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ouroboros-hideout · 20 days

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Night City memories.

@barghestapologist came up with this cool little idea and tagged me for it. Thank you again! Really love it and went around town with my blorbo girl. And decided to write something to every pic in her point of view. Brace yourselves - it's long, like always.

Rules: Snap some shots! Places (or people) near and dear to your ocs across NC! Filters and photo frames are optional ofc, it’s all up to you!

And since it's a tag game I´d like to give other's the opportunity as well who might not have seen it yet, but no pressure as always and everyone can try if they want!

@blackrevell @sofia-in-nc @cybervesna @chevvy-yates @kdval

To get the obvious out of the way: Of course I like the workshop. Kurt has invested a lot of time, money and energy to build a modern workspace with plenty of facilities for decent weapon production. I'd always prefer my own place in Russia, that's not up for debate and if his people think they know more than me and boss me around, I'd be happy to throw a few punches, but on the whole, working here is a chance to get something really big off the ground and I enjoy being a part of it.

When I need some fresh air, as fresh as it can get in Dogtown, I like to spend a few minutes in the stands of the stadium, the less busy part of the black market. My favorite thing is watching Kurt's little tin soldiers trying to salvage anything of value from the aerozep their lord and master has shot out of the sky - he’s just pure chaos.

To put it bluntly: I hate his damn parties. I hate everyone he invites, I hate that he always persuades me to come along. But the first time I saw the “finished” casino I was impressed. It’s his little playground, I don’t judge him for it, if this is his way of conducting business. After all, it seems to work. And of course you have to offer the rich and famous something to attract them to Dogtown in the first place. From that point of view, he's done a good job here. I like to come around if there’s no one else there. I am a sucker for impressive views and I doubt you would get anything better than up here. And the bar is a big bonus.

The small balcony on the left is the best place in my opinion. I've often seen Kurt standing there too, smoking a cigarette and looking down on the city. Even though I know he's actually looking somewhere else. So far, I've always turned round and let him have his moment - I think he really needs that. And maybe some more time before he will open up to me about it.

The wannabe military camp at the entrance to the Sapphire is a good place to familiarise yourself with Kurt's people. Many of them, and this surprised me, actually have brains, and it's nice to chat to them and listen to some of their stories, throw a few punches in the little boxing ring they've set up (or take a few, yes, I have to admit) or finish off the evening with a beer at the dingy little bar. One evening, a newbie came up to me, looked at me with big dreamy eyes and asked me in a trembling voice what it was like to work so closely with THE Kurt Hansen. I really had to pull myself together not to lose my composure. His name was Pablo or something like that, I think. I still have to laugh at the fact that this buffoon has fans like he's a rock star or something.

The Longshore Stacks always gave me the impression that it was the most civilized place in Dogtown, if there is any. Sure, it's pretty much impossible not to bump into some junkie or otherwise mentally deranged person when walking the streets, but this is where I still feel like it's the most enjoyable place to be. A small community of people trying to live their lives in this surreal place. The ‘Tree of the Lost’ as the locals call it really moved me when I saw it for the first time. Of course, I have no idea who the people here or what their fates are. I just pick up conversations in passing whenever I go there. And I don't feel connected enough to the people there to ask serious questions. It's not my business, to put it bluntly. But I think it's a beautiful and at the same time heartbreaking idea. The bartender at ‘The Moth’ is pretty cool. I've had a few interesting conversations with her already.

There's this completely run down cinema in the center of Dogtown. Like everything else, I assumed that it must have been taken over by some gang or homeless people, so I never really paid much attention to it. Kurt asked me to meet him there one evening after work. As it turned out, the cinema was unoccupied. And the inside of it was actually still in good condition. Not gonna lie, it really could have been opened. But the clientele in this junkyard would probably have completely looted the place within a day or razed it to the ground if you didn't protect it with a few Barghest puppies. And unfortunately ‘pure entertainment’ isn't important enough for that, I don't blame Kurt for that opinion. But I'd like to punch him every time he has such exaggeratedly cheesy date ideas. Or rather, I'd like to slap myself because I think it's *sigh* cute how much effort he puts in. He actually invited me to the stupid cinema to watch a Tarantino with him, which he had specially organized. Reservoir Dogs from 1992. Of course he had no idea what it was about and just went for it because it had the word ‘Dog’ in it.

Before I head into the workshop or afterwards I like to drive around in the badlands. To get a clear mind for the tasks ahead or to deflate myself from a long tiring day. In any case, at a time when the heat in this shitty state is halfway bearable. There’s a really nice view not far out off the city on Dogtown I like to head from time to time. I showed it Kurt already too, because that donkey can’t set a foot outside his little empire without me kickin’ his ass to do so.

I encountered a family of Nomads one day while exploring those dry dusty desserts around Night City. They are part of the Aldecaldos I at least heard of before. They were quite suspicious when I first got there. But after a quick exchange of words and telling them I used to ride with a clan too, they got quite curious and invited me for a stay. The friendliness they approached me with after just a short time really warmed my heart and brought back some fond memories. And we had so much to talk about. I really hope they will stay for a little longer in the city so I can head out again to meet with them.

On my way around the badlands, I one day came across this lake. I need to ask Kurt about it, because I really doubt it’s natural and probably some sort of Corpo-disaster. But it’s a really peaceful and silent place, though I’d never set foot into the water. Probably will get a shitton of diseases within seconds. There’s also a small cabin not far off the road. So it seems like someone else is enjoying the views and calmness of this place as well from time to time.

Kurt: You forgot about one place you like in Dogtown.

Aon: Enlighten me.

Kurt: Right by my side.

Aon: *sigh* Should have seen that coming.

Aon: But you’re right.

Kurt: Told ya’.

#cyberpunk 2077 #oc: aon #kurt hansen #otp: like napalm #virtual photography #phantom liberty #tag game #dogtown #my oc

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sgiandubh · 1 year

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Do you have any secret tips for restaurants or cafés for a trip to Paris?

Dear Paris Anon,

I am happy and amused you ask me this question. Happy, because I have been calling Paris home for six years: that means there are places where I was madly kissing a beautiful (and cruel) boy from Bastia, places where I walked at night drunk as a boiled owl with people who are still in my life, places where I regularly went shopping or having an endless coffee with friends and places I was entrusted with, like precious jewels. Amused, because to be honest, Paris is probably the last French destination I could think of for an enjoyable week-end en amoureux (I suppose you want to go as a couple?), right now: it is overpriced as hell (the Olympics are round the corner), dirty and seedy (I was shocked, last time I visited and Manu Macron, my old acquaintance of yore, spoke about parking all the homeless outside of town during the Games 'for aesthetic reasons' - the boy never had a sense of humor, trust me on this one).

I shall give you 5 restaurants and 5 cafés (oh God, why didn't you ask me about Bangkok, instead?). Many of them are on the Left Bank (all of my addresses were there, simply because the closer to the university, the better).

Five restaurants: as it happens in Rome (where the gap is truly tragic), I will try and recommend places where locals go. You will find a menu in English everywhere, but at least try the holy trinity of bonjour, l'addition (the check) et merci. All the Parisian waiters are sourer than the Politburo and insolent as highway robbers, but do not be deterred by their manners. Order away.

Le Relais de Venise - son entrecôte (271 Bd Pereire, 75017). It is not in the center. They do not take reservations. You will be met with a long line of people patiently waiting (Seinfeld style) to get in. They have a minimal set menu (which is always a very good sign: https://relaisdevenise.com/menus/set-menu.php). The waitresses are kind and dressed like 1920's maids. It will be the damn best entrecôte-frites you've ever had (their sauce is a secret). Nothing changed there since 1959. Double check opening times and plan accordingly: you will need a taxi and plenty of time ahead. Almost a bargain for its stellar performance. The London one is a sad spin off.

Le Soufflé (36 rue du Mont Thabor, 75001). An original choice, but oh so good! They only cook soufflés (not exactly a pudding, but a pudding angels must have on a daily basis). Very reasonably priced for Paris (set menus at 40 and 55 euros - https://www.lesouffle.fr/bienvenue/home/menu/). If you want to eat à la carte, I recommend le soufflé Henri IV (cheese soufflé with chicken & mushrooms sauce) : it is heaven.

La Jacobine (59-61 Rue Saint-André des Arts, 75006). You will find tourists in this one, it is always full. Service is impeccable. Do not bother with Le Procope round the corner: it used to be one of my haunts, but this is over. The best soupe à l'oignon (onion soup, notoriously hard to cook) I ever had (yes, they still add white wine!). I would also recommend the magret de canard sauce aux cèpes (duck breast with a porcini mushrooms sauce). I could not find a decent menu, but that should give you an idea - they don't have a website (https://eater.space/la-jacobine). Very reasonably priced, too - and very, very good.

Chez Julien (1, rue du Pont Louis-Philippe, 75004 Paris). This is one of my mum's favorites. It is open only in the evenings, but it is an excellent choice if you want to call it a night, because it has service continu (all night long, wow!). It is more expensive - this is, after all, the Right Bank, so expect prices to go drastically up. This is the only option serving wonderful breakfasts, so I beg you: have breakfast in town at least once, Paris hotels tend to do it on the sad and sorry side (https://www.chezjulien.paris/en/home#menu-en). Pair anything you pick with a glass of Pouilly fumé white wine (it goes with anything, it is that magically good).

Money is no object? Entice the guy to take you at (I am torn, here, to be honest) La Tour d'Argent (19 Quai de la Tournelle, 75005). It is very expensive (like VERY), but it is worth every penny (https://tourdargent.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/LTDA-SEPTEMBRE-EN.pdf). You must (it's an order!) order the canard au sang (you will find it on the menu under the entry Duckling Frédéric Delair and it is outrageously priced). But you will never have a chance to see the table show anywhere else (it is served in two times: first the fillet and then the legs and it uses a sort of Medieval contraption, to get the blood out for the sauce) - just a specialty from Normandy, you will not find in Rouen anymore. It is divine. They have been there since 1583. What are you waiting for? (for a less break the bank option, try Le Grand Véfour, near the Louvre - google it, it will take forever to explain why).

