“That man, his name is Ragnar Syyn," You began, "He was an imperial officer." You paused to see if you make out any sort of reaction behind the helmet but there was none. He was listening, not judging so you continued. "For the past few years, since the fall of the Empire, I’ve been hiding away on my little farm in the outer rim. Hoping to find some sort of peace and to live out the rest of my days.”

“Hiding because you were part of the Empire?”

“I was a spy. I was a rebel who was able to infiltrate the Empire successfully, and it appears the remnants just found out, and they’re not going to like the information I have.”

Tag List: @sargesbestgirl​ @zoogrl05​ @poisonivy123​ @maryan028​ @thefandomzoneisdangerous​ @loveharrington​ @reblogin-manic

[beautiful-de4mity]

[Alice Nine Fanfiction] ASYLUM (Chapter 2)

Hiroto feels a faint twinge in his chest as he notices the gleam of admiration for the doctor named Amano in Shou’s beautiful eyes. He says nothing more and lets Shou back on scrutinizing the notebooks and journals he has been reading after promising Hiroto to have lunch together. Shou looks so excited despite being exhausted, thought Hiroto, surely Shou really admires that Amano guy.

Chapter 02 [Vulnerable]

Author: beautiful-de4mity

Fandom: Alice Nine

A/n: I’m happy to be this productive and excited on writing again! I actually overdid the research on this theme and one of my readers told me not to put too detailed things since this is only a piece of fanfiction 😂 in the next chapters, I’m trying to focus more on the relationships between characters. Ganbarimasu!

Inspired song: ASYLUM from PLANET NINE Album

Disclaimer: Can we all agree that Alice Nine’s bonds are so wonderful we can literally ship every member with anyone? /I’m talking trash lol

The wall clock in his office points at ‘one’ in the morning but Amano Tora is still enjoying the online game The Last of Us, which he plays with some friends through his customized PC. It was a tiring day in fact as the hospital research team was running a series of tests and monitoring on Saga and the poor boy doesn’t seem to be in a good condition. Saga was being a handful today; kept fighting back and trying to escape from the running procedures. Finally, they had to completely sedate Saga and put him to sleep forcefully after his attempt to strangle one of the doctors. Tora exhales instinctively as the scene flashes through his mind, distracting his focus from the game until his friends’ panic yelp are heard through the headphones.

“Warui, warui,” Tora picks back his focus on the game.

Tora finishes the game thirty minutes later, placing the headphones on the keyboard and taking off his glasses. The young doctor leans back on the chair, massaging the bridge of his nose and exhales for the umpteenth time. The corner of his eye catches Saga’s assessment chart, which is still empty since this afternoon since everything went off plan. Tora somewhat feels relieved for Ohara Shou, the psychology student he was involved in researching Saga’s case, reported that he couldn’t come because of a group assignment today. Tora doesn’t want to scare Shou by seeing Saga went berserk and change his mind. Tora is really fond of Shou’s research proposal, it is very potential and promising.

The hospital corridor in the psychiatric ward is deserted, of course, it is almost dawn. Only a few people from the night shift remaining, chatting in the administration section sipping coffee. Tora smiles when several nurses greet him and giggle, making him shake his head as he enters the toilet. It is a public secret that Amano Tora becomes the idol of the female staffs in the psychiatric ward, even staffs from other departments throughout this hospital know him. Even so, Tora is not interested in dating anyone at all. Currently, work and games are two aspects of his life that he can’t abandon.

Tora pauses for a moment at the turn of the corridor upon returning from the toilet, staring at the door of Saga’s room several meters ahead where the young man is still sleeping under the anesthetic effect. Tora’s wondering if he should check on the poor boy’s condition even though he could just go to the monitor room to look through the CCTV. The young doctor finally walks over to Saga’s room and peeks through the glass window. Tora’s forehead frowned when he finds out Saga is writhing restlessly on his bed as if he is struggling to escape from something. Was he tied up earlier? Tora hurriedly pasts his ID to unlock the door, he then darts next to Saga’s bed and more surprised to find Saga’s shaking drenched in sweat. The young man seemed to be trying hard to fight something in his sleep but could not scream for someone to wake him up.

“Saga,” Tora kneels beside the bed and tries to wake his patient. “Saga, are you okay?” as slowly as possible, Tora shakes Saga’s body so that he won’t be startled or terrified.

Saga is trembling badly that Tora feels the need to grab onto Saga’s thin shoulders to prevent him from falling off the bed. Saga looks like he is trying to fight something terrible in his sleep, Tora can see clearly the expression of fear even though Saga’s eyes are closed. Saga clenches his jaws tightly, holding back the screams while both of his hands groping for the air almost punch Tora’s face. Just when Tora decides to force Saga to wake up, both of Saga’s eyelids opened. In the dark. Tora catch the glint of tears pooling down his dark irises. With a broken breath, Saga jolts up and immediately grabs Tora’s neck, hugging him very tightly as if he intends to break the young doctor’s neck. Tora tries not to make any sudden movements that can trigger Saga to panic even though his neck starts to ache.

Cautiously, Tora got up from his kneeling position and sits on the edge of Saga’s bed while Saga still clinging onto him like a Koala. Tora can feel Saga’s ferocious heartbeat, so fast that it might explode at any moment even though his body gradually stops shaking while his white clothes are soaked with sweat.

“It’s okay, I’m here.” Tora pats Saga on the shoulder awkwardly.

Saga buries his face in Tora’s shoulder more deeply, not making a sound.

“You had a nightmare?” asks Tora, followed by a small nod as the answer.

The young doctor fixes his position so that Saga can calm himself faster, while Saga himself feels a little confused about his own reaction: clinging on Tora as if Tora is a magnetic field. Come to think of it since the beginning of his arrival at this hospital’s psychiatric ward, Amano Tora is the only person who makes him feel safe and Saga doesn’t mind at all having any kind of contact with him. Even at this moment, Saga can clearly smell the faint scent of Tora’s perfume mixed with trail of tobacco, oddly helps him to calm down.

“I’ll leave when you can sleep again,” Tora breaks the silence when the sound of their breaths is the only sound heard in the room a few moments later.

Saga quickly shakes his head, gripping the front of Tora’s shirt to indicate the young doctor not to leave him. The response makes Tora’s brows furrowed in surprise. Indeed, all this time Saga has always shown a rather sweet, cooperative-good boy attitude to him, but he does not expect Saga to be this vulnerable with him when Saga usually guarded and distance himself from people. Tora takes notes carefully in his mind about Saga’s current behavior to be written later on the assessment chart he left on his desk.

“Okay, I’ll stay with you until you fall asleep,” again, Tora strokes Saga on the shoulder awkwardly.

For the first time in three months under his specialist care, Saga shows signs that he is starting to trust Tora. If Saga could tell Tora directly about how the young doctor make him feel safe and at ease whenever Tora is around, maybe Tora wouldn’t have been wondering this much. Saga manages to go back to sleep around three a.m. in the morning. Tora’s body feels so beaten up and he almost gives up temptation to fall asleep beside Saga. But he can’t let people find him sleeping while having his patient on his arms like that afterall.

***

Ogata Hiroto, a petite-built art student with flaming blonde hair, is pacing back and forth with a confused look of a typically lost child in the psychology faculty library building in his search for Shou. For several days, he had gone back and forth to the psychology faculty to find his senior, but the results were always to no avail. Shou didn’t reply to his LINE, didn’t update his YouTube channel, and didn’t update his Instagram for three days in a row, Hiroto was worried. Hiroto’s gaze finds a flash of Shou’s somewhat disheveled brunette hair on the desk next to “Journal Publications” section shelves, appearing star-like sparkling effect in the cute young man’s eyes.

“Shou yaaaaaan!” Hiroto’s excited voice and the sight of him running happily towards Shou, drawing all of the library visitors’ attention. “Ah, sorry, sorry,” Hiroto gives a shy bow as people stare at him with blasphemous looks.

Shou looks up from his notebook and journal print outs that are scattered on the table, he smiles sweetly at Hiroto. Shou’s face is slightly pale with trace of dark circles under his eyes, and overall he looks unusually scruffy. Hiroto is anxious and astonished as he sits next to Shou.

“Shou yan, are you okay? Shou yan sick or something?“ Hiroto’s eyebrows knitted, observing Shou’s unusual appearance from head to toe.

"No, I’m just having bunch of assignments,” Shou replies softly, putting down the pen he is still holding and now focusing on Hiroto completely. “What brings you here?”

Hiroto pouts, “I’ve been looking for you for the past three days, you know! Shou yan didn’t reply to my LINE, didn’t post anything on SNS even though usually you upload something regularly,” the cute young man sulks.

Shou ruffles Hiroto’s blonde hair exasperatedly, “Sorry, I’m really busy lately because the midterm exam right around the corner and Amano sensei has just invited me to join his research team,” explains the beautiful-eyed young man, his face flushes with joy when he mentioned ‘Amano sensei’.

“Who is Amano sensei?” noticing the unusual glow in Shou’s face makes Hiroto feel uneasy.

“Oh, him,” Shou’s face which was slightly pale now beamed. “He’s a neuropsychiatric at the private central hospital in Shibuya. When I was a freshman, the faculty invited him to be one of the speakers and since then I have been interested in doing research in neuropsychiatry. A few days ago I sent my research proposal on mutism and asked him to be the instrument validator. Surprisingly, he then recruited me to the hospital research team that currently is handling a case of mutism,“ Shou explains enthusiastically.

Hiroto feels a faint twinge in his chest as he notices the gleam of admiration for the doctor named Amano in Shou’s beautiful eyes. He says nothing more and lets Shou back on scrutinizing the notebooks and journals he has been reading after promising Hiroto to have lunch together. Shou looks so excited despite being exhausted, thought Hiroto, surely Shou really admires that Amano guy. Without Shou noticing, Hiroto is now watching him closely with his chin rests on his hand. Hiroto plays the memory where they first met inside his head. Shou was his two-year-older senior in high school. Shou is popular, student’s committee president, and also worked as a model for several local magazines. He’s always been so charming and stylish plus having brilliant personality that no one can resist.

It could be said that Shou saved Hiroto’s high school life. Being so shy, Hiroto found it difficult to make friends with other people. He always ate lunch alone in the school grounds until Shou accidentally found him and they have always had lunch together since then. Shou even helped Hiroto joining the photography club because Hiroto was too shy to do it himself and encouraged him to be the student committee. Shou has a huge role in shaping Hiroto’s current personality and Hiroto has always clung to Shou like a stray puppy.

Seeing Shou being highly motivated because of someone else like this, somehow brings up a feeling of reluctance even though Shou’s attitude hasn’t changed towards him at all. Hiroto lets out a sigh.

[bamon4bamily]

TVD 9x07 - The storm before the calm (part 2) Enjoy! =)

Edward arrives at the Lockwood house; the door and windows are broken. Something is very wrong, he knows…

EDWARD: Sheriff?! Sheriff!?... (searches the foyer, the living room, dining room, until he reaches the kitchen… Khuyana and Tyler are lying on the floor in a pool of blood, he drops the bottle of wine he had brought as a thank you gift). Oh, god! Oh, god! (Rushes to their aid, calls 911… Tyler begins to react). It’s okay, help is on the way….

TYLER: (Gains enough strength to get up, sees Khuyana is unresponsive, gives her his blood, she doesn’t respond). Why isn’t this working!?

EDWARD: Let me try, I have medical training… (gives her CPR, after a few attempts he finally gets a heartbeat, the paramedics arrive soon after). Quick, help her!

 Cut to - Mystic General Hospital. Edward, Tyler, Bonnie, Damon, Caroline, Stefan, Alaric, Radka and Elena are in the waiting room; Khuyana has been rushed into surgery; Sam is in the O.R with her.

 EDWARD: (Takes Tyler aside) I know you are still in shock, but I need you to tell me exactly what happened.

TYLER: All I remember is a bunch of military guys and federal agents barging in… they arrested Matt, knocked him unconscious, then gunshots.

EDWARD: Military and federal agents? That doesn’t make sense, he hasn’t done anything for them to have jurisdiction, and they most definitely wouldn’t shoot without probable cause.

TYLER: With all due respect, but you know it doesn’t work like that.

EDWARD: Well, it should… Listen, I have my people on this; rest assured we will find who is behind this.

TYLER: Thank you for all your help, I know I’ve been a jerk to you, and I’m sorry.

EDWARD: Don’t worry about it, I understand.

 Cut to – a secret facility, inside an isolation room. An agent enters Matt’s cell. He looks badly beaten.

 FEDERAL AGENT: Donovan… here (hands him a glass of water, he chugs it like his life depended on it). Listen, I’m not like the other guys, but trust me, man, if you don’t give us what we are asking for, this is only going to get worse…

MATT: Where is my wife?!

FEDERAL AGENT: Tell me what we need to know, and I’ll tell you where she is.

MATT: Screw you…

FEDERAL AGENT: Some advice, you are playing with the big boys now, papa Powell can’t bail you out of this one; so, it’s in your best interest to cooperate… I’ve seen some pretty fucked up shit happen to people that don’t.

MATT: I swear; if you do anything to her…

FEDERAL AGENT: Aw, don’t you get it, Matt? We don’t care. Now, if it’s any motivation, I can tell you she is hanging by a thread, but if you give us what we want, I promise she’ll be just fine.

MATT: You are bluffing…

FEDERAL AGENT: You’re not very bright, are you? It’s no wonder our police force is at an ultimate crisis, pretty much anyone can qualify to become an officer. But I have to give it to you, you have some balls to be gambling with your wife’s life…

MATT: Please, I swear, I don’t know what you are talking about!

FEDERAL AGENT: Don’t insult my intelligence, Sheriff. If you don’t want to cooperate, that’s your choice; and you will suffer the consequences, but don’t try to play dumb with us. So, once again, where is the bunker’s location and where are the devices?

MATT: Fine, fine… the devices and the bunker’s location coordinates are at my house, in my bedroom’s safe, inside the closet; the combination is 235689.

FEDERAL AGENT: (He walks out of the cell, makes a phone call, comes back a few minutes later). You know, I’m the nice one, and yet you’ve managed to piss me off (hits him, then kneels to whisper). I’ll let you in on a little secret, when we went to get you, we shot your wife and friend on the spot, no questions asked; but somehow, they survived. Your friend made a full recovery, guessing he’s one of those supernatural freaks; and your wife is in surgery as we speak… takes a one-second phone call to make sure she doesn’t come out alive (stands up, kicks him). Welcome to the big leagues, Donovan.

MATT: (As the agent is about to leave) Wait…

 Cut to – Mystic General Hospital. Sam comes out of the OR.

 ELENA: How is she?

SAM: It was a complicated surgery, and she’s still in a delicate condition, but we are confident she will pull through.

EDWARD: Thank god. (To the gang) I’ve talked to my contacts at the agency and the military, they are definitely not involved; I have my people processing the scene, tracing any evidence that can lead us to the Sheriff and whoever is behind this.

TYLER: I saw them, they were wearing uniforms…

EDWARD: You can get anything on the internet nowadays; I’m sure they were fake.

ALARIC: But why come after Matt, and role-play to be the government?

EDWARD: I don’t know, but my team is the best in the field, and I know people in very high places; we will get to the bottom of this, all I ask is that you are patient. In the meantime, take care of Mrs. Donovan, and stay alert. I’m on call 24/7 for whatever you need. I have to go now; Mrs. Donovan’s medical treatment and accommodations have been taken care of; she is in the best hands.

BONNIE: Thank you, Mayor, for this; and that other thing…

EDWARD: Please, Ms. Bennett, call me Edward; and no thanks are required. The Sheriff is not only a fellow colleague; he is a friend. As for the other thing, it was the least I could do. I’d love to be able to stay longer, but I really must go; it was a pleasure seeing you again (kisses her hand, blushes), we will be in touch (leaves).

TYLER: Listen, guys, why don’t you go home and rest. I’ll stay with Khuyana and call you with updates.

SAM: I’ll be here making rounds, so don’t worry.

ELENA: And I’ll stay with Sam.

CAROLINE: Are you sure?

ELENA: Yes, Care, go; we will keep you posted.

 Cut to – The Mayor’s house; the Madame, the Strange Man, and Edward talking.

 STRANGE MAN: I thought you said Darius’s groupies had been taken care of.

EDWARD: They have, this is someone else.

THE MADAME: I’m getting very irritated with all of this.

EDWARD: (Looking quite irritated himself) Well so am I!… I don’t like unexpected surprises.

STRANGE MAN: And we are positive Ms. Bennett contained Darius? Maybe he’s still playing mind games…

THE MADAME: With her power, that would be close to impossible, dear. I’m more inclined to think this is someone that wants to sabotage the order, to impose their own...

STRANGE MAN: Do you think it’s an inside job?

EDWARD: Might be; with Darius’s revolution the society has been divided.

THE MADAME: With that type of manpower and armory, it has to be someone very high up the food chain.

EDWARD: And that reduces our suspect list considerably (lights a cigarette).

THE MADAME: I didn't know you smoked, love...

EDWARD: I don’t.

Cut to – The Salvatore house living room.

 BONNIE: I’ve tried everything, a locator spell, psychic reach, nothing… I can’t even sense him… it’s like Matt fell off the radar completely.

CAROLINE: What should we do? We have to find him…

ALARIC: There is nothing more we can do… the Mayor has his whole team looking, even brought in secret service, military, special agents, pretty much every heavyweight there is; I think they are our best shot at finding Matt.

CAROLINE: This is so frustrating!

RADKA: I’m sure they will find him; it’s what they do. Right?

DAMON: What are we, brainwashed or something?! We can’t trust the government to take care of this.

ALARIC: I’m not saying we should trust them; I’m saying, they are our only option, Damon.

BONNIE: No, they're not, Ric. I’m sure this has something to do with that bunker, and why Matt was kept there. So, I think we should ask the man that lured him there…

DAMON: Bon, no…

BONNIE: I can handle him.

CAROLINE: Are you insane, Bonnie? There is no way in hell we’re letting you go near that psycho again!

BONNIE: Care, I’m stronger than him, and he is trapped in my illusion; I have absolute control. Sorry, but this is my decision; I’m doing this.

DAMON: Fine, Bon, but I’m doing this with you, and that’s my decision.

CAROLINE: And so am I; we respect your decision; you have to respect ours.

BONNIE: You two are so stubborn!

DAMON: The pot calling the kettle black…

ALARIC: Guys, please, let’s just wait and see if they find him; we don’t need to put anyone at risk.

STEFAN: I agree; if they don’t find him in a day or two, we’ll take it from there.

BONNIE: They shot Tyler and Khuyana like it was nothing, who knows what they’ll do to Matt, we can’t wait.

DAMON: What’s the game plan, Bon?

BONNIE: We go into the illusion, twirl with his mind, find out what he knows… that’s all I got for now.

ALARIC: Okay, since you’re gonna do this regardless of what we say; we should at least get Danae and that Madame lady to help.

BONNIE: Danae and Klaus went back to New Orleans; I think she’s had enough of her brother, so let’s leave her out of this one.  

DAMON: But we could use Vampirella's help, Bon; she can be ruthless when it comes to getting people to spill the beans.  

BONNIE: She can be ruthless, period. If she’s game, we’ll definitely bring her along. If not for us, I’m sure she’ll do it for the Mayor.

KATHERINE: (Who has, once again, sneaked in on their conversation). I’m happy to help too…

CAROLINE: Seriously?! You’re still here?!

KATHERINE: I told you, Blondie, it takes time to pack. You know, I’ve always had a soft spot for Matty blue eyes, so if you want my help, I’m in.

DAMON: (Sarcastically) Aw, how sweet of you, Kitty Kat, but no thanks.

BONNIE: Actually, she can help.

DAMON: With what, Bon?

BONNIE: With what she does best.

KATHERINE: Well, second best, unless this mission of yours requires a sexual encounter…

BONNIE: (Rolls her eyes, yet can’t help but smirk) It doesn’t. All you have to do is be yourself.

CAROLINE: Aka, a bitch.

KATHERINE: Well, that is my area of expertise (winks).

CAROLINE: Uhm, and how is that going to help? And, I can be a bitch too, so I don’t see the added value.

BONNIE: You can try, but it’s impossible to hate you, Care. On the other hand, that comes naturally to her; she can help us drive Darius to his breaking point, and that’s gonna make it easier to get the information we need.

KATHERINE: Once again, Barbie, my talents succeed yours…

BONNIE: Okay; let’s go…

STEFAN: Wait, where is Darius exactly? I get really confused with the psychic stuff.

BONNIE: He’s locked up in that bunker; Edward let us keep him there.

STEFAN: And you’re sure it’s safe to go back there? I mean...

BONNIE: We’ll be fine, Stefan, it’s under the Mayor’s control now.

CAROLINE: Hey, come here. (Takes Stefan aside) Listen, I know you wanted to talk, and we will, I promise; let us find Matt, and I swear we’ll go to our spot and talk as long as you want; okay? 

STEFAN: Just be careful, Care; and help Damon keep an eye on Bonnie; I know she is strong, but that psycho is resourceful and obsessed with her.

CAROLINE: I will.

STEFAN: I hate that I can’t be more useful.

CAROLINE: Hey, don’t say that; you are; if it weren’t for you, I’d probably be crazy by now. I love you (kisses him)

STEFAN: I love you too. 

BONNIE: (To Damon, also on the side) You know, you don’t have to see him again, I can do this alone.

DAMON: I know you can, but we are a team, so you’re stuck with me.

BONNIE: (Smiles and teases) And you’re stuck with me too…

DAMON: (Smirks) Can’t think of anything better than that… (kisses her).

BONNIE: Once we find Matt, and everything is back to normal, we are definitely taking some time off.

DAMON: I’m already packed (kisses her again).

KATHERINE: (Looking at both couples) Okay, enough with the puppy love, can we go now?

BONNIE: Yep, let’s go. I’ll call the Madame lady on our way there. (Bonnie, Damon, Caroline, and Katherine leave).

 Cut to – Mystic General. Matt runs in.

 MATT: (Desperate) Where is she!? How is she!?

TYLER: (Shocked to see him) Man, thank god! (Hugs him) Don’t worry, she’s fine; she’s in recovery. What happened? (Sees he has been beaten) What did they do to you?!

MATT: I’m fine; they got the wrong guy; once they figured that out, they let me go. I need to see her...

TYLER: Sure; she’s in room 302. (Matt rushes to see Khuyana; Tyler takes out his phone and calls Bonnie... goes straight to voice message; then Caroline... voice message; then Alaric).

ALARIC: Tyler, is everything okay? How is Khuyana?

TYLER: She’s stable, but that’s not why I’m calling; Matt’s here.

ALARIC: (In shock) What?! I’ mean, that’s great! But, what the hell happened? Is he alright?

