runningpsychic
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This is a PSA...
FUCK THAT STUPID "PARODY" OF GOODBYE VOLCANO HIGH!
Why? Why?!
It was made by members of 4chan, the worst site on the internet BY FAR! The complete opposite of KO_OP--filled with right-wing rhetoric and intolerant of any piece of media that dares to be different! If you like the "parody game" and its related products, then you're saying that you support 4chan, warranting a block from me.
2. Lazy and unambitious design. GVH is all-around unique; high schoolers having to deal with the lead up to a cataclysmic event, deciding how to spend their time up to that event, and every character is an anthropomorphic dino. Plus, the game is a blend of rhythm and cinematic adventure, a novel choice in game design. Plus, the characters are all written like believable teens with understandable issues (the effects of the impending meteor, for instance), with plenty of non-forced conflict.
The OTHER game, meanwhile... stole the designs of the main characters and appropriated them into high school drama cliches, plus, the design for the main teacher blatantly rips off an Adult Swim character, for some reason. The worst part is the main character, though! It's just some muscly guy with a blank face! No eyes, mouth, hair, NOTHING ON THE HEAD! Goddammit, seriously, that is the WORST character design I have ever seen in my life!
Plus, THAT game is just another throwaway dating sim VN that can NEVER reach GVH's level.
3. LGBT ERASURE! THIS. IS. WHY. YOU SHOULD NOT LIKE THE GAME!
GVH's main characters are queer one way or another: Fang is non-binary, Rosa is a transgender woman, Sage is a transgender man, and it's possible for Fang to enter a relationship with Naomi. Reed is also hinted to be in a relationship with a male classmate, Alvin. Plus, there is some subtext regarding the pairings of Trish/Rosa and Sage/Stella, as well as in Naser's arc.
Meanwhile... THAT game is basically a vehicle by its creators to espouse 4chan bullshit. Fang is an enby when you first meet them, but their "happy ending" has the player character convince them to detransition. RED FLAG! RED FLAG! And the only endings where they stay an enby are the ones that don't give them any respect! This is bad messaging! Apparently, they're saying that the only way to find happiness in life is to throw away your queer identity! FUCK THAT SHIT!
Again, that is huge disrespect towards a likeable representation of an enby.
Note: Rosa, Sage, and Naomi's queer characteristics were envisioned DURING the rewrite, so it was after THAT game was revealed. Make of that what you will.
4. It blatantly disrespects KO_OP, and frankly, the company does not deserve it.
Goodbye Volcano High was released in August of last year, but it was actually revealed as far back as summer 2020. It was VASTLY different back then--it was more like a traditional visual novel, except with the same anthropomorphic dinos and unique designs. By the time GVH was released, it had gone through a huge story rewrite, resulting in the final product.
Unfortunately, there's a whole backstory in the development of GVH.
2020 was when COVID-19 was ravaging the world, and KO_OP's workers were struggling with the disease, putting a major dent in the game's production and delaying it for a while.
Also, the rewrite started not long after the game was revealed. Admittedly, this was due to a mistake on KO_OP's part in their choice of a writing crew, but the writing team was replaced, so good on them.
Also during development, they were harassed by 4chan and other unsavory people, culminating in THAT game. Basically, there's an undercurrent of PTSD--on the KO_OP Discord, if you bring up THAT game or any other hugely offensive content, you'll get a warning or a ban. Is it any wonder they hate THAT game?
Also, as I mentioned in a previous post, KO_OP should be admired for withstanding all that crap and releasing GVH three years after its initial announcement, the payoff being that it has its own dedicated fanbase and was nominated in three major awards ceremonies. Like GLAAD!
5. Real-World Events
Probably the worst part is that THAT game has a fanbase, even after a terribly heartbreaking event in February.
Two words: Nex Benedict.
Seriously, to still support that game, even in light of similar tragedies... That's inhumane.
