#yeah so i played the first ace attorney game this weekend

[hippophobia]

huh y’all weren’t lying, those lawyers really do be gay

[wowowwild]

Klavier receives a Facebook notification. A friend request?

yeah idk. They play chess on Facebook bc it came to me in the middle of the night. They absolutely continue post story.

After staring at his paperwork for a good 20 minutes, Klavier finally has a reason to be distracted when his phone chimes. A facebook notification? Honestly he hadn't posted on Facebook for a long time, but it was the only social media Blackquill and Edgeworth had, plus he found some friends from Germany and one of his ex band members posted the most adorable pictures of his kid, so he'd decided to keep it.

Oh. A friend request. From Phoenix Wright. Well that was a good thing, right? Ok. Sure. Request accepted.

Another notification. A message.

PW: You play chess? KG: A bit.

A bubble popped up that said "Play chess with me!" and presumably if he clicked it, he would then be playing chess with Phoenix Wright… Ok. Yeah, ok. He'd played a game or two with Edgeworth. Before that… it had been a while.

Of course he was at work. Herr Chief might not be excited about his employees playing Facebook chess at work. Then again Herr Wright was also at work and held great sway over the Chief Prosecutor.

Starting the game, then. Herr Wright had already made the first move, so he took his. The next move was made quickly. The game was quick with Klavier losing spectacularly. He wasn't particularly disturbed by this, chess wasn't really his game. Still he got another message.

PW: Good game. You'll get better if you keep practicing. KG: Thank you. I'll admit chess isn't really my game, but I've been told it allows a window into your opponent's thought process. PW: Kristoph told me the same thing. Never could figure that part out, though. KG: I see. PW: Again?

Another game bubble popped up. It was incredibly awkward, but he couldn't find a reason not to, besides being at work which he had completely disregarded already and thus could no longer offer him an out. With no plans to actually do his work any time soon, actually doing something was better than doing nothing.

After this game he got another message.

PW: You're a quick study. I can see how you became a prosecutor so young. KG: Thank you. It was hard work but I was fortunate. PW: Yeah, I had a bit of a late start, since I was a theater major first. It was really difficult, but my mentor helped me through it. KG: Frau Fey, correct? PW: Yeah, Mia. She was great. Maya and I miss her everyday. She would have liked you though I think. KG: That is high praise. PW: Another?

They played another, Klavier not doing particularly better than the previous games.

PW: Thanks for humoring me. No one here plays and I need to practice. KG: I do not mind. It has been a welcome distraction. PW: I know all about those. Usually it's Trucy. She's really something and always looking to improve. I'm really proud of her. KG: She is quite talented form what I've seen. PW: The best there is. Up for more?

Frustratingly, another game bubble popped up? What was Wright playing at? Besides chess, obviously. Klavier lost this game, too, though he did get Wright into check.

PW: Almost had me that time! I've got to watch out. You should ask Edgeworth to play. He'll be impressed. KG: I appreciate your words and the games, but I have to admit I don't understand why this is happening.

Klavier watched a text bubble with bouncing dots appear and disappear several times before the message came through.

PW: Sorry, I'm not very good at this. Apollo would tell me to stop being a cryptic old bastard. I'm trying to say you should come to Trucy's show this weekend. And the next time Athena tries to get you to celebrate with us you should. And if you ever want to bother Apollo at the office you should. Please get him out of here for all of our sakes. KG: I believe I am beginning to understand. This is you telling me I am forgiven? PW: This is me telling you there's nothing to forgive. Like I said before, I knew Kristoph, too. You were a kid. I was never mad at you. Well I might have been a little mad at first, but I knew it wasn't your fault. I think I was mad at myself and you were mad at yourself and really we should both be pissed at Kristoph. If you want to have this conversation in person, you know where to find me. KG: I think that would be best. PW: Sounds good. One more game? KG: That would be amenable. PW: You prosecutors and your fancy words.

[jawsofbalmung]

choose like ten of those aa questions you havent done and pretend i listed them <3

SICK THANKS FOR ALL THE QUESTIONS YOU DEFINITELY LISTED I LOVE THOSE ONES

15. Random headcanon you can share?

miles is one of those people that's allergic to a lot of things. tree nuts, alcohol, tropical fruit, soy, etc. phoenix is not. but there is one allergy they have in common; chocolate. and they bond over how they never understood what's so great about chocolate anyway.

18. Game with the best cast?

it's a tossup between dgs2 and spirit of justice honestly! i love almost every single minor character in dgs2, especially in return of the great departed soul, as well as our main cast of course, but spirit of justice had really high character value too, between nahyuta and rayfa and dhurke and the entire cast of turnabout storyteller.

32. Character you wish to see return?

kay!!!! i am so mad that it took me till i played aai to even get a whiff of their existence in the series. i want to see them all grown up and redesigned and FRIENDS WITH TRUCY!!!

38. Plottwist that came as the biggest surprise to you?

no spoilers, but the revisualization sequence in rite of turnabout (6-3) blew my mind. literally got me hopping up and down and yelling like a monkey at the screen. good shit that case is FANTASTIC and i think that's even the first time they've done That Twist??

48. Random fact people tend to forget that you wanna remind us of?

i made a whole post about this but SHOLMES IS NOT THEIR LANDLORD. HES THEIR NEIGHBOR. STOP CALLING HIM A LANDLORD AND STOP CALLING HIM PROBLEMATIC FOR BEING A LANDLORD. HE'S LITERALLY POOR.

78. Who or what got you into AA?

gonna be honest my bestie @odoroki-mikeko and i were bored one day and scrolling thru the playstation store looking for something new when we saw the dgs chronicles for pretty cheap. and we had obviously heard of ace attorney before but never thought of getting into it, but like, dgs was different enough from the main games that we gave it a go! the next day was the eve of a long weekend, and we got so sucked into the game that we briefly turned nocturnal, playing each case for hours and hours accidentally staying up every night of that weekend until we were like "IT'S SIX AM??? HOW????" and we were hungry for more after we finished dgs, so we got the original trilogy next and, yeah,

92. Was any character ever your icon, lock screen etc.?

oh of course! i am nothing if not a man that plasters my blorbos all over every surface. as you can see my icon on here is barok (commissioned from @/eulogaeic!), my icon on my main is kristoph, and ive rotated through a few wallpapers since i got into aa. currently my lockscreen is apollo and trucy, and my home screen is the dual destinies cast! im thinking of changing them soon tho, i get bored easily and ive had them for a bit by now.

93. Ship you feel like deserves more attention even though your not into it that much?

faraskye!! i dont personally get too into wlw (or nblnb as these two def are tbh), but i think they're a very nice ship and people should like them more. this is a threat.

94. Your first ship?

homuryu! i loved sholmes the moment i laid eyes on him and dgs1-2 was right away so homosexual. i did not expect to come on here and see zero homuryu content tho?? it's a rarepair for reasons i do not understand. the dance of deduction is just inherently romantic idk what to tell you.

97. Best non-human character?

taka. final answer.

[amydancepants-peralta]

mr mendes just released a new song & i was wondering if you could write something inspired by the line: "i wonder what it's like to be loved by you" 😌✨

Ericaaa I loved this prompt! 💕 Of course I had to throw in some Pining because it’s so good ... hope you enjoy! (here it is on AO3)

to be loved by you 

It’s a secret to absolutely no-one that Amy Santiago is the kind of woman that likes to excel in any skillset.  Unapologetic in her badass-ery, she can (and has) chase a perp through the boroughs of Brooklyn in boots that have a higher heel than three of her male colleagues put together.  Her finely tuned memory - the same one that has led Trivia Newton John to seven straight victories - helped solve a series of long-dead case files, and her problem solving skills are the reason that one of the city’s biggest kingpins is currently behind bars.   

With this in mind, one could consider it safe to say that Amy regretting her natural ability to ace any situation would be up there with hell freezing over, or for a flock of pigs to soar across the sky. 

But tonight, here in Shaw’s bar as she watches Jake have what seems to be a lovely date with Sophia; Amy just might be, if only maybe a little, slightly regretting her highly graded observation skills (yes, the same ones that pushed her into the highest percentile when graduating from the academy - which she very rarely brags about, and she really should - it was mentioned in the commissioners speech and everything).  

To be fair, it wasn’t all bad.  She could, for example; hear the jukebox in the corner, playing Come on Eileen for the fifth time in a row - unknowingly settling into a duet with squelching sneakers as a bunch of drunken frat guys danced, all of them too far gone to notice any repetition.  Plus, she could pick up on the subtle click of the acrylic nails on the woman at a neighbouring table, listening to them tap against a series of her friends’ photographs, rotating between descriptions of priddy and gawgeous.  