TYLER: He’s beaten up, but he’ll be okay, I hope. Don’t know what happened, we couldn’t talk, he ran in to see Khuyana. All he told me was that they figured out they got the wrong guy, and let him go.

ALARIC: That’s strange... Listen, I have to call Bonnie, I’ll call you back (hangs up).

 Cut to -the Salvatore living room.

 STEFAN: What’s going on?

ALARIC: Matt is back, he’s at the hospital. Call Caroline, I’ll call Bonnie.

STEFAN: (As he is dialing) Is he okay?

ALARIC: (Also dialing). He’s beat up, but Tyler says he’s fine. 

STEFAN: Voice message... probably ran out of battery.

ALARIC: Typical! Well... guess Bonnie did too (hangs up).

STEFAN: Let me try Damon... ( as he is dialing, Damon, Bonnie, Caroline and Katherine, come through the door).

KATHERINE: Well, that was the shortest mission ever!

ALARIC: Guys, Matt is back!

BONNIE: We know. When we were driving to the bunker, I suddenly sensed him again. We were gonna call you but our phones are dead. He’s at the hospital. We need to go see him.

ALARIC: Yes; let’s go. Rad, can you stay here with the girls?

RADKA: Sure; call me if you need anything.

ALARIC: Will do. (Kisses her; as they are heading out, he turns to Caroline, Damon, and Bonnie...) And, guys, please, charge your damn phones!

Cut to – The Mayor’s house. Edward on the phone with Tyler.

 EDWARD: ... I’m glad he’s okay. I’ll go see him first thing tomorrow morning (hangs up).

THE STRANGE MAN: They let him go? Just like that? I doubt it.

EDWARD: That is obvious. I’m certain he had to give them something in return, and we all know what that is… We need to move fast.

THE MADAME: (Using her mental powers to appear as Edward’s dead mother) My darling, I think it’s time to put your pride aside; you need to call your father...

Cut to – Mystic General. The gang arrives to see Matt.

 CAROLINE: Elena, how is he?!

ELENA: He’s okay. Sam treated his wounds, he’s inside with Khuyana.

BONNIE: What happened?!

ELENA: All he told us was that they let him go after they realized he wasn’t the guy they were looking for.

TYLER: I’ll go get him so you can talk to him; but, once you do, I think we need to leave, let him be with his wife.

CAROLINE: Yes, sure. (Tyler goes to get Matt, after a few minutes he comes out; Caroline runs to hug him) Matt! How are you? How is she?!...

MATT: I’m fine, Care, and so is she. Thanks for being here for her.

CAROLINE: Of course!

MATT: (Turns to Bonnie) Bon... (hugs her really tight) Are you okay?

BONNIE: I’m the one that should be asking you that…

MATT: Not after everything you went through. Really, how are you?

BONNIE: I’m fine, and happy to see you, is what I am.

MATT: (Smiles, hugs her even tighter, tears rolling down his cheeks). Bon…

BONNIE: (Consoling him) It’s okay, it’s okay… it’s over.

MATT: (After a few minutes of venting) Why did we ever come back to this place?

BONNIE: (Grabs him by his cheeks, and looks tenderly into his eyes) Cause it’s our home…

 Cut to – a secret facility, inside a very high-tech looking office. A man is sitting in front of surveillance monitors; live footage from the gang at the hospital, the Salvatore house, the Mayor’s house, the Lockwood house, the bunker. The man gets a call, he picks up…

 MAN: Hello, son...

  TVD 9x08 (part 1) coming next! Hope you stop by, read and enjoy! =)

[herocentral]

Possible Hero 6

Afternoon folks sorry for the late update but I’ve been a little busy with uni work but thankfully I’ve had time to update my story. I’ve recently seen the season 2 finale of BH6 the series and I must say its exceeded and all but touching finale just what it needs. Plus it works in conjunction with my future story idea inspired by Spider Man far from Home. Anyhoo heres chapter 3 of Possible Hero 6. 

Big hero 6 & Kim Possible (c) Disney,2020

Chapter 3:  Ninjas vs Flames.

“I take it your Drakken.?” Asked Yama. “Yes and you must be Mr.Yama.�� Drakken replied whilst trying not to look intimidated. 

“Oh great I’m working with an overweight man in a track suit can my evil career get any lower.” Shego said to herself moaning. 

“Now straight to business.” Drakken said. “I have already acquired some of the components needed for our joint project.” 

“Good and your sure you can do what I require.” Yama said standing up. “Because the last person I trusted with an important item double crossed me and paralysed me with sushi!” He then said getting in Drakken’s face. 

“Well I assure you we won’t do such a thing, however we have had a little trouble from the local heroes.” Drakken then said.

“Oh please I thought I reached out to big time super villains maybe I should’ve looked up this Dementor guy instead.” Yama said doubting his new partner. 

“WHAT YOU DARE COMPARE ME TO THAT LOUDMOUTH!” Drakken said insulted. “I am Dr. Drakken the worlds greatest evils dooer !” 

“Yeah who gets beaten by a teen who’s the greatest evil un-dooer.” Yama then pointed out. “I watch the news.”

Drakken just gritted his teeth in frustration, and before he could say anything. 

“Okay Dr.D let me handle this.” Shego said stepping forward. 

“Listen pal, you reached out to us and we can do what we agreed to, so long as you keep your end of the deal.” Shego said getting in his face. 

“Unless you have any problems with our terms.” She then ignited her right hand with energy as she smiled sadistically suggesting to Yama the pain she would inflict.

For once the sweat of fear all but consumed Yama, he had to admit she was more intimidating than a certain other client he once answered to. 

“Uh no, just make sure you fulfil your end of the deal.” Yama then said trying to sound less intimidated. 

“Oh we will.” Shego said withdrawing. 

Soon the villain duo exited Good Luck Alley, dressed back in their trench coats.

“I still can’t believe we’re helping this guy, he never heard of diet and exercise.” Shego groaned. 

“Never mind that now Shego, according to Yama the next component we need is on a hard drive at a Krei archive.” Drakken said discussing the information that he handed to them. 

“Yeah well you do know that means inviting trouble from those Big Loser what ever they call themselves.” Shego pointed out but little did they know they were being watched by a a small drone device hovering above Good Luck Alley. 

Elsewhere

On a monitor someone was watching what was taking place and the discussion between the two partners in crime. 

“I doubt they even know where we’re going next and it’s better than getting the attention of a certain teen we know and hate.” Drakken said. 

Obake used his console to get a close up of Drakken’s face and looked up his profile. 

“Dr. Drakken, Pft amateur.” He scoffed but his attention then turned to his green assistant. “His companion on the other hand, does have a lot of potential. 

“Perhaps it's time to test that potential.” He then smirked as the left side of his face glowed neon purple. 

The following morning

San Fransokyo awakes to a bright summer morning and the people of this fair city are all at work and wandering the streets. Far side of the city, a cab pulls up to a large mansion inside the cab was Ron Stoppable wearing his normal red and black sports jersey with brown pants and white shoes. Rufus was accompanying him. 

Since meeting Fred at SFIT the two really seemed to hit it off and so the comic fanatic decided they should go for a tour of the city and some of Freds favourite sites, and Ron not being one to turn down such an offer agreed.

Ron exits the cab and makes his way to the front door. “Whoa.” Rufus squeaked. “Yeah Gogo wasn’t kidding he is rich.” Ron agreed. 

He then proceeded to ring the doorbell, and soon a butler answered the door he had black hair and a moustache, was rather skinny but wore a suit. 

“Uh hey, I’m looking for Fred, I’m a friend of his.” Ron said and Rufus nodded in agreement. 

“Of course master Fredrick is expecting you.” Heathcliff said politely and stepped aside and let Ron past then escorted him through the mansion. Ron couldn’t believe what he was seeing the mansion was huge and portraits lined the hallways one was a family portrait of Fred, his father and mother. 

The door at the end of the hall opens to reveal Freds room it was large and was full to the brim with science fiction items arcade machines a large screen television and above his bed a portrait of him riding a fearsome white tiger creature. 

“Whoa!” Ron and Rufus breathed. Fred was playing his arcade machine and didn’t notice the two. 

“Master Fredrick.” Heathcliff called “Master Stoppable is here to see you.” 

Fred turns round to see his visitors at the door.

 “Ron my man you made it!” Fred said as he paused his game and went over to them. 

“Dude this is your home!” Ron said amazed. “Yep, technically it belongs to my parents, my dads away in the family jungle seeing to the petting zoo.” Fred explained. 

Ron then noticed one of the ornaments at the rear of the room. “Wait, is that an armoured suit from Heroes Duty!” He exclaimed. 

“Yep, it is you play it.” Fred asked “Yeah from time to time but I’m more into Zombie Mayhem.” Ron explained. “Zombie Mayhem! Dude that’s like my third favourite game!” Fred said. 

Rufus then noticed something on the sofa, he hopped out of Rons pocket and climbed onto the sofa, and he saw what looked like a smaller version of Baymax. 

“Greetings!” The small Baymax said and Rufus squeaked in shock. Ron looked to see what it was the Rufus was scared of. 

“Wait whats that?” Ron asked “it looks like Baymax.” 

“Your not too far off dude.” Fred explained.

“Greetings I am Mini-Max.” Mini Max introduced standing dramatically. “I am programmed to assist and protect my fellow heroes.” Mini max then pulls a combat stance and back flips onto the floor. “To thwart villainy and to be a champion for justice.” 

Rufus just blinks and Mini-Max blinked his blue eyes and tilted his head. 

“Its something Hiro built to keep me company when him and the others were in class.” Fred explained. “Wow, he’s kinda cool.” Ron said about to touch him until Mini Max grabs his hand and flips him over onto his back. 

“Ow!” Ron said and Rufus was shocked and tried to hit Mini-Max but he just catches his small fist. “Whoa whoa! easy buddy they were just admiring you.” Fred said to the small robot. 

“Oh, my apologies.” Mini Max said and let go of Rufus’s fist. 

Fred then helps Ron up from the ground who rubs his hand. “Man for a little guy he really is strong.” Ron observed. 

“I know I found that out the hard way too.” Fred said recalling his first experience when Hiro gave him his small friend. 

Meanwhile at Krei Tech:

In Alister Krei’s office Hiro, Gogo and Baymax in their casual appearance were talking with the CEO about the recent break in. Since Yokai’s attack on the main campus Krei was fully aware that Hiro and his compatriots were Big Hero 6 for their sake he keeps their identities a secret. 

They were currently watching the security footage from the facility that a certain green thief had tried to rob before their intervention, via the use of Baymax’s chest monitor. They saw that said thief was stealing the cyber circuit. 

“Yep, it was a diversion.” Gogo said glaring at the screen. “I don’t suppose you know what that Cyber circuit is would you?” Hiro then asked turning to Alister. 

“Well, it was a prototype chip we made for an old robotics project.” Krei explained “But we never put it into production, given how it posed some problems and didn’t have any practical use in military or product applications.” 

“Well this green chick stole it for a reason.” Gogo said looking at the footage. 

“Best guess she’s building something but what?” Hiro wondered. 

“Well why don’t you ask Miss Possible?” Krei suggested. 

“What?” Gogo said with a raised eyebrow. “Well she was here yesterday about the robberies at my many facilities seems she and this woman have quite the history.” Krei explained. 

Hiro and Gogo looked at each other in surprise they knew how Kim was a sort of super hero like them, but to know she was working the same case. There maybe more going on than meets the eye. 

Later in the city as the citizens were going about their business and traveling on cable cars to their next destination. One of the passengers was Kim now wearing a green crop top exposing her midriff blue pants and white shoes. Her family was elsewhere exploring the sites with Hiro’s aunt. As the cable car moved she could see how advanced the city looks and bearing some landscape references to San Fransisco. 

(Background music: Watch me rise feat Shari Short)

Just then, she heard a sound it sounded like a jet engine she leaned out the car slightly and noticed a jet stream in the air and as she squinted her eyes she saw it was the red armoured robot she saw yesterday with large wings on his back flying through the city, on his back were two others dressed in yellow, black and purple armour. 

It was three members of Big Hero 6 as they flew across the city. 

Kim quickly pulled out her iPhone and using the zoom function quickly took a photo of them flying away. She thought this could be of use to Wade as she had a hunch. 

(End music)

SFIT

On the robotics campus Hiro was sitting at a desk in his lab, which previously belonged to his brother the very place where he built/rebuilt Baymax. Hiro was looking at the footage from Krei tech and tried to figure out a way to find their new villain. 

“Hiro.” A voice said which startled Hiro and he turned to see Baymax standing behind him. “Baymax you nearly gave me a heart attack!” Hiro said Baymax blinked and was about to say something. 

“Before you ask it’s an expression.” Hiro explained. 

“You are too close to the screen looking too close can result in eye strain and in some cases eczema on the eye lids and face, even potential eye damage.” Baymax then explained showing a diagram on his monitor. 

“He’s not wrong you know.” Another voice sounded and Hiro turned to see Kim in the lab entrance way. 

“Oh hey what brings you by?” Hiro asked turning off his monitor.

“Well, my family’s busy touring the city with your aunt and I thought I’d come back to look around a bit more.” Kim answered. 

“Thinking of enrolling here?” Hiro asked. “I don’t know.” Kim said coming in and looked around his lab. 

“So this is your lab.” Kim asked. “Yeah, well technically it’s my brothers old lab.” Hiro explained.

 Which got Kims attention and noticed the picture frame on his desk it was of Hiro and another boy who was much older than him about eighteen years of age he wears a black baseball cap with ninja lettering on it, black hair, brown eyes, wears a green jacket with a white shirt underneath. 

“So that’s your brother?” She asked pointing to the picture frame. “Yeah, that’s my older brother Tadashi.” Hiro said looking at it with a rather saddened look. 

“So what was he like?” Kim then asked. “Well where to start, he practically raised me after our parents died and when we moved in with Aunt Cass.” Hiro explained. “He actually saw the talent I had with robotics as I got older and cultivated my potential.” 

“Wow, sounds like he was a good man.” Kim said. “Tadashi is a good man, he had a commitment to help others.” Baymax then said. 

“Yeah, when I first started here I looked around and well Professor Granville told me I needed to earn this lab just as he did, but I just couldn’t stay away.” Hiro continued. 

Kim could admire Hiro’s persistence and understood why he would be in Tadashi’s lab despite his tutors wishes. 

“Eventually after some consideration she decided that working in my brothers lab would be good for me to make my own path just as he found his.” 

“You mean when he built Baymax?” Kim asked pointing to said robot. “Yeah.” Hiro then said. “Baymax was going to be his gift to the world, and I was going to be there with him after I showed of my microbots to the student showcase, but it just wasn’t meant to be.” Hiro then said as a lone tear went down his cheek. 

“I’m sorry.” Kim said sympathetically, realising how this would have an effect on Hiro’s psyche. 

“Tadashi is here.” Baymax then said and Kim wasn’t sure what he meant. However she then notices something out of the corner of her eye. It was a robot gauntlet coloured in red with rockets attached at the back of it. 

“Hey what’s that.” She said looking at the gauntlet and Hiro instantly panicked as he knew what it was. 

“Oh that thing well its…” Hiro said slightly sweating. “It kinda looks like one of those rocket fists that big red robot fired at the lecture yesterday?” Kim said then looked to Hiro. 

“Why is it here?” She then said with some suspicion. 

“Oh well its uh a souvenir from the attack at Krei tech.” Hiro said trying to come up with a cover story. 

“Souvenir?” Kim asked. “Uh yeah you see, uh Mr. Krei found it in the wreckage and since Professor Callaghan used my Micro bots to attack his campus he felt I needed some compensation.” Hiro explained. 

“You mean Alister Krei of Krei tech?” Kim asked “Yeah I met him at the student showcase.” He then said with a wide smile hoping she’d buy it. 

After a minutes worth of silence. “Seems reasonable.” Kim then said with a smile. Just then her Kimmunicator sounded off and decided to take her leave. 

“Sorry Hiro I’ve got to go.” Kim said “Its a save the world thing.” 

Soon she left the campus but still couldn’t help but wonder about the robot gauntlet she saw, and how Hiro had it, she knew he was a robotics major and could potentially produce something of that calibre, could he have some connection somehow. 

Noodle Burger Boy:

Meanwhile Ron was having a sitch of his own Fred had taken him to his favourite restaurant but Ron was a little skeptical to begin with. They were sat at Freds reserved spot and the waiter gave them their order of two Noodle Burgers with a side of fries. 

“Uh I’m not sure about this man.” Ron said being skeptical. “Dude how can you have doubts of the Noodle Burger.” Fred questioned.

“Well its just I never imagined a combo of noodles with burgers.” Ron said. “A wise man once said don’t knock it until you try it.” Fred said as he pushed the burger towards Ron. 

Ron was a little skeptical but decided to just take a leap of faith, so he picked up the burger and in that moment the world was in slow-motion, then Ron took a bite out of the burger as it crunched and cracked under his teeth. He chewed it then swallowed soon after. 

After a minute of silence Ron soon developed a wide smile on his face. 

“Dude. this. tastes… AMAZING!” He exclaimed. “See what I tell you.” Fred said as Rufus took  a bite from the burger and realised how delicious it was. 

“Mmm yummy!” Rufus said with a smile. 

“The man who made this was a true visionary.” Fred said as he enjoyed his lunch. 

“Yeah and I thought Nacos were awesome but this is new.” Ron agreed. 

“Nacos?” Fred said with a raised eyebrow and his mouth full. 

“Oh it’s a combo between Nachos and Tacos, my own invention.” Ron said 

“Tacos and Nachos, dude that’s a genius combo!” Fred agreed. 

“You know you should totally come by Middleton some time, but I can’t see why this city doesn’t have a Bueno Nacho.” Ron said.  “I mean where do I sign a petition?” 

The two shared a laugh together over a common bond.Then as they ate someone passed by them, an eleven year old chubby boy, wearing a black jacket with a Japanese writing with San Fransokyo writing, with a yellow long sleeved shirt underneath, brown hair, green pants and a mole under his left eye, with grey eyes.

“Frederickson.” Richardson said glaring. “Mole.” Fred said glaring. Richardson the walked away. 

“Dude who was that kid?” Ron asked. “Richardson Mole, my long time adversary and most hated enemy!” Fred said dramatically. 

“His family the moles are the reining rulers of the city’s Snob society.” Fred explained. “Not to mention he owns his own comic book store in the city.” 

“Well that sounds cool.” Ron said but saw Freds rather ticked off expression. “Okay arch rival I get it.” Ron said in defence. “And I thought Shego was good at the look.” 

“Wait she who?” Fred asked “Shego, she’s basically Kims arch enemy you know us being heroes and all.” Ron explained. 

Fred then froze in thought and all kinds of thoughts were running through his head and the word Shego kept coming up almost like he’d heard it before, then it suddenly hit him like a car smashing through a window. 

“Dude I gotta go it’s urgent!” Fred said getting up from his seat and ran out of there like a mad man possessed. 

“Well that was weird?” Ron said looking at his mole rat companion rather confused. 

Back at the Frederickson mansion Fred had just hurried into his room and began looking through his comic book collection for something specific. Soon his face beamed with joy as he found what he was looking for. 

Lucky Cat, Hiro’s Garage. 

Meanwhile Hiro, Wasabi, Baymax, Gogo, and Honey Lemon were in Hiro’s garage where he had set up a workshop and often served as a headquarters/meeting place for Big Hero 6. They were looking at a holo computer monitor looking over the security footage at Krei tech of Shego stealing the cyber circuit. 

“She’s clearly stealing these components for something.” Hiro observed. “So far most of the components are both cyber and mechatronics.” 

“Yeah but what is she using them for.” Honey Lemon said.

“Could she be building a bomb?” Wasabi asked “Why would she need a bomb?” Gogo wondered. 

“Well we know there’s only two facilities that she hasn’t hit yet, the main campus and the warehouse on the edge of town.” Hiro said looking at a board which had a map of the city pinned to it and several push pins with red yawn attached to them linking them together. It also showed the remaining two sites. 

“Well if we knew more of our mystery green lady thief we might have an advantage, there’s no way we can be caught unprepared again.” Gogo then suggested. 

Then suddenly. “GUYS GUYS GUYS GUYS!” Fred came running into the garage excited and bouncing around like a five year old on too much sugar. He was carrying something in his hand. 

 “GUYS! GUYS! GUYS! GUY! GUYS!” Fred said faster and Wasabi put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. 

“Calm down boy what are you trying to tell us?” He said like he was talking to an excited puppy. 

Fred could no longer contain his excitement. “I KNOW WHO OUR MYSTERY THIEF IS!” He shouted showing them what he was carrying. 

He placed on the table a comic book displaying five super heroes each wearing similar costumes to the one that a certain green thief wore but in different colours the bulky one wore blue, skinny in purple, and the twins in red and each wore masks. 

“Team Go?” Gogo said looking at the cover of the comic book. 

“Yeah, a group of super heroes who are also a family!” Fred said. “Their origin story is awesome and super hero poetic.” He then said opening the comic book on the first few pages. 

“They gained their powers when a rainbow coloured meteorite crashed down from the heavens!” Fred pointed at the illustration. 

“So they got powers from a meteorite from, space?” Wasabi said in surprise. “Thats just impossible.” 

“Unless the meteorite contained a mutative element.” Honey Lemon surmised. 

“Yeah but they gained awesome powers, strength, size, duplication and fire balls!” Fred said pointing to each of the heroes. “Hego, Mego, Twigo and Shego they formed Team Go!” Fred said dramatically. 

“So how come she’s stealing things now?” Gogo asked. “Dunno they stopped making the comics for some reason.” Fred shrugged. 

“I think I know why.” Hiro said as he directed their attention to his computer monitor where he brought up a newspaper article about Team Go. The article title read. “Shego gone rouge.”

“Seems she went rouge and turned evil.” Hiro said looking at the article but Fred just looked in absolute amazement. 

“WHAT! TEAM GO IS REAL!” Fred shouted. “Fred calm down!” Gogo said. 

“At this point nothing could surprise me.” Wasabi said. “Well what about the part where she’s Kim Possibles arch rival.” 

Fred then said which caused everyone to look at him in surprise. “What?” Fred shrugged. 

Later that night.

Soon night had fallen on the city of San Fransokyo, and across the street from from the main campus of Krei tech, on a building rooftop people stood watch. It was Gogo, Baymax and Hiro armoured up and ready for anything. The rest of the team wasn’t with them as they decided since they didn’t know which site Shego would strike next they agreed to split up and watch both sites for any sign of trouble. 

Gogo and Baymax stood watch whilst Hiro on the other hand was on the phone to his aunt covering up why he was out late. 

“Yes Aunt Cass I know but” Hiro said on his phone as Baymax just watched. “I get that it's late but Gogo’s having trouble with her mag lev suspension project for class, the connections between the magnets and the wheels isn’t working right.” He then explained “If I don’t help her resolve this she’ll miss her deadline”

Hiro then listened to what his aunt said to him before responding. 