*sigh*
I know this kind of post may not be your cup of tea, but I needed to get this off my chest. I love this game so much... It pains me to see that a supportive game, alongside its fans and creators, is being unfairly targeted by terrible people.
I stand by what I said in this post. I did my research before making this essay. That said, if there are any inaccuracies in here, I apologize.
However, I will not tolerate anyone who tries to argue in support of THAT game. If they do that, they get reported/blocked.
Sincerely, popart-vvv.
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Status: Alive
I think the meteor would like a word ☄️
Today's LGBT+ Character is;
Rosa from Goodbye Volcano High-Transgender Woman
Species: Aquilops
Requested by @meowsticmarvels
Status: Alive
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HAAANK! THAT'S NOT ART BY THE OP HANK! OP REPOSTED IT WITHOUT CREDIT! HANK!
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So I just saw a post by a random personal blog that said “don’t follow me if we never even had a conversation before” and?????? Not to be rude but literally what the fuck??????????
I’ve had people (non-pornbots) try to strike conversation out of nowhere in my DMs recently, and now I’m wondering if they were doing that because they wanted to follow me and thought they needed to interact first. I feel compelled to say, just in case, that it’s totally okay to follow this blog (or my side blog, for that matter) even if we’ve never talked before.
Also, I’m legit confused. Is this how follow culture works right now? It was worded like it’s common sense but is that really a thing?
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Maybe this is the wrong platform to pose this question given the average tumblr user but
Is it just me or did our generation (those of is who are currently 20-30 ish) just not get the opportunity to be young in the 'standard' sense?
Like, everyone I talk to who's over 40 has all their wild stories about their teens and 20s, being young and dumb, and then I talk to my friends and coworkers and classmates, and we just... dont.
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Anyone else have some good memories of this place?
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Please fund the mango I need one right now
Where's Mango? Can you find her?
Probably not, but you CAN find her makeship campaign right here. Spreading the word much apreciated!
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I made a piano cover of Don't Call. Sheet music available
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Hey where is this? Asking for a friend
catboy hooters
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eveeyones got it wrong your mid 20s arent for going to the club or partying or picking up new crafts. your 20s are for discovering how much more autistic you are than you thought you were in high school
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Why Venba resonated with me so much
First of all, I want to preface this article with who I am. I am not Indian nor Tamil, but I am an Taiwanese immigrant living in the Netherlands, and I also spent some of my childhood in the US.
Using food as the through line for the story is genius. Food really represents so much about a culture. By moving abroad, I feel I am broken from that lineage. My grandmother worked as a chef, and my mother learned from her too. But now that I am abroad, I don't have access to the same ingredients, and often it is just easier to cook the same way as the locals do. There's a very limited number of dishes I remember how to cook, and it's hard to even get inspiration. I only wish I could've learned more from my mom, or have a cookbook passed down from my grandmother. Seeing Venba and Kavin try to remember their home dishes reminds me of trying to recreate a flavor I had in my childhood, with nothing but a blurry memory, and my general knowledge of Chinese cooking principles.
When I was born, my parents felt that Taiwan didn't offer enough chances, and they want me to be a global citizen, so they taught me English, by only showing me English TV shows, and later on, we got to live in the US for a couple years. But when I returned, I no longer fit in. Even though I spent most of my childhood in my own country, I felt like a foreigner. I related to internet culture more than my home culture.
I cried a lot when Kavin said he felt like a fraud, because he tried not to be Tamil when it was inconvenient. I also wished that I was born in western europe. I thought it would make things much easier. I'd already know the culture, the language, the way of life, and have citizenship. I do not blame Kavin for wanting to distance himself from that culture. If anything, the fault lies in the locals not being accepting of foreign cultures.
This game reminded me that there is something unique in having a foot in both doors. I have a unique perspective on cultures that most people don't have. And that is why it's so important to tell these stories in games. Like Rosa's trans immigrant story from Goodbye Volcano High, it helps others understand my experience, and it helps me understand and accept myself.
