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#fun to design. there is no good reason like. in universe for a form like this to exist
alycremie · 2 days
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Thinking about unitarian universalism... i know we all have our feelings on Christianity but I want you guys to hear me out here because I've been thinking about what I've learned almost all the time.
Unitarian Universalism is a sect of Christianity from Polish-Lithuania in response to both protestant and catholic establishments and a desire for true religious freedom and Primitive Christian Restoration (i.e. returning Christianity to what it was like at the actual biblical times, instead of agreeing with protestant governments or the catholic church.) Its ideas have changed over the past few centuries, but I'd like to share them with you because I find them fascinating.
They're incredibly far removed from what many Americans would associate the religion with. These ideas may be considered sacreligious or heretical by mainstream Christianity, but I find them to be great.
Hell isn't real and we're not doomed to go there when we die
The Original Sin did not happen, and all humans are not inherently born sinful
The "Holy Trinity" is not three entities; Jesus is the Son of God, but he is not the same as God, and does not have the same divine power
Jesus was a prophet first, and is the paragon of ethical behavior
All humans are born equal. All of them. God loves everyone equally. This includes nonbelievers, sinners, and ofc the LGBT
(Included in this is the fact that the UUA church openly supports LGBT people and considers homophobic and transphobia to be against God's wishes and design)
God's true form is indescribable to us, and each person has their own equally valid idea of who/what God is; they may even be male or female or nongendered, the only constant being that they are a "parental figure"
No religion ought to be prioritized over any other
Religion is covenant, and depicts more a community than a "correct" way of living
Humans have the freedom to act as they wish, as God intended; there is no determinism, and humans may be good or evil as they choose
Religious leaders ought to be chosen democratically
There is a goal of World Community; not everyone ought to be a Christian, but we should be able to coexist in peace and liberty
Respect for all aspects of the world and its interconnectedness; we are not just ourselves, but a single piece of the vast tapestry of existence
Science and reason can coexist with religion; it is not sacreligious to believe in ideas such as Evolution
And finally, all humans are inherently worthy and dignified as a principle.
Do I necessarily perfectly believe every single thing here? I don't know. I like most of it. I thought that it would be fun to share - I think we often get so wrapped up in online discourse that we forget what real people are like. And open-minded Unitarian Universalists are part of that. I don't know. I hope this did something for you.
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sysig · 11 months
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New shapeshifter lad, Dahlia (Patreon)
#Doodles#Original#Ft. Willie because surprise! Dahlia's a Squirrel shapeshifter and Will's inspiration was a squirrel originally :)#For the record tho Will and his entourage are not part of the Shifter universe - Dahlia only shares a world with the BBBs#I just thought it was a fun inspiration source crossover lol#Plus Dahlia and the Squirrel Boys have similar classes but for different reasons haha#Anyway! The Squirrel boy(s) barely feature! To Dahlia! Lol#Been thinking about some of my Favourite Tropes yet again and just indulging in making some new concepts lol#There's a trope that I've liked for a good long while that I'm sure has a name but I've just been calling it ''Platonic Transformation''#Which hey - I've got a shape-shifting (et al) universe to make characters in lol#Doesn't feature Just yet but shock among shocks she comes with another character because I can't just make one new concept ever lol#But for now! She! She's cute I like her hehe#You can see I went through a few design iterations before landing happily - you might even notice it with her arm#She was born that way :) No pain just frustration! Body not doing what she wants it to!#Honestly working on her hairstyle reminded me a lot of making Tala haha ♪ They're about the same age! Give or take a year or two#Now that I think of it Tala could probably be in the BBB universe as well haha ♪♫ Not to stay but she'd be a very cute guest#I was very set on the little floof-swoops for Dahlia's final design - it's even there in her first doodle!#I'm glad I settled on the bun/braid combo :D#Cute feature lad ♪ Tooth gap and likes peanut butter sandwiches and likes to climb and jump around but isn't as graceful in human form hehe
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ambreiiigns · 1 year
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i'm tired of drawing generic ghouls. we are moving on to designing the specific band ghouls. who's shitting their pants in excitement abt it (me)
#obviously i have ALREADY designed omega. long ago. obviously#i am feeling a calling to the current ghouls rn. ghoulettes especially#like obviously the dream is to draw all the meliora-to-current-era ghouls eventually buuuuut. ya know. ya girl's got exams#and limited energy#speaking of energy guess who got her energu drinks fill today at the store. so maybe#not TODAY but in the near future. between studying. yea#like i'm just. i just wanna draw dewdrop#it is tumblr user coreyvoss's fault and maybe like marginally blix#priorities are ghoulettes INCLUDING MIST!!!! dewdrop aether swiss alpha#i have in mind like. they got their fully creecher lookin forms the very goat type. a fully human Disguise that is not going to look like#the human musicians that play as the ghouls tho. maybe just barely if what they look like Speaks to me but the idea is to have 5% max yk#like. i'm taking per's and mad gallica's hair and that's it type of deal#and THEN i have assigned them a bonus form that is some sort of mix of the human and demon forms simply bc i thought it would be#fun to design. there is no good reason like. in universe for a form like this to exist#i just KNOW it's gonna be a blast to design tho :) i still have to work out what it lools like but it'll be probably like.#just human w weird skintone&eyecolor + horns or smth. you know the type#that half assed demon bullshit you know the type. i will have a blast#obviously i'm designing the specific band ghouls in This <- form i just mentioned ofc obv ofc tbh ofc lbr irl#cool. i'm excited#oh nay
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netherworldpost · 3 months
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@kernyen-xo /
Cheaply.
Watercolor sets made by Crayola. Acrylics made by Crayola. The brushes these kits come with are frustrating, cheap brushes are typically $3-5 each. You can spend as much as you want on a brush, the cheap ones are surprisingly good. This is extremely common advice, this isn't just from me.
When you find "ah I like this" go with a student grade of whichever you prefer. Or both! I find watercolor frustrating. I find acrylic doesn't look graphic as much as I want. I fell in love with a paint called gouache because it is very flat, layers nicely.
I would not start with oil paint. It is expensive, requires a lot of special care to keep you safe. Fumes, cleaning agents, etc. Fall in love with painting, then if you want, give oil a try. Be prepared for days (weeks, months, literally) for paint to dry. This isn't to scare you off it -- it's great -- but I wouldn't start here.