“Yes, I won’t be out too late, I’ll see you soon, love you bye.” He then hung up the phone. He looked to see Baymax and Gogo looking at him. 

“I swear coming up with excuses is, as hard as, fighting crime.” Hiro groaned. 

He then went to join Gogo and Baymax watching over the site. “Baymax anything?” He then asked.

Baymax scanned the area for any life signs but her sensor didn’t reveal anything as the facility was empty. 

“I do not detect any signs of life in the building.” Baymax relayed. 

“Team check in.” Hiro said through his helmets com line as he contacted the rest of the team. 

Meanwhile on the far edge of the city, Honey Lemon, Wasabi and Fred armoured up stood watch over the Krei warehouse that was stationed there. 

“All quiet so far.” Honey Lemon relayed as Fred with the top half of his suit removed was drinking a soda as they stood watch. 

“Yeah but like they say in the comics a little too quiet.” Fred said dramatically. 

“I’m still not comfortable with this I mean what if she catches us of guard, I’m not in the mood to get sliced by burning hands.” Wasabi said a little unsure. 

“Thats why we’ve split into groups so we’ll still have the numbers.” Hiro explained. 

“Still don’t you think we should’ve told that Kim Possible about this I mean she is this Shego’s arch foe?” Honey Lemon then asked. 

Across town:

“No, if we told he she’d know we’re Big Hero 6.” Gogo then objected. “Yeah she has her own website and something tells me she won’t be afraid to use it.” Hiro agreed. 

Gogo just looked bemused as to how Hiro could’ve known about that while Baymax just blinked. 

“What I did research.” Hiro said. 

However as they watched, little did they know there was something happening below the building. Below the main campus lied the main servers for Krei tech containing hard drives of data on various secret or government projects.  

Soon the rear door opened and it reveals a security guard however he fell to the ground and behind him was Shego with her right hand energised with green energy. 

“Thanks for the help.” She smirked and from the guards belt she took the security ID. She then went through to a door on the far right hand side of the room she used the ID to open the door and it revealed Drakken tapping his foot impatiently. 

“You took your time Shego.” Drakken said. 

“Hey you try sneaking into a secret archive, and by the way you didn’t need to come with I could handle it.” Shego then said rather annoyed. 

“Right and you’d be able to find what we’re after.” Drakken said as he walked into the archive and Shego followed him still a little annoyed. 

They went through the different server corridors looking for something in particular. Soon they came to the middle section and Drakken soon found what he was looking for in the third server in the row. 

“Ah here we go, it should be right…” However when Drakken looked he saw the hard drive he was looking for was missing. 

“Here?” Drakken said. “Where is it where’s the hard drive!” He panicked. 

“Oh my.” Called a voice from the shadows and walking out came a woman dressed in a black and blue ninja style jump suit with black spiked up hair with blue highlights and a blue eye mask across her face. 

“Looking for this?” Momakase held up her left hand holding what looked like a hard drive with the Krei tech logo on it. 

“What?!” Drakken said in surprise. “Thats mine to steal!” 

“Too late I was here first.” Momakaske smirked dangling the hard drive  from her finger. 

“Do you know who I am!” Drakken address. Momokase examined Drakken from her vantage point. 

“Hmm, don’t tell me your the mad scientist who wants to conquer the world.” Momakase said with a teasing smirk. “But fails every time, oh and your a complete mothers boy.” 

Drakken was all but shocked she was good, but he could only scowl in anger. 

“No one talks to me like that! especially about my mother!” Drakken exclaimed “SHEGO! GET THAT DRIVE!” 

“My pleasure!” Shego said as she pushed Drakken aside to face the ninja. “Okay sweet heart we can do this the easy way…” Shego ignited her plasma balls. “or the hard way!” She then challenged 

Momokase drew her Graphene katana in her right hand, she pointed her sword at the green thief. 

“Oh I chose the hard way.” She then smirked then made a gesture with her left hand whilst holding the hard drive to ‘bring it on.’ 

Shego lunged forwards and tried hitting the ninja with her energy blasts but Momaksae was able to avoid the blasts even slice through them. Shego was quick to avoid the slice from Momokases katana and knife, she back flips and hits the ninja in the face as she backed away but quickly recovered. 

“Your good, but you lack discipline!” Momakase then performed a round house kick and knocked Shego to the ground. 

“I’d be happy to give it to you.” She then smirked as her blade met the thief’s neck. 

Suddenly the lights flicked on and everyone turned to see a certain teen in her mission gear standing in the door way. 

“They can discipline you both in jail.” Kim said. 

“Kim Possible!” Drakken exclaimed. “And don’t forget Ron Stoppable!” Ron stood with Kim in mission ware. 

“Oh yes the sidekick!” Drakken said and Ron was a little irked that even after all the years they’ve fought he still couldn’t remember his name. 

“How did you know I was here Possible!” Drakken said “Oh that’s easy your predictable.” Kim said 

“Well I can see you all know each other and have business to take care of so I’ll take my leave.” Momokaske said jumping onto Shegos shoulders and then exit through the other door. 

“OH NO YOU DON’T!” Shego growled as she ran after her, however Kim backflipped across the room to stop her. “Denied!” Kim smirked. 

Drakken then pressed the green button on his belt and suddenly the ceiling exploded and his signature hover car arrived as their get away vehicle. 

“Shego After her!” The duo hopped into the hover car and exit the building. 

“Come on Ron!” Kim said as her backpack produces wings in a grey turquoise colour then placed a helmet on her head and she rockets off after them and Ron quickly follows. 

Momokase runs from rooftop to rooftop as she runs from the scene of the crime, suddenly a plasma blast flies by her and she turns her back to see Shego chasing after her. Momokase could only smirk as the chase began. 

They ran from rooftop to rooftop performing multiple Parkour moves until Shego decided she had enough and fired a huge plasma ball knocking the ninja off the building and into the street surprising the surrounding citizens. 

Momokase was quick to recover before Shego landed. 

“You have something that belongs to me!” Shego pointed. 

“It doesn’t belong to either of you!” Called a voice. 

Their attention was drawn to see the source of the voices was Baymax landing on the ground and jumping from his back were Gogo and Hiro who took up a battle stance. 

“You again!” Shego growled. “Yeah see you remember us greenie!” Gogo smirked. 

“Momakase!” Hiro exclaimed. “Oh if it isn’t three of Big Hero 6.” Momakase smirked. “Hand over that stolen hard drive.” Hiro demanded. 

“I think not.” Momakase said but then noticed the hard drive wasn’t in her hand. She turned round to see Shego now has it. 

“Lose something.” She said holding the hard drive. Gogo draws her mag lev discs and trows one at Shego knocking the hard drive out of Shegos hand. 

“Gah you just wrecked my manicure!” Shego growled as she readied her plasma blasts and blasted at the three Heroes who were quick to avoid them. Gogo speeded towards Shego avoiding her blasts by jumping then skating across she then threw her discs at Shego which she avoided. 

(Music: Side by side by Sofia Wilde) 

Meanwhile Momakase moved to get the hard drive however it suddenly moved by itself into Hiro’s hand who used his magnet gloves to grab it. 

“No you don’t!” Hiro said Momokase drew her knife and threw it at Hiro who quickly avoided it whilst carrying the hard drive. The two engaged in combat and Hiro was quick to dodge her movements thankfully he had learned a few self defense tricks from Tadashi. 

Shego meanwhile kept trying to blast Gogo who skated to avoid her blasts however the green thief saw and opening and fired at Gogo hitting her right in the head tripping her up and sending her flying to the ground knocking her off her mag lev skates. 

“GOGO!” Hiro exclaimed only to have Momakase kick him to the ground knocking the hard drive out of his hands. 

Shego headed over to Gogo lying on the ground unconscious. 

“Your good kid but not as good as me.” Shego said readying a plasma blast however. Suddenly Kim flies in with her jet pack knocking Shego away from Gogo. 

“Oh great Kimmie cub has come to play.” Shego smirked at her opponent and engaged in combat with each other. Soon Honey Lemon and the rest of the team arrived and saw Gogo lying on the ground. 

“Gogo!” Honey Lemon said kneeling down to her checking her over to see if she was okay. Baymax flew over to his team mates and began scanning Gogo. 

“Gogo has sustained no injuries, thanks to her suit, however she has suffered a blow to her head causing a minor concussion.” Baymax diagnosed. “I recommend taking caution and not move her until we can fully stabilise her head.” 

“Right you guys help Hiro, I’ll look after her.” Honey lemon said so Wasabi, Fredzilla and Baymax hurry to help Hiro. 

Momakase closes in on Hiro with her sword at the ready but suddenly she’s met by a blast of fire which was from Fredzilla. 

“Hiro you okay?” Asks Wasabi as he helps him up. 

“Yeah I’m good great timing!” Hiro thanked. 

Meanwhile Shego is still fighting Kim who is avoiding her onslaught of her plasma blasts. Kim backflips away then performs a round house kick knocking Shego back. She responds by blasting more green energy blasts at Kim who quickly avoids them. 

“Whats Drakken up to Shego?!” Kim asked “Wouldn’t you like to know?” Shego smirked “Yeah that’s why I’m asking” Kim replied. 

Shego was ready to fire another energy blast, but suddenly screaming and crashing into her was Ron who couldn’t control his jet pack. He rolled on the ground a little dizzy. 

“Uhh rough landing.” Ron groaned. Shego then got up glaring at Ron and was ready to attack until Kim tackles her to the ground. 

“Ron get the hard drive!” Kim said to her sidekick. Ron could see the Krei tech hard drive lying on the ground and runs over to it whilst Fred and Hiro fight Momakase. Ron grabs it. 

“Got it!” Ron said but suddenly Drakken drops in from behind him. 

“I’ll take that hard drive side kick!” Drakken said as Ron backed away. Rufus pops out of Rons pocket and could see his friend was in trouble and jumps out. 

Ron sees Rufus is waving for him to toss him the hard drive so Ron throws it to his friend who scurries off with it.

“QUICK THE WEASELS GOT IT!” Drakken called to his partner. 

However Shego was preoccupied with fighting her teen adversary. Momakae noticed the hairless rodent and jumps from her fight with Fredzilla and Hiro and throws her Graphene knives at Rufus who does his best to avoid them squeaking in terror while avoiding them. One knife hit a lamp post and was close to landing on a passing citizen however a huge pink ball emerged and prevented the post from hitting him, and the person who made it was Honey Lemon whilst she watched over Gogo. 

Another knife was close to hitting Rufus when suddenly a speeding force moved Rufus out of the way before it hit. Rufus looked up and saw he was in the hand of a certain red armoured robot who just flew in to save him .

“I have got you.” Baymax said blinking. 

Momokase then throws one of her knives at Baymax which hits him in one of his jet boots. They short circuit and send him flying out of control. 

“Oh no!” Baymax said and Rufus was screaming and accidentally let go of the hard drive. This landed on the ground near Wasabi who was quick to grab it. 

“Got it.” He said.

Shego had then broken off from her fight with Kim as did Momokase with Fred and Hiro. They circled Wasabi who stood in place armed with one plasma blade. 

“Okay blades hand over the drive!” Shego demanded. “Not a chance” Wasabi said however Momakaske was ready to strike with a Graphene katana. Suddenly Kim jumps in and stands by Wasabi, who does smile in relief. 

The two stand back to back as the two villains engage in combat Kim avoids Shegos punches whilst Wasabi defends with his plasma blade against the ninja. Hiro could see they were in trouble and decided to even the odds. 

“Baymax!” Hiro called to Baymax who had just gotten up from the ground near Rufus who was unharmed. 

“Overdrive mode!” Hiro then exclaimed and on command Baymax’s eyes glowed a neon purple. 

“Overdrive mode engaged” He said and his body began changing his lower stomach panels elevated to reveal a circler core inside, his hands opened to reveal energy turbines in his hands which hummed to life and his shoulder pads and chest panels open to reveal circular turbines generating neon purple energy opening his leg compartments too. Baymax’s head then raised from his shoulders to then drop down and be covered by a red circular face mask and its eyes glowed neon purple. The wings on Baymax’s back then flew off and combined to form a sword which energised with power. 

As Shego and Momakase close in they are soon swatted away by Overdrive Baymax’s sword sending them crashing into the ground. 

“Whoa.” Kim said rather impressed. “Oh man I love this robot!” Ron said excitedly. 

“Oh now things are getting interesting.” Shego said readying herself “Thats my cue to leave.” Momakase said and she flees the scene only to be stopped by Ron. 

“Not so fast ninja lady!” Ron said holding a combat stance. 

“Cute” Momokase draws her sword and performs several sword slashes but none of them seemed to hit Ron. 

“Fancy moves but you missed.” Ron said smugly. “Did I?” Momokase smirked. Then on cue Rons pants were shredded to pieces. 

“Oh come on even in San Fransokyo!” Ron groaned. Momokaske jumps over Ron and onto the the rooftops above. 

(End music)

Shego rushed forward and fires an energy blast at Baymax who manages to deflect it with his sword, and uses it to attack Shego who avoids the sword slash and slides under Baymax  and unleashes a huge energy blast knocking BH6 and Team possible off their feet and she gets the hard drive. 

“Shego!” Drakken calls from his hover craft. “Time to fly!” Shego then back flips into the hover craft. 

Baymax gets up and flies up to the hover craft ready to attack until Shego blasts him back to the ground. 

“This was a memorable first meeting Big Hero 6, I’m sure we’ll meet again!” Drakken said gloating. “Your not getting away with this!” Fredzilla exclaimed. “But dude I gotta know what’s with the blue skin?”

“Oh funny story, well not ha ha funny but it was a Tuesday…” Drakken began 

“JUST HIT IT ALREADY!” Shego shouted and Drakken flew his hover craft away leaving Hiro completely annoyed. 

“This is so annoying!” Kim frowned. “They got away….y.” Said Baymax who was back in normal mode but had a low battery charge due to his overdrive form.

“What could Drakken want with that hard drive?” Ron asked. “I don’t know whatever was on it must’ve been important especially if a rival thief wanted to steal it.” Kim guessed.

“Now as for you…” She turned to face Big Hero 6 only to find them gone from the scene.  

Hiro’s Garage:

After failing to stop Shego let alone Momakase, Hiro and the rest of the team returned to his Garage with Wasabi carrying a power drained Baymax on his back whilst Honey Lemon helped Gogo who was still recovering from her concussion. 

“Well that went poorly.” Wasabi said. “Yeah not only did Momokase escape but that green lady got the best of us TWICE!” Gogo said in frustration. 

“So what do we do now?” Honey Lemon asked. “I don’t know, we need to find out what was on the drive and work out a way to stop Shego.” Hiro decided 

“How, even with Baymax supercharged we couldn’t stop her!” Fred said 

“We jumped out a window.” Baymax said in a rather drunk voice. “Sure whatever you say Baymax.” Wasabi said. 

Hiro then reached for the garage door and opened it but when he did everyone behind looked in shock and horror. 

“What?” Hiro said looking at his team mates Honey Lemon points her finger telling him to turn around. 

Hiro turns around and his face turns into shock as standing behind him in his garage were Kim and Ron who some how had beaten them there. Kim had one hand on her hip with a knowing frown.

“Hello Hiro.” She said simply and Hiro’s face was in shock with a million questions going through his head there was no doubt now they were busted!

“WEEEEEEE.” Baymax said as he got off Wasabi and fell to the ground with a thud. 

End of Chapter 3

Oh boy BUSTED! So Kims found out BH6′s secret identities, Hiro you got some explaining to do. Some scenes of this chapter were inspired by the Marvel Rising shorts including some of the music which I thought would be good battle music. I know I’m on chapter 3 of this story but I may have an idea for a sequel or mini sequel that I’ve been debating for a while such as including Athena from the KP live action film. I do welcome some advice on that but for the time being its on hold until I finish this story. 

Chapter 4 coming soon I’ll try to update next weekend if I have time until then. 

To the Power of 6 Booyah!

[halberdierminister]

Okay I set meself some new goals for the new year. How have I been keeping up with them?

1) Write 250 Words Each Day

I have missed a couple days this month, but I have certainly written more than the equivalent of 250 words times 31 days. So while I did have some misses, I more than made up for them. This one is both a hit and a miss, but far more hit than miss. I am mostly on track with this goal.

2) Read At Least 55 Books This Year

If we are counting audiobooks, which we ABSOLUTELY ARE, I have finished ten books this month and am close to finishing two more. If I keep up this kind of pace, I will have met my goal by midyear. We will see if that happens, but I am very well on track with this goal.

3) Get A Full Time Job

I have not done this yet. But I did work two jobs all month with a grand total of two days off. I applied for 24 different jobs this month. This doesn't quite equal out to one job per day, and I certainly didn't do this every day, but that's a fair amount of effort. I worked a lot and I worked on the job search a lot. I've also edited my resume, worked on making a brand new one, and designed my own business cards. I think I am making some progress on this but it is just so hard to tell. I am working on this goal, but I do not know if I am on track.

4) Move Out

Yeah obviously this hasn't happened yet. Kiel and Steph have offered to let me move in with them in Milwaukee if I need to or if I get something there. It's so tempting to take them up on it. I might if I have no leads on the job search by the end of March, but both Kiel and I agree that this winds up with the risk that I just get stuck working at Target again. It's so difficult. And yet today, when my parents were out of the house, I hooked up my Nintendo Switch to the television and just played some video games and I also took out my ukulele and sang some dumb songs and I just felt like myself for the first time in a while, and God I just miss that so damn much. I wanna move out so fucking badly it hurts. Ugh. I will get there. I just need the full time job first. I do not know if I am on track.

5) Drink Less Soda

Well, I drank less soda. I didn't cut out soda altogether, but at least half the days, or maybe even most of the days, I didn't have any soda at all. And the days I had soda, I'm pretty sure I limited it to one, except maybe once or twice when it was two. But by and large I am still cutting down on soda. So that's good. I'm not losing weight, but that's probably because I'm not working physically anymore like I was at Target. The last two days I lifted weights, maybe I'll work out more? Either way, I just needed to cut down on soda, and by gum, I have been doing that. I am on track with this goal.

6) Get Something Published

I am going to be published in Eclipse, a fanzine based on Problem Sleuth the Intermissions of Homestuck. I finished the first draft of my fic for it this year. I also found a zine I might want to send some stuff to tonight, and I still intend to send stuff into The Green Light and Red Cedar. I don't know if I have anything good enough for Steam Ticket, but who knows? I should also submit to more places, and I have been bookmarking pages that have promising listings. I am mildly on track with this goal, but I ought to put more into it.

7) Finish Writing A Legitimate Businessman

I have written 6,654 words on this fic in this month alone. This is the most frequently I have ever updated it. It is not finished, but with every update I near the ending. Some of the endings have been as short as two or three hundred words, most have been around six or seven hundred, but at least one was fifteen hundred words, making it the longest chapter written in years. I am on track with this goal.

8) Write More The Revelation of Takaya According to Jin

I have not written ANYTHING on this fic this month. I did listen to some Lovecraft on audiobook and I've been reading a lot of poetry, so I'm gaining fuel I suppose, but I am not on track.

MINOR GOALS

9) Finish Playthroughs Of:

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild -- Success! I beat it on accident and started a new one. So this one is COMPLETED.

Persona 3 Portable 100%: I am on the last day or two. I tried fighting Margaret once this month and got royally scuppered up the barrelstopper. These sorts of super-hard turn-based battles are literally not fun. I also don't have any Armageddons and I don't know if it's possible to beat Margaret or Elizabeth without them. I don't know if it's worth it to try, but I also don't know if I shouldn't beat this and start a new game plus again. It's just……. I'm literally these two boss fights away from 100%, and I've NEVER gotten this close before. Guh. What I really need is Armageddon though. Sigh. Who knows.

Persona 1 Good Ending: Yeah I don't think I picked this up at all this month.

Pokemon Sword: I have beaten the main game and am partially through the post-game plot. It's just kinda boring at this point, but I will beat it I'm sure.

Pokemon Let's Go Eevee: I haven't picked this up this year, but I plan to. It's a fun little game. I'm at Cinnabar Island, so I'm pretty close to the end.

10) Record More Ukulele Videos

I played my ukulele a lot today?? I tried recording a song but didn't like it. I'm working on some stuff though, so I'm not doing this yet but I am at least getting started on practicing and planning

11) Record Let's Play Videos

Not even a little bit.

12) Duolingo?

I've done Spanish on Duolingo every day for 33 days straight. SUCK IT, Me from 2008.

GOALS I DIDN'T KNOW I HAD

13) Set up my turntable and listened to records on my own.

14) Added to my collections of books, amiibos, video games and movies, often in unexpected ways and sometimes at large amounts for little money. And sometimes not. Whoops. I cannot be trusted with money. Ugh.

15) Work out?? I have done so a little bit two days in a row. Maybe I can keep this up and do more. I ought to, since I'm not at Target anymore, and since I won't be at MATC for the time being I will have more free time to do so. It's worth a shot.

So I'm doing pretty well on the ones I can keep track of. I'm not doing PERFECT, but I do think I am doing really well.

This is 1250 words, by the way.

[dxmichelle]

The 12 Days of Fic-Mas (Day 4): The Visit

Summary: Yugi travels to see an old friend.

The only one who knew he was going was his grandfather. If he told his friends, they would just insist on making the journey with him, and in any other situation? Sure, the more the merrier. But this time, he wanted to go alone. And if he had to see the disappointment on his friends’ faces, he would have given in out of guilt in a heartbeat.

He met the Ishtars at the airport, and held the strap of the bag on his shoulder a little tighter. They didn’t talk much on the long drive other than idly catching up with what everyone else was up to.

Yugi was surprised that they didn’t drive to the site of where the Millennium Items were laid to rest, though, he did remember the tomb entrance did collapse after Atem passed through the doors to the afterlife. Nor did they go to the place where he and the others, with Shadi’s help, entered the Millennium Puzzle to help Atem save the world. Again.

Instead, they stopped at the entrance to a nondescript tomb.

“Is this it?”

“It is,” said Ishizu. “Will you need a guide?”

Yugi shook his head. “I don’t think so. …In a way, I’ve been here before.”

Marik handed him a torch and stepped back. “We’ll wait here for you.”

“Oh,” said Yugi, “Well…I might be a while.”

“It’s fine,” said Ishizu. “Be careful, and take as long as you need.”

Yugi took a deep breath and started the journey down. It took less time than he initially thought to get through the first chamber, and was surprised at himself that despite not remembering where all of the floor traps were located, none of the giant serpent statues along the walls shot their poisoned needles.

Were all of the darts deployed by visitors in the past? By the tomb keepers that had come through recently? Was he just lucky?

Or…a fleeting thought passed through his mind. Was his presence detected, and he was allowed safe passage?