Mixed with the scent of spilled beer and day-old peanuts, it was exactly the combination that to others may appear seedy, but to Amy and the squad, just seemed … familiar.  Shaw’s was their watering hole, the basement bar each could disappear into and drink to forget their days, and despite the five empty glasses on her table and the half-full one in her hand, Amy was finding it incredibly difficult to stop noticing just how sweet Jake was with his girlfriend.  

Even more impossible was to stop imagining what it would be like if she were the one standing near the dart board, with Jake’s arm resting comfortably over her shoulders.   

It had all started earlier today, when she had glanced over at her partner just in time to pick up on the tiny little smile that grew on his face when he noticed a text from Sophia.

(Okay, it’s possible that it had actually started back at The Maple Drip Inn, with that look he’d given her after maybe, yes, a little.  It had definitely led to a series of Thoughts after Teddy’s departure, of which she’d only given herself just that night to think about.)

(Except ‘that night’ then turned into that week, and okay fine then it had turned into ‘just that month'; and now here she is, several weeks later; completely unable of getting Jake Peralta off of her mind, and it’s becoming very likely that this is more than just a little crush.)

It had been so endearing to see, that tiny glimpse of joy and enchantment as he’d read Sophia’s message - just fleeting enough for Amy to wonder if anybody had ever reacted to a message from her with such glee.  (Teddy, she remembers, preferred not to text; and would instead express his affections by saving her the last bottle of his favourite pilsner, or brewing a new concoction ‘inspired by her’ … sweet, but somehow didn’t hold the same sentiment.)

So she’d kept her eyes glued to the computer screen in front of her as she listened to Jake pick up the phone and order a bunch of flowers to be delivered to Sophia’s office - using his debit card, and not a combination of the five questionably balanced credit cards under his name - which in itself is huge.  Pretended not to notice the multiple kiss emojis in his reply, or the soft tune that he hummed for a few minutes after, focusing intensely on the case file in front of her as she described a recent interrogation in finite detail.  Kept up the facade of all that stuff with us is in the past as he recounted a romantic weekend to their squad in the break room - laughing along in all the right places, doing her very best to keep the wistfulness out of her eyes.  

And all the while, Amy’s mind had kept contemplating if she would ever get to know what it would be like to date someone like Jake: to have somebody who would take all the black and whites of her life and show her the beautiful greys in-between. 

So when he’d shown up at Shaw’s this evening, with Sophia’s hand carefully wrapped around his own and a grin that announced his contentment to anyone who cared to look; Amy had felt her heart squeeze painfully in her chest.  Her painted smile had just lasted until the couple retreated to the corner for a crazily competitive game of darts, and Amy had decided tonight would be a great opportunity to drown her sorrows in a few glasses of whiskey, doing her absolute best not to notice all the little things she will never have.

Like the way Jake would punctuate each congratulatory high five with a kiss, even when it meant that his girlfriend had beaten him at a game.  The gentle way he steered them away from a rambunctious crowd, keeping an eye on the raised voices as his unaware girlfriend played her shot and came so close to hitting the bullseye.  Or the way Sophia’s hand would rest on Jake’s chest as he held her in his arms (just the way that Amy wishes she could do), and the way she would laugh so happily as he commented on the drunk guys dancing near them.  

It was all very simple, but undeniably sweet, and Amy doesn’t know how she ever doubted that Jake would be anything but. 

“Your covert skills need work, Santiago.”

The chair beside Amy scrapes angrily against the worn floorboards and she turns, startled by the interruption, quietly praying that her face isn’t quite as red as it suddenly feels.  Terry, far more interested in taking the last sip of his scotch than commenting on her appearance, settles in to his new location next to her, and his glass hits the soaking cardboard coaster with a slap.  

“Wha-huh?  Covert skills?  You really must be drunk, Sarge.  We’re not even on a stakeout right now.  Unless you’re talking about us staking out the contents of that fridge behind the bar haha!”  

(She’s rambling - she knows she’s rambling; but cannot stop the desperate need to pretend that she hadn’t just been completely busted for spending her entire evening staring at a life she may never know.)  

“Ugh.  Okay fine.”  Her mouth stretches out into a cringe, eyes flickering to the colleagues Terry had just walked away from.  “How noticeable are we talking here?”

“Noticeable enough that Charles has spent the last 40 minutes lamenting on ‘the beautiful tragedy of unrequited love’”.  Dropping his air quotes, Terry rolls his eyes, one eyebrow lowering as he returns to his drink.  “He lost me when he started quoting poetry.  Terry loves Shakespeare, but he could do with a little less soliloquies - and a little more spirits - tonight.”

“Oh!  You know what, there was just a Shakespeare play in Polonsky that starred - ” Terry overlaps her last words with his own heavy voice, and Amy’s stops in it’s tracks.  

“Dianne Wiest.  Terry knows.  That was his segue, Amy.”

She nods, sensing the need to dig up.  “Should have known.  Charles loves his Wiest feasts.”  Terry grunts his assent, pressing his lips together as he savours another verse-less sip, and Amy seizes the opportunity to cast another furtive glance at the happy couple.  

“Seriously, though.  Just because Peralta hasn’t noticed, doesn’t mean the rest of us haven’t.”

Amy brushes her hair to the side, swirling the liquid in her glass with her free hand.  “Okay, so maybe I haven’t been very subtle tonight, or whatever.”  Her gaze returns to Jake, drawn to him like a magnet, and her heart squeezes once more.  

To his credit, Terry gives her a moment; waiting for a silence to settle over their table before leaning forward in his chair, ignoring the sticky residue of the tabletop as he rests his arms on either side of his glass. 

“Out with it, Santiago.”

She shakes her head, swallowing hard to push down the burgeoning lump in her throat.  “They look really happy together, don’t they?  He looks … happy.”

Terry shrugs, glancing in the direction of Amy’s eye line.  “Yeah, I guess so.” 

“He does!  All shiny and cheerful and just .. happy.”

“I don’t know.  Terry remembers a time when you and Teddy looked just as content.”  His look is pointed, and followed by the unsubtle raise of his eyebrows.  Amy nods, draining the last of her drink.  Somehow, she has a feeling that Sophia’s underwear isn’t lined with mesh like Teddy’s had been (and even if it was, it would be some kind of inexplicably sexy mesh, for sure). 

“Sometimes things aren’t what they seem, sarge.”

“You know that works both ways, don’t you?”

Nodding again, Amy wipes her thumb along the smudged lipstick print on her glass, choosing to remain silent.  Terry didn’t get it - none of them got it, really.  She’d had her chance, the very first time the words romantic styles were uttered, and she’d let it slip away.  And now, she has to live with the consequences.  

Clearing his throat, Terry continues.  “I mean … she is a defence attorney, you know.”

“But see, even that isn’t something that I can fault.  Not fairly, anyway.”  Clocking the look of disbelief on Terry’s face, Amy shrugs defensively, waving her hand vaguely in Sophia’s direction.  “I know we all like to joke and call them evil, but really … all they’re doing is making us prove that our findings are beyond reasonable doubt.  If anything, it’s people like her that push us to do better - to work harder to make sure that we’re definitely charging the right person.  And as annoying as that can be, it’s definitely not a reason to hate her.”

“Kinda sounds like you do, though.”

She shakes her head, feeling the sense of defeat sink into her bones.  “I really don’t.  She’s incredibly smart, and funny and beautiful … she honestly looks like she should be in a commercial for shampoo or something.  She’s perfect for Jake, and I’m just …”

“You’re just … ?”

Shrugging, Amy slots her thumbnail into the edge of the coaster underneath her glass.  It, like her heart, had seen better days, and it was time for her to cut her losses.  “I’m just … going home.”

“What?  No.  Stay!  Our squad kicked butt this week, Amy.  We all deserve a drink.”

Painting another smile onto her face (she really is getting good at them), Amy pushes her seat away from the table, allowing herself one more glimpse at Jake’s smile before shaking her head at Terry.  “Sorry sarge, I just can’t seem to celebrate tonight.”

Heading towards the exit without a second thought, Amy doesn’t see Jake pull away from Sophia, taking a half step in the direction of the door as he watches her leave.  She doesn’t notice him pull out his phone, start to type a message before hesitating, pocketing it without hitting send.  The night moves on as Amy walks away, and the streets are deafeningly silent as soon as the bar door closes behind her.  

The sky seems to feel just as morose as Amy this evening, tiny droplets dropping onto her grey work blazer as she waits for a cab; too lost in her thoughts to take in the frivolity of a parting crowd.  As the rain increases and the splotches on her blazer turn into tiny Rorschach Tests she decides to give herself one more night - one last night of wishing for things that will never be. 