Four cafés and a salon de thé (tea parlor) : all are haunts of mine. In every single one of them something very personal happened to me. Consider yourself lucky. On a more practical side, all of them double as excellent lunch options, for a fraction of what you would spend in a restaurant. :)

Chez Carette (4 Pl. du Trocadéro, 75016, but also Place des Vosges, with a nod to C). You will have an exceptional choice of anything you could think of and the same Roaring Twenties atmosphere as in the Relais de Venise restaurant. The chocolat chaud (hot chocolate) is almost perfection (do NOT go to Angelina, on the rue de Rivoli, that is another favorite which went south and not in a good way). The best macarons you will find North of Saint Jean de Luz's Maison Adam (where the story of macarons began in earnest). This is Someone's favorite, but then he always was a Right Bank purist. Service is old school, which means supremely kind, if only a bit on the slow side: you are in France, soak it in!

Les Deux Magots (6 Pl. Saint-Germain des Prés, 75006). On the Left Bank in the publishing houses district. This is my second favorite (there is a first favorite) and you will likely find me on the heated terrace with a cigarette and a newspaper, if I were there. Service is appalling, but you should not mind, I have warned you. Reasonably priced for what and where it is. Breakfasts are mediocre, but still enjoyable and lunch/dinner menus are typical brasserie fare - you are not there for the food, you are there to cosplay Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir and act intellectual and sophisticated and have endless talks about the world's destiny (https://lesdeuxmagots.fr/en/breakfast-menu/). If nature calls, head downstairs with an air of intrinsic superiority and don't forget to pay the grumpy dame pipi (toilet lady), who will give you what you need and look at you like you are the scum of the Earth. Always makes me laugh.

Le Café de l'Epoque (2 Rue du Bouloi, 75001). On the Right Bank, at the end of one of the most beautiful passages couverts (glass-roofed passageways) of Paris. Again, you are there for the supremely dreamy atmosphere, I can only fail to describe. Look on the map for all of these passageways and then get lost in the maze of stamp shops, bookstores, taxidermists and God only knows what else you could think of (or at least add to this passageway the Galerie Vivienne). Usual brasserie/bistro fare, reasonable prices (https://cafedelepoque.fr/en/services). The lemon meringue pies are to die for.

Café Le Rostand (6 Pl. Edmond Rostand, 75006). Steps away from the Luxembourg Gardens, which I crossed every single day to go to the uni. Steps away also from the secret and sublime Medici fountain in above park (oh, the things I did there!). Surprisingly good French fare, the beef tartare is excellent (a rare thing!) and well priced (https://lerostand.fr/carte/ - use Google translate, they don't care for tourists). Service is cheeky. Round the corner, one of the most charming shops in Paris, Parapluies Simon (56 Boulevard Saint-Michel, 75006) - only umbrellas and dandy walking sticks (you can hide a whisky mini flask in one of them, I am told by Someone on the phone, but I think he is trolling us - we love that shop).

The Tea Caddy (14 Rue Saint-Julien le Pauvre, 75005). It's been there since 1928, when a certain Miss Klinklin opened it and introduced the Devon scones to France. It is my favorite favorite (https://the-tea-caddy.com/en/tea-room/) and it is perfect on a rainy day. Steps away from the Medieval church of Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre, one of the most authentic and moving experiences of its kind in a very secular town. The Shakespeare & Co. bookstore is just round the corner. A rare gem of a place.

I could go on and on and on. Three more short tips and you will thank me for it, as alternatives to deceiving mainstream options:

The Musée de l'Orangerie instead of The Louvre. Blasphemy? Intense perfumes come in small bottles. It is breathtaking (https://www.musee-orangerie.fr/en).

Château de Rambouillet instead of Versailles (you will not be able to enjoy it AT ALL). Where else could you find Marie Antoinette's private 'milk bar' (La Laiterie de la Reine/ The Queen's Dairy), a supremely elegant affair, with milk-spouting fountains, built to encourage hygienic milk consumption as an alternative to breast-feeding (she was unable to). Trust me and plan a full day for it (https://www.chateau-rambouillet.fr/en/discover).

La Sainte-Chapelle instead of Notre Dame. I always preferred it to anything else, except perhaps Vézelay (far, far away from Paris). It will shock you, but in such a perfect way (https://www.sainte-chapelle.fr/en). Enough said: I will let you discover. Across the Seine, couple this visit with the Musée de Cluny and tell The Lady and the Unicorn I miss them (https://www.musee-moyenage.fr/en/).

I am not sorry for the length of this post. At all. I hope you will enjoy this modest, but very personal selection and perhaps you will come back and tell me if it was worth something. Bon voyage!

Notre Dame on a snowy evening, Paris 1953

#Anon

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turnwashingtonsbaddies · 9 months

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PLS PLS OKS DEAR GOD GIVE US THE PUSS PUSS EATING RANKING OF TURN CHARACTERS I NEED IT LIKE SPONGEBOB NEEDS WATER (must include robert rogers)

ok im officially done with school (woo 🥳) so i can give everyone in my ask box what they've been waiting for. i am going to keep the list limited to the ppl in this promo photo bc there are so many goddamn characters in that show and if you want heavy-hitting analysis, i've gotta keep a short list (at least for now)

analysis under the cut:

as mentioned before caleb brewster does indeed SWEEP the pussy eating power rankings

as also mentioned before john andre is as mediocre in eating pussy as he is in acting and flute playing. he thinks he's amazing at it tho

now for the fun. i need to get this first paragraph out of the way bc it is about the man who made me begin to ponder this question 2 years ago in the first place. abraham. fucking. woodhull. this beanie-wearing menace to society has NEVER made anyone other than anna strong come. point blank period. even with anna tho, he's done it like maybe once or twice. whether or not he did it by giving her head is up for another debate tho

oh and speaking of anna strong. she gives me pillow princess vibes for a reason i cannot quite explain. it is just kind of a gut feeling i have. maybe it has to do with the fact that ppl are always just throwing themselves at her, so she doesn't have to bother with actually working on pleasuring them

but back to abe for a minute. he's actually (believe it or not) NOT the worst one on the list, and that is because richard woodhull has NEVER ONCE made a woman come. not even his wife. not once. richard has never even eaten pussy before. richard has only ever had sex in the missionary position. abe is a terrible partner for a reason, and that reason is bc he was raised by richard

one member of the woodhull family does possess some finesse however. mary woodhull eats pussy like a mf champion. i imagine her learning it was much like her learning how to fire a gun. at first she was like 'wtf is going on??? i cant do that??' but give it few tries and she easily upstages all the men around her

using mary shooting a gun as my transition here..... let's talk about simcoe. honestly, he does give me the vibes of someone who really wants to be good at eating pussy, and maybe he even enjoys doing it. however, i think he gives toothy head. and i also think he does it on purpose. that's right. he's a biter

speaking of ppl who enjoy eating pussy, i think hewlett slays in that department ngl. ik i said before that caleb is arguably the only man on the show who enjoys eating pussy, but i actually want to amend that bc i think hewlett does too. however, i think the one drawback for hewlett is that his desire and ability to give good head does come from a place of him being (and i mean this with peace and love hewlett enjoyers) a massive simp

i straight up dont have a transition for this one but it was literally an intrusive thought and i just need to expel it. ben tallmadge the type of guy to apologize after eating pussy. why? who knows. it could have even been decent head. he's still apologizing anyway. however my bet is that decent is the best he can do bc he's an overthinker, which can get in the way of having strong head game

finally, and yes i made you read all of this before giving you what you wanted anon, robert rogers. "(must include robert rogers)" is SO REAL. SO TRUE. you're right for saying so. however he is such an enigma to me and i really don't know where to place him both as an eater of pussy and frankly as an entity in general. i know he has to exist in some kind of extreme tho. god-tier head or the most abysmal head ever anyone's ever experienced. maybe he's even literally eating pussy, like in a cannibalism way. i'm not ruling that out either. honestly, maybe the quality of head varies between sessions too. after all, he's always gotta keep em on their toes

#i put this into my google docs and checked the word count for shits and gigs....... this post is 700 words long #but anyway lmk if you want more 🤪

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k1ttygam3r · 10 days

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Before anyone asks (considering Genshin is highlighted in my fandom list, meaning it’s a current hyperfixation), yes. I am aware of the Natlan controversy and its egregious colorism. And no, I do not support it in the slightest.

I joined relatively late in the game’s lifespan, joining the fandom around Sumeru’s release. Due to everything concerning that region, I made an oath to never buy anything from the game. To this day, I’ve never went back on my word, and this recent update made me glad I didn’t.

While I can still find enjoyment in the game itself, it’s incredibly disappointing to see the colorism in Natlan. It’s especially disheartening to realize that if they cared enough, this could’ve been actually decent if they abandoned their racist tendencies.

In my opinion, seeing something bad that could’ve been good is heaps worse than seeing something bad that’s always been bad. Thinking about a “what could’ve been” that’s better than the “what is” just hurts me on a whole different level, you know?

Because of this, I’m choosing to stay away from discussions about this particular subject for the sake of my mental well-being.

However, that doesn’t mean that you should simply ignore this situation. This is a problem that has gone on for far too long, and has only gotten worse over time.

But enough of my yapping. I’m white, I’m not of the people that have been hurt by this racism. I don’t think it’s my place to speak of this in any more detail.

If you want more info of how to boycott HoYoVerse, I suggest you take a look at @hyvboycott and especially their pinned post.

Do what you can. Let HYV know that they won’t get away with this.