He waved the idea away. The magic was gone.

Wasn’t it?

Yugi continued onward, down the stairs and into the next chamber. The passage maze along the chasm was exactly as he remembered it, though the armed statues weren’t in the same places.

He stole a glance behind him. The spike wall was naturally reset. Knowing where the pressure switch was on the floor meant he could pass without activating it, alleviating the need to hurry across the pit.

Yugi looked down at his feet and then across the field before him. The first statue was about ten paces away. He hesitated a moment and then inched his right foot forward, drawing it back almost immediately once he saw the sword-raised arm of the first statue shift ever so slightly.

Any lingering idea that the traps would just let him pass instantly dashed.

Good to know, he said to himself. They still work.

It was a wonder the tomb keepers managed to get through that room at all, knowing the cargo they carried at the time.

Left foot forward, one step at a time, until he reached the other side, and onwards through the next room. Grandpa had mentioned how his guide through the tomb had betrayed him here along the bridge all those years ago, and somehow he was saved by the Pharaoh’s spirit, though he didn’t realize it at the time.

The far end of the chamber housed an empty pedestal, but Yugi’s focus was what sat just behind it.

Grandpa had made it sound like no one else had managed to get this far into Atem’s tomb before he did, so Yugi only had to wonder where this particular artifact was actually found. Was it earlier on in one of the smaller chambers? Or in another place entirely. Ishizu never made mention if tombs to any of the other members of the court were found.

Shifting the bag off of his shoulder, Yugi set it on the ground beside the pedestal and sat down on the floor of the room, staring up at the massive Tablet of Memories. He reached into the bag and pulled out the small golden box that once housed his Duel Monsters cards, and more importantly, the pieces of the Millennium Puzzle.

He placed it carefully in his lap and looked up at the carving of Atem on the tablet, forever poised in battle.

“Hi Atem,” Yugi began, “It’s…it’s been a while.”

He sighed. “I know that you can’t really hear me. That’s okay. I know that you’re out there, in your Afterlife. I just wanted to talk. Grandpa said he used to do this sometimes at his father’s gravesite. And, well, this is the closest I’ll have to doing the same thing…. I won’t stay too long – I know you’re finally at peace now, and don’t want to disturb, but I thought I’d just give you a quick update on things, in case you were interested…”

He ran a finger along some of the etchings on the golden box. “It’s been…two years now. Grandpa is doing okay. Moving a little slower, but at his age, I can’t blame him. He went off last year with Professor Hawkins to oversee a dig in South America. His last hoorah before he officially resigned his archaeology hat and settled down in the shop. We were all worried, of course. You remember the last time he went off, and we had to save him from that weird pyramid. But no, he came back safe and sound, and more than a little sunburnt.

“Joey is doing great! There’s something new starting soon. A dueling “Pro-League” and he’s almost got himself a sponsor. It’s not set in stone, not yet, but so far it looks promising. And he could use the break, with him out on his own now.

“Téa is off in New York studying dance. We weren’t able to go visit her, but she brought back a recording of the production she was in. She didn’t have a large part, not in this show, anyway, but it was really cool to see! It’s really exciting to see her living her dream!”

“Tristan’s been helping out at his dad’s factory. He’s saving up to open a garage soon. I think he takes more care of his bike than himself, if that makes sense. But at least he and Duke have stopped fighting over Serenity. …At least I think they have. We don’t see her around too much. She still lives with her mom, and they recently moved a little further out from Domino. She hasn’t come back to Domino since the Battle City tournament, but I know Joey took the train up to see her a few months ago.”

Yugi leaned back, his hands pressed against the cool floor, trying to think of who he hadn’t mentioned yet. “Oh! Kaiba and Mokuba have opened up their second Kaiba Land park! It’s just like the first one, just a little smaller. I made sure to get on the crazy coaster, just for you.” He smiled at the memory. Atem hated that ride. “The one where the Puzzle almost fell off while we were upside down. That one’s at the new park, and it goes faster. It’s great!”

Yugi shifted one hand back front to open the golden box, and then stopped. “I know you’re wondering – but no, Kaiba still hasn’t beaten me yet. I don’t know if he’s getting discouraged – ludicrous, I know – but he doesn’t take part in tournament duels all that much anymore. Téa thinks he’s too busy, and I have to agree with her. There’s a lot on his plate now. But if I had to guess, I think it’s because you’re gone. I mean, I’m still here, but you were his real challenge. I’ve noticed that if I’m not dueling, he’s not dueling.”

Yugi smiled up at the tablet. “I know you’re going to ask too – I’m fine. A bit lonely at times. You would think that wouldn’t be the case, if anything, we’ve all gotten closer over the years, even if some of us aren’t always at home. But…it’s like something’s missing. I can’t quite put my finger on it…”

He narrowed his gaze up at Atem’s profile. “Don’t go blaming yourself for leaving though! Your soul deserves to be at peace after all those years of being trapped in the Puzzle and having the weight of the world on your shoulders! I…I just got so used to you being here, that sometimes it still takes a little reminding that you’re not sharing thoughts anymore.”

Yugi waved his hand dismissively. “But enough about that. I have some exciting news for you. I don’t know if you remember, or if I was considering it before you left, but that strategy sphere game? I made a mockup of it. Mokuba was all over it, showed it to Kaiba, and there’s a real chance that he might put it into production. I’m heading to Kaiba Corp next week and the two of us are going to sit down and play it.”

He laughed. “It’ll be a bit weird, to be sitting around at a table with no cards or fancy dueling holograms. But it’ll be nice. I’m looking forward to it. I have a feeling he was going to move forward with it even without playing it himself, but sometimes he’s still hard to read.”

Yugi kept going, rattling off the news of anyone and everyone that they came across. How Mai was dueling again professionally, but still hadn’t returned to Domino yet, to Joey’s dismay. What Rebecca was up to now that she was just about finished with college. How Duke’s shop was faring, and that Mako managed to get his boat after years of saving from his job at the aquarium….

Finally, Yugi looked down on the golden box, and he frowned slightly. “…And with that…brings me to my visit. I don’t know if you were aware, I mean like truly aware, but ten years ago today, Grandpa gave me this box full of puzzle pieces…”

He leaned back against his hands again. “I think…if child-me knew just how much utter chaos we would get into by putting the Puzzle together, I’m sure I would have buried this box somewhere in the back of the shop where it would never get found. But then…I wouldn’t have met you. Joey and I wouldn’t be friends – maybe – and…well, you’d still be trapped.”

“Speaking of friends…” Yugi tilted his head, still focused on the box. “I’ve sought all sorts of advice about this…. Joey and Tristan – they think this is a mistake. Haven’t been able to talk much to Téa over it, but I was surprised Kaiba was on my side. We talked for a long time actually. You’d be surprised….”

He shrugged, and then hoisted himself up off the floor. He hesitated, a moment unsure, before carefully placing the golden box on the empty pedestal.

“We think it’s best that the Egyptian Gods remain here, watching over this place. I know that the Shadow Games are gone now, and so are the Millennium Items, but as the most powerful cards in existence, I don’t want anyone trying for them anymore. Too many people got hurt trying to collect them. And I don’t want to risk someone finding a way to bring all that magic back.”

Yugi folded his arms across his chest.

“I know, Pharaoh. This is a really big decision. I didn’t come to it lightly. And I know we always kept our cards in this box, but I think…giving the Gods their proper resting place in a way puts them at peace too….and I think, after all this time, they deserve it as well. And I don’t see a better place than here. They were yours to command, after all.”

Yugi removed the lid to the box and glanced inside. Four cards lay along the bottom.

“There’s something else…I told Pegasus what had happened. With the last Shadow Game, and how you moved on. I…also consulted him about what to do with the God Cards…and he was of the same mindset as Kaiba. Anyway…he made us something.”

He pulled the fourth card from the bottom. “I told him about your past, and about a week ago, he came to visit – I know, Grandpa nearly had a heart attack when he showed up at our door. But he had a special card for us. It’s made to work alongside Dark Magician, and I’ve put it in my deck. But he made another one, for you, so in a way we’ll still be connected, even though we can’t communicate anymore.”

Yugi cradled the card close to his chest and looked up at the tablet again, his heart heavy. The other reason for his visit...and it hurt to think about it.

“…I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to come back here. Marik said the tomb keepers who moved the tablet down think some parts of this place are a bit unstable…it may not be safe for much longer…”

He was honestly surprised that the Ishtars let him down in the first place. 

“I was shocked then that they decided to put the tablet here, but I suppose, now that your mission is complete…there’s no need to keep it anywhere else. Pharaoh Set created it to bring you home, after all. Or so I think – that’s what Ishizu believed. And…a part of me was thinking…maybe it is best to let it all fade away.”

He sniffed suddenly, and wiped away the tear forming in his eye. “But, you know? Despite everything that’s happened since I finished the Puzzle? I’m grateful for the chance to have met you, and I’ll really cherish the time we had and the adventures we went on. Time will move on, memories may fade, but you will always be my dear friend.”

Yugi smiled, and looked down at the card in his hands. Palladium Oracle Mahad. He gently placed it back in the golden box and replaced the lid before turning back to the tablet, taking a long sweep over the entire thing, committing as much of it to memory as he possibly could. The Puzzle at the top with the Gods, the Blue Eyes and Dark Magician, Set and Atem…all the way down to the worn, jagged edges along the bottom and the cartouche where Atem’s name used to be.

“Good-bye Pharaoh…rest well.”

[thesourtastelingers-blog]

Something's Off

Title: Something's Off

Trigger Warning(s): Blood and maybe a swear word

Fandom: Off

Pairing: Yandere! The Batter x Reader

Word Count: 2635

You're a fanatic in playing RPG maker games and to this day you sworn to not break your title.

And now you're playing Off. Great.

It's addicting to say the least, you've finished the game three times now, and you're gonna replay again and again until you get sick of it.

You pressed the 'A' button to trigger the yes option to restart the game again since you finished it yet again. You stared at the time in your laptop and it says '2:30am' how long have you been playing? Well you just started at the morning, finished the game at early noon and rinse and repeat, 'til nighttime comes by.

'Why am I playing this at 2:30?' You mentally asked yourself

'Yeah, I'll be starting the game tomorrow. I'll just play Mad Father.'

You clicked away at the 'Off' tab, but it wouldn't close itself.

"Huh? That's weird..." You commented; focusing at the screen infront of you

You desperately tried anything just to make the tab close. You've powered it off but it wouldn't budge, you restarted; doesn't work. After that you just aimlessly stared on the screen.

You're scared yet tired since you thought this must be one of those lame Creepypastas lifted back to life and so they could haunt you.

"Great... I can't do anything." You groaned as you leaned back on your chair; defeat evident all over your face

Then you heard a quiet static and a text box appearing at the game.

'That's weird, I didn't press 'new game' yet.' You cautiously thought

The text box contains The Judge and of course texts. The texts read 'Why must you leave us just to play another pathetic horror game?'

You widened your eyes "How the hell did he know I was about to play Mad Father?" You questioned yourself

You're too tired to continue but you just decided to press on the 'A' button.

'Your puppet is patiently waiting for you. He's excited to meet you again.'

That's cute and creepy since he knows someone is controlling him.

'But... What if I told him you're going to play another game and you'll replace him?'

What? No... You wouldn't replace them.

'I bet that game never had an amazing cat and an amazing merchant.'

'Mad Father doesn't have cats or merchants.' You thought

'You'll forget us, won't you?'

What? Forget them? Well you'll never forget the characters since you played the game three times in one day.

'What am I thinking? Of course you wouldn't! Right?'

This gets creepier after each text box you've read.

'I hope you have fun toying with those char-' The Judge got cut off by your mom harshly closing your laptop

"(Y/n)! Go to sleep you disgraceful teen." Your mother told you

"Fine! Fine! You insolent slut." You muttered the last part

You flopped on your bed and you fake sleep. Your mother fell for it since she exited your room; rudely slamming the door behind her.

Then you heard static yet again but it's louder than the previous one.

You went back to your laptop and you opened the laptop to see The Judge again.

'Well, that was rude...'

'But, I hope for you to have a goodnight's rest (Y/n) or our dear puppeteer.'

Then your laptop completely shuts down.

'How did The Judge know my name?' You asked through your thoughts

You flopped back on your bed again and you closed your eyes; waiting for a dreamless night.

~~~

You woke up not on your bed but on the ground. You see an oh so familiar cat walking his way to you.

"Judge?" You asked as the feline happily purrs

"My oh my dear puppeteer, we didn't know you would visit us after you would abandon us for another game!" The Judge purrs at your leg

"Gahhh! How'd you know my name anyway?" You asked The Judge

"Hohoho~ You're such a naïve person, don't you agree yourself?"

"What do you mean?" You gritted your teeth

The Judge seemingly ignored your question "Your Puppet would be given a certain mission or task and so he needs his Puppeteer to guide him."

You were about to say something but The Batter walks in the conversation

"Now, Batter this is your Puppeteer! Who has been guiding you on your journey. Their name is (Y/n) (L/n)!" The Judge explained to The Batter

The Batter emotionlessly stared at you "You were the one who controlled me, even if I had my own mind. I don't need help from you..." He commented with a monotone voice

"All the regretful endings we've been..." A shadow casted upon The Batter's eyes

"Batter! Don't say that! You still need your Puppeteer nonetheless." The Judge claimed

"I'd like to feel as if I weren't always harshly pulled by strings..." The Batter stared/glared at you

"But you still need th-" "If that's the case, fine. I'll just escape this horrendous world by myself." You cut The Judge off

You walked off to the first puzzle of the game and since you memorized it beforehand, you successfully completed the said puzzle.

The Judge reappears again and he walks up to you.

"You should regret your decision of walking off alone, dear puppeteer." The Judge nuzzles your leg

"I don't care at all. If I die here, then that's good. No one's gonna attend my funeral anyway." You bluntly said

"You'll regret it..." The Judge eerily said as he disappeared

Then a bat appeared. You took the bat as if it were a signal that The Judge gave you a weapon.

You didn't really took his words seriously. You bet The Judge was lying.

But the thing you noticed was that the the spectres looked more gruesome than ever before. The spectres were more off than the first or third time you played the game and the Elsens were the ones who drastically

changed, they were bloodier than usual. The change is really creeping you out.

"This might be an update or a Halloween skin..." You muttered as you walked up to a familiar merchant

"Ah, our puppeteer came to visit us!" Zacharie said as he rummaged to his sack of wonders

"What would you like Mon Amie?" He asked as he pulled out all of his items

"Just three luck tickets." You responded

You noticed Zacharie's mask had a smudge by the side and his mask had a crack on the bottom.

You've been staring quite some time you didn't notice Zacharie was waving the luck tickets and The Batter approaching behind you.

"You're concern about my mask, aren't you (Y/n)?"

What's up with NPCs knowing your name?

"Ah, I'm sorry." You apologized as you took out your credits to pay for the luck tickets

Zacharie snickered "Now, don't be. I've noticed that you're concerned about my mask, it's quite a horrifying story." Zacharie dryly chuckled

And The Batter cleared his throat to get both of your attentions.

"Ah! Amigo! I didn't noticed you were there!" Zacharie greeted the stoic savior as beads of sweat appeared at his face

"What do you need?"

"Abaddon's Meat."

"Huh? We don't sell that." More sweat appeared on Zacharie's face

"You're lying."

"Wait... How did he know that early in the game?" You asked yourself

The Batter raised his bat; supposedly to hit Zacharie

Zacharie just stared at the bat and in the inside he's frowning.

Before The Batter could hit Zacharie you stopped them.

"STOP!!!" You yelled at The Batter and so The Batter lowered his bat

"I'll be going for now, stay safe amigos!" Zacharie quickly disappeared with his items

Well, you saved Zacharie from The Batter.

"Why were you about to smash Zacharie with your bat?" You cautiously asked The Batter

"Just for you..." The Batter responded as he walked away from you

"HEY! YOU IGNORED ME!" You shouted but The Batter wouldn't turn his back

You sighed as you continued your merry way to get out of this world.

You noticed this world really took a dark and sharp turn. The spectres are weaker but looks more creepier or gruesome, it's creeping the shit out of you. You really wanna go home.

Welp, you did noticed something Zone 1 and that is when you were about to face Dedan, apparently he was already purified but here's the catch, blood was dripping allover the floor. You did assume The Batter already purified him but why blood oozing allover the floor?

~~~

While you were in Zone 2, the Judge kept asking you where is Valerie and since you've already played the game you knew Valerie was controlled by Japhet. You felt pity and sorrow to the poor feline at his brother's death. You knew The Batter purified Japhet before you.

~~~

Finally you're in Zone 3, the sugar factory or where Elsens resides. You encountered The Batter, again, but this time he got smudged with blood.

Now, you're ready to face Enoch. While you were about to enter the room where Enoch is at, you saw The Batter repeatedly smash his bat towards Enoch, and he has no time to react as blood kept oozing out of his head.

'Is that his 1st or 2nd battle?' You mentally asked yourself as you hid away from their sights

The Batter purified Enoch and then he walked out of the room and he might've noticed you considering he has four eyes.

Everything really gets creepier and stranger all of a sudden.

What you first noticed is that Zacharie is more and more beaten, when you asked about it his excuse is always "It's a lengthy story, (Y/n)." And you're just too concern for his well-being. You asked him if he could just use his healing items but he always responds with "No mi amigo! You can't fathom what merchant would use their own items for their own good? And so it's purpose is to sell!" You're really, really concerned.

Now that Valerie was dead The Judge holds a straight face and is more mesmerizing than usual. The Judge would often blame you for not controlling your puppet, but in reality Valerie just ate Japhet and he grew into an absurd size deeming Japhet as a parasite.

Hugo and The Queen are also dead, which quite struck you the most. You can't do anything about it, but what you noticed while you were in the room, The Queen presumably left a letter for you and it read:

'You're such a peculiar entity in this world our dear player, I have mistaken you in your past playthroughs with The Batter. Oh, and The Batter is a fool at games, he's the one who obstructed the world. Now it was never your fault for killing me in the past, it was the fool's fault. I have laid a curse for the fool, for he was busy doing his "sacred" mission. I may rest peacefully for I have forsaken you our dear player.'

Now that note pulled your heart strings. A stoic man like The Batter couldn't even care for his own family!

And you see another note in the same room and the note read:

'FiNdiNg yOu, deaR plAyer...'

Oh, and it's smudged with blood. Who could've wrote this note?

The first letter pulled your heart strings, while the second one sorta killed the mood and it's creeping you out more than expected.

~~~

And now, you're at the very final stretch of the game, where The Batter would turn off the switch or he would change his mind, but you're the one who does decisions. Without The Batter in your strings there's no doubt he would not turn off the switch.

The Judge followed you and both of you saw The Batter about to turn off the switch and he is bloodier than the previous times you've encountered him. You unexpectedly used your strings to get ahold of The Batter.

"Puppeteer, would you fight alongside with me? Or go on ahead and make The Batter turn off the switch?" The Judge sternly gave you two decisions

You looked back at The Judge and you carefully thought out the situation

"I would like to fight alongside with you." You looked at The Judge straight in the eye

And then The Batter ultimately change to his Bad Batter form.

The Judge called out to his other friends to fight alongside Bad Batter.

But... Bad Batter easily crushed all of them, except for you.

"What are you gonna do you monster?! You've killed your wife even your son! Go ahead and turn off the switch you selfish person!" You said as blood dripped from your mouth

And then for some reason Zacharie appeared and he held an Abaddon's meat.

"Amigo!" He weakly called out as he threw the Abaddon's meat with all his might towards you

But Bad Batter slapped the meat before you could take it and he knocked back Zacharie ultimately letting Zacharie bleed to death.

"Z-zacharie!" You weakly shouted as tears flowed down your face

You pathetically laid down at the ground and Bad Batter stared at you.

[the-anime-haven]

Let’s Talk Haikyuu!! Nationals

I basically just wanted to put out an updated bracket (as of Ch. 326) for those who want to check one out. I know there’s more schools that could be filled in based on the glimpses of the bracket that we’ve gotten in the manga, but I’m too lazy to add in schools that no one cares about. The dashes are there for games that we know have happened but we don’t know which schools were involved. That being said, I got lazy with the dashes when it came to Itachiyama because that’s too much work.

Also, I’m not entirely sure if we know which block (A or B... or C or D, I don’t know how you would label this thing) Fukurōdani is in, so I’ve taken the liberty of making a bracket for both possibilities. On top of that, I made one that doesn’t include Fukurōdani at all to be extra accurate. After this, I’ll show you the possibilities and predictions that I think could occur. 

We do know the details of Fukurōdani’s matches, so that is accurate, it’s just that I’m not 100% which side they fall on within the bracket. Personally, I think it’s more likely than not that Fukurōdani is on Karasuno’s side of the bracket just because I think having Karasuno play Fukurōdani will be an important plot point that the author wants to hit. Also, we haven’t been warned of any other powerhouses besides the ones in that brackets above. If Fukurōdani wasn’t on Karasuno’s side of the bracket, then that would mean that Karasuno would play a completely unknown school in the semi-finals, which is probably something the author wants to avoid. 

So, off of that, I think you can guess that I assume Karasuno will beat Kamonedai. We don’t know much about their school, so that’s really jumping to conclusions, but I didn’t say my predictions wouldn’t be idealistic. If Karasuno can take down Shiratorizawa, Inarizaki, and Nekoma, I think they can take down Kamonedai. That would mean that Karasuno would either play Fukurōdani or Mujinazaka in the semi-finals. 

Regardless of how Karasuno does, I think it’s pretty much a given that Itachiyama will make it to the finals. I also really do believe that Karasuno will make it to finals along with them. My reasoning is not only because they’re a strong team or because I’m simply hoping for it. To me, if you’re gonna tell this grand story about the underdogs forcing their way up the ranks-- if you’re gonna tell a story involving third year students who’s last chance it is to play for their high school team, it’d be pretty anticlimactic for them not to make it all the way to the final boss. It’s different than when they lost to Aoba Johsai because they had another chance with the Spring Interhigh, but for Karasuno to not make it to the end here-- where there’s no rematch or second chance-- would be awful. Not to mention, the manga has built up Itachiyama as the ultimate high school team, so to not have the main characters play them would be very unfortunate and dull. 

I know that the third years’ goal was to make it to nationals, and they’ve already done that, but it’d be kind of lame for them to lose in the quarter-finals and then go, “Oh, well bye bye third years, too bad this is as far as we got.” I realize that, with that, it means that Karasuno will have to beat impossible odds, and maybe people don’t like that because it’s unrealistic and wouldn’t be a good story in the end, but I really disagree. Besides, they’ve proven that they can take down extremely tough opponents by simply sticking it out til the end, so I don’t see how the other powerhouses they’ve yet to face are any different from the ones they’ve already beaten. You know? 