Oil has tremendous variety of things you can do with it.
Watercolor is ethereal.
Acrylic has great graphic qualities, lots of range.
I like gouache because it looks almost animated (there is a reason for that, it was/is used in animation background sometimes). It's tricky and tempermental.
Paint by numbers kits if you don't draw. Maybe even if you do and just want to dive into painting.
Mixed media sketchbooks. Lets you experiment a lot, cheaply. The big thing about sketchbook paper is it comes in a few forms -- very cheap (newsprint) and takes dry media (pencils, etc.) well, cheap (mixed media, lets you experiment quickly and a lot), and expensive (hot press has no texture, cold press has a texture).
Painting needs something that can get wet and not fall apart.
Start with a cheap mixed media sketchbook and see how you like it. Move on from there.
Ton of videos across lots of social media and much content. Has the advantage of multiple perspectives, you don't get trapped in "I think this is crap" or "This is the best" versus your thoughts.
Start cheaply.
Art stores and product manufacturers exist to make money. This is a neutral statement. The point is they are a store, they will sell you whatever you think you need, whether you need it or not.
Conversely!
Some things that are not universally useful but sold in art stores are great labor savers. Some people look down at disposable palette paper, others need the flexibility because they have a hard time washing palettes... etc.
Start cheaply. Look at hardware stores, lots of duplicate functions in items.
I come from a background of digital art and a lifetime of business where "ah where the BONES ARE WE GOING TO FIND MONEY FOR--"
Have fun.
Get in deep and frustrated and then drink the frustration (but not the paint water) because you realize you're frustrated because you can FEEL how it should look but you can't get there yet.
The journey is amazing.
I've started looking at the mountain of business problems I have been sorting through for the last few years.
"Okay. How is this supply chain issue with stationery compared to a painting I want to do of the piranha plants of Super Mario Brothers?"
This is literally something I asked myself.
It took me out of the problem (supply chain issue, boxes, our office size, the number of stationery items I want to design) and forced me to look at it as a painting (structure, where does it stay simple, where does it get complex -- what makes sense -- ah, PDF downloads).
Paint.
Learn by doing.
Start cheaply.
Keep going. Build up.
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factual-fantasy · 2 months
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So after a bit of thinking and some nice comments in my ask box, I decided I wanted to take a crack at exploring cookie run fusions! Or at least Octo and Seafoam's fusion, since I liked how the sketch came out- XDD
I've been thinking about this concept for a while. Thinking it would be cool to try and mix my cookies together Steven Universe style and see what I can come up with! And while I love the coat I designed, this fusion kiiind'a feels like Seafoam running on Octo software XDD But that's alright! This is only the first pass, I can make changes later-
But yes. Cookie fusions.. I had all these ideas about close characters like Seafoam and Octo making a very stable and healthy fusion. One that almost looks and acts like its own complete person.. While fusions like Coco and Tuna would just look like you stapled them together- no harmony, no real blending of their themes or ideals. Its a lot to experiment with but it could be fun! :D
But back to the main two-- I thought that despite how stable this fusion is, he is rarely formed.. And its becuase fusion is a very personal and vulnerable thing for Octo. Its not something he wants everyone to gawk at. So he only really fuses in battle if absolutely necessary, or if he's in a secluded location. He also only feels comfortable fusing with Seafoam, so that just adds to the rarity of it.
Or at least.. that's what Octo would like everyone to think. Probably the biggest reason why he doesn't fuse often is becuase it takes a lot of energy to maintain a fusion. And it would be pretty embarrassing if their fusion fell apart in front of everyone only for Octo to be noticeably weak/exhausted..
Man, all the angst that could come from this, its too good! XD I'll have to experiment some more-
Anyways-- now what would this guys name be? Is he a whole different flavor of cookie now? What about.. deep seafoam.. nah, maybee.. purple octopus!.. I'll have to think of the fusion name- <XDD
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lyman-garfiel · 6 months
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Weird rant but like, it kinda makes me sad a large portion of scarab art is just that of his farmworld disguise that started to melt into me just obessing over why i love scarab's design so much
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i dunno, i just always found it funny scarab litterally pulled the white-twinkifacation beam onto himself and the fandom WENT FOR IT. Like i have nothing against people just having fun and humanizing him [human scarab with nerd glasses truithers i owe you all a smooch/p] but when i see just this [albiet cannon] design over and over when the whole point and reasoning for his deign existing was to be a disguise and not resemble him at all,,,,,, his human form is in like 3 scenes total yet i swear i see more art of THIS than his actual design sometimes.. and it SADDENS me cuz like HIS REAL DESIGN IS THE COOLEST SHIT EVER??
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His most-used form being so regal and sharp, the monochromatic red design just RAIDIATES menace and power, he's pretty much completley humanoid if you ignore the fact the suit IS his body and his arm/leg spikes, his design really gives off something that isn't human trying to replicate humanity. AND DUE TO THIS HE IS FULL OF BODY HORROR POTENTAL TOO LIKE???!
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I just love how his regal and humanoid form just LEAVES the second he is at his lowest point in the show, [the universe he searched for and jumped through so many fucking hoops to locate and destroy becomming cannon and thus his efforts became null and void.] his body language just DROPS the whole "proper but deadly" facade and my man just goes full BUG MODE, gaining another set of arms and crawling around, he pretty much gives up on hiding his real face too which is ANOTHER DESIGN ELEMENT I REALLY ENJOY
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He only really takes it off in acts of desparation [threatining fionna into getting his weapon back] or an intimidation tatic [jumpscaring Gary after bro threw baked goods at him-] and the second he no longer has the upper hand he slams it back on, i just think its a very interesting element i have anylized to HELL and back because i have combed through all of his screen time on multiple occasions.
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During his absolute moment of glory, [in the process of repo-ing fionnaworld his mask is off, bro is grinning he is elated he is exited as hell] and his FIRST reaction to the shock of his erasure not working is to slam his mask on before anything else. Now i have my headcanons on what this means but i just kinda wanted to ramble on about why his body language/design has been keeping me in a CHOKEHOLD latley
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anyways before i spend like......an hour writing this i'm gonna post it i just NEEDED to get his design elements into a post before i fucking explode =)
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adobe-outdesign · 9 days
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could you review some of the neopets as animals outfits, like the fennec kacheek, red panda vandagyre, and cockatiel pteri? (those are examples, choose whichever you like!) thank you <3
(Note: I included a random selection of outfits in this post, but feel free to send in asks if anyone wants to see a specific outfit I didn't cover.)