#genshin impact #boycott genshin #boycott hoyoverse #boycott hyv #genshin boycott #genshin impact boycott #boycott genshin impact #hoyoverse boycott #hyv boycott #hyv #hoyoverse #important #genshin natlan #natlan genshin #genshin impact natlan #natlan genshin impact #natlan controversy #natlan #natlan discourse

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devondespresso · 4 months

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Writers 20 questions tag game!!

tagged by the beloved @eriquin 💕💗💖 i haven't been able to participate in a lot of tag games lately (as evident by this being at least a week late ahnsgdsynkd)(edit: its been way more than a week) but i still really really appreciate the tags!!

divider by @/saradika-graphics

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

7 !! I think i still need to put one up there but i haven't yet cause i wanna edit the ending a tad

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

10,746

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Stranger Thingssssss, and i think its fair to say the Steve Harrington fandom specifically gdnzngxngxgn

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Sweet and Spicy (the one steddie drabble tdnydyndny), My Sunshine, I Can Only Hope Now, Never Again, and Mr. Crayola Henderson

5. Do you respond to comments?

Yes absolutely!! its usually a lot of heart emojis and keyboard smashes mixed in with my actual response zgnzgbzgnzng

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

uhhh itd probably have to be Never Again still, i usually like to lean positive with my endings, that whole love-being-alive thing, so whenever i don't its usually because the focus is a different strong emotion that'd conflict with blatant positivity.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

oo okay also hard to decide for the same reason, I'd say the ending that feels happiest is probably from either I Can Only Hope Now (the Claudia prompt) or Now That We're Alive because both go from sad to happy and hopeful for the future. My Sunshine ends on a good note but its less "aw yippee!" and more "AAAAAAAAAAAA". I like my drabbles (under 400 words) to end pretty fluffy so far, and stuff like Mr. Crayola Henderson stays a pretty consistent light and fun so I don't think the happy end hits as hard.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

no, thank god, not yet anyway

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

nopeeee tho Never Again has an E and M version it's not exactly fun enough to be smut i don't think

10. Do you write crossovers?

also nope

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that im aware?? I'd be pretty pissed if it was but also like. is it doing well? is it popular? 👀

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

not that im aware but i give full permission if anyone wants to

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

nope, most ive done is bounce ideas or beta, but I'd be down to try it!

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

i don't know if i have one?? just in general for stranger things i enjoy steve ships a lot. big fan of Vi and Caitlyn from Arcane but im not really in fandom for that show cause what would i change?? im very much a gen fic enjoyer and if i had to list all my fav platonic dynamics... we'd be here a while xgnzngzgn

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

oh irony my cruelest adversary. a few months ago i was happy and ignorant in my haven of only one active wip. Now there's a small handful, and unless i get possesed with the same emotions i was venting in it, i fear the short Robin-centric letter style thing won't be finished soon. its decent so far but there would be a good bit of editing trying to actually articulate the feeling in a realistic way plus fitting it to Robin's first-person writing style. I don't intend to drop it but lately it just calls to me the least, but that could change

16. What are your writing strengths?

i think its a strange mix of intuition and a technical understanding of writing that works really well for the way i think. Its very broad and basically has no rules, just a understanding of how my favorite stories work, how most writing rules are really trends that tend to work better and then you can dig deeper behind a lot of them to see the *why* behind it. that plus trusting the nagging feeling that something's off makes editing my most productive stage, i can vibe check the area and then start digging dgnxnhxngxng

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

god this changes every time i revisit this draft xumxhmxmxhm this time its probably character introspection. i love writing like a movie and having character action or dialogue or setting or symbols communicate things, but putting down what the characters thinking with similar tact is soooo harddddddd and especially in angst or emotion moments, i want my readers caught in the same thought process as the pov character, i want it to feel so real that even if they never experienced the situation the characters in and even if they know logically the characters wrong, they understand. and that unfortunately involves bypassing their stance as an outside perspective on the matter, which is uhhhhh very very hard xhmznhxhnxhm

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

Depends on the intent, i think it works best when the author speaks the language themselves, and especially with stuff like asl it helps clarify the grammatic differences. I think if its a language the pov character isn't supposed to understand then "said something in x language" works better for universal immersion.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Stranger things babeyyyyyy, i actually started writing the Steve Henderson au first, tho the first drafts of chapters are very different from current ones

20. Favorite fic you've written?

MY SUNSHINE!!!!!!! i am so open about my favouritism with that one, its the most contemplative and atmospheric and emotional and its short enough that i was spending time on every word, every line to make sure it felt right and contributed to the picture i wanted. they say its more achievable (compared to long fiction) to make a perfect short story and that's what My Sunshine feels like to me, the perfect little taste of themes I'm enjoying most in writing rn, specifically with the Steve Henderson au (my second favourite fic xgnxngxgn)

i forget how many ppl im supposed to tag so im gonna do 20, no pressure ofc!! @marvel-ous-m @acasualcrossfade @pearynice @imfinereallyy @tinytalkingtina

@klausinamarink @puppy-steve @queenie-ofthe-void @eyesofshinigami @stellarspecter

@dreamwatch @lightoftheseraph @withacapitalp @findafight @hbyrde36

@vegasol @carolperkinsexgirlfriend @lingeringmirth @momotonescreaming @sourw0lfs

#personal tag game #tag game

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ask-zaukodar · 7 months

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For those who don't particularly follow gaming, there's currently a hot new game out in the field called "Helldivers 2" and it is making hype train waves like very few games have before. There is also a lot of discourse about why it's doing the kinds of numbers and having the popular support that it currently has, and while I know this may not reach a lot of people I still want to drop my thoughts on things.

Just to recap briefly: "Helldivers 2" is the sequel to the titular PC/PS4 game "Helldivers" where you play satirical Starship Troopers waging a war of aggression pre-emptive strike on alien powers who were content to be left alone dangerous enemies of humanity and democracy in the name of subjugating these powers to steal their resources and technology liberty, freedom, and defending our way of life. It was developed by Arrowhead games, who in addition to the original Helldivers previously made Magicka (not Magicka 2) and Gauntlet (2014), and the devs very clearly knew what they wanted to make in regards to all three games and hyperfocused on making those elements work to make the game the best possible experience.

Yes, there are live services aspects such as a rotating armor shop and a "seasonal pass" in the form of something called a War Bond, but the game has gone to impressive lengths to ensure that you aren't pressured into buying stuff through old tactics like FOMO and the like. And yes, the dev team has been in crisis mode addressing the server issues and fixing bugs and (hopefully) addressing the cheater problems, but they have a clear vision and have been working hard to make sure everyone can enjoy it. But it isn't the no-pressure live service, or the on-the-up-and-up dev team in and of itself, or even the chaotic and satirical nature of the game itself I spotted after playing as long as I have.

Helldivers 2 is a perfect (and perfectly-timed) B-game.

For anyone who never owned a console before the seventh generation (Playstation 3, Wii, and XBox 360) I'll explain briefly: every console had its "big title" (later known as AAA) games: Mario, Zelda, Final Fantasy, Battlefield, Call of Duty, Metal Gear, and all of the other ones an elder millennial can name off the top of their heads. But there also used to be games that very explicitly weren't that big-named that were still amazing games in their own right, like the Legacy of Kain series or Jak & Daxter series or Wild Arms or Guitar Hero or Pikmin or Overlord or Saints Row, there's lots of examples of "great games that didn't have mega-bux budgets". These games were the backbone of any console you owned, ever, and some of the best times you had with friends. They were not priced or marketed like AAA games were, but were the kind of game that kept you going back to any video game store of your choice.

For reasons I still don't fully comprehend these types of titles started drying up in the seventh generation, I don't know if it's because of the always-online culture that started appearing in gaming or if it had to do with the emergence of "indie games" or if it was manufacturers wanting bigger slices of the pie or whatever, but for whatever reason these games eventually fell into obscurity, and everything started to fall into "indie dev" or "AAA studio" with little exception. The few games of this category from this time period that were saved in PC ports are old and clunky and not as enjoyable to play, so people don't appreciate just how satisfying these games could be.

The thing about B-games is that they were incredibly solid. Yeah they might have reminded you of other games that were more mainstream or older games that you played on lesser graphics, but even if you didn't always enjoy the game you couldn't deny that it was decently made and it was the kind of game the devs wanted to make so you could play it. They weren't always the flashiest, highest-poly-count, or biggest marketing budget titles ever, but it still left an impression on you that could make you think back to it even now.

Flashing forward back to the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Twenty-Four and the landscape has changed so radically that the concept of a mid-level game that sets out to do something it wants to do is almost alien. But this is what Arrowhead started doing back in the 2010's when they made a dopey magic game where spells were based on your controller input that could friendly-fire (or outright troll) your friends. They used to be indie, but now they've grown enough to be a legitimate mid-level developer making the kind of games they know they want to make.

And because the gaming community is starved for something remotely original or fun they piled on it like sharks on bloody meat and they are eating it up wholesale. Which is great for the devs! And hopefully great for the gaming community at large, because maybe we'll get a return of some of these "not quite AAA games but still very solid and definitely not basement-developed" games.

#helldivers #helldivers 2 #arrowhead #b games #gaming #video games #honestly i'd kill for another legacy of kain game

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pechebeche · 5 months

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Hey so is afk arena fun to play? It looks like it would be too heavy and resource-hungry for my poor old phone, but also,,, I want to know,,,

(assuming you're talking abt afk journey, since arena is my general tag because it came first)

tbh like...I really couldn't tell you if my answer is yes because it's a genuinely enjoyable game, or yes because i was already attached to it from back when i played arena?

like objectively. the gameplay is just OK and really suffers in areas. one of the main progression mechanics involves setting your phone down to play itself while you go do something else. the writing is really just barely skirting at Decent, and the voice acting is straight up Bad in a lot of places.

but like. despite that ive still logged on every day like clockwork for like? a month and a half?? the art is good there's lots of little things to run around and do underneath the weird writing there are some true character gems. the gacha aspect is extremely forgiving. almost every option in the store is BONKERS expensive so ive never had an issue being tempted to go off f2p except the things that were Really worth it. its an afk game so you gain materials over time even when you're not playing so it feels like you're constantly progressing.

I guess jury's out on whether it's like Objectively good, but i do think it's worth a shot! important to know there's also a computer version if you want to save the space on your phone, though I've heard it's pretty buggy still

#asks #riotbrrrd #if you do play hmu in messages with ur accnt number ill help carry u thru battles as needed 👌#afk arena #afk journey

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shysheeperz · 9 months

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love ur blog!! I check it out before starting an anime/manga 💞

just wondering do u have any recommendations for complete anime/mangas?

thank u either way!!!

Completed??????

Manga:

Fullmetal Alchemist- the gold standard

Silver Spoon- by the same person who did FMA. Agricultural school stuff. Cute.

Agravity Boys- space sci-fi gag comedy, a wild ride to say the least, I miss my stupid boys

Magu-chan: God of Destruction- cute digimon/pokemon-shaped gods get woken up and mingle with a bunch of middle schoolers. Cute fluff mostly, will occasionally pull at your heartstrings (including the ending)

High School Family: Kokosei Kazoku- comedy/ slice of life, about an entire family attending high school. Has a volleyball arc that rivals the likes in haikyuu!!