In the backseat on her ride home Amy twists her hands together, linking her fingers and imagining not for the first time that one hand was Jake’s (she would imagine similar .. later).  She thinks of what it could be like to have his warm presence near hers .. to have his hand resting on her leg, not out of possession but just to be near.  Watching him get out of the car first, only to turn and offer a helping hand for her exit, every time without fail.  

She pictures what it would be like to feel the brick exterior of her apartment against her back as Jake presses his soft lips against hers, kissing the life out of her, making her see stars before pulling her into the apartment for so much more.   

He wouldn’t always be the perfect partner - and lord knows, neither would she - but Amy knows that through it all he would remain her best friend, because even through all of this yo-yo pattern of denial and admittance, thats who Jake has been for her.  After all these years, he’s become the only one she wants to talk to, at any given moment of the day, who knows her coffee order better than his own and remembers her Abuela’s birthday, even when she hasn’t mentioned it in weeks.  

The scent of rain lingers in her apartment as Amy readies herself for bed, casting her pantsuit aside with drunken abandonment and giving her face a half-hearted wash before stumbling towards her bed.  She closes her eyes, the thoughts of what could have been still so loud in her quiet apartment, hugging the pillow beside her tightly while her mind begins to wander.  

As she finally drifts off to sleep that night, Amy tries not to remember the smile that Jake gave her as they danced so long ago at the community hall - that special kind of smile, that made her think that maybe it was solely for her - and tells herself once. and. for. all. that sometimes, life just doesn’t work out the way you’d hope.

* 

* * 

It’s a rush of cool air that alerts Amy to a brand new morning, the drop in temperature squashed as quickly as it arrives by the wrapping of a warm arm around her middle.  She smiles into the pillow as it completes its protective loop, letting her body get pulled closer to the human hot water bottle in the middle of her bed, and if there was a better way to wake up on a cold day, Amy is yet to see it.  

She lets out a sigh of comfort as the bridge of a prominent nose digs into her shoulder blade, feeling the warmth of his breath through her old academy shirt, nestling closer until her legs are well and truly tangled amongst his.  It’s late, later than she would normally allow herself to sleep, but the two of them were far too invested in basking in the afterglow of a rainy Saturday filled with sex and movies to consider leaving the bedroom anytime soon.  

Jake’s voice is rough, the remnants of a deep sleep obvious in his throat.  “Today’s Sunday, right?”

Amy nods, wriggling herself just free enough to turn within her boyfriend’s embrace.  His hair is sticking out on all ends - unaided, she is certain, by her hands the night before - and she runs the tip of her thumb along his right cheekbone.  Though his eyes are still closed, he leans into her touch, and she grins.  “Definitely Sunday.  A rainy Sunday, but part of the weekend all the same.”

He nods, the short and prickly fibres of his morning stubble scratching her palm.  “Good.  More time for time machine building.”

“… we’re building a time machine?”

“Yeah, one that lets us skip past all the boring work stuff, and leaves us with all the time in the world for more of this.  Kinda like that movie Click, but a lot less ‘trying to change the past’ stuff, and a lot more sex.”

She chuckles, and his left foot rubs along the side of her calf under the blanket.  “You’re crazy, Peralta.”  (Although, she will admit - the ‘a lot more sex’ part did sound kinda great.)

His eyelids flutter open, gaze growing soft as a smile stretches across his face.  “You’re beautiful, Santiago.”

Amy feels her cheeks begin to heat up, resisting the urge to cool herself down by tucking her hair away, completely unable to move as long as Jake continues to look at her like that.  There’s a pimple growing underneath the surface of her chin that is going to rival Mount Vesuvius, and her morning breath could probably wilt the flower pots living happily on her kitchen’s windowsill.  But here, in bed with her boyfriend of almost two years, she feels more beautiful than all of her best days put together.  

“I don’t think I’ve told you this today, but I love you, Jake.”

Leaning forwards, Jake’s soft lips press against Amy’s, and he winks as he pulls away.  “I mean, we’ve both been awake for a sum total of three minutes, so yeah, you’re pretty late with the love you’s today, babe.”

Her free hand flies out from under the cover, delivering an indignant smack to Jake’s chest, and he grabs it back before she can pull away, linking their fingers together and pressing a kiss to her knuckles.  “I love you too, Ames.  Even if you don’t want to build a time machine with me, I still love you.”

She laughs - a giggle that starts in her belly and bursts through her lungs, something that she’s been doing a lot more of these days - and pulls Jake in for a longer kiss, morning breath be damned.  

One day, in eight or so years time, they’ll have a son - a miniature version of Jake that, much like his father, runs to the beat of his own drum; and answers to the name Mac.  Amy will fall pregnant again, and when they explain to their son that he’s going to be a big brother, his response is so perfectly him that it makes Amy’s eyes tear up with laughter.  

For they are, by Mac’s decree, now officially a Ninja Turtle family.  He is Raphael (or ‘Rafel’), Jake Michelangelo due to his love of nunchaku, and Amy nabs Leonardo purely out of homage to one of her favourite artists.  The mini-Peralta still growing in her womb is, by default, Donatello (or Donatella, depending), and even though there was a time when Amy truly felt like she could never be this lucky, she will love their little family with all of her heart.  

But for now, she has Jake; and together they have warm bedsheets and no plans for a future that isn’t together - no matter what obstacles may be thrown their way.  

And Amy realises, as Jake begins to trace a series of kisses along her side of her neck; truly, being loved by him is better than she could have ever imagined.  

x

[midnight-in-town]

Which anime/manga let you cry a river?

Hello! Oh, I’m actually quite the emotional person, so I cry easily. 

But I mean, like, very easily, be it because it’s sad (SnK chapter 132...), beautiful (Touka and Kaneki’s wedding in TG), upsetting (Taichi and Chihaya having a falling out in Chihayafuru), emotional (Thorfinn finding his resolve in Vinland Saga), because I’m listening to a song and it makes me Feel™, etc. 

So basically, I cried more than once for every series I read/watched and posted/reblogged about here. xDD

Biggest waterfall for manga/anime though... oh, Gintama easily comes to mind as the series I cried the most for. Sorachi-sensei had a particular way to write very emotional and unpredictable turnabouts or developments for many arcs and it still works on me even though the series has now ended. 

Yeah, Sorachi-sensei had a real talent for that, because I don’t know a single person who didn’t cry watching or reading Gintama.

Another manga, I cry easily for is Ao no Exorcist, because of the fact its themes are mainly family-oriented.

As such, the journey through the past and the current conflict between the twins both make me very emotional. 

Otherwise, outside of manga, I had many waterfall moments playing Ace Attorney. 

So many tragic and sad stories through these games, some horrible feuds too, and I obviously still cry if I replay some cases in particular (the.last.case.of. Trials.and.Tribulations.as.conclusion.to.the.first.trilogy).

About animes, I had a really hard time the first time I finished Cowboy Bebop (8 years ago or something): the last arc of this series emotionally killed me and I still can’t really sit through it entirely when I sometimes rewatch the series. 

Finally, if we were to mention light novels, I still cry rivers whenever I’m watching the movie adaptation of The Disappearance of Suzumiya Haruhi. Not only is this the best animated movie I have ever watched, but the moment we find out about the truth behind the story’s plot...

...always has me sobbing and I watch this movie at least once a year around Christmas time.

That’s about it! The 5 winners, haha.

I hope this answers your question. Have a nice weekend Anon!

[neni-has-ascended]

A question about "Complete Turnabout"

@athena-cykes-ace-attorney:

Hello Nenilein,

I’d been reading “Complete Turnabout” recently and noticed that there haven’t been any updates for a long time. I’ve also played through the beginning of the game. I’ve been getting into writing fanfiction recently and I just wanted to ask if you’re ever returning to writing Ace Attorney Fanfiction. Did Spirit of Justice just completely drive you out of the fandom and the fanfiction? Or are you just done with that part of your writing?

Hello, sorry for the late reply. So, let’s get into this.

I’m a super flighty nature. It often causes me to start projects and then jump to the next, not taking into account how the new project might divert my attention away from the old projects, especially because I find it hard to even force myself to keep my attention on the old project if I have new ideas. It’s a problem I’ve honestly been working to overcome, especially because I never really abandon old projects. I mean it, I still have every single tiny, useless thing I’ve ever started working on in my Dropbox and occasionally randomly pull them up and make new additions to them or edit them, even if the thing has been dormant for years. Complete Turnabout is no exception there,

The big problem with getting back into actively finishing the Fanfic is... Well, there’s several, actually. And yeah, Even though I still actively think about the fic a lot (like with a million other things), it makes it hard to go back. Here they are, most important to least important:

1.) Complete Turnabout no longer matches my current style of writing and doesn’t reflect my skill level.