I'll be honest, I'm personally not super big on the "outfit that resembles a real-world animal" trend. First, I play Neopets for the cool fantasy creatures; even the most true-to-life Neopets species have some pretty fantastical colors. I feel like making pets just look exactly like actual animals kind of defeats the purpose of them being Neopets. I get why people would like it and I'm not saying it's bad; it's just not my thing.
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Also, the other reason I'm not always big on these outfits is that a lot of Neopets have colours that already resemble real animal patterns. Not only do the outfits blur the colour/customization line quite a bit, but usually I like the colour ones much more, as they keep the actual design of the Neopets in place and just change the patterns and colors, rather than covering up the fun fantasy elements. This also helps them avoid the uncanny valley effect, which I talk about more below.
Also I might be over thinking this but who is making these outfits. None of these animals seem to exist in-universe as far as we're aware. what are the shopkeepers basing these off of. the colours at least have a magic as an excuse
Examples that I think are okay:
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Feathery Pteri Outfit: This one's nice! I like the layered patterning on the wings and the high-contrast colors. Most, though, I like that this sticks fairly close to the actual pet, mostly just changing up the tail shape. This almost could've been a paintbrush colour, but then again what colour is up in the air.
(Side note: the eye clipping over the beak is a rendering issue? I think?)
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Bouncing Zafara: This one definitely strays farther from the actual pet than the Pteri, but it's a fitting animal choice and it doesn't fall into the uncanny valley, which is all I care about. The body is still somewhat recognizable as a Zafara in terms of shape, and the Miamouse as the joey is super cute.
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Freshwater Lenny: Kind of the same case as the Zafara; not super one-to-one with the actual pet, but it's still recognizable as a Lenny and isn't too uncanny. The legs are a particularly nice touch, actually changing the pose to look more heron-like (though they are also the part that strays dangerously into being too detailed).
Please don't:
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Adorable Kacheek: Sorry to the fans of this one, but this outfit just resides deep within the uncanny valley to me—like it's a mascot suit instead of just a normal pet. The artstyle is way off from Neopets, looking much more Subeta-ish (except Subeta's art usually isn't so off putting). It's not a bad artstyle, mind you, it's just not very Neopets-ish. I also feel like a fennec fox was also a bad pick for this one, as it's basically unrecognizable as a Kacheek at all.
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Feathered Eyrie: Speaking of the uncanny valley, this is another pet that lands squarely there due to having entirely too much detail in the shading and weirdly realistic fur textures. It also just doesn't look very good aesthetically—the beak doesn't fit the face, and the wings are an absolute trainwreck (not only is the perspective wrong, but the left wing is coming from the middle of its back!). On the plus side, you'd be hard pressed to not recognize this as an Eyrie, and it's a fantasy creature instead of a regular animal, so I guess that's something?
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Furry Meerca: Hmm... no. This one also suffers from an overly-detailed artstyle and way too much realism, which is especially jarring when placed on top of the Meerca's heavily stylized body shape, resulting in a perfectly round animal with hyper-realistic animal eyes. It's also particularly bothersome because we already had a chipmunk Meerca design in the form of the striped Meerca colour, which is just this but less soul-haunting:
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Which is what I meant at the beginning when I was talking about colours vs outfits. The colour is a Meerca that looks like a chipmunk; the outfit is a chipmunk that looks like a Meerca. Big difference.
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clay-tries-his-best · 11 months
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! atsv spoilers !
when i sat down in my theatre seat to see atsv im telling you i was being the most autistic fuck you've ever witnessed. you could practically see the sparkles in my eye, dude.
the spot. my godddd he's so silly. the marketing ploy to make him seem like the side villain from the trailers was so fucking smart. I really thought that Miguel was going to be the main villain considering him fighting miles in pracgjcalky every trailer ever and being in the post-credits scene of itsv. and miles dealing with having to be everywhere at once was very realistic and gave me the classic "oh my god this poor boy this is painful to watch". oh and gwen's beginning scene of the drums just gave me the feeling that the movie was going to be fantastic. like, betrayal, amazing visuals, more gwen?? already a wonderful start. also the fact that the spot's whole reason to turn into a major villain is that nobody, not even the person who caused his disfigurement, would take him seriously- like- HUH???? perfect. wonderful. bro just wanted miles to pay attention to him for a little while.
Pavitr and Hobie were also really great additions to the spider team. Despite the fact that Hobie's accent was so thick and deep that I couldn't understand what he was saying a good third of the time, he still managed to work his way into my top 5 characters of the movie. THAT is good character building. At first I thought he was going to be the stereotypical love rival, considering his first mention was miles getting jealous of him and gwen being friends. I was worried that was how the story was actually going to go when he upstaged miles by breaking done the collider force field, but hes actually a really chill and cool guy. pretty sure he even roots for gwen and miles, so that's pretty funny. Pavitr was also super funny with a great character design. " Chai means tea, you're just saying tea tea! " was probably one of my favorite lines / jokes from the whole movie. His world was also very pretty and SUPER detailed. Props to every artist for Mumbatten.