Haikyuu!!-sports manga, if you want to cry over boys and their love for the game then this is for you, Boys x Volleyball is the tru otp of the show

Hell's Paradise: Jigokuraku- dark historical fantasy, so very, very good. Don't get attached.

Dr. STONE- sci fi, technically the main story is complete. We still have been getting the occasional side chapter or three that continue where the main story left off tho. A very solid shonen jump series. includes one of the best shonen jump dads in the history of ever. Will make u emotional over lightbulbs and stuff. hard not to root for the main cast.

Dr. STONE Reboot: Byakuya- a non-canon little one volume spin-off about byakuya and mainly about a funky lil robot that will make you sob uncontrollably I'd personally say to read up to the end of the Treasure Island arc in the main story first before tackling this one (about ch 140ish)

Dr. STONE 4D Science- a continuation of the main story, only a couple chapters, the ending is a really cruel tease imo and if Inagaki/Boichi don't give us more may they be cursed to lose all their left shoes forever

Food Wars! Shokugeki no Sanji- spin-off of sanji side stories by the duo who did food Wars. ONE PIECE related ofc. Tasty looking food. Sanji too cool for school. One volume.

Astra Lost in Space- space sci fi survival, solid story that deserves more appreciation, the ending is just a tad lackluster in actually showing what a lot of readers would have liked to physically see. By no means ruins the story tho.

Blue Flag (Ao no Flag)- high school, romance, slice of life, boys and gals just trying to figure out life and relationships. Solid.

Mashle: Magic and Muscles- gag comedy that leans a little too much into the shonen battle-esque stuff towards the end imo, but a decently enjoyable time. A mash up of Harry Potter and other various manga like mob, opm, etc.

Mitama Security: Spirit Busters- comedy, axed but I enjoyed it. Goofy fun. nothing spectacular but reading it won't hurt anyone.

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes- spin-off of mha obviously, average joe Koichi >>> deku FIGHT ME, the goodest of boys, world building u don't get in the main series, Aizawa's backstory, Knuckleduster is the man the myth the legend.

Chihayafuru- screaming crying throwing up, it's niche it's technically a sports manga, romance, female MC, growth™, love triangle but at the end of the day that's not what's important

My Love Mix-Up!- comedy romance, big big mix-up on who loves who and lots of shenanigans ensue.

Noragami- TECHNICALLY not complete until like 2 days from now when the final chapter releases. my emotions! MY EMOTIONS!!!! 😭

Gintama- comedy/gag with dashes of really good drama

I have no idea what your tastes are, anon, so here's a mix that I've personally enjoyed. Some of them were axed, but technically that makes them complete so I included them :P yes I cheated.

Anime:

There's a lot less of them bc I haven't actually watched a lot of completed series.

Run with the Wind- more boys x sports but this time it's about running. Also the boys are in college. Will trick u into wanting to run.

91 days- ol timey story about VENGEANCE. Set during the prohibition.

Tengan Toppa Gurren Lagann- makes you emotional and feel all fuzzy inside, sci fi, mecha

Cowboy Bebop- a classic

Samurai Champloo- also a classic and I actually prefer this one over cowboy bebop tbh, god tier baseball episode

Astra Lost in Space-the anime version, if you'd prefer watching over reading, but I always prefer manga > anime just cause.

FMA 03/FMA BROTHERHOOD- the gold standard. I appreciate both versions. 03 goes the anime original ending root bc obviously the manga wasn't completed yet no biggie.

Mob Psycho 100- MOB!MOB!MOB! and tumblr sexy man reigen arataka

Gintama- animated version alternative lol. The voice actors bring the characters to life.

Obv there are the old school classics like Sailor Moon, Cardcaptor Sakura, Gundam and all that jazz if you haven't already checked out some of those. Oldies but goodies.

#ask #manga rec #anime rec #pretty positive i've read more axed manga than those who've reached thier natural conclusion #doesn't mean they shouldn't get some appreciation #manga #anime

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steampunkforever · 1 year

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Sony's Gran Turismo was never supposed to work. Video game movies almost never do, and most of those have NARRATIVE.

And yet just like Barbie, another tie in aimed at children, Gran Turismo comes out pretty decent, if less enjoyable than Barbie. Just like Barbie, part of this is due to the studio decision to hand an established director the keys (Look everyone, a pun!) to the franchise, but what really helps Gran Turismo is the fact that this is a true story: Some kid played enough racing video games to get good enough at driving and snag 3rd place at LeMans.

Most of the events you see in the movie actually happened. And while after the triumphant LeMans finish (a very realistic touch in showing the audience that simply finishing as much as making podium in endurance racing is an accomplishment on its own) the real life Jann the film is based on apparently still races in Japan's SuperGT series (yes, THAT SuperGT series.)

If it weren't for the fact that Neil Blomkamp knows how to direct a good movie, Gran Turismo would be an all out mess. The setup takes way too long, and the character writing feels unbearable amateur (Blomkamps own tendencies toward cartoonishness don't help this). After Jann gets into the GT Academy things get much better, but the outright formulaic writing made Blomkamp really work his hardest to make this a 6/10 sports film.

That's what this is. A 6/10 sports film directed by the District 9 guy, blinded by his enthusiasm for GTRs enough to sign on with Nissan and Sony. The driving and general car sequences are masterfully done, making driving in circles riveting rather than yawn-inducing, while the little motion graphics and SFX nods to the fact that this is a video game movie after all are satisfying, and not much else matters.

At least the soundtrack was surprisingly great. Blomkamp, even when faced with positioning Gran Turismo as a proper racing sim, knows his stuff.

#gran turismo #gran turismo (2023)#filmposting #film #neil blomkamp

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msbowser · 1 year

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Ranking All Giant Bowser Battles

Hello, everyone! And welcome to Bowser Day! A day to celebrate our beloved Koopa King and everything about him!

For a few years now, I have been wanting to do something for this day. However, life kept getting in the way and I had too many games to play. But this year is the year I finally get to write about this topic.

If anyone knows me well, I am very passionate about all the different types of giant battles with Bowser over the games. It’s always a highlight for a game when I see Bowser go giant for the final battle in a new game. A very unpopular opinion I know, but I can’t help but love seeing our Koopa King all tall and imposing. I also love non-giant fights, but the giant battles are always such a joy to me. I pretty much love all of them (some more than others). So, for my contribution to this day, I will be ranking every single Giant Bowser fight from my least favorite to my absolute favorite.

While this is my own personal list and my opinions (and trust me some of my opinions are weird), I did try to keep this objective as I possibly could. And I’m ranking these fights in three vital areas. First is gameplay: how the fight played out, how were the mechanics utilized, how much enjoyment did I have during the fight (rather by punching Bowser in the face or running and screaming in terror from trying to avoid getting hit). The second criteria is music, which is self explanatory, as most of these fights have unique music, so how I liked the music track. And last criteria and most important to me, the scale of the fight. Scale refers to, of course, the size difference between Bowser and our heroes. The bigger the difference, the better. But scale also refers to the scale of battle from a story perspective. How important is the fight for our heroes to win, how high are the stakes? Is this just an obstacle in the way of the player or is there something more?

And as I am talking about battles against Giant Bowser, I will not talk about the giant fights from Inside Story (never know, might be its own list one day).

As such with a list like this one, there will plenty of spoilers.

As such, to give an example about how this ranking is going to go down, I will start by talking about our honorable mentions. These two fights are phenomenal in their own right. However, for both fights, Bowser is slightly bigger, but I wouldn’t really call it a “Giant” boss fight. But I still wanted to talk about these two fights and the amazing aspects about each of them.

Honorable Mention 1: Shiny RoboBowser (Mario and Luigi Paper Jam)

What’s better than one Bowser? Two Bowsers, fused together! For as much Paper Jam is a okay game, it’s finale was something unexpected. The fight between the two Bowsers prior showed off their cooperation between each other and even showed off their subtle differences. What I wasn’t expecting was Paper Bowser to turn into a paper covered armor for Bowser! It is such an out there concept that fits so well. The fight can be brutal if you are not prepared for it, though Battle Cards can let you cheese it. And since the armor is paper, any fire move like the Toad Trail do critical damage. And as the fight progresses, the armor starts breaking down, leaving Bowser vulnerable, though he can heal it up. The music is great to listen to as well, with it sounding the most Kingdom Hearty to me (yes, I know Yoko Shimomura compose the music). All in all, the fight is very decent, with the problem that Bowser is barely bigger here. Still double Bowser fusion, very cool.

Honorable Mention 2: Dreamy Bowser (Mario and Luigi Dream Team)

This is probably one of my favorite Bowser battles overall. The music for this fight, “Adventure’s End”, gives “In the Final” from Bowser’s Inside Story a run for its money in my opinion. I love the pianos and drums in the theme. And while Bowser isn’t too big here, he has reached divinity! He has the power of the Dream Stone, making any wish come true! And while I know this has happened before (in a different dimension though), I say this time around was even better and somewhat better executed. The fight is pretty fun, from Bowser summoning dream minions, duplicating, and even taking one of the bros in his hands (points for the bigness there). But again, it’s only a slightly bigger Bowser and not truly a “giant” fight.

Now we can start the actual list. I will go from my least favorite fights to my absolute favorites. The Giant Bowser fights I’m covering and why the two honorable mentions didn’t count is due to all these upcoming fights being listed under the page for Giant Bowser on the Super Mario Wiki, along with Baby Bowser’s page.

As I am covering all fights, there will be some fights on here that I unfortunately have not played. For those games, I will still be grading on the same criteria, but I may have to infer mostly on the gameplay aspect.

As such, let’s finally begin the list!

Number 20: Bowser (New Super Mario Bros DS)

Okay I lied, this is the only fight on the list I highly dislike. The only positive I can say about this fight is the music is alright, not the best, but fine. Plus Junior is there to help his Papa. There is the attention to detail that Junior had Dry Bowser’s bones to revive his Papa in the large caldron he had. As for negatives, oh boy! First of all, while it is unique to see Bowser being revived from a cauldron, he’s barely bigger! And this fight is super easy! It’s the almost the same routine as the normal Bowser fights. The face that because you can hold an item to bring with you, like a Mega Mushroom, makes this fight more of a joke. Hell, Mario or Luigi with a Mega Mushroom is bigger than Bowser! On the bright side, this was the first final boss of the New Super Mario Bros series, and the fights go up from there.