The Fic represented a huge turning point (ha ha) for me in my “career” (using the term losely) as an author, since this was where, influenced by an important person in my life, I threw out everything I thought about writing before and gradually came to use a completely different style of writing, one which I’ve kept developing to this day. CT reflects a huge part of this transitional phase in my writing. The thing is, I haven’t stopped progressing as a writer ever since I last actively wrote on it. There’s so many things I’ve started and stopped doing, so many techniques I’ve learned and a lot of humor I found funny back in the day now only makes me cringe. It’s not like I find all of CT entirely unreadable now. But the first 10 to 15 chapters are garbage. Unadulterated and absolute trash. You couldn’t force me to write like this anymore these days. So if I wanted to go back to finishing it, I’d feel myself compelled to rewrite half the fanfic from scratch, which would be a massive undertaking and would clash with my already almost non-existence time management abilities.

2.) The in-fic Court Record is fundamentally broken. 

To me, a huge part of the fic was the reader’s ability to guess along while reading and feel as if they could actually move around through the settings and throw evidence at places and people like in the series proper. Unfortunately, my inability to update the CR properly has turned this into a mess I was deeply ashamed off at latest by chapter 25. If I wanted to go back and continue the fic I would HAVE to rework this feature of the fic from ground up, maybe even program a little web-page to make it work for everyone or something. I want to do that one day, but right now I am a creative garage stuffed to the brim with unfinished arts and crafts projects and I need to take some time to clean myself out and finally get things in order.

3.) OMFG Spirit of Justice

Yeah, as you correctly guessed, that game was like... the straw that didn’t just break the camel’s back but put the camel into a coma that only the most advanced veterinarian science could possibly retrieve it from. It wouldn’t be so bad if I just didn’t like the game, I mean, there’s a ton of stuff I don’t like in Gyakuten Kenji 2, and I still use its characters and concepts quite prominently and passionately. No, the problem is what Spirit of Justice did to friggin’ Apollo! That friggin’ game messed up his character timeline and underlying motivations so badly, I have no idea how to write around this bullshit stuff anymore. I have no idea what the writers were thinking there, all I know is that this is DEFINITELY not the kind of thing Shu Takumi envisioned when he wrote Apollo’s character. The character was envisioned to be young, passionate, but down-to-earth and an everyman. Spirit of Justice turned him into a fully fledged DanganRonpa character, and not the “Ultimate Luck” type. I have no idea how to work with this!!

4.) I really want to do everything ever, now, immediately, all at once, god, give me 20 arms and 5 more brainssssss

As some people following my antics for some time might have realized I have a teeeeensy problem keeping my priorities straight and tend to start, like, 5 new projects every month. I’m working on a TobyFox-multiverse themed comic right now, wrote a script to an A Hat in Time adaptation comic, I have an ongoing Kingdom Hearts fanfic retelling an alternate universe version of Birth by Sleep, I am working on a Youtube Series about the meaning of the Tarot Arcana as used in the Persona games, I sew 3 Cosplays a year and take part in various nerd competitions, I am working on my final University thesis on the application of religious themes in JRPGs, I have been writing on a novel for 3 years, have started working on several different video game projects with friends (all but one abandoned right now), started and abandoned a web-novel project, I draw, I stream, I play Trading Card Games on Weekends, I am actively looking for a job, and, damn for some dumb reason just a year ago I thought getting myself a pet would be a great idea, too!

If it were up to me, I’d finish all these things. Every last one of them. But as it is, I’m forced to set priorities. Right now, I am working hard to at least bring the most important/recent of these (One of the game projects, my novel, the comic project and my Master’s Thesis) to a satisfying finish. After that, I will pick other ideas back up and work on them. But I really, really, really need to learn to not just start things, but also end them.

It’s been a journey, and it will keep being a journey from here on out. But I’m glad there’s people who love what I do. Making people happy with my creativity is my dream, and I’ll fight to keep making it happen, no matter how much effort it takes.

I thank you for being happy with what I’ve made so far. I thank you with all my heart. Here’s me praying that I will make more things in the future that will make you just as happy. And here’s me praying that I will be disappointing people less by not finishing the things that made them happy in a timely fashion.

That’s what I had to say here. I hope it helps. I am sorry if it’s not what you wanted to hear. Honestly, it’s not what I like to hear from myself either...

Still, I thank you, so much,

Many Greetings, Nenilein

[renegadewangs]

Ace Mindhunter - 4th Interview

Characters: Simon Blackquill, Athena Cykes, Shi-Long Lang, and a rogues gallery of AA villains. Fandom: Ace Attorney Pairings: N/A. Warnings/rating: 16+, I would say. Talk of heavy themes such as death and abuse, plus cursing. Spoilers for every AA game up to Spirit of Justice, AAI2 included. Gratuitous amounts of headcanon for antagonists. Summary: Simon Blackquill is roped into a Behavioral Analysis project along with Athena Cykes. They must sit down with convicted murderers for interviews, in hopes of finding out just what drove them to their convoluted crimes.