Miguel and Peter B.'s dynamic was really fun to watch as well. This cryptic emo ass mastermind vampire who has watched people die and destroyed a universe next to this middle aged man in a pink fuzzy bathrobe who's oogling over his daughter. also, the line where Miguel said " I've had the right amount of you today " to peter b instead of " I've had enough of you " like the normal saying goes was kinda queer. just saying. but yeah, great villain, and I do want to see him in the final battle against spot, but I eventually don't want him to be the one to beat spot, y'know? If it was to be anyone, it's obviously going to be miles. Whether it's just miles or miles and gwen or miles and the gang gwen assembled at the end of atsv (WHICH HAD SPIDERNOIR YESSS SPIDERNOIR FANS LETS GOOOOOOO I HAD THE STUPIDEST SMILE ON MY FACE WHEN I SAW HIM IM TELLKNG YOU), in the end it's still gotta be miles.
the collider scene with the spot was really cool. spot may be silly, but he's not dumb enough to be " saved " by his archnemesis who only cared about him when he was about to become a transdimensional eldritch horror. boss move. his final form was really pleasing to look at because you can just see the detail that went into it. Looking at some screenshots, I noticed there were a lot of eyes and I'm pretty sure I saw a version of spiderman (original world 1610 peter, possibly?) staring at miles / the audience. despite him not showing up for another hour, hour and a half, I wasn't mad. If a movie can avoid showing the main villain for that long and still have them integrated properly, just, wow. blown away. oh and this part made me even more interested because his beginning ost, spot 1, I think? his random beats and tunes sounded more silly and disorganized and clumsy, like him trying to take the atm. near the end, he got spot 2, which was more shrill and frightening. I'm not musically trained, and I could still tell that it was scarier, and to me, they sounded very similar. To not have too far of a difference between the two and stroke two entirely different chords is just. ugh. wow.
don't even get me started on prowler miles... RAHHH THE CHARACTER AND WORLD DESIGN FOR UNIVERSE 42!!!! it was so beautiful and scary and breathtaking because there is. no. spiderman. when miles's mom didn't know what he was talking about and gwen wasn't really outside, it hit me like a brick in the head. and alternate aaron??? hello??? he made me physically uncomfortable because of how terrifying his face was. i couldnt even tell if he was wearing makeup or he was just that dramatjcally shaded. the turn miles does to see that it was his dad painted on the wall instead of aaron.... GRAHHHHHH
as an aspiring artist, I can say nothing but wow. that movie, the fact that it was 2 HOURS AND 20 MINUTES???? HELLO??? DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH WORK THAT MUSTVE TOOK??? unbelievable. and you know that sony felt bad for making us wait on a cliffhanger, so they probably were around 3/4 done with atsv and started working on beyond, so we didn't have to wait as long as we would've if they finished atsv and then started beyond. I'm so glad that those 5 years in the Sony team paid off, because that. was. amazing. my depression is vaporized. im going feral, going wild, going insane. i will not think of anything else until beyond is out. can't wait to see my bbg spot have his villain moment in March 2024!!! <333
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halfusek · 1 year
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man. batdr archives. what
i hate them
sorry im gonna go full on hater mode here because oh my god? oh my god
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i’ve got a sneaking suspicion that this came out now as damage control for the AI thing because 1. it wasn’t included in the game all along like BATIM’s archives were and 2. this tweet
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like was it thrown together in such a rush that they forgot a whole ass character?
or it is a joke and was a planned action half a year after the game came out but eh who knows
either way this is not what i’m here to rant about (cuz im sure this is gonna turn to a rant)
it’s about bad writing, bad exposition and bad game design. buckle up!
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i see what they mean with the smile being a challenge to create, you can see in countless animations for fansongs how different artists tackled that and for one i think they did that very well
however. why the clothes exactly? is it just a meta reason with no reasoning in-universe whatsoever?
and look i’m not a fan of the ink demon having a voice (though i respect the craft behind it, the voice actor is very talented, it’s just a personal preference) BUT if you made the ink demon talk you should by logical extension either make toon bendy talk as well or explain why the hell he’s talking? i can see it being distracting but there are characters that have squeaky annoying voices in games and they’re fine (and it’s not like toon bendy is around the player for a super long time)
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i dunno what logic this whole thing operates on anymore but if joey commissioned the ink machine then it should be his and arch gate got all his shit after he passed away so idk what retrieve is supposed to mean here
but it could just be badly written sentences and the archive is full of those (once again making me think that the thing was done in a rush)
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that’s fair i guess
yall did make him look like a generic demon tho
i mean... it could be worse? if the goal was to make him look out of place then it was achieved but idk if it’s actually a good thing
i do like the bit about Wilson influencing how things look under him being in control of the cycle (though they have a very silly definition about what the cycle is but more about that later)
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dude. the beast bendy design was already bad in BATIM and they made it even worse in BATDR like what TToTT
its just an angry mountain of muscles, the batim design at least had that leg injury thing going on which made moving with front arms make more sense, this dude right here is just a big inky gorilla (and not in a good way)
playing as the final form in on itself isnt a bad idea, does sound quite fun, personally tho i did not enjoy the very ending on the game
i dunno it just felt weird and all the other characters randomly appearing and the lost ones attacking being so awkward and ink demon acting as if they could kill you... nah man i wasn’t feeling it
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okay so lets get this straight
cycle = a series of events that repeat
breaking the cycle would mean doing something different and stopping the cycle from continuing (so what... wilson was doing actually)
saying that making it restart again is what breaking it means is just??? no?
“satisfying face reveal” welp. each to their own XD
i see their purpose theme and thats neat and all but man do i hate how henry in this game is just. there and how some stranger is the person helping him get out of his horrible fate like its sooooooo unsatisfying
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yeah she got more personality ill give her that
but she’s not a beacon of hope. she’s a beacon of tearing away the satisfaction of defeating a villain that we as the player worked hard towards
and uh... isn’t getting thrown into a horrible dimension full of monsters that audrey isn’t familiar with and is supposed to be freaked out about a bad moment to introduce a familiar face? like from a writing perspective, because it happens nearly instantly as chapter one starts
shouldn’t audrey be unmotivated then and struggling to figure out the world on her own? the player should also be haunted at this world, like it’s a horror game bestie ! don’t make me comfortable
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well glad to hear the confirmation on that batds is happening in pararel to batdr
but his involvement in the main story is honestly such a nothing burger
is he there just so you can put batdr on the “can you pet the dog” site?