Number 19: Bowser (Paper Mario 64)

Out of all the fights on this list, this one hurt the most to rank this low. It comes down to Bowser only being slightly taller than before. Gameplay wise, in comparison to the previous Bowser fight, in this game he has a bit more attack, one more point of defense, and for the first phase of the fight, the Star Beam doesn’t work. Its only after Peach and Twink defeat Kammy that the new improved Peach Beam can neutralize Bowser’s invincibility. Bowser becoming slightly bigger doesn’t really add much to this fight, hence the low placement. Regardless, this fight is a great finale for this game after all the build up, and it is also pretty challenging. Not to mention the music is also very catchy. And this is the first time Bowser has achieved something in the way of divinity, though I prefer Dream Team for that. I love this fight to death, but unfortunately it doesn’t work as a Giant Bowser fight for me.

Number 18: Black Paint Bowser (Paper Mario Color Splash)

This fight is interesting to talk about. Once again, we have a slightly taller Bowser than before, so take off points for that. And the attacks he does are fine, with spinning his shell, using a hammer or breathing fire (that final breath he uses can do 120 damage unguarded, ouch.) The music is pretty good with the piano once again and the guitar, the ending portion of the song giving me major Pokemon Scarlet and Violet vibes. But what makes me really enjoy this fight was the story. Poor Bowser in this game, trying to make his shell all pretty and rainbowy, only then to accidentally create black paint that possesses him! Before this phase of the final boss, Mario is able to knock off some of the paint off for Bowser to regain awareness for a second but he got violently possessed again. And then at the end, once Huey absorbs all the Black Paint, Mario just beats up Bowser while he has no color left. My boy did not deserve that! Overall, this fight is pretty cool and challenging, but could use more. Now if only they tackle this concept again with Bowser being possessed by Black Paint, but made him 10x bigger and scary. Wouldn’t that be something?

Number 17: Bowser (Super Mario Sunshine)

Ah yes, the hot tub battle. Now I will give this battle credit where credit is due. For starters, I find the music for this battle criminally underrated. I love the piano and bongos. This theme is very calm compared to other tracks, with it fitting Sunshine’s vibe. I do like the cooperation between Bowser and Junior, however, this battle is generally pretty easy. The objective being for Mario to Jet Nozzle all five sections of the tub to make it crumble to the ground, while Bowser tries to breath fire to cut your approach to each section. And, for how easy this fight is (except if you clip through the floor because heaven forbid this game has many glitches), the fact you have to get through Corona Mountain to get here is frustrating. Also there’s the fact of why is Bowser giant? There is literally no explanation for it whatsoever, though I assume it’s because of that last Shine Sprite, or the green tub water.

Number 16: Bowser (Paper Mario Sticker Star)

The pretty shiny Giant Bowser that is made of card board is rather ridiculous. While I am a Sticker Star apologist, the Giant Bowser fight is again alright. I like the “ding!” noises that play when Mario is flung by Bowser’s swipes, or the fact those swipes could leave you with the Crumple status, which is a nice touch. I also like the music again, with the trumpets and guitar. However, this fight is once again very easy, especially after Kersti sacrificed herself so Mario could counteract the Royal Sticker. There is also the fact that Bowser does not talk in this game and is made of cardboard. The main reason it’s low is I prefer the non Giant Bowser fight before. It’s more challenging, like a puzzle to figure out in each section and I love the music way more.

Number 15: Giant Baby Bowser (Yoshi’s Crafted World)

Here we have the first boss on this list that I don’t have much to say, as it is of a game I haven’t played. So I will give my general thoughts of what I have seen. The music is not my favorite from all the Yoshi’s Island games, but it’s not a bad track. I love the armor and crown he wears on his head, and the fact the armor has a counter on it. And that counter is important since Yoshi puts in hammers on the two sides of the arena, and ground pounds to wack Bowser, depleting his life points. The fight seems fun, but this is about as low I can put it from not having played the game.

Number 14: Giant Baby Bowser and Giant Bowser (Yoshi’s New Island)

We have a double feature here with battles between both a Giant Baby Bowser and Adult Bowser. As New Island could be seen as a reboot to the series, the final boss would be both the previous ones in the series. The issue with that is both battles are very watered down versions of those previous battles. The battles are very similar to each other with Adult Bowser’s fight being a bit more difficult due to Kamek assisting him. Both music tracks are decent, with me leaning more towards Adult Bowser’s. I prefer Adult….King Bowser’s previous fight than his giant, as it uses the Metal Eggdozers to knock him off the platform he’s on. There is absolute no explanation why King Bowser is in the past, unlike the last time he showed up.

Number 13: Bowser (New Super Mario Bros 2)

The coin Mario game of course has the classic Giant Bowser finale, except the Koopalings are the ones to make Bowser giant. This is a chase sequence instead of a battle, like the Wii version, where you are running vertical instead of horizontal. As such, this is a very similar finale to the Wii's version. The music is the same between both versions. The major thing I like about this fight is the closeness of Bowser to the player, where I can totally smooch his cheek, I mean, feel the intensity and pressure of the fight. And at the time of this game, it was the first time you can fight a Giant Dry Bowser. Dry Bowser is faster than normal Bowser and more obstacles are in the way as well.

Number 12: Giant Dry Bowser (Mario Party 10)

Okay, I didn't plan for both of the Giant Dry Bowser fights to be side by side, that was just a coincidence. Honestly, Dry Bowser wasn't who I was expecting for Mario Party 10's final battle, but it is refreshing to see. Since this is continuation of the previous phase, you and the rest of players are shooting down Dry Bowser in your tanks. Dry Bowser will continuously shoot fire at the players, including a flame storm, and even throwing bones, keeping the player on their toes the whole fight. Compared to his last outing as a giant, Dry Bowser had a much better fight here. The music is also very good, with it having a high energy beat that pars with the action of this fight.

Number 11: Giant Baby Bowser (Yoshi's Wooly World)

Words cannot describe how much I adore this fight. In my opinion, this is the best Giant Baby Bowser fight in the series, barring one. First of all because of the wool aesthetic of this game, Bowser looks so cute! I wish to give him a soft hug, like my Yarn Yoshi amiibo. Second, I love the high energy of this fight, with Yoshi having to hit all the Wonder Wool from Bowser's control. The stage of the fight changes and morphs as the fight progresses, with platforms being replaced and cannons being available to try to hit behind Bowser. The music isi one of my favorites in this game, keeping the high energy feel. So, if I say so many positive things about this fight, why isn't it higher? Well, while I have played Wooly World, I have not gotten the chance to beat it yet. But when I do, you know this fight will drastically go up the list.

Number 10: Bowser (Mario Party 5)

If you don't count the Paper Mario final boss, this is the second Giant Bowser in the series, and what a unique one it is. After making Bowser fall through the floor Super Mario Bros 3 style, you face him in another arena. From there he drinks something, a potion most likely and starts growing in size, where he then proceeds to get stuck. During the fight, he will throw dark magic orbs, then breath fire, and finally do a shockwave, in that order. The way the damage is when he breaths fire, some of the orbs will become light and then the orbs can be thrown at him. The music is also pretty good, with the trumpets and drums adding to the beat of the track. This battle highlights more of Bowser's powers with his magic, something not shown very often.

Number 9: Giant Bowser (Mario Party 9)

Okay, Mario Party 9 being number 9 is once again at random. Now why did I place this battle above Mario Party 5's fight? While I believe 5 has the better fight in gamplay and music, I just like the fun of this fight. I like the dice throwing and random aspect of this fight. It's a mixture of fun along with some seriousness, with how the background of fight is and the music. The main reason this fight is so high is because of the scale of it. Before the fight even starts with Bowser, Bowser will react by welcoming the group for making it this far before challenging them to try to defeat him, so that he would release the Mini Stars. From there he laughs, saying "Witness my true power!" and then proceeds to grow giant by his own willpower! Excuse me, you mean to tell me that you can grow to be giant at any time, and instead you have Kamek use his magic on you?! To this day, I am still in shock and amazement that happened. During the battle, once you reach halfway, Bowser gets angry and grows yet again! So, scale really boosts this fight in favor for this high of a spot, but I cannot justify it going higher.

Number 8: Giant Bowser (New Super Mario Bros U)

This is better of the two Giant Bowser fights (not chases) in the New Super Mario bros series. I like how this fight actually takes place at Peach's Castle instead of Bowser's. The music has the guitars athat fit this theme and is an original track instead of being reused. What I enjoy about this fight is actually the danger it presents. When Bowser got into his shell and started chasing me the first time, I was actually scared. The shell was so large and imposing and chasing after me, and with him even jumping to catch up. The fight is also unique in the way that you need to use Junior's Clown Car to fly up to Bowser and slam the machine down on him. It's an intense fight which I am surprised that more people don’t mention.

Number 7: Giant Bowser (Super Princess Peach)

Now let’s talk about a Giant Bowser fight where you don’t play as the bros or Yoshi. This is another unique fight with Bowser. Similar to the battle from Mario Party 5, the goal is to hit Bowser’s eyes to do damage to him, with Bob-ombs. Bowser will throw spikes balls, hammers, and breath fire at Peach, with the attacks getting harder to dodge with every hit. During the last hit, Bowser will use the Calm vibe from the Vibe Scepter to heal, but this can stopped by continuously hitting the barrier or using the Rage vibe. The music has a nice tune to it. I also enjoy this fight because it’s Princess Peach fighting Bowser, with Bowser seeing her as an equal to him and uses his full power to go giant. However, I still prefer the previous battle with him in the game, with Bowser using the other vibes in that fight. All and all, this is solid fight and I hope we can see something similar or wholly unique when we get the new Princess Peach game.

