#writing about videogames

[estherax]

Generating plasm and stacking matchboxes: how to build a better future through collective consciousness.

Alternatively - Steban and Ulixes were building Tatlin's Tower so I have to talk about the symbolism or I will explode!!

While completing the communist vision quest you get an opportunity to build a model of "The Tower of History", depicted on the last page of "A Brief Look at Infra-Materialism": a leaning tower wrapped in a dramatic helix. The scale model you make is a mirror image of Tatlin's Tower - a design for a grand monumental building to the Third International: the government organization advocating for world communism.

The main idea of the monument was to produce a new type of structure, uniting a purely creative form with a utilitarian form. Meaning it would function as an office building while also serving as a symbol of cultural significance. And let me tell you, this bad boy can fit so much symbolism in it.

Tatlin was commissioned to develop a design in 1919, after the 1917 February Revolution - a parallel to Disco Elysium's Insulinde we're witnessing post-Antecentennial Revolution.

Tatlin's work was inspired by high revolutionary goals, which are evident in the visual direction of the tower as well, expressing the ideological strive for achieving something that has never been done before, overcoming the odds. The structure "oscillates like a steel snake, constrained and organized by the one general movement of all the parts, to raise itself above the earth. The form wants to overcome the material and the force of gravity..."

The tower has meaning packed even in the materials. For example, the glass structures (marked A, B, C on the architectural rendering) were meant to serve legislative, executive and informative initiatives while rotating around their axes at different speeds. The material signified the purity of initiatives, their liberation from material constraints and their ideal qualities.

But here's the best part. The spirals.

"The spiral is the movement of liberated humanity. The spiral is the ideal expression of liberation: with its base set in the earth, it flees from the ground and becomes a symbol of the suspension of all (...) earthy interests." They are "the most elastic and rapid lines which the world knows" that represent movement and aspiration, continuing the themes of progress and freedom, but they also refer to something else.

In the process of building the matchbox model Rhetoric points out: "It's almost exactly as Nilsen's sketch imagined, a physical manifestation of the dialectical spiral of history."

The shape of the tower is a representation of dialectical development of history, first visualized as a spiral by G. W. F. Hegel. He pictured transformational change as "both linear and circular in order to be short-term responsive, i.e. possibly negating itself, and long-term strategic, i.e. a process of development."

Hegel's dialectics would later be reinterpreted through the prism of materialism by Marx and Engels to create dialectical materialism - the basis for historical materialism.

"Still, this idea, as formulated by Marx and Engels on the basis of Hegels’ philosophy, is far more comprehensive and far richer in content than the current idea of evolution is. A development that repeats, as it were, stages that have already been passed, but repeats them in a different way, on a higher basis, (...) a development, so to speak, that proceeds in spirals, not in a straight line; a development by leaps, catastrophes, and revolutions; (...) the interdependence and the closest and indissoluble connection between all aspects of any phenomenon (history constantly revealing ever new aspects), a connection that provides a uniform, and universal process of motion, one that follows definite laws - these are some of the features of dialectics as a doctrine of development that is richer than the conventional one."

The tower embodies progress in materialist understanding of history while also indicating the connection to ideological plasm, a manifestation of "the proletariat's embrace of historical materialism", necessary to create a better future.

According to Nilsen, the proletariat of a revolutionary state can generate enough plasm to create extra-physical architecture that "disregards the laws of 'bourgeois physics' and instead relies on the revolutionary faith of the people for structural integrity."

This function of plasm implies that The Tower of History can be created only under revolutionary circumstances - without a sufficient amount of plasm even the matchbox model didn't stay up. The exact same sentiment is expressed about Tatlin's Tower: "We maintain that only the full power of the multimillion strong proletarian consciousness could bring into the world the idea of this monument and its forms. The monument must be realized by the muscles of this power, because we have an ideal, living and classical expression the pure and creative form of the international union of the workers of the whole world."

Nilsen called it "the highest expression of Communist principles, a society whose literal foundation is the faith of its people."

Tatlin's Tower was a symbol of faith in the revolutionary future, the global triumph of Marxist socialism. A monument "made of iron, glass and revolution."

It was never built in real life, and neither was The Tower of History in the world of Elysium.

But you can try to see if there's enough plasm between the three of you. And the matchbox tower stays up for a long moment, quivering with an improbable energy. You believe it can say up - and it does.