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Why Goodbye Volcano High resonates with me as...
...a musician
As a musician, it's hard not to immediately identify with Fang. What musician doesn't want their music to be heard, to play at music festivals, and have music as their career. I can wax poetic about how music is about self expression and it doesn't matter if I have an audience, but in the end, I still want my music to be heard, and enjoyed. And Fang is on track to making this their entire career.
Making music has been a minor hobby for me. Even as a kid, I knew there's almost no chance I can make it as a musician, so I went down the route of being a software engineer instead. It's such a minor part of my life that I don't even bother identifying as a musician, I just fool around with instruments. But something about GVH ignited that passion in me, and during my first playthrough, I wrote six songs inspired by themes in the game. Even if I'll stay an amateur, I want to make the most from life, and not let the fire die. (See last section)
All that said, I felt very bad for Fang throughout the game. I know how tough the life of a full time musician is. The industry is just completely screwed. And unlike me, Fang doesn't have another option other than music. The game also drives it in that Fang's friends all have viable career paths, while Fang doesn't. But then, the meteor throws an interesting wrench into this, as now Fang is the only one who achieved their dreams. I'm not sure what the point of this paragraph is besides fuck capitalism, give musicians a living wage.
...an enby
Fang really made me more comfortable about being non-binary. It's amazing seeing enby representation that doesn't feel shoehorned in, or merely an afterthought. It's actually integral to the story. Both Fang and Sage struggle having their parents take their identities seriously, and that mirrors my own fears of not being taken seriously as an enby myself, which leads me to only come out as non-binary to my closest friends, and just remain a binary trans woman to everyone else.
It's honestly amazing to see everyone in Caldera Bay being accepting of the queer cast, like being queer isn't a big deal at all. And that's how it should be. Everyone just calls Fang by their name and pronouns (except their parents of course), and no one seems to mind that Reed brought Alvin to prom. This really makes me feel more comfortable about my identity, and I feel proud to be queer. We don't owe them normal.
...an immigrant
It's so rare to see stories about the intersection of being trans and being an immigrant, so when I read Rosa's story, I felt it must've been written by someone who also has first hand experience. There's a distinct feel from my family that me being trans is a "western" thing, not something they could ever understand. Or worse, that I'm being corrupted by "the west" in some way by moving there. There's so much extended family I can never see again because I'm now an abomination of the family tree.
I find it really difficult to talk about this as I fear I'd be misread as being racist for suggesting that my home country is more queerphobic or something, but that isn't my point. I just want to tell my story, and my experience of being alienated for both culture and gender, in both my origin and destination countries, is one that most folks can't emphasize with. (Venba also does do a good job with the culture part, so you should check that out too)
There's a separate rant about how this brand of queerphobia was actually planted by Christian missionaries and not at all "traditional culture", but that's for another time.
...someone struggling with mental health
I've been obsessed with the game for months since I played it. I went through what everyone calls "Dino depression", but I think it really helped me, and it was the game I needed to play at this moment in my life. I struggle with depression and burnout. At times it can be hard to know what the point is, or feel that any of this is worth it. The first few weeks after the game, I actually felt more depressed, as I thought about what the point of life is if it all is temporary anyway, and what I would do if a meteor were to hit in 8 months. And I was scared, because I felt like my life wasn't under my control. Over time, I've learned to think about it more positively. If life is temporary, then it's up to me to make the most of it. If life has no meaning, it's up to me to make my own meaning. I have amazing friends around me, and I still have tons of music to make.
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I've had people on YouTube and Twitter try to mock me by calling me "Goodbye Volcano High's strongest soldier".
But you know what? Going to bat for KO_OP, a worker cooperative queer indie studio with 4-day work weeks? And they avoid crunch and ensure the mental health of their employees? I'll gladly do so.
Especially since I've seen what "gamers" will defend.