Number 6: Giant Bowser (Yoshi’s Island DS)

Originally, I was not planning to rate this fight this high on the list. This fight is not the hardest, though it gets hectic real fast on the last few hits since Bowser could combo you with his fire and the rocks. Yes, I have died to this boss before, it can happen. This time I do have something interesting to say about the music for this fight. While in the English/European version we can hear a loop of the song, the Japanese version gets an extended version of the track with its own section. I also adore the sprites for this game, and Bowser looks nice in this battle. There is a reason why this fight is so high up here. When I was originally making the criteria for this list, the Scale criteria was only about just size difference. After listening to a remix of this final boss track from a Youtuber named Baconator2558 (Listen to the video, its very good) and looking at the art piece that accompanies the music, I realized this fight has way more to it than you might think. The reason Bowser is in the past is to look for the 7 Star Children, (babies that have "an extraordinary amount of power") because he wants to take them and use their power to conquer the universe. By the end of the game, Bowser battles against Yoshi for daring to stop his plan and rescue the other children taken. After Bowser is defeated, Kamek uses his magic to make Bowser giant to fight the group. When you think about the circumstances, this fight is way more serious and dangerous. Think about it. At the castle at the time, 6 out of the 7 of the Star Children were all in one place, where Bowser can easily take them. You have all these babies and Yoshi's fighting against this force of nature that none of them are prepared for at this point in time. There is the important detail that if you remember that Baby Bowser is one of the Star Children, then these Yoshis are fighting one of those children, fully grown up, and wanting to destroy them. The whole concept of the Star Children makes me wish that this concept would be used in a future game or movie, as I find it one of the most important pieces of Mario lore.

Number 5: Bowser (New Super Mario Bros Wii)

This is the best of best of the New Super Mario Bros Final Battles and the best chase sequence. When this game came out, I don't think anyone was expecting a battle like this. After an easy battle, Kamek uses his magic to make Bowser giant and Bowser in his fury starts chasing the players down. I love the attention to detail here, from Bowser's more fiery eyes, eyebrows and hair, to the echo in his roars. And this fight is extremely terrifying, as Bowser won't stop his chase, breaking walls with his fire, claw swiping and creating waves of lava. It comes to a fever pitch when you reach the box with the Propeller Mushroom and the chase starts going faster and faster and more hectic. In the background, you hear this music full of beautiful bells chiming and a vocal choir. Truly a specular finale.

Number 4: Giant Baby Bowser (Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island)

The OG Giant Bowser fight is not only the first game release wise but also first in the Mario timeline. This is the fight that set the standard for all Giant fights following it and what a "huge" inspiration to follow. This fight is not only difficult but incredibly intimidating. This fight has the unique mechanic of trying to hit Bowser in the background, which takes a bit of time to get used to but the player doesn't have a lot of time to adjust to the timing as Bowser will keep coming toward the player. As the fight progresses, the platforms get narrower and narrower, making the margin of error even less. This battle also has one of the most recognizable and loved final boss tracks in the Mario series. The reason it did not make the top 3 is because I have not played this game at all, but I had to give all the props for the original Giant Bowser fight in the series.

Number 3: Giant Bowser (Super Mario Galaxy 2)

Out of all the fights on this list, this one I know will be the most controversial. But damn it! I'll defend these battles and this game until the day I die. God, I love Bowser so much in this game. The fact that in the prologue of the game you see a Giant Bowser terrorizing Toad Town, causing mayhem and destruction (it's so freaking hot). All three times you face Bowser in this game, he's all giant and stuff, boasting about his power and how he is going to squash Mario/Luigi like a bug. Then you fight him and he's larger than the planetoid you're on! He attacks you by trying to punch you (using dark magic later on), sending meteors to hit and later when you get a few hits in, he starts to chase you with his fire breath. And then you have his final battle! After making him fall into a black hole and spit up the Grand Star, Mario/Luigi go to retrieve the Grand Star when all of sudden, Bowser comes back, already giant again, eats the Grand Star and grows even larger than before! Then the fight proceeds as both Mario/Luigi and Bowser float in space until one of them loses. What I love about this fight in particular is just doing the dumbest stuff, ground pounding the meteors as fast as they come and just float there in space with Bowser as he gets closer (let me kiss this man!). Is this part of the fight easy beyond belief? Yes. But do I still love this fight to death? Hell Yes! Regardless of your opinions of these fights, everyone can agree that they have one of the best soundtracks in the series accompanying them.

Number 2: Fury Bowser (Super Mario 3D World: Bowser's Fury)

Now this is what I call a proper Kaiju fight! This is easily the most terrifying Bowser has ever been and probably ever will be. They took the concept of Bowser being Black Paint possessed from Color Splash, made him as terrifying as Giga Bowser in Smash, made him bigger and proceed to have him go all Godzilla on Mario and hunt him down. Nothing is scarier than having Fury Bowser spawn when you are trying to get Cat Shines and not stopping until you are dead. The fights with Fury Bowser are always a joy, as Bowser fights this huge Super Saiyan Cat Mario. The fact that you are larger than all the areas you explore is amazing to think about. The fight with Bowser can go several ways; throw the Danger Mines at him, wait till he tries to slam down on you, hit him while he spins sideways towards you (or watch him get stuck trying to chase you) or just try to claw him to death. Once he is finally defeated and he's not fully done, as you have to chase a normal Giant Bowser and stop him from taking the Giga Bells. The music that plays when he shows up or fights are all amazing. These fights would probably be number one, if number one was not so personal to me.

Number One: Giant Bowser (Mario and Luigi: Dream Team)

This fight…this fight. This one is not only my favorite Giant Bowser fight in the series, but also my favorite boss fight of all time. This fight means the world to me.

Let’s start before the fight even starts and this is probably my favorite part. When Mario and Dreamy Luigi have caught up to Bowser in his dream, Bowser is already there and preparing for them. He was ordering his minions to deliver meat for him to eat, which makes him grow larger.

After his minions unfortunately tell Bowser there is no more meat, Bowser becomes furious. He starts to inhale more stuff that is around to become larger, before leaping over the edge in search for more meat, a leap that could be fatal. After Mario and Luigi believe they can return out of the dream, a Giant Bowser attacks them, proving that he not only survived, but grew more giant because of it. After seeing the Giant Bowser, Dreamy Luigi, who when facing giant enemies prior to this got terrified, was confident and ready to face Bowser, which reflects on Luigi in real life. As Luigi grows giant and he and Mario prepare to fight, Bowser says one of my favorite lines in the games, “Transforming into a giant... I invented that, pal! No way some green stache gets to bite MY style!”

And then the fight begins! Throughout the entire fight, Luigi and Bowser are fighting on a long stretch of land, that Luigi has to continuously move through to avoid falling into lava. To do this, Luigi has to hammer Bowser vertically to keep moving forward (though you can hammer Bowser horizontally into the lava one time and it’s hilarious). Throughout the fight, Bowser will try to lift Luigi into the lava and even tries to ram him into it (Bowser’s face when Luigi side steps out of the way is both hilarious and adorable.) There are parts of the land that have unstable metal grates, that if Bowser is on one and Luigi jumps on it, Bowser will be sent into the lava and further the fight along.

At the end of each of the paths, one of Bowser’s fortresses will be stationed, with Bowser commanding his army to attack Luigi in various ways. The attacks are a Magikoopa magic blast, those annoying Spear Guys trying to poke Luigi’s legs, multiple airships firing cannons and finally Shy Guys trying to give Bowser meat to heal from, but Luigi can stop that with a well-timed hammer attack. After all that fails, Bowser leaps on the fortress and tries to body slam Luigi, and if he fails, Luigi tosses him into the lava, Super Mario 64 style.

When Bowser comes back, he notices that the land is starting to run out, but he sees another stretch of land for them to continue their fight. As the fight continues, Bowser now adds fire breath to his attacks, with Luigi having to jump onto an airship to avoid the breath. The battle continues as it did before with another dead end at the end of the path. Bowser notices an arena in the distance, goading Luigi to fight him there. At the arena, both Luigi and Bowser engage in a Beyblade style battle until one of them goes all the way down in health. Ultimately, Bowser loses all his health and Mario and Luigi deal the last blow, ending the battle with Bowser.

……Or did they? Kamek comes over to his fallen King’s aid, wishing to use the remaining of his power to help Bowser. And there, an amazing revelation is revealed that was never known before; an already Giant Bowser could be made even more giant. The newly super enlarged Bowser rises, becoming too powerful for normal attacks to affect him, with Luigi having to counterattack out his moves. Both Mario and Luigi must use a super charged Star to defeat Bowser. As the star hits, Bowser is finally defeated.

This fight is absolute perfection in my eyes. This battle is an extremely high point in Luigi’s character, in him only not being scared of Bowser but even feeling confident in facing him one on one. This reflects in Bowser’s mannerisms during the fight. Bowser has always wanted to crush only Mario, a major reason he sought to become giant for this fight. Bowser never really considered Luigi to be a threat to him, but you can see in this fight that his mind is being changed. If you think about it lore wise, what was stopping Bowser from plucking the tiny Mario off and dealing with him right there? The answer is because Luigi was finally showing bravery to stand toe to toe with Bowser and I think Bowser started to respect him. The battle is extremely even, neither one of the fighters having a clear victory over the other until the end. And by the end of the game, Bowser finally calls Luigi by name, as I believe this fight set the catalyst for that respect. I also see this fight in a different light. The previous game in the series, Bowser’s Inside Story, introduced the giant battles into the series, with the player controlling a Giant Bowser. Dream Team brought back the mechanic with Luigi being the giant the player controls. So, it’s only naturally that the last giant battle in the game will be against the giant character the player controlled last time. This fight could be seen as a passing of the torch battle, with Bowser giving it his best against a worthy opponent, seeing if Luigi can take his place as the giant of the series. As such, I feel this is one of Bowser’s best performances in a battle, with it showing not only his brawn, but also highlighting his military tactics with commanding his armies in formations and strategies.

But, that’s not what makes me adore this fight as much as I do. No, what I adore to death is the attention to detail. Bowser telling Luigi at the start that he was the one to invent becoming a giant for a battle, to again referring to that passing of the torch command of Bowser saying his “Showtime” line like he did in the previous game. Plus, all the ways he grew are various references to other games. When he eats meat is a reference to Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door. After Bowser leaps to what seems to be his doom is a reference to Inside Story, where the reason why Bowser became giant in the first place is to survive from a near fatal blow, with his body sending a magically charge adrenaline shot through his body. And at the end of the fight, there’s tried and true Kamek, using his magic to make Bowser giant like he did in the Yoshi’s Island games. All we were missing was Bowser growing by willpower like he did in Party 9.