4th Interview Luke Date: June 16th 2028 Time: 3:00 PM Location: Interpol H.Q. - B.A.U. Office. Simon returned to the B.A.U. office after a very long, calm weekend and a morning of indicting a common burglar for tomorrow's trial. He would've counted himself lucky to still be handling any court cases on a part-time basis at all, were it not for the looks he was getting from his colleagues at the Prosecutor's Office. Even worse than that; he was certain Winston Payne was getting more murder trials as a result of his little venture with Interpol, and that notion chilled him to the bone. He walked through the door to find that Athena was already waiting for him, seated by the desk and a cup of coffee in her hand. “Hey! Right on time!” she said. “And you are early for once. Am I merely dreaming, or have you earnestly adopted a sense of punctuality?” “Very funny. I wrapped up my investigation with Mr. Wright early, so he dropped me off here. How was your weekend?” Simon slipped himself into his own desk chair and heard it creak under his weight. He really wished Interpol would invest in furniture that hadn't been around for three decades already. “... It was uneventful. And yours?” “About as eventful as a weekend at the Wright Anything Agency is, really.” Athena paused, took a quick sip of her coffee and proceeded with visible discomfort. “… Listen, I thought we should discuss our interviewing strategy before we take on our next subject.” “Our strategy?” Simon asked, uncertain why such a thing would need discussing. “Let's face it, our interview with Furio Tigre was a mess.” “Was it really? We got answers, did we not?” “We could've gotten a lot more if he hadn't stormed out! I don't think either of us really knew how to approach him, so we were all over the place. It's no wonder he got upset.” Simon sniffed loudly. “It's hardly our fault that he has such large toes to step on.” “He was right, though! If we keep working like that, at some point it will go wrong. Now, I know you feel like you need to play the bad cop, but I just don't think that you should. Don't take this the wrong way, but... You're not the bad cop to them.” Tempting as it was to pinch himself for verification, Simon knew he couldn't possibly be dreaming. This was real. Athena had uttered those ludicrous words to him. Well, perhaps he couldn't fault her for her ignorance. She hadn't witnessed his time in prison. He wouldn't have wished her to, either. Still, he could illuminate the situation a bit. “You must be joking. Simply because of the Tiger's attitude problem, you believe our subjects won't take me seriously? For seven years, I was one of the most notorious names in death row. Even the guards knew better than to cross me. I had inmates currying favor with me, groveling for my approval and my mercy.” “Yes, and that was when they believed you actually killed someone,” Athena said in the bluntest of tones. “But you yourself outright said it to Mr. Tigre; you never stained your hands with blood. They know now that you're bluffing. So... I'm really sorry, Simon, but you can't be the bad cop when the person you're trying to threaten knows that you're, well, a good cop. Or prosecutor, in this case.” “And I suppose you would be more intimidating to them? A colorfully-dressed teenage girl? Yes, I'm certain someone like Engarde will be shaking in his manacles at the mere sight of you,” Simon snapped. He knew he was being immature, but it was better to contradict Athena now than to let her make a fool of herself in front of a more dangerous inmate. She'd already pushed her luck with Tigre. “Nobody said we had to play good cop and bad cop in the first place! Gosh!” she huffed at him. “There's other ways to get a person talking, you know. We just need to gain their trust. And I'm not really talking about speaking their own language, either. Think back to Ms. Vasquez and Mr. Retinz. Remember how we got them to be more open with us?” “... We engaged them on their interests,” was Simon's conclusion. With Athena's questions about the Diva Producer's movies and Simon's urging for magic tricks, that seemed to be the common denominator. “Kind of? I think, to put it in broader terms, we gave them what they wanted. We asked them what they wanted to hear; the sort of thing they would want to respond to. Their emotional states played a big part in that too. Mr. Retinz was angry, so of course he'd want to let off steam about his family and the Gramaryes. So what's most important when we first meet with a subject is that we analyze their emotional state and what interests them.” Simon thought back to the interview with Tigre and how this strategy would've been applied to him. The resulting hypothesis led to a mean grimace and he tapped a finger against his forehead. “Hmm... So, had we complimented the Tiger on his absurdly small dog's fashion sense, he would have opened up to us more?” “Hah! You know what? I honestly think he would've!” Athena replied with a wide gin. “Seriously though, you may not be a convicted killer, but you spent all those years in death row anyway. I think that's the best way to play it. Just let them know that you understand what they're going through, and you'll do whatever you can to make it easier for them. Like when you got coffee for Mr. Retinz. That was a smart move.” “What does that make me? The sympathetic cop?” “I think sweet-talking, manipulative cop has a better ring to it, don't you?” “Hah! Manipulative cop is the sort of title I will settle for.” The door to the office opened and in walked Lang. He was carrying a box under one arm and something told Simon they weren't about to be treated to pastries. Sure enough, when it was set down on the desk, there was a distinct rustle of paperwork. Athena greeted him with a cheerful tone, Simon merely hummed in acknowledgment. “So I've got good news and bad news. Which do you two want to hear first?” Lang asked. “Uhhh... I guess the bad news, so we can recover from that with the good news,” was Athena's reply. “Right. I'm needed overseas. Big assignment, can't say too much about it. The bottom line is that I'll be gone for at least a week.” Simon smirked and leaned back in his chair, once again enduring its creaking. “Why, Agent Lang, I believe she asked for the bad news.” “Hah. Very funny, Blackquill. The good news is that I got a few inmates to meet your criteria. You can find the profiles in here,” Lang said, patting the box. “And you can schedule most of the meetings whenever it suits you. Just call the prison, tell them what it's for and they'll arrange everything for you in my place.” “Really?! Thank you, Shifu!” Athena pumped both her fists into the air, then reached for the box. Lang didn't release it just yet, instead pulling it closer to his end of the desk. “Ah. Just one more thing. The profile on top? You gotta do that one first.” “Hah? Why is that?” “Because the subject specifically asked to be included in the project and after looking over his profile, I don't see why not. If it fits, he sits- before you, that is.” Simon's eyes narrowed. “Someone specifically asked to be included? Who told him about the project? I cannot imagine the Cowardly Tiger was singing our praise.” “He sure wasn't, and I'll let your indiscretion slide because from what I hear, nobody listens to Tigre's ranting either way. No, apparently he heard about your work from Roger Retinz. You came 'highly recommended', even.” “Highly recommended? By Mr. Retinz?” Athena looked as if she'd just stepped through a portal into some sort of alternate dimension. Indeed, Simon felt quite the same way. “Yeah. Sounds like you made a friend in there,” Lang said with a shrug. Athena leaned in closer to Simon to whisper under her breath. “The manipulative cop strikes again.” “Mmh, I will have to wind every single one of those butchers around my little finger,” Simon remarked in turn, smirking. “Anyway, the guy wants to see you as soon as possible, so I booked you in for tonight.” And just like that, their amusement had vanished as if it'd been subjected to one of Mr. Reus's magic tricks. Athena threw both arms forward, onto the desk, and put her head down. As for Simon, he'd started so badly that he was sure some vital part of his chair had broken. Without a doubt, something had made a snapping noise. He was now sitting as still as possible so as not to test the structural integrity of the construction without drawing attention to himself. This chair was free to come apart once he was standing upright again. “Tonight?!” Athena wailed against the inside of her left arm. “But I was going to help Mr. Wright sort through clues from our investigation!” “And I must do battle in court tomorrow morning. My case requires due preparation,” Simon insisted, though it was only an excuse. The trial for such an obvious burglary could've been prepared right there in the prosecutor's lobby and he'd still have time to spare. He simply didn't want to spend his evening at the prison. “Well, then you'd better hope this interview won't take long. You can report to the usual place at 7 PM. Once you've worked your way through the rest of the inmates I compiled for you and you've got some results to show for it, I'll see about getting you playdates with the bigger fish.” “Uuugh... Fine...” Athena grumbled. “Good luck, and I'll see you when I get back.” With that, Lang left the office. Almost a minute had passed before Athena mustered up enough energy to reach for the box and open it. She took out the top folder, flipped it open and skimmed the papers inside. Simon, who was still attempting to assess whether his chair would hold or not, didn't dare lean in for a glance of his own. “... Oh, this looks like fun! I mean... as fun as meeting with a convicted killer can be. But the way he tried to cover up the murder and abuse a loophole in the law was pretty clever. I guess that makes sense, seeing as he was some kind of ace detective.” There was a loud crack and a thud as Simon fell to the floor. ------- Date: June 16th 2028 Time: 7:02 PM Location: Interview Room. When he'd first accepted to take part in the project, Simon had dreaded a lot of scenarios- and still did at this very moment. He dreaded that Athena might be hurt, either physically or emotionally. He dreaded facing someone who would be quick to draw a shank. He dreaded failing to bring results to the table, thereby disgracing Interpol's name and betraying the trust the Chief Prosecutor had bestowed on him. To some degree, he even dreaded facing the Phantom, should that day ever come. What he hadn't considered, up until that afternoon, was that he might face the most irritating inmate of all. Luke Atmey. Roger Retinz was no friend of theirs, he knew that for certain now. That damned Greasy Producer must've run his mouth about the project on purpose. There was no one in death row who could stand Atmey's long-winded boasting. Those who would pass him in the hall would avoid making eyecontact to the best of their ability. Those who were doomed to sit at his table in the cafeteria would instead stand in some faraway corner. Those who were scheduled to share a workroom with him would feign acute illness. When it came to being avoided like the plague, not a single violent psychopath in prison could hold a candle to Atmey. This little interview would cost Simon and Athena their entire evening, and for what? For absurd tales about Atmey's elegance and grace? This would be the first and last time that Lang would schedule their meetings for them. Atmey entered in the most flamboyant manner possible, his enormous nose stuck high up in the air and one hand held up like a limp animal paw. At first glance, he might've seemed the sort of man who hadn't been dented in the least by almost ten years in prison, but a smug grin could only hide so much. The dark lines beneath Atmey's one visible eye told Simon more than enough. He came to a full stop before the table and instead of sitting down, he leaned forward to assess the both of them up close with his magnifying glass monocle. Already, Simon's first instinct was to leave. He fought it. “Zvarri! The elegant truth has been revealed to me!” Atmey proclaimed. “The both of you were sent by Interpol, on behalf of the Behavioral Analysis Unit!” “We were not sent by Interpol such much as we were sent for. By you,” Simon replied dryly. “Naturally! I, Luke Atmey, heard whispers of your professional psychological project and saw its powerful potential. That you had not come to me sooner is beyond my grasp.” Simon had quite a few things to say about including pompous, pretentious pricks in their professional psychological project, but held his tongue. He wasn't supposed to be the bad cop. “Haha... Well, we're still getting started, you know,” Athena explained. “Baby steps.” “Aaah, you wished to save the best for last? Understandable! I, Luke Atmey, am indeed the finest dish on the menu, so to speak. But you needn't be intimidated by my greatness! We are all only human!” Athena shot a most impressive Look Simon's way. Something between incredibility, amusement and secondhand embarrassment. The only response he could think to give was a helpless shrug. He had warned her beforehand. She hesitated, then turned her attention to the recording device, only to find that Atmey had already taken hold of it. He pressed record and placed it on the table in the most meticulous of fashions. “There we are. This is Luke Atmey, reporting to you live from the Los Angeles prison. With me now are Prosecutor Simon Blackquill and...” Atmey trailed off, slid the recording device at an arm’s length and cupped a hand to the side of his mouth to shield it, speaking to Athena in a whisper. “What was your name, Miss?” “Ath-Athena Cykes...” “And Miss Athena Cykes!” Atmey finished. “Now, I'm sure you'll want to hear all about my daring, elegant adventures in the field! An Ace Detective has many superb, scintillating stories to share!” “Actually, I thought we should start with this statement Interpol prepared. You see, we’ll be asking you about your family history, antecedent behavior and thought patterns surrounding the-” “Yes, yes, I got the gist of it from Sir Retinz.” “Not the most reliable source of information,” Simon pointed