That got a little ranty, but let’s get back to the brackets. So, like I said, Itachiyama will probably make it to the finals. After all, they have one of the best aces in the nation (actually, I would even guess that Sakusa is the best ace in the nation). On top of that, they have the supposed best libero in the nation. They’ll be pretty hard to beat. Here are the brackets if Fukurōdani is on Karasuno’s side (I’ve made one for if Fukurōdani wins or loses and also if Karasuno or Itachiyama wins in the end).

Okay, and here are the brackets if Fukurōdani is on Itachiyama’s side.

Alright, so obviously, my favorite and preferred bracket would be this one:

That being said, since we don’t know a lot about Mujinazaka, I’m inclined to believe that Fukurōdani will lose to them simply because Mujinazaka has Kiryū who is supposed to be a better ace than Bokuto. However, it’s also not out of the question that Fukurōdani will win. I would prefer Karasuno to play Fukurōdani, and I do think that that’s something the author would be aiming for, but by the same token, I can see why the author would want Karasuno to play Mujinazaka. It’d probably come down to the same reasoning as to why the author will probably have Karasuno play Itachiyama. It does seem like Mujinazaka is the bigger giant for Karasuno to take down, so they might just have to win out over Fukurōdani. Sadly, that means there’s probably not going to a way for Karasuno to play Fukurōdani in this tournament. I still wish for it, though. 

Do I really think that Karasuno can beat Itachiyama? Based on the matches we’ve seen with Karasuno up til now, yeah, I do. Again, we don’t know much about Itachiyama, but I do think that Karasuno could beat them realistically. Do I think that’s what the author will decide to do? No, probably not. It’s a pretty popular thing for narratives to put their protagonists on the verge of victory just for them to falter at the last hurdle. Because of that, I actually think that Karasuno winning would be the bigger plot-twist. However, I think that most authors and writers will assume the opposite because they probably think that their audience will predict a win. So, they’ll go with a loss for a “plot-twist.” That line of thought isn’t original anymore, but it’s still pretty common, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see it here. 

Basically, I’m hoping that Fukurōdani will win in the quarter-finals and that Karasuno will win in the finals, but I’m fully expecting the exact opposite to happen for both. That’s just how storytelling is now, I think. Should the author decide to give Karasuno the victory, like in Kuroko no Basket for example, that’ll be great. I think that it’d be a much more fulfilling story and ending if Daichi, Asahi, and Suga got to have that win before leaving Karasuno. It’d also be a nice punctuation on the whole “flightless crows” thing. Karasuno winning nationals would reestablish them as a powerhouse school, no questions asked (though, they may already have that status back, for the most part). 

Some people don’t want them to win because the show focuses on Kageyama and Hinata, who are only first years. So, Karasuno doesn’t need to win and shouldn’t realistically win because Kageyama and Hinata have two more years left to try it again. People also don’t want them to win because it may mean the end of Haikyuu!! As I said, I don’t agree with either argument because I don’t think a win in the future will be as meaningful. I want to see this team, as it is today, win because of the growth and cohesion that they’ve developed over the course of the series. If it ends after that, so be it. Doesn’t mean we won’t get to see what happens in the years after, it just means that Karasuno will get a satisfying victory.

Let me know what you guys think, and I hope the brackets are not completely useless to look at. I’m definitely excited to see this next match. 

Is this idealistic? Maybe, but damn it, I didn’t come to manga for absolute realism. Give my boys the win they deserve.

[torentialtribute]

Football news: Boreham Wood chairman rants at his OWN supporters

GRANT MORRIS (CLUB SHOP AND ROAD TRAVEL CLUB MANAGER): a few minutes after the defeat of today.

DANNY HUNTER (IN THE CHAIR): No problem Grant.

GM: After the start of the season, pretty good, after being beaten at home until today and after the great away game and win at Dagenham on Tuesday, what did you think about today's game and the 1-0 defeat?

DH: I & # 39; don't have much to say about the game, two hard-working teams that have largely eliminated each other. Sutton was, I think, slightly better than we were and if I had criticism I would say that we never played on time that you would probably expect from home.

But football and team selection Grant, are really questions for Luke and his management team. In fact, we seem to be solving much bigger problems after only 407 people showed up for today's game and 130 of them were Sutton United fans.

GM: You sound very disappointed with Dan's lack of support today. What do you put that for, because the crowd was extremely poor. Could it be just the school holidays, people who are gone or other local league clubs that might take away the driving supporter?

DH: Oh my favor Grant, we have found excuses in whatever competition we have played and there are no more excuses. If you look at the averages, we are already more than 500 supporters less than the next worst supported club in the National League.

No, the truth is that apart from the biggest games against the big clubs that support big support, after 5 years at the National League level, we are clearly still no bigger than a Ryman league of Southern League Club.

Today's horrible crowd just makes me sad, we are working hard to surpass this club for years and we just want a little more support for those efforts. I suppose if you want an excuse, the lower than normal audience can be reduced to three hundred adults and OAP £ 99 seasonal ticket holders, who have taken over our offer but never bothered to turn up and support us.

But it does feel that the city will turn out for the biggest cup matches and a derby against Barnet, but then they seem to want to support the club from their front rooms, from the local pubs and bars that show illegal on Saturday. Premier League games that start at 3 p.m. and have themselves updated on social media.

You can put it on whatever you want Grant, but there's nothing I can do here anymore. I have tried everything and if we are honest with each other, whatever I do or try to do to increase home support, nothing seems to work.

GM: I must say, President, I really agree with this and I think others share your frustration. I felt after the 3-0 win over Dagenham on Tuesday and because we took over 80 supporters to Victoria Road that we were up and could go to the 8th tonight – so I also expected a better audience today.

DH: Look Grant, I probably just feel a little sorry for myself, but 407 as a port visit on our level is ridiculous. So I can't keep apologizing for the lack of interest, I can't keep spending on land improvements and increased initial team and staff levels if nobody wants to come and see us.

I cannot continue to waste my money if the apathy of a city persists and does not support a club competing at the National League level. It must be remembered that we have been a really successful community club for over a decade, we have won 4 competitions since 2005-6, we came through the Southern Eastern division, through the Ryman Premier, through the South Conference and sit now as an established National League club during my tenure here.

I have raised the gaming budget by more than 800 percent in that time, I have built two brand new stands, we have added a new field, a sprinkler system, we have replaced the old spotlights, we have built 6 new changing rooms , built new training facilities for sterpitch twice, without forgetting that this city and club went to Wembley in a play-off final.

Most was done in crowds that I could fit in my back yard, but you would expect that they have really improved now.

I still subsidize travel, I still put on the free breakfasts, I have done the Q and A & # 39; s and I feel that I have pretty much tried every initiative known to man and even created the £ 99 seasonal pass for people. That offer is actually daylight robbery and works at just over £ 3 per game and yet people do not come in numbers to support us on a consistent basis.

I tried to push myself again, push my staff and push the current budget to the maximum and we got new players because we knew that we were poor last season in certain areas, both on and off the park.

I have personally spent half a million since February and together with the £ 330k from the Football Foundation, £ 150k from the City Council and £ 100k from Arsenal we spent nearly £ 1.2 million in the summer to a large number of facility upgrades and a brand new North Stand.

As I said, I have increased the first team budget and the only thing I hear in every boardroom that I enter is that Arsenal pays for this and Arsenal pays for that, which is a long way from the truth . They are a long-term partner, who also expect a lot from us for their money, which I am good at. But we are certainly not where we are because of Arsenal or a single partner, we are where we are because we are a well-run, well-managed club, built from below and have great staff.

You know more than anyone else, all I have heard from our fans in recent years was that if I were to build a covered home booth that would improve things and rock the Wooden Army. Well, if 407 fans improve things and if that rocks, they have all led incredibly sheltered lives.

The same fans have been telling me for years that if I could find a way to give them a more affordable season, tickets that would also improve things, like many other clubs. Well, I've done all those things and then some of these people don't even show up – so after this season that £ 99 season ticket is dead in the water.

So I really have to and I also have to recognize what my family needs, I have to look at what I actually get back in terms of terrace support from everyone, because I can no longer be everything for this club.

As I said that I have improved club structures across the board, I have just installed a new club shop, I have reinvested in the new toilets on the floor and I will continue to invest in both our schools and the school Community program, but will it improve our support? Of course not. For over twenty years and even with a lack of support, I have tried to improve things for the local population, with the work we do within our community. But our crowds just never seem to improve the way I see and demoralize at other local clubs such as Sutton, Bromley and Maidenhead.

Today was a real low for me and I admit that I really feel low. But you wouldn't do it, if you took away the 100 odd adult season ticket holders who had taken the trouble to be there yesterday, if you knocked out the players and boardroom guests and took away the media and fans, we only had 46 adults and OAP fans. show up and pay the day for a local National League program.

So now I have to re-evaluate what else I can do here, because the city clearly does not want to consciously support its club, so it can be a challenge at the National League level or support us in reaching of the football competition and I don't just want to come up with the figures, because I didn't sit down.

GM: This is the worst thing I've ever seen here in all my time here, but I can't really argue with everything you say, it seems like it doesn't matter what you do or have not done anything seems to make a difference.

DH: Grant I am not angry in the least, so please don't misunderstand me or be demoralized as anger, they are very, very different emotions.

But I am very upset, because after 21 seasons in the chair and after four or five promotions, after all school and community initiatives and even after budgeting for the losses of the ridiculously priced early bird season tickets, nothing has changed.

The players still have an empty stadium, although we now have 100 or 125 supporters living in the new home. Our levels of support frustrate life out of me, letting people talk to me about us challenging the Wrexhams, Notts County and Chesterfields of this world, all of whom get four or five thousand fans and the expectation of what their £ 99 brings is completely crazy.

I feel after today that it might be the right time to re-evaluate my own ambitions and consider reducing my investment year and some of the white elephants in the room. Does it feel like the right moment to accept that the current presence and support is the best I can hope for?

If we can accept all of that, we can feel that we enjoy what has been achieved here as an underdog club in the hustle and bustle we had before and now get.

It is probably now time for the loyal Wood Army to accept like me, that we will only ever have about three to four hundred supporters at home for a normal competition match and the rest of the crowd for that kind of game consists of -fans.

GM: Finally Then, I'm sure you'll bounce back like always, because it's not nice to see you so empty, but you have a message for our old and new fans, because many of them are equally unhappy with our support and the forest army all shares your frustration.

DH: No, I have no message, there is nothing left for me to say that they have not heard it before.

GM: Thank you, President.

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[ncthinghappens]

one ; breaking up / making up

i’m starting a new series where i rewrite all of my old preferences since i was ... maybe 16 when i wrote all of them. this is also my official re-introduction into the 5sos family so i’m very excited ! so much has changed ! anyways, like always; feel free to request blurbs and preferences or, if you wanna talk, feel free to hang out in my ask box !

MICHAEL ; you and michael had been fighting more than normal recently, and over the most ridiculous things. you were not looking to seeing him because of this. it’s the reason why the two of you had broken up a little over a week ago. but ever since you cut him out of your life, you’ve been miserable, a normal feeling to have after breaking up with somebody you truly cared about. michael’s texted you every day since the break up letting you know he still loved you. though you wouldn’t text back, you kept your read receipts on, showing him that you cared enough to open his messages. it wasn’t long after you decided to block his number, not allowing him any access to you in this fragile state. when michael noticed he could no longer reach you, he couldn’t stand it. he found himself on your door step later that night, a street light illuminating your front door. he knocked on your door and, hesitantly, you opened. seeing him sent butterflies through your stomach and a warm blush spread over your cheeks. your heart raced loudly, you were sure he could hear. “i’ve been stressed. it’s no excuse, but a lot’s been going on. i didn’t want you to worry, which is why i’ve never told you. but i’ve never been more sorry,” michael started. you stood silent. “please say you forgive me. please say you’ve missed me. i don’t want to lose you,” he pleaded. in the dark, you could see the hope in his eyes. you both stood in front of each other without saying a word. “come in, you’ll get cold out there,” you hesitantly offered, opening the door a little wider for him, allowing him to enter your life once again..

LUKE ; "i’m breaking up with you...” luke stated. he puffed his chest out and folded his arms across his chest. he was much taller than you so he stood up straight to feel as if he was bigger than you, in stature as well as emotionally. “luke, shut up,” you huffed. “i’m being serious. i’m breaking up with you.. if you beat me one more time in this fucking game,” he continued. you both had been playing the iMessage games that came with the new update. you’ve beaten him in everything. “looks like i’m single then,” you retorted as you sent him the last move. he opened the text saying you had won and tossed his phone onto the couch next to where you had been seated. “i just don’t understand why i can’t win! you have to teach me your ways.” you frowned at him and shook your head no. he just pouted up at you, widening his puppy eyes at you until you agreed. “i’ll only help you if you get back together with me,” you half smiled. He giggled at you as he watched you pull your phone out. “Deal.”

CALUM ; school had been tearing you apart. it was your first semester in college and you were a full time student. unfortunately, you couldn’t handle the stress of everything. working two jobs, attending school, keeping up friendships, and working on a relationship with an international star was doing nothing but fucking up your mental health. because of this, you and calum had agreed to go on a break for a few weeks. weeks turned into months and months turned into a year. you finished your first school year with fantastic grades and had earned promotions at one of your jobs, earning you more money than what you were making when both of your incomes were combined, and your friends had been your rock for the whole year you and calum weren’t together. but you missed him dearly. for some reason, you both didn’t end up reconnecting when you were supposed to and you wish you had. one night during your break, you decided to finally send him the text you were supposed to months ago. you sent “i miss you.” he replied within the next minute with a text that said “i miss you too.”

ASHTON ; after both of your had cheated on each other, it was decided that your relationship was nothing but toxic. neither of you didn’t want anything to do with each other. as you both sit across from each other at a coffee shop years later, you giggle. “remember when you cheated on me,” you start. he laughs at the memory as well. “i cheated in primary school. it wasn’t a real relationship. you cheated on me too with that brat... what was his name?” he says, correcting you. yes, you both cheated on each other in primary school. “doesn’t matter what his name was,” you say before you sip from your coffee. you had the privilege of watching ashton grow up into who he was and, despite the fact that you both hated each other temporarily in primary school, you grew close throughout the later years. “either way, i’m glad we could catch up today! i’ve missed you,” he grins. 

[footballleague0]

How do the Packers put the loss behind them?

Hi everybody. Thanks for logging on. Week 3, here we go. Let’s get to it.

Comment From Tom

Mike, why does this chat need a sponsor?

It doesn’t need one, but we’re glad to have one.

Comment From Guest

Martellus Bennett dropped a number of passes against Atlanta. Are you concerned about his part in the offense going forward?

I’m not sure Bennett is fully comfortable in this offense yet. I mentioned in Inbox this morning it took until Week 3 last year for Cook to start making things happen, and then unfortunately he got hurt. I think it’s coming with Marty.

Comment From Jeff P.

We’re on to Cincinnati… Love it. Can only pull that out every couple years

Once every 4, to be exact.

Comment From Nathan

Hi Mike! It’s way too early in the season to be doing this, but which player would you most like to see healthy on Sunday?

I think I’d like to have either Bakhtiari or Bulaga healthy if the Packers can’t have both. We know Spriggs is out multiple weeks, and playing McCray out of position is a tough deal. I’d like to see at least one of the tackles back out there this week, if I had my druthers.

Comment From Dean

Mike, when the Packers ‘work out’ a player, what does that entail?

Taking a prospect through some drills and conditioning workouts, kind of like a combine-style thing. They do it regularly, most of the time on Tuesdays. They’re constantly keeping and updating files on players they might want to sign later to the roster or practice squad.

Comment From Lori

What are your biggest concerns as the Pack faces the Bengals? Is confidence lacking?

I don’t sense any lack of confidence. With the Bengals, A.J. Green and Geno Atkins are the keys, one on each side of the ball. Don’t let either have a big day. That’s where I start.

Comment From Willie

The Bengals had extra time to prepare for the Packers. Do you see that as an advantage for them?

There’s always an advantage to extra rest. The Bengals are 0-2 out of the gate and have had extra time to think about getting their season back on track. I expect to see a highly motivated opponent on Sunday.

Comment From Ethan

FYI, the website showed the chat starting at 10am, but when you clicked on the page it said starting at 11am. Not sure if that’s happened last 2 weeks as I missed those chats.

Yeah, sorry about that. Last week I had to go at 10 a.m., and then it was going to be the same this week but I was able to change it back to 11. The media schedule for today changed late yesterday, so bear with me.

Comment From Ray L

Let’s get this one out early. Any injury updates?

Sgt. Schultz, right? I know nothing.

Comment From Joe

Do you think the “Nitro” package is just a gimmick defense that most OC’s will catch up to it quickly?

It’s not a gimmick. It’s a personnel package based on the offense’s personnel. If the O goes heavy run formation, the Packers won’t be in nitro, and if out of regular personnel they can run the ball down Green Bay’s throat, the Packers would have to adjust from nitro.

Comment From Guest

Do you think Patriots and Cowboys nations get as upset about loss one as Packers’ nation does?

I would imagine so. That’s the nature of it. Everyone gets all jacked up for the one game per week, and losses are disappointing. Other teams are better sometimes.

Comment From Matthew

Mike, thanks for your take on the replay system in this morning’s Insider Inbox. I wholeheartedly agree. Taking it one step further, it would be great if the replay official had no prior knowledge of the call on the field (if possible).

Interesting thought, but even that wouldn’t be necessary if they just changed the “indisputable” language of the rule. I’ve heard from many that disagree with my take because this is finally a rule that favors the defense. I don’t look at it that way. I look at it as trying to get the call right as often as possible.

Comment From Jerry Erie, Pa.

Rodgers has never beaten the Bengals yet. Is this weekend the time?

It better be. Packers can’t let this one get away.

Comment From Bruce

Mike, Two part question. Is this a critical year (#3) for Rollins and Randall as far as remaining on the Packers’ roster? SEcondly, how would you rate the Packers over the last several years as far as hitting on top draft choices (rounds 1-3)?

I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily critical for them remaining on the roster, because they’ll have one year left on their rookie contracts after this year. But their performances this year will determine the future path/decisions in free agency, draft, etc., at their position going forward.

Comment From Sean_C

Mike, I couldn’t help but be annoyed/aggravated when we were marching down the field in the 4th and the ATL defender “went down” with an injury. They were tired and on their heels. Is there not any rule or penalty for that? that seemed like a good cheap way to get a break for ur guys and get some subs in.

It happens all the time. I’m not really sure what anyone can do about it.

Comment From Willie

I disagree with you replay take this morning. The Falcons mobbed Rodgers and he got rid of the ball. Protect Rodgers and that play does not happen. Can we still get along even though we may disagree?

Sure. Even Rodgers admitted he needs to get the ball out quicker. The linemen were all cut blocking to get their defenders on the ground. That means the play was designed to be a quick throw. He can’t hold it like that and set himself up for the big hit.

Comment From Joe

Mike, I haven’t like the rub play since it first came into the West Coast Offense. It gives an unfair advantage to the receivers. Band it for good.

I hate those plays, too. This isn’t basketball.

Comment From Ray L

Looked like Rodgers had someone over the middle on the fumble play if he got it out quicker. Did you see that?

I did not, but I can take a look at the film later.

Comment From Linda P

Mike, If the Falcons are the best in the NFC at this point..early as it is, are the Pats the best in the AFC? Steelers and Bronco’s looked good.

Chiefs are right there, too. I think the AFC is harder to call right now, but I don’t think anyone in the NFC is as good as the Falcons … right now.

Comment From Ben

Will the referees hear from the league about the calls made in the game? Not to perseverate on last week — just curious in general. League wide, no one seems to be happy with the referees.

Teams send in plays to be reviewed all the time. It’s part of the process.

Comment From Dean

Mike if you had a chance to be a fly on the wall in the Packers draft room, would you? And of the last 5 drafts or so which year would you have liked to listen in?

I would love to do that sometime, and I requested it years ago, but no one was ever too keen on the idea.

Comment From Richard

I’m getting tired of everyone bashing the defense over Sunday night’s performance. the problem was that they got no help from the offense like they did against Seattle. Don’t you agree?

They didn’t get much help from the offense against Seattle either. 17 points, with a 6-yard TD drive after a turnover. I look for GB’s offense to hit its stride at home this week.

Comment From Jeff in Idaho

Hello Mike, 25 years ago Favre comes off the bench to win the game and life as a Packer fan has not been the same. I remember the day like it was yesterday.

I was playing in a college golf tournament and came into the clubhouse after my round to see the dramatics in the fourth quarter. I’ll never forget it either, even though at the time I didn’t really know what I was watching.

Comment From JD

I had a lot of respect for the work the backup tackles did on Sunday night. For anyone unhappy with their effort, go back and watch the Giants on Monday night. This is one of the reasons I believe Campen is a great coach. His players are always ready to give it a go and know what is expected.

I give Murphy and McCray a ton of credit for what they did, and you’re right, Campen deserves props too.

Comment From Mark

Mike, it seems the Packer’s injuries occur most on some type of artificial turf. With all the talk about player safety, is it time to make all surfaces uniform?

How can you? Several stadiums are indoors, where you can’t grow grass, and the outdoor teams with grass won’t want to switch.

Comment From Joe

Is Ty averaging over a 100 yards total offense per game? 1600 total yards is good for any back in the league.Isn’t it?

That would be a heck of a year, but the Packers need to sub for Montgomery more if they want him to last, and be effective, all the way through the season. McCarthy knows he can’t have this type of workload for 16 games.

Comment From Dennis

Were you as impressed as I was by the silence from the crowd in the 4th quarter? If the Falcons are the best team in the NFC, we were hot on their heels with an injured roster and their defense was gassed. If we can keep closer earlier, we can beat them.

To be honest, the place was emptying out. I hear traffic is awful in Atlanta, plus it was a night game, and with the score what it was … a lot of folks didn’t stick around.

Comment From Joe

Cook was a better fit for the Pack then Bennett but with the problems they now have at the Tackles sure nice to see him block.

Bennett is a very effective blocker, one of the better blocking TEs McCarthy has had, I think.

Comment From Razer

Given that injuries are inevitable, do you think we have enough depth on the D-Line?

Everybody would love to have more depth everywhere, but you only get 53 roster spots, and 46 on game day. No team can account for every scenario.

Comment From Ray N

Before we get too concerned about the Lions, consider the team they beat on Sunday night. The Giants’ O-line is epically bad, Manning is an aging increasingly immobile QB, and the G-men have not scored more than 20 points in 8 straight games. The Lions have improved but, before the start of the season, the Giants were arguably the most overrated team in the League …

I don’t follow the Giants closely, but it seemed their O-line was an issue last year, and I’m not sure what they did to address it. They didn’t add any dynamic running backs to help Eli, either. McAdoo will figure out a way to get it going, but for an 11-win team last year, they’re off to a really rough start.