This battle is a love letter to all the Giant Bowser fights prior to it. It celebrates all those different battles and what made them great and then mixes it’s own identity to make it stand out. Is it number one in gameplay? No. Is it number one in music? No. Ironically the only thing I complain about is that this fight should have had its own music track. Is it number one in scale? Hah, not even close!

So despite it not having high points in any of the criteria I set, this fight is number one for how much it means to me personally and it is the peak of all fights in video games. I made this list to not only celebrate Bowser but give more attention to these fights in the fandom and hoped to give them more attention that they deserved. (And to my brethren in the g/t community some good food to look into).

As we moved forwards toward Super Mario Bros Wonder, I hope we can see even more amazing Giant Bowser boss fights in the future. (And from that ESRB leak, that might be case.) I am beyond excited to see what new Giant Bowser fight we will see in the future.

Thank you so much for reading this list and sticking to end. I really appreciate it. I hope you learn something new and might even try some of these fights yourself. Thank you again and have a happy Bowser Day!

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superthatguy62 · 8 months

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top 5 ffs?

Oh, hello.

Just as a warning, I have yet to go through the post 5 FF games to a significant degree, so I'll be including some spinoffs:

5: Final Fantasy Explorers

I haven't played... well, any Monster Hunter-type games, so FFE was my first taste of it, and you know what? I enjoyed it. I played it on single-player, so it was essentially "Beastmaster: The Game" and the bosses were still fun enough. Also it probably has one of my top 5 favorite Big Bridge remixes and some of the music (particularly the general boss theme and Odin's theme) are highlights for me.

4: Final Fantasy Tactics

It clears the 'higher-than-you'd-expect' hurdle of me being able to actually play a decent amount of a strategy game and is generally fun to boot. I got up to Chapter 3 before the random encounters started kicking my ass enough to discourage me from continuing (though the fights towards the end of chapter 2 really tested my patience), though said encounters didn't help by me playing the PSP version with its magic/animation slowdown. By all accounts, I should probably go for the GBA/DS games since those lack permadeath (albeit with a very different tone plotwise), but I still intend to try out the PS1 version of the first game and hopefully not grind myself into a corner.

3: Final Fantasy 2

Yes, this. FF2's 'quirky' and 'complicated', but I dig the story, the gameplay once your characters actually get built up and just general setting. It's also to read the supplementry material and other notes on what could have been: It really shows that the devs were putting some thought into the story and its a shame how some elements didn't translate properly. It's the type of game where it gets better the more you know of how it works. That said the dungeon design alone holds this back fiercely, especially in the PSP's Arcane Labyrinth (Darkness floor, my beloathed). Speaking of which, the bonus content for this game is probably some of the better such content of these re-releases.

2: Final Fantasy 3

Wow, what a surprise.

FF3 is basically the video game equivalent of "it could be that deep" in my eyes. Because you don't have any of those fancy "Materias", "GFs", Magicites" or even abilities to carry over like in FFV and FFT, you need to team build your way through whatever the game throws at you. Again, FF3 is one of those games that gets better when you have more an idea of what to expect: Getting thrown into a mini-dungeon early on is annoying, but its less so when you have mages prepared ahead of time to either magic their way through or play "pass the Fire Rod that the devs conveniently added". The world isn't fully developed, but the nuggets you can find are interesting, especially the whole duality concept and the existence of the World of Darkness.

But this is also the same guy who has spent however many years obsessing over this game, so you know. Feel free to add some salt to this opinion.

As for why this isn't higher, it's because my image of this game has been ruined by my obsession, and there I feel there is no "definitive" version. All three versions are playable (yes, even the remake) and enjoyable (yes, even the remake), but all have enough pros and cons that I can't fully say one is better than the others. It's the kind of game that feels like it has yet to reach its full potential and I unfortunately don't think there are many people, at least in the west, who would care even if it did. 3's always been the overshadowed game. After all, FF5 is right there. And, oh hey, speaking of...

1: Final Fantasy 5:

Not quite a basic answer, but still a not-uncommon one, I feel. I was very late to the FF5 party, only playing it when the PR came out and not even experiencing it through osmosis like I did with FF6, and while my obsession with 3 means that it will never overcome that bias, I can easily see why people consider it to be the gameplay peak of the Nintendo-era, if not 6. It builds on what 1 and 3 started and the job combos can be fun to play with. That said, I'll admit that part of my ranking it so high is a particularly impressive mod known as "Custom Classes", which allows you to swap out basically all of the commands, meaning that you can carry over more than one skill between jobs. I haven't finished a full playthrough of CC yet, but between that and the reasons I gave for FF3, I'll be willing to give the edge to 5 over it.

Also, 5 gave us Gilgamesh and ExDeath (and indirectly eScape, and therefore The Twinning).

Honorable Mentions:

Dissidia (012): I don't know how to feel about this game. Settingwise: I love the ways it expands the FF1 mythos, but I hate how WoL is a manikin and what that implies for the rest of the FF1 party. It gave me my favorite portrayal of Garland, but it also gave me Onion Knight, whom I resent for sidelining Luneth's party in later crossovers. Even gameplaywise, I like the general gameplay, at least on paper, but I think I get far frustrated with it more than I would with a normal fighting game. Yet, I keep playing or get the urge to keep playing. Maybe it deserves to be on the list? Maybe it doesn't?

Final Fantasy VIII: I haven't gotten far in FFVIII (I finished the Dollet mission) but what I've played so far feels promising as far as my first PS1-era FF goes (some perfectionism on my part aside). Junctioning is an 'interesting' mechanic, but I think I like it. I need to get the hang of Triple Triad, but I can understand how people get hooked on it.

Final Fantasy Dimensions: Albeit with the mother of all asterisks: This is here mostly for the 'idea' than the execution right now. Like the other FFT games, I do have it ready for play, I just haven't gotten around to it, because when I play games on my phone, it's usually the gatchas that I'm stockholm syndrome'd to playing right now and it's rare for me to not be playing at least 2 at a time. At some point I do want to get around to actually playing it, but until it gets like a steam release or something, it'll be one of those "get to it eventually" type games.

Final Fantasy: Admittedly, it has been ages since I played through FF1 (relatively speaking) compared to every other game on this list aside from FFE, so I don't know how much mention it merits. But I'll put it here anyway.

#asks #Final Fantasy #opinions

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ragingstillness · 1 year

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I am a proud wtrc apologist and I will die on this hill.

Was the acting great? No, particularly in serious scenes it falls a little flat. Was it realistic to how these character would have reacted to the zombie apocalypse? Absolutely. Was it everything that resident evil stands for in its campy awesomeness? Yes.

Was the CGI good? No. Did I want it to be? Also no. Was it faithful to the original standard of animation from the games? Yes!

Is the storyline the same as the games? No. Do I give a shit? No. Did they actually do a decent job tying the games together? Yes. Did they do a great job? No. Was it still creative to give Chris and Claire backstory in the orphanage and have a tunnel connecting the Spencer Mansion and the orphanage? YES!!

Was Avan Jogia a good Leon? Yes! Why? Because while Leon in the games is a bit more stoic, what Avan did a great job of reflecting is the actual gamer’s experience. Maybe when the zombies pop up Leon has a cool one-liner but you as a gamer might jump and be like what the fuck and that’s what Avan did. In addition, despite being a third person game, RE1 and RE2 were meant to be immersive so in a way the gamer’s reactions are Leon’s reactions.

Was there stuff about the movie that bothered me? Yes. What? The pacing felt a little off and particularly slow at the beginning, I’m still mad about how they nerfed Annette in favor of William, and there’s stuff I wish they included. Did it ruin my enjoyment of the movie as a whole? No!

What sets the movie apart from the Anderson films? The Anderson films missed the point of the Resident Evil franchise. They turned the movies from survival horror to action thriller and considering that Resident Evil literally coined the phrase ‘survival horror’ that’s pretty egregious. WTRC stuck to the theme. These people are trying to survive and in doing so encountering horrors they have to fight. They might have some experience and some ingenuity but they’re not supersoldiers. They’re people facing odds and trying to survive. The Anderson films feel like someone took the Resident Evil universe, plucked out what they liked, and threw the rest away. WTRC feels like a love letter to the original games. I could literally feel the affection the team had for Resident Evil as a franchise coming off the screen. The Easter eggs, the precise set design, the classic lines, the campiness, the care put into the movie is so clear.

Do I have an issue with Leon’s haircut? No and it’s such a petty argument anyway. Idk how to tell you that a bowl cut with a center part is very difficult to pull off in the modern day and while it may have been cool in 1996 when the first game was made, a modern audience isn’t going to accept it as easily.

Do I have an issue with Jill’s casting? No, and frankly most of the complaints feel racist to me. She had the spirit of Jill: strength, ingenuity, loyalty, poise, independence.

Do I have an issue with Wesker’s characterization? No, because of the context. In video games there’s a lot of telling rather than showing in the literal images on the screen and the lore you find along the way. We know the STARS team is a team because we’re told that and we get to see personnel files and such. In a movie that isn’t quite as easily communicated. Seeing a personnel file in a movie doesn’t allow you the time a game would to turn the file over and read every little piece of info, it gives you less time to sit with it and absorb it. Therefore a movie has to /show/ more. In WTRC we know the STARS team is a team because we see them be a team. We see their banter and them working together and their inside jokes. And that has to happen in a movie, simply telling us, hey these people are a team wouldn’t cut it in a movie and therefore it makes sense to start Wesker essentially further back in his own timeline, back when he was bonding with the STARS members. Otherwise, his betrayal doesn’t have the impact it does because we never saw him be loyal in the first place.

Do I have an issue with Ada’s role in the movie? A little, but once they nerfed Annette they also sort of nerf Ada automatically, as the two of them are so intertwined story wise. Again we run into issues between movies and video games. In games you have unlimited time and unlimited tries and unlimited ability to revisit facts. In a movie that’s not the case so cuts have to be made somewhere. Am I happy about where they made the cuts? No, but they had a ton of material to work with smashing the two games together in the first place. Also, in games a shift in perspective can literally allow you to play as another character, in a movie too many shifts like that is jarring unless the movie sets up that structure from the beginning. Playing as Ada in the games makes sense as a change in gameplay after a long time playing Leon and a way to tell the rest of the story but a movie can’t switch like that without people being like wait where the hell did Leon go we barely saw him. Once again, it all comes down to time.