out before he could stop himself. He needed to put their new strategy to the test, he knew that, so he changed his tack. “Perhaps an Ace Detective such as yourself would like to review the statement, so as to be certain there are no loopholes we might employ?” Atmey removed his monocle and began to polish it on the sleeve of his prison garb. “Hmm... Well, I suppose I have ten seconds to spare. Very well.” Athena shot Simon another Look, this time one of excited accomplishment. Following that, she issued the full statement to Atmey, psychological profile, statistical analysis and all. Judging by the furrow of his brow and the way his fingers slowed their movements, the man appeared to be listening intently. “Mmh... What does Interpol's confidentiality clause entail, exactly?” he asked once Athena was done. “Well, ah... The specific answers to our questions will be kept within Interpol and can't be shared with outside sources, I guess?” she looked unsure even as she said it. Had she not read the details at all? “Those outside sources include other types of law-enforcement,” Simon supplied. “It is for that same reason that anything you say here cannot be used against you in your applications for parole. If the LAPD or the Prosecutor's Office were to request so much as a sample of these recordings, their request would be struck down without delay.” “Well, that's a shame, isn't it? This is about posterity! I, Luke Atmey, do hereby give anyone who has a desire for it full permission to review the recordings!” “... Right.” “Now, you'll want to know all about some of the amazing cases I've solved!” Atmey stated, lacing his fingers together and stretching them in a leisurely fashion. “Oh! Yes!” Athena opened her folder and tapped at it with a finger. “In particular, we're interested in your involvement with Mask☆DeMasque and the death of-” “No, no, no no no nooo,” Atmey tutted. “How boring! I've talked about that case so often, it would dry my tongue. No, let's talk about some other cases, shall we? I, Luke Atmey, did not gain the title of Ace Detective for nothing.” “I was under the impression you knighted yourself an Ace Detective,” Simon remarked. Atmey pretended not to have heard him. “Let's start from the beginning! My very first case! It was the year 2011! I was a mere twenty seven years old at the time and I had only just opened my doors to the world as a private detective. A fresh-faced rookie, I was eager to prove my worth. In came a woman wearing a red dress- and I remember this distinctly. I have a very keen eye for details, you see, as any detective ought to have. In she walked, and I could see on her face that she-” Simon refused to listen to any more of this tripe. He drew a few calming breaths and leaned back in his chair. Atmey's voice droned on and on in the background as if it were the chatter of distant birds. He closed his eyes for a moment. ------- Date: June 16th 2028 Time: 7:38 PM Location: Interview Room. Sudden pain exploded near Simon's shin, starting him back into awareness. He was sitting. He'd just been kicked. Athena was glaring at him and... Atmey was still talking. The man must've been oblivious to what'd occurred, as he looked quite carefree. “-And so ended my second case, which I like to refer to as Luke Atmey and the Missing Macademias. It is a reference, you see. Quite clever, if I do say so myself. Wasn't it just the most thrilling thing you've ever heard? Now, for the third case I tackled single-handedly-” Athena nudged his arm with her elbow, her eyes narrowing even further. Evidently, she'd been unable to stop Atmey's rambling and was now looking to him for assistance. Tempting as it was to shout the word “silence” loud enough to shatter windows, this was not at all the strategy to stick to. He had to give Atmey what he wanted, so... what did the man want? A listening ear, obviously, yet it was more than that. Atmey wanted a chance to boast. If that was the case, they simply needed to change the way they formulated their questions. “If I may interject,” he said, moving his chair closer to the table and leaning forward. “These tales are all quite interesting, but I do believe the details of your detective career were already recorded in your autobiography.” “Oh! You've heard of my autobiography?” Atmey looked positively delighted. “... I have heard of it, yes,” Simon said slowly, as there was only one source who'd kept bringing it up these past seven years and that source was sitting right in front of him. “However, as I've been unable to attain a copy for myself-” “-Oh, what a shame!” “Yes. A shame. As I was saying, I have not perused it myself and I find myself wondering... Does this autobiography also describe the illustrious Atmey family? As the apple does not often roll too far from the tree, I expect that they must all be successful go-getters such as yourself.” A cringe flashed across Atmey's face, just for a second. Then he was right back to talking. “Yes, yes of course! I'm afraid they aren't mentioned all too much in my book, as their ventures would be too elaborate to describe. Why, every single one of my siblings would be deserving of their own book, and so... Well, I would hate to bank on their glory.” “How many siblings do you have?” Athena asked him. “Seven,” said Atmey. “SEVEN?!” “I have four brothers and three sisters, yes. I was the youngest of eight.” Atmey removed his monocle as he spoke, once again idly polishing it with his sleeve. The most it accomplished was that a greasy blur spread itself out across the glass. “Just as Sir Prosecutor theorized, the Atmey family is quite known for its success. One of my brothers is working with the GYAXA space project to design rockets, another is a top plastic surgeon in Miami... Two of my sisters are the CEO of their own companies... As I said, each one of them would deserve their own biography.” Athena pumped both her fists, excited. “So... Are you like rivals? Do you all compete to show off your best accomplishments when you get together for Christmas? Ooh, I can see it now!” “No, no... Such a thing would be petty and quite beneath the Atmey family. We each value our own worth. There is nothing to prove.” “Even if there was nothing to prove, you must've tried very hard to live up their standards, right?” “Hum... Success comes naturally to any member of the Atmey family, or so they say.” Simon cast a quick glance towards Athena, wondering whether Atmey's voice might've betrayed some sort of emotion, but she was unreadable, just as the notes were that she was taking. When Atmey placed his monocle back before his eye, it was so smudged that one had to wonder whether he could see anything at all. “The Atmey family sounds a formidable, elegant group indeed,” Simon remarked. “They must have come to visit you in prison, yes?” Once again, Atmey cringed. “Ah. Well... They are quite busy, as anyone in our family tends to be. None of them live in Los Angeles, currently, and so it would be entirely too... Too much of a hassle. I have received letters, of course!” Simon glanced towards his partner and this time, Athena did show dismay. Whether it stemmed from Atmey's words or the feeling behind them was debatable. Regardless, she took a few more notes. “What a shame. Family may be considered one of the most important things in the world,” Simon mused. Then he realized that he was speaking to a convicted felon. “Though... Whenever my darling sister visited, she would rub my situation in my face. Quite a vindictive one, she is. Perhaps limiting communication to courteous letters would be a blessing.” “Perhaps...” said Atmey. Interesting. Taking into account a situation where eight siblings were all too occupied to pay notice to one another, it made sense for the youngest of the lot to be thirsty for attention. Atmey must've scrambled to keep up with their reputations quite a bit, as well. With those conclusions in mind, Simon attempted to divert the topic back to the murder of Kane Bullard. They were about to enter the thick of the jungle. “If I may be so bold... I took the liberty of reading through the transcripts of the Mask☆DeMasque trials. You fought some fierce battles, I must say. Your attempt to target a weak spot in the law's armor by utilizing double jeopardy, in particular, I found to be a stroke of genius.” “Oh... Did you really? Coming from a prosecutor, that is quite the compliment indeed.” Atmey smiled at him, but it was not at all a pompous smirk. It was, if anything, born from gratitude. “Yes, I had hoped... Well, no criminal is meant to get away with their crimes, of course. It just goes to show that I am an Ace Detective, not an Ace Murderer. Don't quit your day job, or so they say. Even so, it's disappointing that one man could see through my ruse.” “Mmh, what's important is that you went down fighting. Isn't that so?” “Yes... Quite right. Atmeys are nothing if not determined and I, Luke Atmey, am perhaps the most determined of the lot.” “Now, there was one thing in particular that caught my eye in the transcripts. I had hoped that you could clarify the matter for me, as I find it quite puzzling.” “Ooh, a puzzle?” Simon had Atmey's full attention, now. The former detective looked beside himself to be presented with a conundrum, his fingers drumming along the table. How unfortunate, then, that Simon was sure this was one mystery Atmey might wish to leave unsolved. The only way to be certain would be to ask. “... You said, and I believe this to be a direct quote: “Take a good look, everyone. Unable to find a rival worthy of my genius, I was forced to create one by myself. Here I am. The tragic clown.” Do you recall these words?” Atmey's complexion had drained quite fast. He withdrew from the table, looking as if he was suffering from pain, or perhaps embarrassment. “Ah. Hum. Yes. That does sound like... something I may have proclaimed in the courtroom, yes.” “Then, my question is as follows. Why did you identify yourself as the tragic clown?” “Elementary! It is a reference to Pagliacci! It's a well-known opera. The tears of a clown! Have you truly never heard of it, Sir Prosecutor?” Simon had expected that answer. Athena, it seemed, was missing the point. “I think I've heard of it...” she mused. “It's that story where a man and his wife are part of an acting troupe, known for a play where a clown finds out his wife is cheating on him. Except then, just before going on, the man playing the clown discovers that his wife is really cheating on him. He murders her on-stage, and the audience believes it's all part of the play.” “Yes, yes! That is Pagliacci! See, your assistant knows of it.” Athena hummed quietly, tilting her head. “... It is strange that you would compare yourself to Pagliacci, I suppose. I don't see what it has to do with blackmailing Mask☆DeMasque into working for you, or with killing the man who was blackmailing you.” “That is not what caught my eye about the proclamation,” Simon said. “What puzzled me is that a brilliant detective would lower himself to the same level as a clown at all.” “I beg your pardon?” Atmey asked, looking rattled. “Oedipus, MacBeth, Death of a Salesman, the Great Gatsby... Ah, yes, Javert from Les Misérables is another good example... My question is, why choose a tragic clown when there are more than enough tragic heroes to choose from?” Atmey was so startled, the monocle sprang away from his eye and hit the ground a few feet from his chair. “I... I... Well, that is to say... I don't know...!” There was a very long silence. Nobody dared to speak. Finally, Athena got up and reached for the monocle. There was a crack running along the glass. She frowned down at it, then handed it back to Atmey. “I see,” Simon concluded. “Well, no matter. Be it as a clown or as a hero, I'm sure you will be remembered as a tragic figure all the same.” “Yes... Ah. Thank you.” Still shaken, Atmey was no longer meeting their eyes. Instead, he peered down at the monocle in his hand, forlorn. They'd gained enough to think about from this interview, and apparently, they'd returned this sentiment the other way around. “Thank you for your time, Mr. Atmey,” Simon said, pushing himself to his feet. “Yes, thank you!” Athena chimed in, more cheerful and less formal than the situation might've called for. “We'll visit again if we have more questions.” “Oh. No, that... I don't believe that to be necessary. You must have other things to do.” It wasn't until about five seconds had passed and Athena was already reaching for the recording device that something inside Simon's head clicked. He froze in his tracks and his hand shot towards the device as well, shielding the 'stop' button from Athena's finger. There was one more question to ask. One thing which Simon had overlooked, because he'd categorized it as 'frustrating' and nothing more. “Why did you insist on scheduling this interview today? Could it be...?” “They didn't inform you?” Atmey paused, then raised his cracked magnifying glass to observe Simon closely. “Aaahhh, zvarri! You've figured it on your own, have you? Marvelous! You would make a wonderful detective.” Simon cringed. A prosecutor had no place deducing these sorts of things, he felt. A prosecutor was meant to deal with the truth after it had already been exposed. Athena, as it turned out, hadn't followed Simon's train of thought. She peered back and forth between the two men, her nose crinkled with concentration. “What? Figured what out?” she asked. “Why, he's realized that soon, the opportunity to schedule an interview would be lost,” Atmey said. Simon had never liked Atmey, yet that didn't stop the cold chill from running down his spine. This turn of events was inevitable, a fact of life and horrible all at the same time. He remembered the screams of those who were about to be subjected to that same fate. He could close his eyes and visualize how they would be dragged down the halls of death row by several guards, their attempts to dig their heels into the ground nothing more than futile scrapes. “How soon?” he asked, unable to keep a strained, anxious tone from his voice. Atmey spread his arms out, almost as if he were welcoming what was about to be said. “My execution is to take place two days from now.” To Be Continued