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oh ok so what you’re basically putting down here is that he’s a boring perfect extremely rich guy, wasn’t even a bad father, completely stripping wilson’s arc of depth, cool, was afraid there would be something of substance powering the backbone of the plot of this game
and saying that both joey and wilson are worse people because theyre cringefail at business XDDDDDDDDDDD
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ok here is something that im glad they addressed because ive been wondering about it - how audrey forgot that joey was her dad and how did she end up working at arch gate then
i suppose it implies that there’s something we might still learn/theorize about it, like for example if it was the machine drawing her in or gent wanting to get the machine back and manipulating things into place from behind the scenes
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i really wonder how you can enter in and out the ink realm unnaturally but good to mention why he looks like that if he’s supposed to be nathan’s son
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you cant just say that a character was important to the story, its not gonna happen from words
how is she important exactly? she just talks and uh.. helps audrey make the drink that makes you fall asleep? man that section of the game was Weird
i do want to like her, she seems nice and there could be interesting things to her backstory but as for the plot she really didn’t do much, sorry, betty
if you wanna say that pushing the plot forward by giving audrey that drink and then alice appearing outta nowhere and kidnapping here is a good big contribution then idk what to tell you... its such a bad way to make the plot progress, it was so confusing because characters were behaving as in forced to do Things to Progress the Plot (especially Audrey drinking that thing at all like seriously girl?? and Alice appearing comically at the last sip like wooooooow are you for real)
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ah. so they were attempting a redemption arc
[saying this he didn’t threw aside the large rock. he was right to be holding the large rock]
this sucks man! what did joey help correct exactly? created more ink people to suffer eternally? wow, dude, thanks
also lmao what learned from his mistakes, did you HEAR his dialogue at the end of batim?? (an audrey can be heard right after that scene as well so isnt his whole change of heart supposed to be happening around here + allison has already been added to the squad)
it’s just... it’s just such bullshit man
you can make us like joey as a character but don’t you fucking dare make us like him as a person
bad. just bad
(aaaaaand this is the part that made me realize i wish the archives just. weren’t added! wow! i’m even surprised with myself with how much I Don’t Like them)
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WHAT flaws??? hello??? please give it a big thinking and tell me what flaws does Audrey have im shaking and crying
also is her “deep dark past” supposed to just be like bEINg JoEY DRewS DAUghtER OOOoooOOo? lmao. wow so dark wow so deep
i dont know why this story needed a fresh pair of eyes because the story is that audrey is joeys daughter and that wilson is nathan archs son and that bendy is bendy. wow so deep so dark and complicated!!!!!!!11!!111
also whats the point of fresh eyes if you welcome us with familiar faces?
also sorry to break this to you but its not hard to stand out from the kinda cast that is presented to us in this game. sorry i cant decide if i care more about audrey or random employee number 24 with a random problem that i have 0 reason or time to get attached to. i seriously cant decide
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suuuure we were so muddled xD oh you got us so good you sneaky little cheeky little quirky little
cant fucking believe we almost had a proper nathan arch jr and a secret one eyed villain that there was so much hype about and theories that they obviously tried to deliever here
its speculative but. knowing that they take inspiration from fan theories - they admitted to it and ex employees said so, i think we would have to be in some serious denial to think that @lucky-dreamfisher​‘s one-eyed bendy theory wasn’t meant to be represented here with wilson’s character
ALSO THIS NARRATIVE. THIS NARRATIVE HAS ZERO- NO, NEGATIVE AMOUNT OF COMPLEXITY
GOD
this story makes so much LESS sense based on what you said! aaaaaaaa we were so close to greatness
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what is so wrong with not resetting the cycle then?
not that im a fan of how wilson was approaching things, he very clearly wanted to make himself the ruler of this realm and have power over everyone but sounds like that sure beats living under ink demons reign?
but also idk if this is entirely true like in batim chapter 5 we can see that lost ones were capable of making that lost harbour and sammy is later mentioned to have mastered a special ability too so??
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i wish we learned more about the pit because it sounds quite interesting and we were working hard towards getting there and finally didnt get to see it at all (a shame! very unrewarding to the player)
im not gonna comment on reverting here cuz its a serious mental thing im not knowledgable about
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i haaaate this
you... this is not how exposition is done!
show don’t tell?? how about SHOW don’t TELL??
what in the goddamn. you can’t just pull that outta your ass and say yep. this is how it is. bro. dude.
im referring here to the ink machine bit, the previous sentences can actually be seen in the story
but the design does not reflect what is written here
and they are doing so much of that in these archives, this telling of the story in a place that is not meant for telling of the story, you do that IN the STORY. rarghrgrh
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surprise i found another nice thing: confirmation on that alice was the one who mutilated the butcher gang, cuz i dont think that was ever confirmed before but at least you can find implications of that in the game so its fine to outright confirm that here, good job about that
i dont know what theyre on about carley, she doesnt really look like that to me and ive looked at her model in the archives, in the files and at peoples renders of her and i just dont see it
but i guess it might mean it was like a suit that someone got stuck in- FNAF?!>!!>!?
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no way. no fucking way
we got robbed what ToT
he was removed in favour of WHAT???? AMOK????
dude there ill be real. there’s barely anything that is worth keeping there instead of having him play a bigger role
and im not even that big on sammys character! hes one of my least liked characters personally even! but at least there is something more to him and just man after 5 years you could have given him more than just a dumb wilhelm scream joke, that almost feels like a spat in the face lmao
thanks for again confirming something though with that flow thing, as we noticed sammy uses gaps in the wall in batim chapter 2 to travel around the place
why not have him teach audrey the flow ability? imagine how could that would have been
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im just baffled this exist but sammy apparently had to be cut out
lol
lmao
moving on
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my brother in christ why are you making it a mystery if she will appear, she literally appeared in every game so far with quite major roles
also... what layers? sure in batim with her story (susie’s story) there sure been some layers, susie’s story in batim is probably aside from joey’s story the deepest character arc they got
but alice in batdr? she’s there to play a stupid game she set herself up to lose, get mad at that (eh?) shoot you and die
what layers, really
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gender
but also idk i found the fight annoying and random, you could throw it out and not much of value would be lost, put sammy back in
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YOU MADE HIM NOTHING
YOU TOOK A PERFECTLY FINE ENEMY AND GAVE IT ANXIETY THATS WHAT YOU DID /j /ref
idk if id describe the ink demon as putting the player on edge because he doesnt actually roam the place
you see a grey overlay on your screen and you need to hide or you die... which gets tiring fast and annoying
you totally could still have lurker (even if just restricted to some areas) as a free roaming monster
and the unlikely ally thing is just so bland like yeah he’s there, we know nothing about him aside from that he eats hearts, incredibly charming fella 
not thrilled by his design either but that issue i already had with the first trailer but i guess they just sticked with that
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bendy devs not use mental illnesses as derogatory terms challenge
i like the crab boy design, he’s sillay
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bro forgot a texture tho
so yeah not. happy with the archives
sorry if im like overly negative but ive honestly tried to give this sequel (because despite what they were saying it IS undoubtedly a sequel) my best assumptions and it turns out its nearly all the worst assumptions
its annoying, im annoyed
they should hire a writer to help them get this mess together, maybe get adrienne in on it, i dunno, because clearly if they need to be specific and not leaving things open like in batim, then they arent managing very well
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they even fucking killed harold
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inviisiiblelee · 27 days
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Fandom: Hazbin Hotel
Rating: Mature
Word Count: 4,121
Tags: Valentino & Velvet & Vox Friendship (Hazbin Hotel), Vox is Bad at Feelings (Hazbin Hotel), Minor Valentino/Vox (Hazbin Hotel), Vox is in Hell for a Reason (Hazbin Hotel), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Vox Being a Jerk (Hazbin Hotel), One-Sided Alastor/Vox (Hazbin Hotel), Implied Relationships, the tags may be added to over time, i tried to get everyone in at once, Drinking, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Suicidal Thoughts
Summary: Vox had never been killed before. But when Alastor left, all of Hell knew he was missing his protector, and that he preferred talking things down. He was charming, manipulative, and it worked.