Comment From Ben

Do you read other journalists’ articles about the Packers, or do you keep your head clear of all the other opinions?

I read a lot of other coverage of the team online. Other writers on this beat do a lot of good work and I appreciate the chance to learn things I might not have thought of on my own.

Comment From Picard90

I just finished reading the article on the interview with Eddie Lacy at ESPN, it’s really heartbreaking to see trolls piling on him for his struggles with weight. We need to remind ourselves that football players are human beings, too. I wish him the best of luck in his NFL journey. Now, I’m excited to see what our 3 rookie RBs bring to the table. I think Williams and Jones are off to a good start, do you agree?

I read the Lacy piece, too, and while it’s sad the way people attack others on social media, Lacy could just shut it all out, too. To each his own. As I said before with Monty’s workload, I think we’ll see more of Williams this week.

Comment From PAPackersFan

Just ONCE, I’d like to see us play Atlanta with a healthy roster. Start 2 O-linemen short, and then lose your best D-lineman and 2 WRs….. sheesh

Yeah, it was tough to hear 90 minutes before kickoff that both tackles were out. I wasn’t expecting that. Then losing Daniels and Nelson in the first quarter just piled on. Maybe next time GB can finally be healthy against them.

Comment From Jim_flat

Do you think the fact that there is a game next Thursday it will effect what injured players play Sunday?

I don’t think so, in the sense that if a player is cleared medically, I think he plays. How quickly he can bounce back to play again might be another matter.

Comment From Don H

I’m not worried. One game is not a trend. String together three sub-standard performances then we have trend to worry about. The game against CIN will go a long way toward defining the first quarter of the season …

With two home games coming up, Packers have to hit the quarter pole at 3-1.

Comment From Nathan

Who is Andy Dalton now? The guy who was a byword for mediocrity early in his career, or the one who was playing at a Pro Bowl level a couple years ago?

Hard to say. He’s won his share of games in this league. He didn’t suddenly forget how to play QB, and he’s got a dynamic target in Green Bay. I guess we’ll find out more Sunday.

Comment From JD

Kind of surprised that Jones got so many reps after Brice went down. With the way Evans performed in the preseason were you surprised and is this a result of his draft round or do you think he’s really surpassed Evans at this early point in the season?

I felt Jones was ahead of Evans on the safety depth chart, so I wasn’t surprised. I think we could be seeing more of Jones.

Comment From Ethan

Any chance we could ever get Mike and Wes in the chat? Or Wes has more important things to be doing, like stealing your lunch maybe?

haha

Comment From Rodney

Do you think we get to see King go one-on-one with Green this weekend?

At times, maybe, but I’m also looking to keep a safety over the top of Green and try to single-up on the other guys more often.

Comment From Ben

Hi Mike, what will the Packers have to do to put that loss behind them?

Win on Sunday. That’s it, that’s all.

Comment From Matt W

Do you think the Packers D keeps the Bengals out of the end zone for the 3rd straight week?

That would really get the wolves howling in Cincinnati. I think the Packers could do it, but just get the win, whatever it takes.

Comment From Joe

I’m sorry I see Sunday as a typical “trap game”

I’d actually think that if the Packers were 2-0 right now, not coming off a loss.

Comment From Matt W

Mike can you handle 2 post game Insider Inboxes next week? At least they are both home games.

It makes for late nights/early mornings, however I decide to do it, but I’ll do my best.

Comment From Joe

They were coming off loses last year when Indy came to town.

Right, and then they allowed a 99-yard kickoff return TD to start the game. So not doing that would be a great start to this one.

Comment From Jeff P.

This will be the Bengals first game with a new OC, do you think it will be feast or famine? Also how hot is Marvin Lewis’ seat? To me it seems like Bengals fans have wanted him gone for some time now?

The playoff record has hung over Lewis for along time, and if the decision on the OC doesn’t pan out, his seat will get hotter. But Lewis is a heck of a coach and he’ll remain in the NFL for a while yet, I imagine.

Comment From Kevin

Hi Spoff, thanks for the chat today. I was predicting before the season started that we’d be seeing Ty in an almost equal share of the RB touches with Williams. Do you think that will come to pass at some point, or was I just wrong again?

Montgomery is going to continue to be the main guy, but I expect a greater division of labor with Williams from here on.

Comment From George

I was pleasantly surprised with the play of King at CB… Going into this game I wasn’t all that high on the kid.

The Packers drafted him 33rd for a reason. There’s no doubting all his athletic talent. It’s too bad he had to miss almost the whole offseason program, but he’s clearly settling in now.

Comment From Dean

I’m hoping to see more of Jones in the Nitro at linebacker with Burnett back. Seems like Jones size and aggressiveness and Burnett’s experience would work well in that alignment.

I’m curious to see what the decisions are in that regard.

Comment From Linda P

Mike, Seems Like McAdo is on the hot seat. I read an article that said he is the worst head coach in the league. You know him. What do you think?

The worst? C’mon. The guy reached the playoffs last year in his first season at the helm. Beat a 13-3 Cowboys team twice. They’re off to a slow start, but McAdoo can coach. Like I said before, I just don’t see where they addressed their roster issues.

Comment From Lynn

When do we expect an update on injuries?

The first injury report will come out late today after practice, but tomorrow’s will be more meaningful, because it will be after a full-pads practice.

Comment From Guest

If Jordy and/or Cobb are limited, who do you see stepping up more within the wide receiver corps?

Other than Adams, I think it’s Allison. His first game was last week, and based on what he showed in camp and preseason, he’s a player on the rise.

Comment From Bruce

As Packers’ fans who do we root for this weekend? The 2-0 team within the division or the 2-0 team who most believe to be the front-runner for home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs? Maybe we hope for a tie?

Good question. The Packers will get two cracks at the Lions, so if you’re pushing for the top seed in the NFC, you probably root for Detroit to win this one. The Packers will probably have to beat the Lions twice to be in the top-seed mix anyway.

OK, folks, my hour is almost up. I’ll take a few more.

Comment From Joe

Why do you think that there are less and less quality Offensive Line men in the league? College offensives, CBA, or both?

I’m no scout, but I think the proliferation of spread offenses in college must have something to do with it.

Comment From Matt W

Baseball has set the record for most number of HRs in a season and is on pace for over 6000. Do you think it’s really the launch angle, or is it the new ball, or something else?

Both of those, plus nobody takes the old “two-strike approach” anymore, because strikeouts are shooting up at just as high a rate.

Comment From Steve

Cubs or Brewers win the division ??? Big four game set coming up …

Cubs have been hotter than heck since the Brewers swept them, so it’ll be tough for the Crew. I don’t mind seeing the Rockies take some more losses, though.

Comment From Ethan

See, if Wes joined, we would close out with Game of Thrones questions instead of baseball.

He’d love that.

Comment From Ray L

Just beat Bengals, and take solace in the fact that either the Lions or the Falcons will have a loss on Monday.

I like that for today’s last word. Thanks everybody. Have a good week. Take care, Mike

The post How do the Packers put the loss behind them? appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from http://ift.tt/2hfVekb from http://ift.tt/2xQHrYv

[giantsfootball0]

How do the Packers put the loss behind them?

Hi everybody. Thanks for logging on. Week 3, here we go. Let’s get to it.

Comment From Tom

Mike, why does this chat need a sponsor?

It doesn’t need one, but we’re glad to have one.

Comment From Guest

Martellus Bennett dropped a number of passes against Atlanta. Are you concerned about his part in the offense going forward?

I’m not sure Bennett is fully comfortable in this offense yet. I mentioned in Inbox this morning it took until Week 3 last year for Cook to start making things happen, and then unfortunately he got hurt. I think it’s coming with Marty.

Comment From Jeff P.

We’re on to Cincinnati… Love it. Can only pull that out every couple years

Once every 4, to be exact.

Comment From Nathan

Hi Mike! It’s way too early in the season to be doing this, but which player would you most like to see healthy on Sunday?

I think I’d like to have either Bakhtiari or Bulaga healthy if the Packers can’t have both. We know Spriggs is out multiple weeks, and playing McCray out of position is a tough deal. I’d like to see at least one of the tackles back out there this week, if I had my druthers.

Comment From Dean

Mike, when the Packers ‘work out’ a player, what does that entail?

Taking a prospect through some drills and conditioning workouts, kind of like a combine-style thing. They do it regularly, most of the time on Tuesdays. They’re constantly keeping and updating files on players they might want to sign later to the roster or practice squad.

Comment From Lori

What are your biggest concerns as the Pack faces the Bengals? Is confidence lacking?

I don’t sense any lack of confidence. With the Bengals, A.J. Green and Geno Atkins are the keys, one on each side of the ball. Don’t let either have a big day. That’s where I start.

Comment From Willie

The Bengals had extra time to prepare for the Packers. Do you see that as an advantage for them?

There’s always an advantage to extra rest. The Bengals are 0-2 out of the gate and have had extra time to think about getting their season back on track. I expect to see a highly motivated opponent on Sunday.

Comment From Ethan

FYI, the website showed the chat starting at 10am, but when you clicked on the page it said starting at 11am. Not sure if that’s happened last 2 weeks as I missed those chats.

Yeah, sorry about that. Last week I had to go at 10 a.m., and then it was going to be the same this week but I was able to change it back to 11. The media schedule for today changed late yesterday, so bear with me.

Comment From Ray L

Let’s get this one out early. Any injury updates?

Sgt. Schultz, right? I know nothing.

Comment From Joe

Do you think the “Nitro” package is just a gimmick defense that most OC’s will catch up to it quickly?

It’s not a gimmick. It’s a personnel package based on the offense’s personnel. If the O goes heavy run formation, the Packers won’t be in nitro, and if out of regular personnel they can run the ball down Green Bay’s throat, the Packers would have to adjust from nitro.

Comment From Guest

Do you think Patriots and Cowboys nations get as upset about loss one as Packers’ nation does?

I would imagine so. That’s the nature of it. Everyone gets all jacked up for the one game per week, and losses are disappointing. Other teams are better sometimes.

Comment From Matthew

Mike, thanks for your take on the replay system in this morning’s Insider Inbox. I wholeheartedly agree. Taking it one step further, it would be great if the replay official had no prior knowledge of the call on the field (if possible).

Interesting thought, but even that wouldn’t be necessary if they just changed the “indisputable” language of the rule. I’ve heard from many that disagree with my take because this is finally a rule that favors the defense. I don’t look at it that way. I look at it as trying to get the call right as often as possible.

Comment From Jerry Erie, Pa.

Rodgers has never beaten the Bengals yet. Is this weekend the time?

It better be. Packers can’t let this one get away.

Comment From Bruce

Mike, Two part question. Is this a critical year (#3) for Rollins and Randall as far as remaining on the Packers’ roster? SEcondly, how would you rate the Packers over the last several years as far as hitting on top draft choices (rounds 1-3)?

I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily critical for them remaining on the roster, because they’ll have one year left on their rookie contracts after this year. But their performances this year will determine the future path/decisions in free agency, draft, etc., at their position going forward.

Comment From Sean_C

Mike, I couldn’t help but be annoyed/aggravated when we were marching down the field in the 4th and the ATL defender “went down” with an injury. They were tired and on their heels. Is there not any rule or penalty for that? that seemed like a good cheap way to get a break for ur guys and get some subs in.

It happens all the time. I’m not really sure what anyone can do about it.

Comment From Willie

I disagree with you replay take this morning. The Falcons mobbed Rodgers and he got rid of the ball. Protect Rodgers and that play does not happen. Can we still get along even though we may disagree?

Sure. Even Rodgers admitted he needs to get the ball out quicker. The linemen were all cut blocking to get their defenders on the ground. That means the play was designed to be a quick throw. He can’t hold it like that and set himself up for the big hit.

Comment From Joe

Mike, I haven’t like the rub play since it first came into the West Coast Offense. It gives an unfair advantage to the receivers. Band it for good.

I hate those plays, too. This isn’t basketball.

Comment From Ray L

Looked like Rodgers had someone over the middle on the fumble play if he got it out quicker. Did you see that?

I did not, but I can take a look at the film later.

Comment From Linda P

Mike, If the Falcons are the best in the NFC at this point..early as it is, are the Pats the best in the AFC? Steelers and Bronco’s looked good.

Chiefs are right there, too. I think the AFC is harder to call right now, but I don’t think anyone in the NFC is as good as the Falcons … right now.

Comment From Ben

Will the referees hear from the league about the calls made in the game? Not to perseverate on last week — just curious in general. League wide, no one seems to be happy with the referees.

Teams send in plays to be reviewed all the time. It’s part of the process.

Comment From Dean

Mike if you had a chance to be a fly on the wall in the Packers draft room, would you? And of the last 5 drafts or so which year would you have liked to listen in?

I would love to do that sometime, and I requested it years ago, but no one was ever too keen on the idea.

Comment From Richard

I’m getting tired of everyone bashing the defense over Sunday night’s performance. the problem was that they got no help from the offense like they did against Seattle. Don’t you agree?

They didn’t get much help from the offense against Seattle either. 17 points, with a 6-yard TD drive after a turnover. I look for GB’s offense to hit its stride at home this week.

Comment From Jeff in Idaho

Hello Mike, 25 years ago Favre comes off the bench to win the game and life as a Packer fan has not been the same. I remember the day like it was yesterday.

I was playing in a college golf tournament and came into the clubhouse after my round to see the dramatics in the fourth quarter. I’ll never forget it either, even though at the time I didn’t really know what I was watching.

Comment From JD

I had a lot of respect for the work the backup tackles did on Sunday night. For anyone unhappy with their effort, go back and watch the Giants on Monday night. This is one of the reasons I believe Campen is a great coach. His players are always ready to give it a go and know what is expected.

I give Murphy and McCray a ton of credit for what they did, and you’re right, Campen deserves props too.

Comment From Mark

Mike, it seems the Packer’s injuries occur most on some type of artificial turf. With all the talk about player safety, is it time to make all surfaces uniform?

How can you? Several stadiums are indoors, where you can’t grow grass, and the outdoor teams with grass won’t want to switch.

Comment From Joe

Is Ty averaging over a 100 yards total offense per game? 1600 total yards is good for any back in the league.Isn’t it?

That would be a heck of a year, but the Packers need to sub for Montgomery more if they want him to last, and be effective, all the way through the season. McCarthy knows he can’t have this type of workload for 16 games.

Comment From Dennis

Were you as impressed as I was by the silence from the crowd in the 4th quarter? If the Falcons are the best team in the NFC, we were hot on their heels with an injured roster and their defense was gassed. If we can keep closer earlier, we can beat them.

To be honest, the place was emptying out. I hear traffic is awful in Atlanta, plus it was a night game, and with the score what it was … a lot of folks didn’t stick around.

Comment From Joe

Cook was a better fit for the Pack then Bennett but with the problems they now have at the Tackles sure nice to see him block.

Bennett is a very effective blocker, one of the better blocking TEs McCarthy has had, I think.

Comment From Razer

Given that injuries are inevitable, do you think we have enough depth on the D-Line?

Everybody would love to have more depth everywhere, but you only get 53 roster spots, and 46 on game day. No team can account for every scenario.

Comment From Ray N

Before we get too concerned about the Lions, consider the team they beat on Sunday night. The Giants’ O-line is epically bad, Manning is an aging increasingly immobile QB, and the G-men have not scored more than 20 points in 8 straight games. The Lions have improved but, before the start of the season, the Giants were arguably the most overrated team in the League …

I don’t follow the Giants closely, but it seemed their O-line was an issue last year, and I’m not sure what they did to address it. They didn’t add any dynamic running backs to help Eli, either. McAdoo will figure out a way to get it going, but for an 11-win team last year, they’re off to a really rough start.

Comment From Ben

Do you read other journalists’ articles about the Packers, or do you keep your head clear of all the other opinions?

I read a lot of other coverage of the team online. Other writers on this beat do a lot of good work and I appreciate the chance to learn things I might not have thought of on my own.

Comment From Picard90

I just finished reading the article on the interview with Eddie Lacy at ESPN, it’s really heartbreaking to see trolls piling on him for his struggles with weight. We need to remind ourselves that football players are human beings, too. I wish him the best of luck in his NFL journey. Now, I’m excited to see what our 3 rookie RBs bring to the table. I think Williams and Jones are off to a good start, do you agree?

I read the Lacy piece, too, and while it’s sad the way people attack others on social media, Lacy could just shut it all out, too. To each his own. As I said before with Monty’s workload, I think we’ll see more of Williams this week.

Comment From PAPackersFan

Just ONCE, I’d like to see us play Atlanta with a healthy roster. Start 2 O-linemen short, and then lose your best D-lineman and 2 WRs….. sheesh

Yeah, it was tough to hear 90 minutes before kickoff that both tackles were out. I wasn’t expecting that. Then losing Daniels and Nelson in the first quarter just piled on. Maybe next time GB can finally be healthy against them.

Comment From Jim_flat

Do you think the fact that there is a game next Thursday it will effect what injured players play Sunday?

I don’t think so, in the sense that if a player is cleared medically, I think he plays. How quickly he can bounce back to play again might be another matter.

Comment From Don H

I’m not worried. One game is not a trend. String together three sub-standard performances then we have trend to worry about. The game against CIN will go a long way toward defining the first quarter of the season …

With two home games coming up, Packers have to hit the quarter pole at 3-1.

Comment From Nathan

Who is Andy Dalton now? The guy who was a byword for mediocrity early in his career, or the one who was playing at a Pro Bowl level a couple years ago?

Hard to say. He’s won his share of games in this league. He didn’t suddenly forget how to play QB, and he’s got a dynamic target in Green Bay. I guess we’ll find out more Sunday.

Comment From JD

Kind of surprised that Jones got so many reps after Brice went down. With the way Evans performed in the preseason were you surprised and is this a result of his draft round or do you think he’s really surpassed Evans at this early point in the season?

I felt Jones was ahead of Evans on the safety depth chart, so I wasn’t surprised. I think we could be seeing more of Jones.

Comment From Ethan

Any chance we could ever get Mike and Wes in the chat? Or Wes has more important things to be doing, like stealing your lunch maybe?

haha

Comment From Rodney

Do you think we get to see King go one-on-one with Green this weekend?

At times, maybe, but I’m also looking to keep a safety over the top of Green and try to single-up on the other guys more often.

Comment From Ben

Hi Mike, what will the Packers have to do to put that loss behind them?

Win on Sunday. That’s it, that’s all.

Comment From Matt W

Do you think the Packers D keeps the Bengals out of the end zone for the 3rd straight week?

That would really get the wolves howling in Cincinnati. I think the Packers could do it, but just get the win, whatever it takes.

Comment From Joe

I’m sorry I see Sunday as a typical “trap game”

I’d actually think that if the Packers were 2-0 right now, not coming off a loss.

Comment From Matt W

Mike can you handle 2 post game Insider Inboxes next week? At least they are both home games.

It makes for late nights/early mornings, however I decide to do it, but I’ll do my best.

Comment From Joe

They were coming off loses last year when Indy came to town.

Right, and then they allowed a 99-yard kickoff return TD to start the game. So not doing that would be a great start to this one.

Comment From Jeff P.

This will be the Bengals first game with a new OC, do you think it will be feast or famine? Also how hot is Marvin Lewis’ seat? To me it seems like Bengals fans have wanted him gone for some time now?

The playoff record has hung over Lewis for along time, and if the decision on the OC doesn’t pan out, his seat will get hotter. But Lewis is a heck of a coach and he’ll remain in the NFL for a while yet, I imagine.

Comment From Kevin

Hi Spoff, thanks for the chat today. I was predicting before the season started that we’d be seeing Ty in an almost equal share of the RB touches with Williams. Do you think that will come to pass at some point, or was I just wrong again?

Montgomery is going to continue to be the main guy, but I expect a greater division of labor with Williams from here on.

Comment From George

I was pleasantly surprised with the play of King at CB… Going into this game I wasn’t all that high on the kid.

The Packers drafted him 33rd for a reason. There’s no doubting all his athletic talent. It’s too bad he had to miss almost the whole offseason program, but he’s clearly settling in now.

Comment From Dean

I’m hoping to see more of Jones in the Nitro at linebacker with Burnett back. Seems like Jones size and aggressiveness and Burnett’s experience would work well in that alignment.

I’m curious to see what the decisions are in that regard.

Comment From Linda P

Mike, Seems Like McAdo is on the hot seat. I read an article that said he is the worst head coach in the league. You know him. What do you think?

The worst? C’mon. The guy reached the playoffs last year in his first season at the helm. Beat a 13-3 Cowboys team twice. They’re off to a slow start, but McAdoo can coach. Like I said before, I just don’t see where they addressed their roster issues.

Comment From Lynn

When do we expect an update on injuries?

The first injury report will come out late today after practice, but tomorrow’s will be more meaningful, because it will be after a full-pads practice.

Comment From Guest

If Jordy and/or Cobb are limited, who do you see stepping up more within the wide receiver corps?

Other than Adams, I think it’s Allison. His first game was last week, and based on what he showed in camp and preseason, he’s a player on the rise.

Comment From Bruce

As Packers’ fans who do we root for this weekend? The 2-0 team within the division or the 2-0 team who most believe to be the front-runner for home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs? Maybe we hope for a tie?

Good question. The Packers will get two cracks at the Lions, so if you’re pushing for the top seed in the NFC, you probably root for Detroit to win this one. The Packers will probably have to beat the Lions twice to be in the top-seed mix anyway.

OK, folks, my hour is almost up. I’ll take a few more.

Comment From Joe

Why do you think that there are less and less quality Offensive Line men in the league? College offensives, CBA, or both?

I’m no scout, but I think the proliferation of spread offenses in college must have something to do with it.

Comment From Matt W

Baseball has set the record for most number of HRs in a season and is on pace for over 6000. Do you think it’s really the launch angle, or is it the new ball, or something else?

Both of those, plus nobody takes the old “two-strike approach” anymore, because strikeouts are shooting up at just as high a rate.

Comment From Steve

Cubs or Brewers win the division ??? Big four game set coming up …

Cubs have been hotter than heck since the Brewers swept them, so it’ll be tough for the Crew. I don’t mind seeing the Rockies take some more losses, though.

Comment From Ethan

See, if Wes joined, we would close out with Game of Thrones questions instead of baseball.

He’d love that.

Comment From Ray L

Just beat Bengals, and take solace in the fact that either the Lions or the Falcons will have a loss on Monday.