[dlamp-dictator]

Allen’s Friday Update

And once again it is time for the Friday Update, and on schedule as well. Yeah, sorry for the wait last time, folks. I only had the one job today, so nothing’s distracting me from my weekly update this time around. And this one’s a lot more video game focused.

So I was playing a bit of Samurai Shodown V Special in order to get hyped for the PS4 release/remake/revival of the series. The game was on sale and I was curious about the basics of the gameplay. I wanted to get accustomed to the feel of what a Samurai Shodown game was about before getting the newest version.

And man, I hate Samurai Shodown V Special. For reasons I’ll get into later.

But I remembered I had bought The Last Blade 2, a sort of spiritual successor to the Samurai Shodown series, about a year or so back and decided to redownload and play it for a bit. 

And man do I enjoy this old classic. 

The sprites a little lower quality than Under Night or even some older KOF titles, but the gameplay is simple and solid, the animations are pretty cool and flashy, and I had a lot of fun playing Hibiki and Kojiroh, who are now my new favorite mains. The game plays like a littler version of Samurai Shodown. Still more defensive and timing-based like it’s predecessor, but asks you to choose between speedy combos or powerful normals. All characters have a deflect ability that you have to time for big damage for being observant and patient. The game wants you to be patient, but gives you some options if you just want to push buttons and be offensive. 

And... y’know, literally everything isn’t as punishable as it is in Samurai Shodown, so that’s another plus. I really wish I got into this game back when it was popular, it’s the perfect mix of offensive and defensive for me. I hope me talking about it now gets some people curious to jump back in and give it a quick shot. These online servers need some more activity in them, if only for some mini tournament on the side somewhere. 

While I don’t own Judgment, I have been watching the cutscenes on youtube as a way to pass the time while doing a big cleanup/remodeling of my room. Without spoiling things, the game’s main story is real tight. To the point that I’m wondering if the side stories add or subject from it. I’ve been watching the English dub of the game so far, and minus an issue that is very difficult for me personally to get over, the cast is fine, great even. I’ll have to hear more of the original voices when I buy this game around August to give a full opinion, but for now I’d say, at least from the story, the game is gripping. A good mix of Yakuza’s crime drama with Ace Attorney’s court drama. 

Like I said, I hated Samurai Shodown V Special. The lack of a tutorial really made understanding the mechanics frustrating to infuriating, the opponent’s AI knew the game much further than I did, literally everything is punishable on block. That game wasn’t a fun time for me, so even though I preordered the PS4 remake/revival/release of Samurai Shodown I was wary. 

And after playing the game for a few hours, I like it so far. The characters look great, the animations are flashy, the artistry in this game is just amazing. You can tell the people behind this put love into every hour, minute, and second they had into this game. It’s something can appreciate and respect as a fan of fighting games and games in general.

I like everything about this game except actually playing it. 

Yeah... Again, I can appreciate the work put into it, but it’s got the same issue I have with Samurai Shodown V Special. Almost everything is punishable, timing and patience is key, and really wants you to slow down and think. And asking a guy that mainly plays Blazblue/Under Night, specifically rushdown characters like Hibiki, Tsubaki, Linne, and Wagner, to play slowly, methodically, and defensively is like asking for American Football Player to play Rugby. Yeah, it’s kind of similar, but the mindset is so different that you might as well be playing a different game. 

And boy the game’s wonky netplay is making this game with high focus on well-timed blocks really unpleasant. Maybe I’m just unlucky with some of my connections, but I’ve been burnt more by bad connections than not. 

So far I’m not impressed, at least by the actual act of playing the game. Again, the art, animations, and characters are great. But the actual game, especially that final boss just... kill my interest. I’m gonna’ keep going with it, but... yeah, not the greatest first impression so far.

And finally, The Rising of the Shield Hero anime has concluded. I enjoyed my time with it overall, but my opinion hasn’t changed. This is a good Isekai series, but there are a lot of good Isekai series as of 2019. This was good, but nothing great or outstanding. Not as painful or deconstructive as Re:Zero, not as humorous or entertaining as Konosuba, and I was getting flashy of Goblin Slayer and Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash while watching this all throughout. It’s not great, but it is good. I’d honestly recommend Grimgar before this it’s going in a similar direct and is a shorter watch, but if you want to see a decent Isekai I’d recommend this one. 

That’s it for the Update. I’m slowly getting to work on the Dictator’s Works for Kyo and Reyna, the Rambling on AFK Arena will ideally be happening this weekend as well, and I’ll be posting the second/final highlights of the DUTAC stuff . I also got a lot of new manga recently, so expect next week’s update to be more manga focused. Anyway, I’ll see you all later.

[rpgmgames]

July’s Featured Game: Black Crystals

DEVELOPER(S): Yoraee ENGINE: RPGMaker MV GENRE: Fantasy, RPG WARNINGS: Alcohol Reference, Drug Reference, Use of Alcohol, Use of Drugs, Use of Tobacco, Mild Blood, Fantasy Violence, Sexual Themes SUMMARY: Starsio, a street performer, finds himself in the stickiest of situations. Starsio was kidnapped off the streets of his home town and brought to the brothel Paprika where he is forced to become a performer. One rainy night, Starsio gathers his courage and wits and plans an escape. He convinces Arthur, an apprehensive and fidgety new found friend, to accompany him. Starsio sets his escape plan in motion with one last song…

Our Interview With The Dev Team Below The Cut!

Introduce yourself! My name is Hind, but online I go by Yoraee (fans of Breath of Fire may recognize my handle).

I used to make parodies of anime openings and endings featuring the Ninja Turtles (If you REALLY want to you can look them up on youtube by searching for Yoraee!)