Did I like that they cut Mr. X? No, but again, time constraints, and he only exists in the games as a complicating force and the movie already has presented the characters with plenty of complicating forces. In other words, movies don’t get to include all the side quests.

Overall, most of the complaints I see tend to come down to either racism or relatively unavoidable changes because of the type of media. In conclusion, I genuinely love WTRC and am glad that I have the chance to experience it in my lifetime.

#wtrc #re #resident evil #meta #resident evil meta

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stygianfields · 2 years

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Diversity in Gaming and Cultural Melding, or "Why does that Aussie character have a Maori skin?"

I'm not too sure where to post this essay as it encompasses a lot of different games and diversity, I eventually decided on here. I want to preface that I'm half Australian and half Pakeha (NZ European). I don't claim to know the ins and outs of Maori culture, but I do have experience first hand as a New Zealand born.. New Zealander, and have lived in the country my whole life, so I still wanted to voice my perspective.

We've moved more and more from the older gaming trends of 'straight white guy saves impoverished people/country from shady group/tyrant' in recent years for modern gaming. A lot of fps games that had a scowling man on front cover walking/holding gun have changed tone and bucked the older ways to try and be more diverse and open for people, which can either be viewed cynically ('they just do it for more money') or as a genuine effort for change and growth. I'm honestly not here to debate either side of that as both arguments have merit, though I will say that I prefer the expanded range of characters regardless of original intention. This also isn't a post about the companies behind the games and the things they've done or still do, this is just a discussion on characters in the games.

Games having a diverse roster, be that culturally or even from various alien or fantasy races, inherently make a game a more enjoyable experience for me and many other people. If they're crafting in a fun and respectful way as well then that improves that factor even more. A suite of playable characters in a game needs those characters to behave differently from each other in order to keep things fresh and not allow things to feel the same with just a minor voiceline change and nothing else.

There's a reason why games such as Apex and Overwatch characters are much more loved and respected by their communities than the majority of playable characters in Call of Duty. Yes, all 3 of these games have different models, backstory and voicelines from the others in the game, but Apex and Overwatch cultivate a much greater personality to their characters which is showcased through animations, voicelines with more character and dedicated media outside of the game to expand on the lore and backstory of the characters.

Which is, unfortunately, where I need to put in the 'but'; due to a variety of factors, my culture is constantly mistakenly combined with another, or ignored entirely.

I come from New Zealand, a small country in the lower right hand side of the world, under Australia. To some, my country not showing up in media often may not even be a surprise. It's a fairly decently known meme that it never even shows up on maps in film and tv. A lot of people know us either from the director Taika Waititi or the Lord of the Rings movies. In recent times we've definitely made strides to be seen more in media but there still seems to be a mix of cultures that happens to people unaware of the differences. I don't claim to be an expert on my or any other bit of culture, but at least putting out some information and my viewpoint as born and raised Kiwi (NZer) may hopefully help at least one person better understand, which will make all this writing worth it.

I'll be talking specifically about 3 games and 6 characters in total; Maui in Smite, Mad Maggie in Apex Legends and Junkrat, Junker Queen and Roadhog in Overwatch.

Maui is the new character being added to Smite very soon, the second Polynesian god to be put in to the game. Maui is an incredibly important figure in many mythologies around the islands in the Pacific, but the decision was made to focus on his Hawaiian interpretation. I personally have little issue with this because I know and respect how prominent he is to various cultures. In mythology, he founded my country by fishing up the South Island and his boat was made the North Island.

This is actually shown in the game in his abilities with him pulling up an island as an ultimate ability. I love this, honestly. I'm a bit disappointed that they don't have more ties to Maori culture but they even specified in the dev notes on creating him that they wanted to shift mostly on to Hawaiian folklore instead of Maori. I more than understand that and I'm honestly just happy that the rich mythology is getting more coverage in media.

I adore Mad Maggie. She's legitimately the first full on Kiwi in a major game that I know of, alongside having strong Maori characteristics. She has a distinct accent and tone accurate to the role (she's literally voiced by a Maori woman), she has a skin inspired by Maori culture including tribal tattoos *and* she actually speaks Maori in game via voicelines. That's why it's so upsetting to me that people were mostly dreading her release due to an event in Apex she took part in.

For those unaware, Maggie has a history with the character Fuse, a man with a very strong Australian influence. Maggie featured in an event before she released, trying to chase him down and essentially making a bonus game mode. Unfortunately, she suffered from some of what other characters like Newcastle and Vantage did in that she repeated voicelines several times. This lead to a lot of people mocking her voicelines and openly exclaiming that they didn't want her in the game due to just 3 or 4 voicelines from a single event. Thankfully since release this has died down, but it did still temper my excitement due to how rude people were about her. I still love her though and probably always will.

Finally we have Overwatch, one of the first big games that really tried to push for an incredibly diverse roster that I can think of. I'm not fully invested in the deeper factors of the story but I do know that Australia was nearly destroyed during the Omnic Crisis and this caused a liberation group to be formed, a group of scavengers to pop up and the like. During this however, New Zealand is barely even mentioned, if at all in the lore.

Junkrat is probably the most overtly Australian (aside Junker Queen). He has a strong accent and says some common Australian slang. Roadhog is.. a bit more concerning.

Roadhog has several strong connections to New Zealand and New Zealand culture. His real first name is Mako, a shark that while admittedly seen in many locations around the world, is well known for being in Polynesian waters, including a common appearance in New Zealand. His voice is muffled by a mask so you can't hear his accent, but a few of his voicelines are more commonly heard in New Zealand than Australia. 'Sweet as' is a very well known Kiwi phrase and 'I'm beached as bro' is a reference to a viral youtube video making fun of Kiwi accents.

The strongest connection however is his 'Toa' skin. A Toa is a Polynesian warrior, or in Maori is used to mean being bold, experienced and capable. This in tandem with the skin itself having an obvious Maori influence with (an attempt at) tribal tattoos, Huia feathers and a mask with the tongue out to echo the end of a Haka (a dance to celebrate achievements or sometimes as a method of intimidation of an opponent) makes it pretty obvious they wanted him to be a New Zealander.

But he's Australian.

Mako is never mentioned being a Kiwi, his story begins with him being displaced due to a peace accord in Australia. In fact, aside from a leaked map datamine early in release, New Zealand is never mentioned at all, anywhere. With Roadhog being enraged at the treatment him and his people received to the point he joins a liberation movement, you would expect him to be a lot more proud and open about his heritage, yet he gets a couple of New Zealand sounding voicelines and an obviously Maori warrior inspired skin and he's still labelled Australian.

This has been a painful sticking point for me since I first played Overwatch several years ago, honestly. Overwatch released in 2016 and was the first character in a large game with a Kiwi influence. It took a 6 year wait to get Mad Maggie this year to get a much more genuine feeling character and it frustrates me. At best this feels like Blizzard accidentally mixed some cultures together but at worst the skin feels like an Australian man cosplaying as a New Zealand person and it honestly leaves a bit of a bad taste in my mouth even now.

To be honest I wouldn't make as much of a big deal out of this if it wasn't for Junker Queen, one of the newest characters in the game. JQ is a very obvious Australian, with another thick accent and very Australian voicelines ('get moving you drongos' etc). It honestly breaks down in to two problems: Overwatch having yet another Australian and allegations of being Mad Maggie 2.

The first part is fairly minor for a gripe as they also just brought in a third Japanese character; Overwatch now has 3 Australians yet no Kiwis. I find it frustrating that the only Australian with some NZ links is called Aussie and they just give us a third Aussie. It makes me disappointed because they always tout how diverse and vibrant they are, but they relegate New Zealand to some voice lines and a skin but give Australia 3 characters.

The next is about the gaming community as a whole, wherein Mad Maggie and JQ have been compared to each other several times by many people. I feel a decent amount of this is because they sound *somewhat* similar, however I won't say that I don't find it kind of harmful when New Zealand has always been underrepresented in media. In my opinion, JQ has a bit of what's known as a 'bogan' accent. It's typically used to describe an 'uncultured person' which can either be a pejorative or a term of endearment, but I feel it fits as she has a notable twang and is quite obviously a bit more blunt personality wise. In comparison I'd say Mad Maggie just has a fairly common New Zealand accent, with some of the similar bluntness (though dialed up to 11 just like JQ).

I'm not a linguist and may be inaccurate in terms of region specific accents. Saying this however, I've noticed a lot of people claiming they're basically the same character. I can see parts of this argument but as a New Zealander I still have to express it makes me sad that they get conflated together in a similar way to Roadhog and his Maori inspired cosmetic, especially when Maggie is very strongly inspired directly by New Zealand and our culture.

This ended up being a lot longer than I intended. I suppose it's been stewing in my mind for years, ever since I played Overwatch and found that Toa skin. I would honestly love to see New Zealand featured more and more in games as we have a diverse array of people and a rich history but it seems like very slow progress. I expressly remember when I was interested in Rainbow Six: Siege I made a New Zealand operator called Katipo, named after one of only 3 dangerous spiders in our country. I posted this fan creation online, excited to just share a *tiny* bit of my country and the response from other fans was literally "they'll do Australia well before this". It shattered me, because it was true.

Australia is big, they're much more well known. That doesn't mean that other, smaller countries don't deserve some attention and it *certainly* shouldn't result in smaller countries having their culture subsumed into an Australian character via a single skin and a couple of lines of dialogue. Maybe part of it is that Australia and New Zealand have always had a partial rivalry and respect for each other that makes it hit different, I'm not sure.

What I do know is that I love gaming. I loved it since I was a child, I've been a gamer for nearly two decades now. I love that more cultures are being shown and embraced. It's time for more Kiwi representation. I want others to learn about my culture, I want to learn more about my culture that I don't know. I felt so much pride seeing Mad Maggie release and I want to feel that again.

People really don't understand how impactful diversity can be until you experience your own culture being shown in a game for the first time.

#apex legends #mad maggie #overwatch #roadhog #queen of junkertown #junkrat #diversity #maori #gaming #essay #smite #maui #srslywtfisthattoaskin

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