I like that for today’s last word. Thanks everybody. Have a good week. Take care, Mike

The post How do the Packers put the loss behind them? appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

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[gamerspasm]

My 2016 in Games

It’s that time of year again. Time for me to look back on all the games I’ve played in the last 12 months and review them for no other reason than it’s the end of the year. Honestly, last year took a while to write up, but I’ve been looking forward to this since January. Obviously, like 2015, this is a mishmash of different games, both old and new, and ONLY games I haven’t played before. What’s more, these are games I have at the very least beaten. So let’s get right to it:

Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice (3DS)

I’m a massive fan of the Ace Attorney series, and it feels like it’s been ages since the last one. Realistically it’s only been 3 years. Like most of the games before it, Spirit of Justice does what it can to balance the classic gameplay everyone loves with new elements that help to keep the series fresh. Here, it’s the divination seance, adding literally the last moments of the victim’s life to the testimony. It’s a nice addition, offering a lot to consider, but given how previous additions make a return also, it does feel a little clustered when they try and cram them all in. Still the cases are a lot of fun. Typical Ace Attorney, with plenty of twists and turns along the way. One thing I did find irksome though was I felt some cases could have been expanded upon more in order to make the shocking reveals all the more impressive. There were a few “plot twists” that fell rather flat, basically. Plus, despite the inclusion of colourful characters, most of the time defendants are people we already know, which can lead to the stories feeling stagnant. The music is great as always and the overall look does the job. All in all it’s great, but, personally speaking, not the strongest entry in the franchise. The finales are always big in these games, but this one just doesn’t seem to have the same gravitas. That said, it does have one of the most emotional and heart-wrenching moments in the series’ history, but I dare not spoil it here. You’ll have to play the game yourself. 8/10

Another World 20th anniversary  (Wii U - eShop)

This game has been sitting on my Wii U for a while now, but I finally got around to playing it this year. I never played the original, but even so I do have a soft spot for these types of puzzle/action platformers; especially those that came out during the SNES era. Graphically the game isn’t brilliant, even when updated, but it’s kind of cool that you can switch back and forth between the old and new on the fly. Sound-wise there’s absolutely nothing memorable here, which is a shame, but there’s a surprising amount of humour. I don’t know why, but all the death animations and cutscenes just made me laugh. I think it was the abruptness of them. Speaking of, the near instantaneous respawn makes failure less painful to endure, but dying can still be frustrating. For example, the game is programmed to only save progress if the player has accomplished the tasks before it in the right order. However, because the solutions to some of the puzzles aren’t very clear, it can lead to massive set backs, where the player is catapulted seemingly half the game backwards. It can be quite annoying. That, teamed with the terrible controller response time - something that seemingly feels neglected during the update - makes failure almost inevitable in some instances; and with a lot of reaction based combat being sprinkled in, it can drain the fun. Overall, the game is average. Nothing I’d write home about and it is a little short, but it’s fine. 6/10

Bayonetta 2 (Wii U)

I really enjoy Platinum Games’ stuff. No matter what they make their content is almost always unanimously fun. Bayonetta was no exception, and it’s sequel continues the trend. Going in, this game had a lot of praise. There was a lot of love for it, with many holding it up as one of the best on the system. Would I agree? Yes and no. Graphically the game is bright, colourful and lush, and the soundtrack is brilliant once more, but I couldn’t help feeling, especially in the early stages, that Bayo 2 was just a retread of the original. Story structure and level layout is very similar and there was very little new. Not that that’s a bad thing, but I guess I expected more. The plot at first is also a little sporadic and difficult to keep up with, so that didn’t help. By the end though, not only is the story proven to be really well done and thought out, but the game finally has a lot more to offer than what was previously there. Aesthetics are a little disjointed however. Whilst enemy design is magnificent and always interesting to look at, location design is often bland and boring. Even Hell, which is usually a goldmine of imagery, looks standard and uninteresting. Then of course there’s Bayonetta herself, who again seems to be mostly eye-candy for the male gaze. That does die down again, like it did in the first game, but somewhat much further along. It’s a shame really as I do think Bayonetta is actually a good character. She’s a badass who takes charge and doesn’t give a crap about what anyone else thinks. Plus she has a sensitive side beneath the bravado. I’d like to see more of this, not just the sex appeal. Ah well, I still had a blast with it, despite my own personal drawbacks. 8/10

Box Boy (3DS)

To be clear I started playing this last year, when it came out, but I only got around to beating it this year. Box Boy is a delightful and cute puzzle platformer that has all the charm and love you’d expect to find in a Nintendo game. The design is brilliantly simple but its surprising just how complex these puzzles can get from it. Each world has its own theme, with gimmicks and traps getting steadily harder as you progress, and there’s a challenge element there too. You can beat the stage using as many boxes as you want, but if you’re ruthlessly efficient you can earn the crowns. These don’t really do much outside of earn you more cash at the end of a stage, but some are really devilish to get so bragging rights are to be had too. Music, much like its appearance, is rather underplayed and standard, which is a shame, but I guess it’s forgivable. The reason why this game took me until this year to beat however, comes down to the secret stages after you clear the story. These worlds are no joke, compiling everything in the game up to that point into one gauntlet of puzzles; many of which make you feel like you’ve cheated when you beat them. It’s really interesting to see how complicated these simple mechanics can become, but the difficulty serge may put a lot of players off for a time. That includes me. 8/10

Castlevania (Circle of the Moon) (GBA - Wii U Virtual Console) 

Fun story. When I was first getting a Game Boy Advance, I couldn’t decide which launch game to get with it. F-Zero Maximum Velocity or this. This was before I had ever played a Castlevania game, and so I ended up going with F-Zero; but looking back, I think this would have been a better fit for me at the time. As Castlevania games go though, and having played plenty now, it’s a little rough. This was very clearly the starting point for some of the later GBA and DS titles. Never the less, it’s a lot of fun. Graphics are gorgeous for its time, gameplay is mostly intuitive, and the soundtrack has its moments. Difficulty’s a bit cruel, mind, and there were some bizarre decisions made regarding design. Why is walking even an option? Why do I have to get a power-up in order to run, and even then, why do I have to double tap a direction to use it? These set backs make the game needlessly finicky at times, and the alternative isn’t so great when the game has an excruciatingly slow walk speed. For what is supposed to be a fast paced action game, you can see why this can be an issue. Then of course there’s the endgame structure. No real spoilers, but having a final boss that can kill you in one hit isn’t hard, it’s cheap; and having to grind for a stupidly long time in order to beat said boss is also poor design. Even so, I had a good time with the rest of it. 7/10

Chibi Robo Zip Lash (3DS)

Being a Nintendo fan is sometimes less fun than expected. With a company that has so many beloved franchises you’d think they’d use them properly. Well turns out, no, actually. Instead Nintendo has been taking some of its IPs and experimenting. Nintendo have been doing this so much recently, I’ve decided to coin a term for it: Genre-flipping. Chibi Robo Zip Lash is one example of this. Chibi Robo is a time management series, with fun visuals and an adorable character. Chibi Robo Zip Lash is not a time management game and nor are the visuals that fun. At least they got the character right. I’m not truly sure where to start. Visually, it’s bland, with environments being seemingly made out of lego bricks, and the soundtrack is absolutely forgettable. From a design standpoint, taking Chibi’s mechanics into consideration, it’s a little fun, but ultimately nothing special. It’s all rather by-the-numbers. There are a few collectables here and there, along with some bonus medals that do absolutely nothing. Of everything though, the most bizarre thing about this game is its wheel-of-fortune way of progressing. At the end of each stage you spin a wheel that tells you how many stages you advance through. Essentially it runs like a board game, with one path doing a circular from numbers 1 through 6 and then again. My question is: why? Beyond being pointless, it’s also annoying. You, the player, don’t get free movement of a world until you beat every level, and because you have to essentially roll a dice to decide which level you go to, you could end up doing laps of the world just to get to the level you need to play. Oh and FYI you need to clear the level again in order to roll again. Fun. Eventually, I learned a trick that guaranteed that I would play each level consecutively after the other, but again, that just hits home how pointless the gimmick is. The only explanation I have is that very early on this game was going to be a free to play game, only they changed their minds at some point and went to retail. The final boss is also dumb, asking the player to essentially buy the final level (if this WAS free to play, you know it would have been locked behind a pay wall). Still, it comes with a Chibi Robo Amiibo. So that’s nice. 5/10

Dante's Inferno (X360)

What’s that? A game that was no where near my back log and practically forgotten? Sure, why not, chuck it on. This year I’ve kinda had a thing for all things Hell related. I just find interpretations of it fascinating. That’s what led to me playing this. Graphically it’s a little dated now, but not hard to look at, and the music is actually quite impressive. Mostly its just choir and eerie instruments, but it’s Hell, what did you expect it to sound like. Mechanically it doesn’t really do anything special though. It’s about as standard a hack-n-slash as you can get - borrowing elements from games like God of War and such. That’s not really a bad thing, as the game plays fine, it just gets a little repetitive as you go. Furthermore, the difference in difficulty is too vast. On easy, enemies die in seconds, but in normal, you’re hacking away for ages. I never even bothered wasting my time on hard. Personally however, the thing I loved the most about this game was the design from an aesthetic standpoint. Each circle of hell is given a different theme that is faithful to its source material, and I often found myself just stopping to take in my environment. I wish the levels were longer to be honest, but at least everything keeps moving, unlike Castlevania: LoS last year with the intrusive results screen at the end of each “stage”. What I also like is how the game ties the levels of hell into the story of our hero. It’s not exactly an original plot, but it was interesting how Dante had committed sins worthy of each circle, and that every descent brought him closer to redemption. It’s certainly a nice adaptation, and the game ends on a never to be realised “to be continued” but it doesn’t need a sequel. it’s fine as it is. 7/10

Destiny (PS4)

There are certain genres I have no interest in getting involved with for whatever reason. MMO is one of them. Multiplayer games just don’t grab me as much as single players do, so generally, I don’t bother with them. So, when Destiny was released, I couldn’t care less. That coupled with the infamous lack of content didn’t really spur me into buying it, but when the taken king DLC pack came out I decided to give it a go. As stated, I’m not really an MMO gamer (shooter or otherwise), so I’m very aware there are probably much better games in this field, but I have to admit I kind of like it. It looks stunning, if a little too spacious, and there’s always something to do, even playing in single player. By far the most fun I had was playing with others though, time that led to some genuinely memorable moments. Enemy design is interesting, albeit unoriginal (the Fallen are essentially the Covenant from halo - like for like). Bizarrely, it’s the small stuff that makes this game good to me. All the big stuff where the budget clearly went (i.e. voice talent) doesn’t add all that much. What did shock me though, was when the Taken King story began. Not only was it a better campaign to play through than what had come before it, but it also highlighted just how bare bones the original title was at launch. This also goes into another matter of constantly re-releasing the game with brand new bells and whistles every 6 months - something I have no time for - but I digress. If you haven’t played it yet and you have a couple of buddies online too, give it a whirl. Nothing ground breaking, but enjoyable enough. 8/10

Doom (XBO)

Last year I wrote about Halo 4, and I talked about how it was the game that pretty much ended my affair with First Person Shooters. Realistically that hasn’t changed; I’m still not a massive fan of FPS games, but Doom got my attention. There was a lot concerning me about this game. No pre-release reviews (which is never really a good sign) and a lot of the gameplay footage resembled every other FPS game out there, so I was a little split on picking it up. Still, I gave it a whirl and I have to say this game is an absolute breath of fresh air. Action is thick and fast; locales are always different; and set pieces are easily distinguishable. Even the story, which you’d expect to be quite weak, is engaging. The ultimate word I would use though is fun. This game is a blast play. The character of the Doom Guy is so enjoyable to play as you can’t help grinning from ear to ear as you mow down the hordes of hell’s army. Which reminds me, enemy design is not only unique but also faithful. I’ve never played a Doom game before this one, but looking at the older games and seeing how the designers remained true to the originals I can see how much this game is a labour of love. The soundtrack is brutal and raw; not exactly something I would stick on my MP3 player, but enough to get the blood pumping, and there is a surprising amount of content. I think what makes Doom so enjoyable though is that it knows what it is. It’s a video game. It’s not focused on keeping things realistic. It’s all about carrying an arsenal on your back, destroying demons in endlessly satisfying ways, and finding little mini figurines, secrets and references. A surprise hit for more than just me, Doom may be one of the best 2016 had to offer. 9/10

FAST Racing Neo (Wii U - eShop)  

FAST Racing Neo is a game that got a lot of hype, both before and after launch. It was easy to see why. Not only did the game look truly outstanding, but to many, it was the worthy successor to F-Zero that they were craving. Unfortunately it’s anything but. This is not F-Zero. It may look like F-Zero. It may sound like F-Zero. Hell, it may even want to be F-Zero, but it’s not. So what’s wrong with it? Simple: mechanics and design. There are some good ideas here, but an hour of testing should have told them they were going the wrong way about them. Changing colours to suit the boost pads is nice, but said boost pads are few and far between. Not to mention how truly difficult it can be to drive at such speeds. Turning or adjusting course is just straight up stressful when it’s this unreliable. This leads me on to the next problem, the difficulty itself. It’s way too hard for the earlier difficulties. It just throws you in the deep end. Refreshing as it may be, it’s certainly not welcome. It can lead to genuine frustration, and can make the player feel as though the game is unfair. This tied in with easily the biggest issue of them all: the boost pellets. Scattered about each course are small pellets that fill up your boost meter which can ultimately turn the tide. Again, nice idea, and on paper there’s nothing wrong; but when these pellets are incredibly tiny and laid out in tricky positions you can see where the issues come from. Not to mention the speed your travelling. Yes, I know it’s *FAST* Racing Neo, what did I expect, but the game has to accompany that speed. Fast is great, feeling like everything is based on luck with a near vertical learning curve, isn’t. 5/10

Fire Emblem: Awakening (3DS)

Fire Emblem is without a doubt one of my top 5 favourite gaming franchises, so you’d think it strange that I’ve not really played it in about three years. Maybe even longer. Thing is, Fire Emblem is a series that deserves respect. No distractions and no commitments. Just you and the game. So, earlier this year, when all my distractions and prior commitments were dealt with, I decided to finally play what many consider to be one of the best. It’s hard to disagree. As a Fire Emblem veteran, Awakening is probably the most refined of the series thus far (I haven’t played Fates yet). It’s simplified for newcomers, whilst maintaining the difficulty, and it introduces a lot of value to the support system, leading to some great battles. It also introduces the quick reset function for the purists. The characters are brilliantly likeable, and with the ability to play previous maps again and again, it allows you to get the most of the team mates you don’t typically use. The inclusion of an Avatar is a welcome change too, as is the chance to get specific special characters as a reward for gaining S rank support. The music is also wonderful. If I had any downsides it would be that it is overall quite easy by comparison to other Fire Emblem games, with only a handful of levels proving any challenge; allied AI is almost intentionally crap, with CPU villagers running headlong into enemy fire; and the story is a little disjointed - it feels more like three different stories, with one thread running weakly through them. These problems don’t really effect the overall experience however, and as always I walked away absolutely satisfied. An absolute gem. 9/10

Hyrule Warriors (Wii U)

There are hack-n-slash games and there are hack-n-slash games. Some play out a narrative or story that requires you to take out a number of enemies to progress, whilst others set an objective and ask you to mow down hundreds of thousands of foes to see it through. Hyrule Warriors falls in the latter category. Coming from the same studio behind the cult-hit Dynasty Warriors series, the game is a collection of levels and maps with a set task and just hordes of enemies between you and it. I’ve never played the Dynasty series, nor have I had any inclination towards this vein of hack-n-slash, but I have to say the experience was extremely enjoyable. In many ways, tackling army after army is cathartic and in the simplest of ways plays into a person’s deep desire for destruction. Want to feel godly? Play one of these games. Surprisingly though, there is a hell of a lot more on offer than you’d think. There are challenges and bonus tasks to each main stage, plus rewards for playing the stages in unorthadox ways, and that’s just the main game quest. There is an absolute boat load of content outside of that, with practically over a hundred levels and challenges, all of which encourage you to play the game to the fullest. Play as various characters, upgrade in various ways, grind, farm, there’s so much to do in fact that any attempt to 100% would be enough to drive you out of your mind. You’re looking at 200 hours, easy. As a result, there’ll come a point when you just stop. Not that the game gets bad, or gets stagnant, but that the way forward just gets too trying. I might jump back into it one day to relive the same joys, especially since they’re releasing DLC, but until then, I think a breather wouldn’t go amiss. Oh and the soundtrack is flawless. 8/10 

Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush (Wii U)

If there’s one thing I hate, it’s gimmick games. No, not games with gimmicks in them, but rather games built around gimmicks. The DS suffered from an influx of these at the start of its life, with every title shoehorning needless touch screen elements into their games, but thankfully they started to die out. Nothing stays dead for long, it seems. Enter Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush, a follow up of sorts to the DS’ Kirby’s Canvas Curse. Let’s get the good out of the way first. Straight off the bat, this game looks gorgeous. The clay motif is wonderful to look at, and the lighting really makes the colours pop. Soundtrack-wise it’s nothing exceptional, but there are some good songs in there, along with some classics from the previous Kirby games. And that’s it. There is nothing else this game has to offer. Look at screen shots and listen to the soundtrack online; you do not need to play this game. Why? How about the game being 100% touch screen controlled. Buttons do nothing, and so you the player must scribble the life out of the Gamepad in order to do anything. I’ll try and convey how atrocious the controls are. For a start, once Kirby starts moving, he doesn’t stop. So he will just keep rolling about until you direct him otherwise. This leads the player into a wrestling match to keep the little bugger from wandering off. Then, in order to turn Kirby around, you “simply” draw a wall in his path. Except if your wall is drawn upwards and not perfectly vertical, Kirby will mount it and roll up it instead. Then there’s the limit to the rainbow rope. I get it, I know why there’s a limit, but once you draw a line, there’s no way to make it go away without using MORE rainbow rope! This can lead to the groundless levels being painfully frustrating, and even the standard levels aren’t much better. You can’t truly relax, you’re just always in a constant state of rage. You can forget collecting everything too. Not only is Kirby a pest to control in order to get all collectable items anyway, but many collectables are hidden in mini game rooms. These rooms are not fun. They give you 15 seconds to figure out what you need to do AND get Kirby to play along for a change. The number of times I came so close, only to be thrown out. It’s a joke. So yeah, bad, BAD, game with only a few - and I mean a few - moments of enjoyment. It’s only marginally more playable in multiplayer, but even then its just a game of babysitting that nonce, Kirby. 4/10

Kirby Triple Deluxe (3DS) 

I actually don’t hate Kirby games. I mean, they’re not masterpieces, not by a long way, but they seem to get the right things down. Most of the time. By and large Kirby games are fun, if a little easy, but fun all the same. Triple Deluxe is just that, fun. I kinda don’t know what else to say about it really. Graphically it looks good - with some great character animations - and the music is, again, okay but nothing truly spectacular. It was good to play Kirby as he was meant to be played. Even if it wasn’t that hard, there was still a lot of enjoyment to be had. It’s classic Kirby gameplay with a slight 3 dimensional twist. If I had any negatives it’d probably be the ending, which I do feel goes on overly long with boss fight after boss fight after boss fight. Some would say it makes the finale all the more impressive and epic, but, to me, there’s only so epic a Kirby game can get before it outstays its welcome. It’s more of a personal reason, I know. Overall a quaint and charming game, which is certainly more relaxing than a certain other Kirby game I played this year. 7/10

Legend of Zelda: Picross (3DS - eShop)

After my frankly unhealthy addiction to picross at the end of last year, I’ll take any excuse to get back into it. So when Nintendo went ahead and released a Zelda version (essentially for free to My Nintendo users) you better believe I snapped it up. What can I say, it’s picross. It’s the same simple, enjoyable, and addictive puzzling its always been, only now you’re drawing Zelda things. For what is a cheap pick-up-n-play title, there’s actually a fair amount to get through, along with a new mode if you succeed at beating the main challenges. That being said, this “new mode”, otherwise known as Mega Picross, isn’t actually that great. Besides being needlessly complex and confusingly explained, you’re solving the same puzzles as before, only everything is convoluted and frustrating. All in all though, it gave me the perfect picross fix. Just don’t expect it to hold you for longer than a weekend. 7/10

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD (Wii U)

Nostalgia can be a difficult thing to get past. Case in point, Twilight Princess; a game I felt was truly a flawless game the last time I played it on the Wii. Playing the HD update however, I’m not sure I can say that anymore. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a fantastic game, with great structure, dungeon layout, mechanics, graphics and soundtrack. Furthermore, it isn’t *worse* because it’s a HD remaster, its more or less the same - with slight improvements and detriments. It’s more that, playing over it again and doing everything I could to 100% it, I found a lot of the game more frustrating than the last time I played it. Certain side quests that were ultimately poorly designed. For example - having to manually trek back to the beginning of a quest if you fail it rather than just being transported, is a pain. I even rage quit at one time because it was so infuriating. There were even parts of the main quest that I felt were needlessly elongated. I know they were for story purposes, but when you’re having to travel back and forth to the same points over and over again, it can be a bother. In terms of what’s new in this version, much like the Windwaker HD, it’s mostly small items that don’t shake the foundations, but they certainly can be a big help. I also felt some of the collect quests were made a little easier, but I can’t be too sure about that. Of all my problems with this game though, my biggest comes down to the controller mapping. It’s not unplayable, but, just rather bizarre. The way certain buttons are mapped is a little backwards in my opinion, with some buttons literally not being used at all. It just feels odd that in the process of making the game slick and smooth on all fronts (gameplay included) they would seemingly botch this area up. Ah well, the game is still great, and one of the best in the series; even if my eyes have been opened to   its shortcomings somewhat. 8/10

Liberation Maiden (3DS - eShop)

Japan is an odd place. There are some games that struggle to get a western release despite a built in audience abroad, whilst there are others that get released without any real problem. In the latter zone we have liberation maiden, one of a compilation that was released digitally outside of Japan by Level-5. Why do I emphasise Japan so much here? Well, because if I had to describe this game in one word I would say: Japan. It’s everything you would expect from a Japanese title. You are the princess of a space colony that is tasked with stopping the evil metal aliens from polluting the planet by using a giant, meta-morphing battlebot. See what I mean. If you take out the (questionable) english voice acting, this game practically screams “Japan”. But lets move off that shall we. Graphically, this game doesn’t look all that good, and the soundtrack is...well...it’s hard to say. Most of the time the music is really quiet and you can’t hear it over the sounds of explosions. As for the gameplay itself, it’s a little stiff, and it’s all rather confusing. I spent a little too long waiting for the game to grab me, and even then it never did. I found the combat to be rather bland, and the levels to be quite repetitive. That’s not too bad though, considering realistically you can beat the game in a single sitting. Generally, it was a decent way to kill an afternoon, but ultimately, its about as standard as it gets. 6/10

Limbo (PS3)