So you have to believe; whether it's for collective action or generating ideological plasm. Then, together, maybe you'll be able to build as much as 0.0002% of communism.

[beatx-mavie-archangelx]

hi the arcana fandom i was wondering did we give up or did they manage to block us all?

[killingbill]

Roach Tells Soap how he got his name 🧍‍♂️😭

sfw, mw2 09, captain mactavish x roach sanderson

It's quiet. A typical scenario where Roach was concerned. His hands are on either side of the sink, though without the gloves nor the bulk of his vest he looked a lot smaller. Yet, somehow they all looked a little more human without the gear.

The soldier is tipped off to Mactavish's presence from the moment he creaks open the door. The small bit of light peering into the dark space, or his visage roughly reflected in streaked mirror.

"Ye never told me how y'got yer name, in the first place."

The man tenses, a bit. He's not sure if he wants to speak, but he decides that it's better not to deny his captain. Besides, he'd never asked before -- and with their previously shared intimacy, it may be rude not to.

He exhales.

" . . . i survived an' es'plosion." Roach replies, watching with a soft anxiety settling in his chest as the captain comes in fully.

He softly latches the door behind him.

"S'that right, now?" He asks, lumbering up behind Gary.

"Mm. Yessir." Roach replies, easing backward slightly. His form relaxing.

"An' how'd ye manage t'do that?" Johnny asks, head over Gary's shoulder as he leans in real close. His strong arms bracketing the soldier's hips, while the heels of his palms press against the porcelain.

Gary clears his throat.

"Well, I was th'only one 'ho go' ou'." He shrugs, crossing his arms as he leans back against Soap's chest.

"Crawled inta' an open air-ven' n' closed the grate. Er, more like jumped fer m'life, but... it didn' folla' me."

"Smart man." Soap nods. "Knew I was smart in pickin' ya."

Roach blushes in the soft yellow light as Soap's lips caress the base of his jaw.

"When th'choppa came fer' m'exfil, they said i was unkillable. jus' like a bloody roach, i was."

"Mm. Well tha' explains the scars." Soap mumbles, pushing his hips up into Gary's, while fingers curl just a little bit tighter around the sink's edge.

The man in-front exhales, with his head falling to one side.

He's referring to the burn scars on Roach's face, and hands -- close to his jaw. Ones Gary looks at with a lidding of his hooded eyes.

"Mm." Is all he says in response. " -- Sir." He tacks it on for good measure.

Of course, he doesn't divulge the blast of flames that licked his skin as he closed said grate. He hadn't been sure if the tight channel was going to be enough to save him.

Seemed self explanatory.

"Well jus' keep it up, will ye' -- i ain't losin' ye on my bloody watch, that's fer sure." Soap mumbles between kisses.

"... S'why we ended up t'gether..." Roach says this unexpectedly. "Los' my old team."

Soap's head rises from the crook of Gary's neck, and he looks up at their reflections in the mirror. There's a bit of a smile that crosses rugged features, at that.

"Well, welcome t'the family, Roach. I'll make sure they take real good care a' ya."

[presiding]

How you'd rewrite Dishonored death of the outsider if it was fully fledged game with 10 missions? (like Dishonored or Dishonored 2)

Oooh!! Enrichment in my enclosure - thank you for asking! Thinking about a total rewrite was a great exercise. Fair disclaimer: I haven’t read the books & their canon-status can’t hurt me. To me, the Dishonored games stand out due to their immsim design philosophy, and thinking about some of the industry reasons for DotO’s departure from that, if I could make a standalone game with ~ten levels I would, but with the same budget I’d also happily make two DLCs made slowly over a longer timeframe with greater attention to detail.

Game structure

Finding Daud // Billie’s past

The fate of the Outsider // Billie’s future

Game story

Setting & Characters

Billie: What has Billie been doing since she’s returned to Serkonos? Knowing the Dreadful Wale will sink, she’s sold it for scrap & has set up an agency in Lower Aventa. She’s something of a detective/odd-jobs man (& assassin when it suits her). Business is booming, life is good. I think a long-running implication that she's becoming Daud in some ways would make for an interesting subplot.