I am a HUGE fan of Ninja Turtles, Inazuma Eleven, Cyborg 009, Hetalia, and Ace Attorney! My favorite video games are Saga Frontier, Tales of Destiny, and the Suikoden series.

I joined the RPG Maker gamedev community about two years ago when I started working on Black Crystals. I LOVE it here! :D

What is your project about? What inspired you to create your game initially? *Yoraee: Black Crystals at its core is about Home. Whether it be finding home, returning home, or creating home. Black Crystals features a large ensemble of characters, each with their own story and struggle, all of which revolve around this central theme.

How long have you been working on your project? *Yoraee: About two years now.

Did any other games or media influence aspects of your project? *Yoraee: Yes! The jigsaw chain coop system and the spontaneous leaning system featured in Black Crystals' combat system are based on similar mechanics in the PS1 game Saga Frontier. Of course I added my personal touches to these system to make them less of direct copies. The Interact and Talk system is inspired by Undertale in the sense that a battle can be concluded without the need for combat. In Black Crystals, however, you are able to interact with the environment and alter it, so you can actually see the results of your choices in battle and how they change subsequent choices.

Have you come across any challenges during development? How have you overcome or worked around them? *Yoraee: Definitely! The main two challenges for me are time and motivation.

Since I work full time, the only times I can work on Black Crystals are after work or during weekends or holidays, which limits my productivity greatly. I took some leave from work at certain points and basically locked myself in my house and worked on the game's systems, but aside from that work on Black Crystals has taken place during my little free time.

Motivation, well, comes and goes for me. Some days I'm all like "YEAH! THIS GAME IS AWESOME!!" and other days I'm like "what am I doing why am I wasting my time on this". In order to keep myself motivated, I made a habit of posting weekly on my devlog. By posting weekly, I get more regularized feedback, which gives me a good motivational boost to get me through the week till the next update.

Have any aspects of your project changed over time? How does your current project differ from your initial concept? Yoraee: The systems design didn't change much. I had an outline of the features I wanted in Black Crystals; the interaction system, the state of mind system, the coop and leaning system. What came next was implementing these features and refining them.

The characters underwent changes in the way they are written. Arthur and Starsio's personalities sort of switched midway through writing, and the current way they are written seemed more cohesive to the story line.

Several other NPCs also underwent changes. I had a Paprika worker, Anita, for example, who played the role of both herself and Patricia. Later I split the roles and ended up with two characters; Anita and Patricia.

Finally, the whole cats thing was non existent two years ago. They sort of materialized into the game a few months ago :3

What was your team like at the beginning? How did people join the team? If you don’t have a team, do you wish you had one or do you prefer working alone? *Yoraee: Aside from music, which I commissioned, and the plugins, which are contributed by the amazing coders in the community, I'm a one-woman team taking care of all aspects of the game.

I prefer to work alone, simply because my processes are horrible and my pace is very erratic. I think I would drive potential team members mad XD

What is the best part of developing the game? *Yoraee: Seeing how everything clicks and fits together in the end :) The end product to me is always worth it.

Do you find yourself playing other RPG Maker games to see what you can do with the engine, or do you prefer to do your own thing? *Yoraee: I love playing other RPG Maker games. I think you can't help but think and analyse how things are done in a game while playing it if you are a dev yourself. I think its adds to the fun of the experience for me.

Which character in your game do you relate to the most and why? (Alternatively: Who is your favorite character and why?) *Yoraee: My favorite character hasn't shown up yet :( Its a secret for now!

I like Arthur's character in the current story. He reminds me of a younger me, too easily influenced by others and too scared of saying no. While writing the story I feel like grabbing him and giving him a good shake and yelling "Just say NO you passive fool!" XD

Bonus Info: The game has six main characters! :D

Looking back now, is there anything that regret/wish you had done differently? *Yoraee: Yes, the animations. I spent so much time making skills detailed and fluid. I think I kind of lost track of the bigger picture. My animation process is much more improved now, with a more streamlines approach to animations.

Also putting animations together in the Animation tool in RPG Maker MV. I used to manually set up each frame next to the next frame, and it took AGES for animations that comprised 6+ frames. Later it clicked that I could set a template and record the x and y positions and then just move everything around in one chunk to save me TONS of time. I need to make a tutorial on that some time because its such a time saver!

Once you finish your project, do you plan to explore the game’s universe and characters further in subsequent projects, or leave it as-is? *Yoraee: Black Crystals is episodic. The current game is Episode 1. As episodes progress more will become known about the game's universe and characters.

What do you look most forward to upon/after release? *Yoraee: Players reaction and feedback first and foremost, because to me that will be detrimental to whether or not I continue the series.

Is there something you’re afraid of concerning the development or the release of your game? *Yoraee: Just the capability of the RPG Maker engine. I'm worried about the game lagging or dropping frames when played, given the graphics size. Lag to me kills the experience so I'm doing my best to make sure it doesn't happen in Black Crystals.

Also I'm kind of nervous about how people will receive the battle system ~_~

Do you have any advice for upcoming devs? *Yoraee: Learn from the community. Its amazing the amount of resources and knowledge we have in the RPG Maker community. Don't be shy to ask for help if you need it. From my experience the community is one of the best there is.

Question from last month's featured dev @maimiestoybox: What has been the most rewarding part of your game dev journey so far? *Yoraee: Just sharing tidbits of the game and getting feedback from the community. It does wonders to my self esteem :)

Also the feeling of self accomplishment when you see the bits and pieces you created come together and your project take shape. Best feeling!

We mods would like to thank Yoraee for agreeing to our interview! We believe that featuring the developer and their creative process is just as important as featuring the final product. Hopefully this Q&A segment has been an entertaining and insightful experience for everyone involved!

Remember to check out Black Crystals if you haven’t already! See you next month! 

- Mods Gold & Platinum

[gosatsuvns]

Weekly Update #154 - The Balance Between Fun & Realism

Over this past week, I have done some more editing on GENBA no Kizuna's first Investigation Phase and started writing the intro scene for the second, which will end at the first point that will allow you to play as a different character than Keiichi, the officer-in-charge.

It is here where the actual investigation starts, with everything that happens before it being "preparation": meeting your team mates as well as the possible suspects/witnesses, taking a look at the victim and receiving some general information about the case. The second phase is where you will actually start collecting evidence, examining the body and interviewing people.

Because of this, I've also invested a lot of time in some more research. Actually, the majority of my time this week went into that, as we are getting to the real meat of he story here: the actual murder and how it unfolded. And there are many things to pay attention to and which I want to get right. Unlike SHINRAI - Broken Beyond Despair, where Raiko (a middle-schooler) was the one who undertook the investigation, we have actual police investigators doing their jobs in GENBA. Most of them may be rookies, leaving some room for errors on their part, but of course they all went through proper training and, in theory, should know what they're doing. So I did some more research and read a lot of articles and essays on crime scene investigation.

This may be a fictional story, but I want to keep a certain level of realism. I don't want to portray things in a way that makes players go "Uhm, I don't think it works like that." At least not to a point where it becomes silly or bothersome. I also need to keep in mind that this is a game, after all. One that is supposed to be fun. And often times, "fun" and "realism" stand in direct opposition to one another. If I were to accurately portray a real life crime scene investigation, it would make for a rather boring game, including a bunch of time skips, since there is a lot of waiting involved in real life investigations.

One way to circumvent that is by equipping the investigators with advanced technology that you wouldn't find in real-life. Handy gadgets that make it much easier to find, collect and compare fingerprints or blood samples, for example. Things that generally accelerate the investigation process a little. It's something many fictional stories do because, again, it would get boring and tedious otherwise.

Imagine the Ace Attorney series without Ema's nifty gadgets. If it would purely focus on realism and go for a realistic depiction of crime scene investigation and what the job of a defense attorney is like, it wouldn't be remotely as fun. Same if the characters weren't as over-the-top eccentric. So yeah, I guess you could say that you can expect similar things from GENBA.

Still, I do like to keep things as realistic as possible, which is why I'm trying to find the right balance. How can I achieve the highest possible level of realism, while also providing the biggest amount of fun?

There are still a few more things I need to clear up, so I will continue doing some more research and planning once I am done typing this post. It's not just crime scene investigation, either. There is also one other aspect I had to do a bit more research on, involving birds of prey. But to what extent that will be relevant is going to be a topic for another time, haha.

Finally, I've also looked more closely at the assets we will need for the prologue as well as the first investigation phase, as we want to focus on turning these into a demo as soon as possible. Right now, it seems as though the required amount of assets equals that of SHINRAI's prologue and first chapter, despite those being almost twice as long. So there is definitely a lot of work lying ahead of us. Let's see how much of it we can get done throughout August!

Please enjoy the rest of your weekend and, until next Saturday, take care! :3