But then he started drinking at night to ease the pain of his best friend leaving him high and dry, and the people of Hell took their crack at him. At first, he held his own, but after so long, someone found a weakness. He died.
And then he kept dying. And now ... he's different.
Notes: Welcome to my first chaptered Hazbin fic! I came up with this after seeing a good few designs of Vox's overlord forms, and wondered what he would be like if he was so powerful he didn't know what to do with himself.
Overpowered characters can be really fun, in my opinion, especially if you can give them fun caveats. Vox just ... lost his whole mind in this case! Chapter One starts off slow, but we will get there!!
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megoomy · 7 months
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judith, a witch(?!) in a pact with a malak named ba’ul
more info and reference sheet under the cut!
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here she is!! i'm happy with her look, less so with the rendered image of her, but we can't win them all.
like it says on the sheet, i was taking a lot of cues from her in game Draconic Lancer title costume. I wanted to lean into the white more than her default outfit, calling back more to the helmeted look she has before joining the party. but obviously, i didnt want to do anything that looked too much like that, or that had gold accents like her in game jacket and...skirt cape(??), because then she'd come off as kind of abbey coded. so i settled on pink accents, pulling from the colors on the Draconic Lancer look. i think it's fun. it gives her a girlish touch, which is a part of judy's character that i like! she's badass and secretive and mysterious, but she likes cute things too. well. her idea of cute, anyways...i think it suits her persona of being a "witch" in this setting. judy understands how to create an image.
speaking of that. unlike rita, who has a lot of magical knowledge, judy is basically a witch in name only. she understands how to form a pact, and not a lot past that! i think we landed on this for a few reasons:
Judy's father, Hermes, was a blastia expert, and naturally good at the magic of vesperia's universe. but judy was just the opposite, and in the novels she initially couldn't even grasp the talents natural to most krityans. being a witch who doesn't actually do much magic seems apt.
speaking of her dad, this also provides her connection to rita. they're both...witches. rita WILL NOT call judy a witch though, as you might imagine LOL (on that note, maybe hermes takes on the role of grim as the witch teacher?? again, we havent really decided on this LOL)
ba'ul obviously makes most sense as a malak, since the malaks and the entelechaia are both spirit equivalents for these tales entries. (well, entelechaia become spirits--listen, you get what i mean if you've played enough tales games) and judy MUST be with ba'ul! much like she only learns how to use her nageeg after interacting with ba'ul in the novel, i think she has just enough resonance to meet ba'ul, and their connection increases it, and she refines that ability as a "witch" enough to solidify their bond through a pact. they're family!
But yeah she uses a spear to fight. Ba'ul helps her imbue it with seraphic artes to a degree, but mostly its just the spear. I went with a design similar to the Brionac, since that's her Lore Important Weapon, but uh, i haven't designated this lance with lore importance itself. maybe we'll come up with something. looking at it right now i really think i should've colored it differently but IM NOT CHANGING IT, I ALREADY POSTED TO TWITTER!!! (it may change, hell, i decided to make it kind of glow pink in the image, im not fit for weapon designs)
Ba'ul always comes first to Judy, but neither of them is particularly biased against daemons or humans, despite knowing the truth about malevolence. she's quick to befriend yuri and loves repede (who is also a daemon, i gotta put him down on paper soon) and seems understanding of people's different circumstances. but she prioritizes her own goals first, so she'll disappear at the drop of a hat if it suits her, and yuri knows better than to count on her too much...
oh yeah. ba'ul is considered a "dragon" in vesperia, but that comes with a lot of BAGGAGE in this universe, so he's not a dragon here. he, um....he just looks like that. it's fine.
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bakerstreethound · 9 months
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🎻Send me a song 🎻 I’ll analyze it and tell you what fictional it reminds me of and the scenario that comes to my mind.
I know how much you love Sleep Token, I will pick their song 'Alkaline' for you. Have fun. 💙 ~ Bluebellinbakerstreet
I hope you are buckled up for the ride on this one because I adore Sleep Token’s music and will probably not shut up about it for a long time, so I thank you for sending one of their songs for I am chomping at the bit. I hope you enjoy some angst here! There is some softness if you squint.
Heart of Molecules
Contains spoilers for Good Omens Season 2; you have been warned! This is perhaps a love story, but not one you were expecting. Graphic by @firefly-graphics
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Every once in a while something changes, and she's changing me. It's too late for me now, I am altered. There is something beneath. 
In short, Alkaline reminds me of a love story between Angel Crowley and the stars and nebulas he created. The absolute joy he radiates at his creations and the wonder and joy on his face are unmatched. He’s so unbelievably poud and happy at his gorgeous conjurings he worked on for who knows how long, before the beginning of time itself!
I’ve said this is a love story (and will continue to say so) this nebula and stars he falls in love with the complexity of the universe, knowing the significance of it that it’s too important to be erradicated. I would go so far as to say Aziraphale and the nebula Crowley created are both loved equally in Crowley’s eyes. 
She's not acid nor alkaline, caught between black and white. Not quite either day or night. She's perfectly misaligned. I'm caught up in her design, and how it connects to mine. I see in a different light the objects of my desire.