Karnaca: a city that unfolds. In the first levels, Billie feels like a forgotten woman, a ghost slipped through the cracks, but as levels progress there are hints & references to how her past actions have affected others & shaped the city

Alignments: Witches, gangs, religion, industry; missions for clients who can’t necessarily pay their way. Missions that allow the player to explore/understand Karnaca in a deeper way.

Daud: Billie is unsure if Daud again will bring her any closure. She’s been thinking of him since her time with Emily, and his name keeps popping up.

Deirdre: the charm is a more functional heart, similar to Jessamine, as well as her own character design. Perhaps she doesn’t see Deirdre until she chooses the powers, or until she’s in the void (see next point)

First arc: Finding Daud // Billie’s past

Powers: the Outsider offers Billie powers even though her life is finally, actually good, so she’s pissed off. A choice - she can take them, or play no powers mode.

Breanna Ashworth is this arc’s villain - she wants Delilah back, and knows that Daud has banished her before, wants to know how he did it. Grief & desperation has changed her, and she no longer has her high society veneer. The remnants of the Karnaca coven, now powerless, have stolen from the Overseers to arm themselves to the teeth, and to neutralise Daud’s powers, in addition to black bonecharms.

Billie’s in a race against time against Breanna to find Daud, but by the last level it becomes clear that Breanna *has* found Daud, and has been torturing him for information about the void. Her dynamic with Billie is complicated by their past.

I think betrayal would be an interesting theme, so maybe one of the levels gives you the option to ally yourself with Breanna under false pretences.

Second arc: choosing the fate of the Outsider // Billie’s future

Delilah is the core villain, but she’s obsessed with killing the Outsider so she can take his place, having been violently ripped from her perfect world in her own painting by Breanna (who meant well), & knowing the Empire doesn’t hold her interest... but a perfectly mouldable void & infinite power does take her fancy.

As remorseful Daud is obsessing about preventing Delilah from taking power, Billie’s doing some detective work and learns more about the Outsider (he’s not showing up and monologuing - she’s finding this out herself. A level idea could be a raid on a ‘haunted’ houses where the void is thin)

Delilah succeeds in taking the Outsider's place, leaving the Outsider dead or mortal depending on if you are able to save him. Delilah has split her soul from herself before and she’s very much clever enough to learn the Outsider’s name to render him mortal.

Daud knows he’s dying, though, and it might be an ultimate sacrifice to save both Billie’s life, and the Outsider’s.

So during the final battle, there’s an option to make Daud the Outsider, because Daud wants Billie and the Outsider to have a shot at a normal life, and his life was forfeit in his own mind…

… or, reluctantly accepting the Outsider’s help, Billie finds a way to cut the void’s access to the world, rendering Delilah an all powerful god over a dead & silent world.

Because of the past/present focus of this you could even have levels set in the past - missions with Billie & Daud. Perhaps Billie as POV character, and Daud dropping by the way that Billie did in Knife of Dunwall. That’d be neat.

A heap of ideas here, hope there was something you liked :)

[bobthedragon]

Does Eelliot having parts cut off actually do damage or is it more of an annoyance? Like scale of 1-10 how bad is it for mr eels

THANK YOU FOR ASKING

mr eels is TIRED of getting his parts chopped off but also he is very used to it as someone who puts his life in danger for fun on the reg.

that being said he is Not used to dealing with people with ??swords?? in his urban-ass life and this is a Lot more of this specific type of damage than he is used to dealing with.

transcription under cut

Elliot is made of Eels. They can grow, shrink, shapeshift and regrow, but each eel is still part of his body. (there is a diagram of him made of puzzle pieces that are all interconnected eels. it says "diagram simplified for clarity") One of the things I don't generally draw is the clean-up process. Elliot heals fast (via shapeshifting), but life is better if he can collect all his bits first. (Elliot says "oh, there's my kidney!" while pulling a cut off eel out from under a couch.) But also, since he doesn't collect his lost blood, he ends up anemic real quick. (Elliot, looking Awful, stares at a puddle of blood and thinks "don't lick it don't drink it don't eat it don't") Also it still hurts But Whatever (elliot, bleeding from his shoulder per the final pages of the first scene of the comic, shrugging and saying "3/10??")

[girlwiththegreenhat]

i am never going to recover from the death shroud radio play actually

[satorusluver]

My fatal flaw is being hopelessly in love with a character from a nearly 20 year old anime who got less than five minutes of screen time.