$70 games that are broken at launch and teeming with microtransactions, DLC, and gambling mechanics. Games that take up over 100GB of hard drive space. Executives who crunch their employees to dust and allow rampant sexual abuse and wage theft, followed by mass layoffs to preserve profit margins and corporate bonuses. Cultures of racism, misogyny, and queerphobia, both in the workplace and in the gamer community. AI and NFTs being incorporated into game development. Lack of accessibility for players with disabilities. "Live service" games touted as being supported for years only to die in months. Decades of games no longer being available except through piracy. The lies and broken promises. The list goes on. There's so much of all of it everywhere, and it seems to get worse by the year.
Yet for gamers, all of those are secondary issues, if at all. They're more concerned if the video game girls are sexy or not. Or if a reviewer gave the "right" score for their golden goose game. Or if a game has - heaven forbid - an easy mode. And when their games are awful, their go-to blame is towards the "woke", the "SJWs", the "game journos". They keep financially supporting the things that are ruining games then blame marginalized people and reviewers for games being bad.
So yeah, screw it, I'll gladly throw my support towards an indie studio that represents what I want to see more of in the game industry. Come at me.
If there are other studios you want to show support for that you think are doing the right things too, feel free to share in the replies and reblogs.
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as a musician that last quote is gonna stick with me for a very long time
Goodbye Volcano High was first revealed in 2020. It was a vague trailer that showed some teenage anthropomorphic dinosaurs hanguing out and practicing for their garage rock band... but also being worried about "running out of time". The title would lead one to believe it was about graduating and coming-of-age and all that. Eventually, however, it was revealed that the premise (and reason they are dinosaurs) is that there is an asteroid in course to crash with the planet. Indeed, at the end of the original trailer... there was a logo of a meteor as part of the title. It was there all along.
The game was, and is, a story about dealing with an upcoming end of the world. But as mentioned, the trailer came out in 2020. Then the rest of 2020 happened, then 2021, the pandemic, the lockdown. Everybody's lives changed, and so did the popular perception of the end of the world and how we would react to it. The game ended up coming out in late 2023, and one could feel how the pandemic had affected the team and the game itself. The uncertainity, the passive waiting, the expectation to keep living daily life as if nothing had changed, the presence of social media, it is all felt througout the game in ways that one probably wouldn't expect in a story made before 2020. Indeed, some reviews have noticed that the narrative seems to subtly shift from the asteroid being comparable to something enviromental like climate change early on to the pandemic by the later half.
Something that most certainly didn't change, though, is the presence of a rock band. For the protagonist of the game, Fang, music is everything. They dream of nothing but creating music, the first thing the player gets to do as them is to toy with their guitar and come up with lyrics for a song, before practicing through one of the many rhythm segments. Their "plan" after graduating high school is getting a van and going on tour as the band they made with their two best friends. They'll figure things out as they go.
But their friends' plans start changing, they find new passions, they start thinking of their careers. The news about the asteroid only make things more urgent, one of them wanting to live out her dreams of being an entomologist before the end, just as much as Fang wants to live up their dreams of being free through music before the end.
What's worse, the societal expetations to pretend the asteroid doesn't matter leads to Fang being confronted at every turn regarding their plans (or lack thereof) for the future. They are constantly told (by parents, teachers, responsible students) that music is not a viable career, a hobby at most, to plan ahead and find something else, to think of college, that they should have gotten better scores... needless to say, when the asteroid crashing becomes more and more likely, those who did plan ahead and work hard at the expense of their happiness feel betrayed.
The following may count as spoilers.
The ending of the game reminded me of a social media post from shortly after the pandemic's lockdown had been lifted, can't remember if it was on tumblr or a screencap of a tweet. Paraphrasing, it went something like this: "Never forget that, in your darkest hour, you turned to artists."
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In this house we stan Mango 🥭
one thing i don't like about Goodbye Volcano High is how it forces you to be a dick about Trish's bugs. fuck you Fang, her slug IS adorable.
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