Limbo has been one of those games that I’ve watched from the sidelines. A lot of people praise it, it’s earned a lot of respect in the indie community, but it’s never really shot to the top of my to-play list. That was until the developer released “Inside” earlier this year to the same critical acclaim. Right off the bat, Limbo makes you feel like it’s a game with more style than substance, but as you play you get given more in-depth challenges with more dangerous obstacles. By and large its a puzzle game, but each brain teaser keeps you on your toes and forces you to think differently using the game’s design and logic to win the day. Visually its impressive. The dark tones create a brilliant atmosphere, as does the eerie soundtrack. It’s also a game with little to no frustration. If you fail a puzzle, you die; but you respawn so quickly, that the whole trial and error prospect doesn’t seem too bad. Honestly I wish more games did this. It’s a little on the short side, pretty much beatable in two sittings, but it’s just about the right amount of enjoyment. Like a French Fancy cake. 9/10

Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam Bros (3DS)

In spite of the fanbase, I actually like the recent run Mario and Luigi games. I mean, of course the original DS trilogy is better, but these are hardily trash. Hell, I actually think Paper Jam Bros gets the series staples bang on. It has refined and purified all prior game problems to create an experience that is efficient in its execution, and one that never asks too much from the player involved. With that said, it is strange then that this game is not the series best. I can’t really describe it, but it just feels as though this game is missing somewhat of a soul. Don’t get me wrong, the music is great again; it’s visually interesting; the battles are really clever and can be quite strategic; the writing and humour is some of the series’ best; and the overall gameplay is fun. But it’s something beneath it all. There’s no grandness to the adventure. No point or reason to having it. It just feels like an idea that, whilst done well, didn’t really have the weight to go anywhere. Structurally it’s not terrific either, with the game bouncing back and forth between the main adventure and mini-games. The mini-games do offer a nice distraction, but they aren’t really paced properly, which can make them feel completely out of place more than once. And if they aren’t thrown in at random occasions, they’re predictable. It all feels by the numbers really. The game is great, and in no way do I regret playing it; but it just doesn’t have the same quality and heart as previous entries. 8/10

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor (PS4) 

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first: Shadow of Mordor doesn’t have an original bone in its body. Realistically, this isn’t a bad thing. It has the free roaming and wall climbing mechanics of Assassin’s creed, whilst also bringing in the combat and stealth segments of the Arkham games. In many ways, it delivers on the best of both worlds - albeit in a little clunky fashion. I did like the “power system” though, a near limitless roster of ranked orcs that you can take out, sometimes more than once, and the overall interface was quite intuitive. Graphically it looked great too, and the background music was atmospheric and cinematic right when it needed to be. The story too is quite interesting, offering not just an adaption of the events preceding the Lord of the Rings, but also an enormous amount of lore to get stuck into. Not to mention the side quests and bonus content available if you’re willing to put in the time. Sadly, in spite of all it’s good qualities, and there are a lot, the fact that there isn’t really anything that makes this game stand out from the crowd can lead people to just shrug it off. The final boss is also incredibly anti-climactic - unless of course you pay for the DLC which gives you a “better” send off. Typical WB; what are games for if you can’t make money off of them, amiright? 8/10

Overwatch (XBO)

I’m repeating myself. Multiplayer focused games just aren’t my thing. I can appreciate the design, and I can love the overall experience, but the games just do not have the power to hold me for longer than a week. With that in mind, Overwatch is incredibly enjoyable, with a few minor drawbacks. The cartoony style looks lush and interesting, and the characters are all beautifully realised and unique. The maps are quick and frantic, leading to some genuine fun and epic moments. It’s not all smiles and celebrations though. Naturally there are some pros out there who can play this game blindfolded, which in turn can make some matches incredibly one sided, and when there’s a heavy emphasis on teamwork, having that one teammate that does nothing, or even having a smaller team than the opposition, can make things un-fun very quickly. Fortunately, there is an option to play against CPUs, but these matches do not give out the same rewards to playing against real people. The rewards themselves are also meagre. They’re random, can be duplicated, and half the time they’re locked behind micro-transactions. You’re essentially gambling to get worthwhile skins and other cosmetics. Beyond all of this, there isn’t much the game offers, but I will say that when you’re playing with friends, it is a lot of fun. Definitely for its competitive audience, but that doesn’t necessarily include me. 8/10

Pokken Tournament (Wii U)

I feel I should point this out now. This game’s score is attributed exclusively to the gameplay. By that I mean the fighting. Whether its between you and a friend or the computer, it’s fun. Combat is surprisingly in depth, offering a lot to fighting fans, and the graphics are spectacular. Plus there are plenty of characters to choose from, so you can tell this had some effort and thought put into it. As for everything else though, it’s a little bare bones, and frankly tedious. For starters, all you can do is fight; and you fight a lot. There is literally nothing else this game has to offer. There is a story that pans out as you play through the game’s “league mode” (essentially a ranked arcade mode) but beyond that all you can do is fight. Over and over again. The way the league matches are organised is incredibly repetitive and asks for a lot of patience out of the player. As a comparison, imagine being asked to play street fighter’s arcade mode upwards of 8 times just to advance to the next bit. Sounds like a slog doesn’t it? Furthermore, the menus are intrusive and, as a result, make the player less inclined to change their fighter during the main modes - given that you have to pick a default fighter from the start that can only be changed by going to the main menu itself. Finally, the voice acting; oh god the voice acting. Not only is it obnoxious coming from your “guide” character - who will not shut up unless you switch her off - but it is also woefully bad. Delivery is a farce with lines and emphasis not matching up, and the general dialogue sounds like it was written by a 5 year old with no idea what pronouns are. Still, the gameplay is good. 7/10

Rhythm Paradise Megamix (3DS)

I’ve never played a Rhythm Paradise game before, and really, I didn’t exactly want to. They looked like fun, but when they were being packaged and retailed at the same price as other, far more in-depth games, I couldn’t bring myself to get into them. When Nintendo announced they were going to be releasing what is essentially a collection of the entire series up to now though, well that was a different story. Honestly, I’m kinda glad I skipped the series before now, as I can experience the greatness of the franchise in all its glory all at once. I’ve got to say, RPM is an absolute blast. Brimming with life, colour, and most importantly, rhythm, the game is almost impossible to put down. It’s highly addictive and more fun than you might think. Plus there’s actually a lot of content to get through, with challenges, highscores, and unlockables. The best thing going though is the soundtrack. Every stage has a completely original song made just for it, and each one is wonderful to listen to. I often found myself playing through the same levels over and over again just for the hell of it. If I had any draw backs, I’d have to say its more what they could have done, or should have done, but didn’t. For example, the perfect campaign, the ability to earn rewards by clearing a level without missing a single note, shouldn’t even exist; Three goes and then it kicks you out? Why? Why not instead just have it always on the level and then if you fail it doesn’t stop the song and boot you? Also sometimes the margin for error varies too much and occasionally button presses aren’t recognised on some of the faster games. Finally, why is there no randomizer option, or playlist function? These seem like no brainers to me, as the game is already the perfect down-time game. Ah well, the game is still a lot of fun, and I think I’ll be humming its beats until the day I die. BA BOM BOM BOM! 8/10

Rise of the Tomb Raider (XBO)

Tomb Raider’s latest reboot was a brilliant surprise last year, so I couldn’t wait to dig into this one. Right away, it certainly ups the ante. The game plays a lot smoother and the newer mechanics give depth and strategy to the overall experience. Lara’s character is irresistibly good, and still retains a lot of her strengths from the last game, but the good news is, they’re actually taken further here. The developers could have easily carted out the same old Lara, but it’s good to see they really care about her as a character. Now, Lara’s much more tenacious without being over-confident. She’s vulnerable, but resourceful; and she’s formidable but not impervious. The way she develops as she goes ties into the game’s title really well; this is Lara truly becoming the Tomb Raider we want her to be. Stealth elements are beyond intuitive. Everything flows without coming to a standstill and it’s all incredibly simple. Crafting items like bombs and Molotov cocktails in the midst of battle can also shake things up, and the layout and design compliment these elements perfectly. Everything is laid out so well that, if you play your cards right, you can take down an entire platoon of enemies without them even seeing you in a matter of seconds. In terms of content, there’s a lot to do and find, and the interface is so useful that the path to 100% is rather straightforward. Negatives? It does feel a little shorter than its predecessor, although I don’t know if that’s because the individual areas are a lot bigger or not. I don’t know. Honestly, I really struggle to find fault with this game. It was a lot of fun to play, and on top of that, it’s incredibly well made. 9/10

Shantae (GBC - 3DS Virtual Console)

After playing and loving Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse last year, I thought I’d go right back to the beginning with the Gameboy Colour original. And how was it? Well...let’s just say it’s certainly come a long way. Oh the game is good. It’s a lot of fun, with a startling amount of content for a Gameboy Colour title, but it is a little rough around the edges. Not only is a lot of the game not really laid out for you (forcing you to question whether or not you’re going the right way) but it’s also unspeakably difficult. Like, immediately this game pulls no punches at all. From the get-go it’s hard, with enemies doing a hell of a lot of damage, and Shantae herself being unable to hit them without getting really close. Not only that but there are insta-death zones everywhere, and also there’s a day and night feature which rotates every 5 minutes. How is that bad? Well enemies take twice as long to kill and do twice as much damage at night. This can make a lot of areas unplayable in the dark in the earlier stages, and as the game is designed in a metroid-type way, there’s a lot of back tracking involved, so you’ll be passing through the same areas a lot. Finding the warp squids makes travel less cumbersome, mind, but even so it doesn’t make exploring the wilderness any easier; a lot of the game’s secrets frankly require a strategy guide. By the end though, despite the unforgiving difficulty, I was somewhat sad to leave it all behind. I did have a lot of fun when all was said and done, and even though I’ll probably never play it again, I would recommend it to those looking for some retro adventure gaming. 8/10

Star Fox Zero (Wii U)

Here we are: arguably the most divisive game of 2016. One half claiming it’s great, with a lot of value and charm; whilst the other half calls it a broken piece of trash that doesn’t work. Frankly, I have no idea what the latter group is on about. Star Fox Zero is a fantastic game that’s a hell of a lot of fun to play. It looks brilliant, with a style that seems to be both realistic and retro at the same time, and the music is really engaging and great to listen to. The opening level has one of the best tracks to get the blood pumping. Honestly, going in I had reservations. I was worried about the controls. I feared they would get in the way of the gameplay, but I was surprised. In fact, I played the entire first level without even using them. Plus, they’re customisable to a degree, so you can mix and match to suit your style. Granted there are some learning curves later on, specifically with the walker, but as far as I’m concerned, if you’re willing to put in the time, you’ll be rewarded in spades. If I did have any problems I would say that the branching paths don’t really feel like proper levels, as they’re more like bonus levels; I wish the game wasn’t just a reboot of the series; and the final boss almost doesn’t feel like the final boss; but realistically that’s it. The controls are fine unless you have literally zero patience or tolerance for trying something new, and half the time you can play without them. And on top of all of this, it has the best tribute to Mr Iwata. I’m just glad to have Star Fox back. I’ve missed you, buddy. 8/10

Steamworld Dig: A Fistful of Dirt (3DS - eShop)

Steamworld Dig is an odd game to talk about. I don’t really know where to begin. On the one hand I could call it a dungeon crawler - although that’s not entirely accurate - and on the other I could say its an exploration adventure game. Tell you what, I’ll go with the title. Dig. Because that’s what you do. You dig. Downwards and sideways and sometimes even upwards. That’s practically 90% of the game. And it’s awesome. Who would have thought a game that asks you to do the same menial task again and again within seconds of each other would not only be fun but also incredibly addictive. Forging your own way through the underworlds below, finding treasure and mining ore as you go, as well as uncovering more of the plot, all come together into a highly enjoyable package. There’s just something incredibly soothing and cathartic about smashing a rock until it breaks. I rarely got tired of it. Even when I did, I was back to playing it after a few hours. It’s just a blast, surprisingly. There are a few downsides of course. It’s a little on the short side, even with the different worlds to uncover and the music is rather standard outside of the main theme, but these are just minor details when all is said and done. Pick it up if you can, it’s certainly good for a weekend. 8/10

Super Luigi U (Wii U)

Can DLC really count as its own standalone game on this list? When it’s released as its own retail copy it does. And what a strange one it is. It’s not Super Luigi U, it’s New Super Mario Bros. U + New Super Luigi U. That’s the name of the game. Meaning when I put it in my Wii U, the console had no idea about my NSMBU save file. But I digress. Super Luigi U is all right. Well it wasn’t really going to be anything special when it’s essentially built on top of a pre-existing game, but I do like what it’s trying to do. All stages are practically speed runs, with only 100 seconds on the clock, and a number of challenges between you and the goal. This is probably the game’s best feature. Honestly, I didn’t feel like I was trudging my way through another Mario title, but rather breezing through it at an alarming pace. It’s also pretty straightforward to 100%, even if Luigi plays like he’s on roller-skates and some of the levels are a little on the difficult side. At the end of the day though there was no shaking that this title didn’t really feel like its own game. I mean, I know it isn’t and that it’s DLC, but still. It’s more of a pleasant distraction than anything else. I would like to see Nintendo do more with Luigi, but until they start giving him his own proper space, instead of having him just run around in Mario’s, he’s always going to be second rate. 7/10

Tengami (Wii U - eShop) 

Tengami to me is a classic style over substance game. There is some substance admittedly, but this game is clearly built on its look; which is paper. More specifically, origami. I do have a soft spot for it though. Having everything being treated like a literal story book, turning over pages and such, it did bring a certain charm to the game. Then again, it was developed by ex-rare staff, so we’re clearly dealing with some talent. It’s essentially a point-and-click puzzle game, but when I think about it there actually weren’t that many puzzles. The puzzles it did have were great, with some intriguing and inspired brain teasers, but it would have been good to see some more. Easily the game’s biggest strength though is it’s soundtrack, which honestly floored me with how good it was. This game came out in 2014, along with Shovel Knight, Bravely Default, Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse, and Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze. It got me thinking: 2014 was a bloody good year for Video Game music. Speaking of Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze, the soundtrack is done by the same guy; the irrefutably gifted David Wise. He captures such mysterious nuances to everything he puts his hand to here, and it’s truly remarkable. Even if you’ve never played the game, I implore you to look up the soundtrack. I’m going a little off topic here, so let’s talk about Tengami’s problems. For starters, it’s short. Alarmingly so in fact. I beat it in a single sitting and with very few moments of pause; which is even more damning when you take into account the other major flaw. The game’s nameless hero moves so - bloody - slow. It’s painful sometimes, and god forbid you forget to do something before you move on because back tracking is an absolute chore. Overall, I don’t regret playing it, and if you’re looking for a decent game to unwind to, look no further;  just be prepared to wait a while for your character to get his arse in gear. 7/10

Theatrhythum Final Fantasy Curtain Call (3DS)

Hey, big shock, I like Video Game music. You wouldn’t know it, would you? All joking aside, Video Game music is some of the best music out there in my opinion, and it’s a shame it doesn’t get more attention. So when a title comes along that takes video game music and makes an entire game around it, you know I’m down - especially when the music in question belongs to Final Fantasy. Theatrhythum Final Fantasy Curtain Call is a sequel of sorts. I played and enjoyed the first game, and found myself getting addicted to it, so it was only natural I played the follow up. Funny thing is, it’s not really a follow up, or a sequel, it’s more of an ultimate edition. This game is the first game again, only with a bazillion more things in it. It’s a rhythm game with some of the best songs in the Final Fantasy library; only now there are over 200 songs to play through, on multiple difficulties. Yikes! No joke, the way the game works, I hadn’t even played all the songs once by the time I reached the credits. Plus, you keep unlocking new songs as you go, which just adds to the playtime, and, whilst the first game just featured the main canonical Final Fantasy games with a few bonus extras thrown in, this game features music from any game with Final Fantasy in the title. It’s insane. Plus it doesn’t just stop there. There’s also a cool adventure-type mode, that sees you playing song after song, sometimes on the hardest difficulty to reach the end. You have to play through these if you want to get even close to unlocking everything. Oh did I mention the unlockables. As well as extra songs, the game also has extra characters, collectable cards, and Sound Test items to unlock. AND THEN, even though it has SO MANY SONGS to begin with, there are DLC songs too, just in case you were thinking of giving up on the real world altogether. This game has so much in it, in the end I just had to cut the cord whilst I was still plugged in. For the sake of my health I just had to put it down for good and walk away. Definitely a great time, but be careful you don’t lose yourself to it. 8/10

Thomas Was Alone (PS3) 

One of the more random games I decided to pick up this year, Thomas Was Alone is a fun, quirky, and most of all funny puzzle game. I got plenty of Portal vibes off this game while I was playing. The dialogue is so witty and humorous. Add that to Danny Wallace’s excellent comedic delivery and you’ve got a game that has you laughing on every stage. Graphically the game is lacking, although this is intentional, and the same goes for it’s soundtrack. But the design and narration easily make up for the absences. It’s a little short, but it’s charming. No other game has given faceless, coloured shapes personalities before. That’s got to count for something. 8/10

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3)

The Uncharted series has been on my back log for a long time, but this year - with the release of Uncharted 4 - I decided to finally get stuck in. And it’s ok. That’s it. Sorry, Sony-boys, the original Uncharted is only just above average in my opinion. Maybe for its time it was a much better example, but right now it’s a little dated. Graphically it’s not too bad, though environments are rather stagnant, and the music is very cinematic, but the gameplay is rather bland. Combat is tiresome, with firefights being overly long and boring. Seriously, you take on something like thirty guys every time; what other word is there but tedious. Then there’s the puzzle segments of which there aren’t that many. Most of the time you’re climbing which is equally as overplayed as the combat, and when that’s your lot it doesn’t take long for the game to get a little exhaustive. The structure here is also questionable. When Nathan Drake steps foot in a secret chamber no one has been in for centuries, why are there suddenly armed guards to take out in there? Basically, it seems combat is used as a device to add variety to the exploration, but there are surely more and better ways to do this. The best qualities this game has however are the plot, which is highly engaging, and the characters who are irresistibly likeable at all times. The overall gameplay is fine - although very clunky and rough around the edges - and for the most part it is enjoyable enough. A decent first effort from Naughty Dog but nothing truly spectacular. 7/10

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3)

Coming off the back of Uncharted 1, I didn’t really have a lot of enthusiasm for the sequel. But, a lot of people had said that it was ultimately a better game and so I gave it the benefit of the doubt. Thankfully, it paid off. Among Thieves is a much tighter experience than its predecessor. The story is just as good as the first, and of course the characters and writing remain brilliantly entertaining; but on top of this Naughty Dog have worked on the faults of the first game. Combat is much more balanced, with firefights now making a lot more sense, and there are a lot more environments to explore. There are also a lot more puzzles, although 90% of the solutions require climbing. Fortunately, that too has been improved, with Nathan moving a lot quicker and seamlessly from foothold to foothold. General variety is up too, with combat not just being the only thing to do. Generally the whole game is a mark up from the last one, but there are still a few problems. It does still feel clunky moving about - more than once Nathan swan dove off a ledge I didn’t want him to go near - and some of the newer elements, more specifically the stealth aspect, don’t exactly work. All it needs is a button prompt when you’re close enough to do a stealth takedown, but because it’s not there, Nathan just swings his fists like a maniac and draws all the attention to himself instead. Luckily, no parts of the game require stealth, but it’s frustrating none the less when you want to be stealthy but the game messes you up. In the end I gave up on sneaking and just went in guns blazing. All in all Uncharted 2 is a much better game and seems to be going in the right direction. A few weak areas here and there hold it back and I’m still waiting to be absolutely blown away but it’s definitely a great game. 8/10

Undertale (PC)

I am a firm believer that video games are art. Art - to me - is a means of expression that can be interpreted in different ways by different people on top of connecting emotionally with the viewer. So basically, so long as the user is connected and is invested in someone else’s creation, it is art. Now, not all video games should be considered art, but there are nevertheless plenty out there that could. Undertale is one of those games. Quite frankly, this game is a masterpiece. Part RPG, part bullet hell, not only does it do new things and break the mould of its genres but it also exemplifies the video game experience. Now I’m sure I’m not the first person you’ve heard say these things about this game, but I’m in earnest. This game is a triumph. In many ways, Undertale is the true Citizen Kane of gaming. Like Orson Welles, Toby Fox is pretty much a one man army with this project. Designer, Director, Writer, and Musician, among many other things I’m sure. Speaking of musician, can I take a moment to bring up how immaculate the soundtrack is. It’s easily the one of the best video game soundtracks of the decade. Every track is perfection and immediately recognisable, not to mention incredibly well made. Gameplay is excellent and intuitive, and it’s one of the games where the player’s actions directly impact the game as a whole. This is a game that rewards you for not killing, and vice versa. Beating the game on a pacifist run (do not kill a single enemy) will give you arguably the true ending to the game, whilst beating it on a genocide run (kill literally every living thing in the game - yes, that’s a genuine possibility) will result in the game being broken forever. I never had the guts to attempt a genocide run. For starters the characters are too endearing and full of life, but also because, if you constantly kill, the game openly does what it can to make you feel like a horrible person as you play. Music becomes distorted, your inner monologue becomes much more hateful and aggressive, and characters and NPCs regard you with fear. It’s seriously messed up. Honestly, the pacifist run alone is what made this game truly exceptional. I can’t say too much without spoiling it, but I’ll just say during the perfect pacifist run something happens that changes the way you see this game. All previous assumptions get turned on their heads. That sudden change in perception is what cemented this game as a work of art. I thought it was just a brilliant and fun game, but it’s something a lot more special. Undertale is the real deal; the genuine article, and you owe it to yourself to play it if you haven’t already. 10/10

Yoshi's New Island (3DS)

Ah, Yoshi’s New Island; or as I like to call it: Yoshi’s DO IT ALL AGAIN. This game is just disappointing, and I’m saying that after going in with low expectations. It’s hard to believe this game came out in the same year as Yoshi’s Woolly World (i.e. a vastly superior game). Presentation is lazy, soundtrack is obnoxious, and level design is bland and generic. I also find it ironic that the game calls itself Yoshi’s *NEW* island, and yet it seems hellbent on re-enacting the original SNES game. Every world is themed and structured identically to it, but whereas then it made sense given the structure of the island, here it doesn’t work. Why is world 5 a snow world? In the original it was because you were climbing the mountains, but here it’s just snowy. The game as a whole adds a little bit here and there, but nothing ultimately earth-shattering, and it’s not exactly hard. The overall design is just unfair for completionists though. The way collectables are placed can lead to some genuine fury, and if you end up missing that one red coin, that’s right, you have to do the whole level again! Not surprised I gave up on 100%-ing this after a while. Oh, and as if to throw in some form of self awareness, the final boss repeats itself. Nothing changes, it just asks you to, literally, do it - all - again! Fine as a “Babies First Yoshi” game, but for fans, stay away. 5/10