Again, it is Angel Crowley’s love letter to the universe he created and this ends up all being in a dream. Then he gets the notion this is the universe beckoning him home (even though he’s now a demon and needing refuge), and when he wakes along some old country road, asleep in his Bentley, and it all crushes back into him everything he lost and he wonders about the possibility of escaping back to his first love, the wonder of the stars, because he finds confort in them, as if it was a fragment of a memory long gone but he can’t pinpoint them. He knows the dream he has is definitely a call back to where he could be welcomed back with open arms, without judgement. 
It was comforting to him, yes and he could nurse what was left of his shattered heart. Which is  a reason the nebula poked at his dream, there’s still a connection to the universe he holds dear and he can’t stop thinking about them, for a creator cannot forget their creation. 
Ooh, let's talk about chemistry, 'Cause I'm dying to melt through to the heart of her molecules, till the particles part like holy water. If anything, she's an undiscovered element. Either born in hell or heaven-sent. Either way I'm into it. 
When he does return to Alpha Centuri the nebula there welcomes him, burning bright, welcoming him into her embrace. His glorious nebula burns brighter than ever, shifting in its form (almost human but not quite), wrapping him in their own sort of embrace, though he doesn’t feel the burn of them or is singed. He offers them a small smile, his glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. 
 “Gosh,” he holds back a tear, “You’re gorgeous as ever.” 
The nebula swirls around him once again, in a show of excitement, bathing him in a cloakof stars and sunsets he recognizes. Almost akin to Joseph’s coat of many colors, it drapes along his shoulders shimmering and dancing amongst the stars, colors enhanced and forms to him as if it was always meant to be. In a way it was, for the creation had crafted it for their creator when they were no longer an angel, waiting for the day when they would return to return what rightfully belonged to them. 
Not acid nor alkaline, caught between black and white. Not quite either day or night. She's perfectly misaligned. I'm caught up in her design, and how it connects to mine. I see in a different light, the objects of my desire.
Crowley chokes back more tears for this was the more than he thought he deserved. Eons of having his heart broken the almost eternal pining for his angel up above. Perhaps one day they would meet again, but for now, he’s back where he belonged in a universe of his own creation, safe amongst the stars. Here they welcomed him home tenfold. Here he could perhaps find the peace to mend his broken heart. 
******
Ace's 5yr Celebration
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helloceci · 8 months
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So like side rant: it’s my birthday (I want a bunch of Lasko fans lol) and like it’s 4:00 AM and now I’m thinking
Actual rant:
I’m like looking at the timeline and everything and just following order but like I have done Jack shit recently… but might I digress I keep going back to the idea of what if Gavin didn’t get freelancer… cause (I saw from another post) if Freelancer was initially supposed to be with Damien… would Gavin end up with Lasko? I mean I see it then what would happen with Dear? Like no way they would end up with Huxley?? Cause like how though? I mean I feel like Lasko and Dear would be friends and then they’d find out Lasko is with someone else and would like Dear be single at that rate?
ALSO INVERSION I FEEL LIKE DAMIEN AND HUXLEY WOULDNT CHANGE! But Gavin and Freelancer?! I feel like they would but my mind is making up that Lasko would help him and freelancer made the speech… but like idk
Ngl I want Ivan back like he was interesting like I was in a similar situation and like ever since I watched his first couple audios and then slowly I was like “Oh god… Oh god!… OH GOD!”
I don’t know about you… but like I want to know more about Dear ngl… like like who would dare say that just because they are a water elemental they have to be strong?! Like nah man I feel you but like no don’t believe them. I’m wondering why move to Dahlia is it like JUST for business or is there a deeper reason? Or are they a latent or empowered human or human born? What is their family like do they have siblings? Like I have too many questions!!!
Also I want to just ask for personal opinions on if IF The redacted universe wasn’t magic and like all college based: what would the boys majors be?? I am in college I study Kinesiology with a minor in Nutrition For me it would be:
Huxley: Architecture and Design (I don’t know if there’s a major in construction) that or something plat science and he got scouted for a D1 team
Damien: Something that involves Social Justice since like he stands up for a lot of people
Gavin: PSYCHOLOGY!! Demons and Daemons know how to feel peoples emotions! I like see Gavin having notes only on specific things. He’s also the type that’ll hardly go to the lectures
Lasko: He’d be an undeclared but he’s do something in Education… he’d also be a TA
David: Idk I am getting stumped but something in Culinary or like some criminology major
Asher: Criminology with probably a minor in some form of Art
Milo: Another Criminology lol but like he won’t do what his dad does
Sam: Probably a form of health sciences. Either something in like lab pharmacy or like rehabilitation. Probably started his career early
Vincent: I am ngl I’m stumped on Vincent… he’d probably use to be undeclared in like a Liberal arts but he’d then switch to Culinary
Caelum: NO BABES YOU ARENT READY! He’d definitely do a psychology and because he has to do something fun do some art
Elliot: He’d be Psychology based with a minor in Visual Computer Art or something along the lines of that
I know Ollie and Guy has a degree. Guy having a degree in creative writing but I don’t remember what Ollie’s degree was… I’m pretty sure Aaron and Ivan have some degree
Anywas sorry for the long ass rant that I have a 4 in the morning have a good day yall
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hungrydolphin91 · 7 months
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ok I had to go make my own post about Eugene Cassette Beasts, it's not fair for me to fill up everyone else's tags w how much I love this guy. I wanted to speculate a little about his backstory here cause it honestly fascinates me and I feel like I havent seen this happen much in other media, much less turn based monster collecting RPGs.
So Eugene is from a future world (seemingly the only party member who is except maybe Barkley but he's a dog so.) It sounds like he's from the turn of the century, maybe 2100 or so, and mentions in his rank 3 friendship that in his world, there was a massive reformation when society as a while realized they couldn't keep fucking each other over and destroying the planet, so everyone worked hard to abolish the kinds of structures that unilaterally hurt people (for instance, capitalism). Sounds like a utopia right?
Eugene only says good things about his world really, how much people value acts of goodness and kindness. But he says it all with such a sad tone, like something he's missing out on, because he thinks he is, he didn't fit in. He says that he wasn't great at being helpful all the time, which is why he wants to do better in New Wirral, a world removed from his own where he can be a better person than he was in his own world.