[scarycranegame]

I love how some the comments in Jimmy's Fandom Wiki page bullies that one person for saying "I love him" by replying "no" and "you don't". Like, gods forbid, you like a doll that is actually evil and not just murderous!��� These same people are probably the ones who will say murder is okay in fiction, but anything sexually taboo isn't.

it seems to be like. the fandom in-joke that everyone and their cat and their dog and their hamster hates jimmy? for... [checks notes] a thing that very plausibly might not have even happened in the game. hmm interesting

actually this gives way for me to complain about the fandom finally lmao, okay so basically i hate how the fandom flat out refuses to consider any interpretation different than their own, and expects everyone to consider the most popular interpretation "canon"? like.. i understand why this interpretation is so popular, but it isn't canon: no one in-game (or during the developer q&a!) outright says that anya was raped, and contrary to popular belief you can have unwanted pregnancies without having been raped. it is, as it stands now, just an interpretation.

also something else i dont like that comes with this interpretation is "rape victim" becoming anya's entire characterization. i believe i've said it before and i'll say it again, but i hate how fandom turns woman characters into Sexual Abuse Plot Generators™, especially when the woman in question is the only one in a cast full of men. not only does it restrict the possibility of these woman characters being literally anything else besides "rape victim" (as when people do this it tends to be the only thing they ever talk about in reference to the character, thus not really allowing for any characterization beyond just "poor little traumatized baby </3"), but it also to me reads like these people think that sexual abuse is the only problem women ever have to deal with in regards to being in spaces mostly comprised of men. which is... very incorrect. and also the knee-jerk reaction when they see a woman in a sexual situation with a man to immediately go "OMG RAPE!!!!!!" sorta reminds me of the terfy sentiment that "women can't consent and every man is a rapist". which is also Very Incorrect™

anyways tldr i dont like how the fandom only allows one interpretation ever and i also think women in fiction should be allowed to be more than The Designated Abuse Victim™

[active-mind-15]

Sometimes I feel like I want to do a one-shot series of Akashi just playing through switch games I think he'd like and how I would imagine he'd get through the game. But then other times I wonder, "Where the fuck would I even start something like that?"

[outsideyourhousewithaknife]

You HAVE to love the moment after your phone dies and you are left hunched over the screen, your eyes deprived of the blue light to which they have grown accustomed, your mind deprived of the distraction from the horrors of your reality, to behold your own image (reverse Narcissus) in all its double-chinned, acne-scarred, chocolate-stained and cheeto-dusted glory, and horrified by who you have become, and you are full of guilt and (remorse) exhaustion, and you are (entirely, devastatingly) alone, and you blink, and you get up, and you (cry) (look in the mirror?) go plug in your phone and get some more cheetos

No, really, you have to love it. It's the law.

[pikkish]

idk if this is a good prompt but put doomguy in myhouse.wad I think he would find it enriching

Right, so I've been mulling on this one for a little bit now, n I'm not opposed to writing something for you, I'm just not... entirely sure what to write? Because the thing is, myhouse.wad doesn't actually really have anything to do with Doom as a story. Sure, Doom is important in that it's the vessel through which the story is told and one of the connections between the narrator and his dead companion. But as far as Doom itself goes, and the story about a man who was too angry/stupid to die, fighting demons and saving earth, none of that is at all relevant to myhouse.wad and its story. For all intents and purposes, Doomguy isn't actually a character in myhouse.wad. So I'm not really sure how exactly to fit him in there.

[ineed-to-sleep]

Girl we r obssessed

[black-rose-writings]

Trying to motivate myself to study like... okay if you finish these two short texts for your german class (Like 300 words left), you get to write 3000 words of fanfiction.

[maripr]

I've been playing a lot of road 96 and of course the serial killer had to be my favorite character.

[lgbttruther]

i have such strong feelings about anime/manga culture in the the ought 2000's (mostly due to escapism) like most of my irl/physical manga library is built off of it. some of my formative con-going experiences are built off of the fact that a guy i saw at a con when i was 13 was still at the university anime club when I was 19 even though he must have been pushing his mid-30s. dude taught me a lot about zubats at that one con i went to. my less-monitored otaku peers still taught me more, though. I kind of want to make a list of the series that i personally felt defined that era

[ghastlyvampire]

I have a test on every week of november. about to have the worst month ever