But the thing is, he IS a nice person. Maybe that's by design, everything he does in New Wirral is about him playing the hero, but it's also oh so clear that he brought his own expectations of goodness from his own timeline and they're just as much of a burden here. Even when hes succeeding, he won't cut himself slack, he says he needs to have a cause to rally behind, or what that archangel said to him would be proven true: he IS empty. Or at least, useless, which is probably the same thing to him.
What really grabs me about all of this though (besides the usual love of angst and guilt complexes and hero complexes and whatnot) is this future of moral reformation. Those are a pretty common historical phenomenon, often involving moral panics and an emphasis on presentation--- what matters is that you LOOK pure compared to others. And poor Eugene just felt like he couldn't keep up just because he has some small selfish impulses, or something in that nature I'd imagine--- I think he'd rather throw himself off a bridge than admit whatever the reason was that he didn't fit in in his own world.
It's easy to see his world being our future, in a way. I'd be delighted if terrible oppressive governments and economic systems were torn down in favor of ones that promote equality and universal well being, but currently moral purity is just as much of a trend as ever--- look at any discussion of book banning, not to mention transphobic legislature, fandom antis and so much more. So this hypothetical future is one where even though the 'right' thing has been done, there's still a subtle form of policing going on to enforce it. Maybe that is successful at keeping cruel practices from coming back. Or maybe it's just traumatizing people like Eugene who feel judged by their every action and pressured to be a saint every single moment of their lives.
One last thing I thought was interesting--- as part of his level 4 friendship rank, Eugene mentions how his parents' generation still seem scarred by the cruelties they endured before this reformation. But Eugene is too young to have lived through it himself so you know what that means?? Generational trauma babyyyyy. He's inherited guilt about a time he wasn't even alive for, along with a pressure to make sure it never ever happens again, so no unkindness is tolerated. It's no wonder this boy has so many issues.
So that's my late night rambles about this guy, probably like 50% of this is just me projecting but it's also fun to dissect what's happening here. Like I said before, it's unusual to see a unique concept like character like Eugene and his world in what appears to be a fun little indie game about turning into monsters with cassettes.
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callibones · 8 months
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Whats your favorite version of Revolver Ocelot?
this is the most difficult thing anyone has ever asked me. i know this because i thought "oh! it's obvious" and then changed my answer so many times that i realized id hit ALL of them.
in the time it took me to type that paragraph my favorite changed three more times and im not kidding. im feeling it wildly fluctuate in my brain.
mgs1: ocelot classic. old man loves his revolvers. adore. went to torture university and got a degree in torture and now everyone's saying boo hoo torture's immoral.
mgs2: liquid ocelot. outstanding. hes even better in mgs4 but here hes already wonderful. it doesnt even matter where hes better though because liquid ocelot is one Version. so the only preference ive been able to determine here is irrelevant to the question.
mgs3: baby ocelot. ocelots are proud creatures *spins guns for several minutes and MEOWS*. i understand how he felt when big boss called him pretty good and you could see in his eyes him falling absolutely in love. this ocelot made me adore all ocelots more for having met him. so absolutely a contender. but
mgs4: liquid ocelot again. here hes OUTSTANDING. dude is SO not liquid snake and it SHOWS. hes having so much fun. that one scene where he does the thing with the finger guns. is just. perfect. hes in his element. his boss fight is perfection. but
mgs5: cowboy ocelot. theres no two ways about it this ones hot. sorry. the other ones are just endearing and delightful but this one. i dunno. he still sucks. he pronounces french wrong on purpose because he hates french people. iconic behavior. his design is at his best. the polycule is in fucking shambles. hes in the same game as kaz which would overshadow literally anyone else except venom snake and him. (huey is not overshadowed because he was never a contender for most endearing. hes one of my favorite characters in media for different reasons. this is because he is so patently over the top horrible in such a fun way that hes different.)
after going through all of these in my head i can safely say that like.
i love love love ocelot classic but the others are better. fourth favorite
cowboy ocelot is really fun and fantastic and funny. gets great lines and hates the french. third favorite
between baby ocelot and liquid ocelot i am agonizing. but. but. but.
hold on i just remembered cowboy ocelot does that thing in 5 where he echoes all of the lines from big boss about how guns work and i remembered i loved him even more than i thought and now im stuck between those three again. anon what have you DONE. this is CRUEL.
um
okay im at a loss i was hoping describing each of them in turn would help but im even more dead set in the tie now. liquid ocelot is so different from baby ocelot is so different from cowboy ocelot. cowboy ocelot is, even more than ocelot classic, the Platonic Ideal of revolver ocelot, Fully Formed but not yet in his Containment Breach Form. so as far as who i think of when i think of my "favorite ocelot" it's gotta be cowboy ocelot. you can chart the line from baby ocelot right to him and see how he got even more iconic. with his stupid hat
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sabrinahawthorne · 1 month
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The Forever Game, pt 2: What Gets to Be a Forever Game?
referencing this post
Let's talk about what counts as a Forever Game, shall we? Considering it's a term I saw once on a post I can no longer find and proceeded to formalize with Proper Noun Caps, it certainly can't prove to be a reductive taxonomy, can it?
As I mentioned in part 1, I think of Forever Games as being a type of game on its own - something with a certain approach to character design & progression, which is built with some assumption of long-term play. After all, I don't usually suggest Mage: The Awakening as a one-shot game.
This conception clearly isn't universal - a number of respondents brought up the fact that just about any game can be the one a table comes back to as their baseline, so long as they like it enough. And that's absolutely true - For the end user, any game can serve any purpose. Unfortunately, and with respect to the people who brought it up, this observation just isn't very useful for our purposes.
It's absolutely true that any game can be someone's forever game. But that's a feature of tabletop games as a medium - the fact is, at the end of the day all games take place inside our heads. This is why people use D&D 5th edition as a murder mystery game, or a tabletop-visual-novel; they understand that the fundamental mechanism of this art form is the limitless power of imagination, and are comfortable using the same rules framework every time to build whatever narrative they like, regardless of whether or not better-tailored alternatives exist.
If we want to get on the same page about Forever Games, we need to look at something concrete - like on-paper design of games themselves. That in mind, let me put forth some qualities that a Forever Game might have:
Almost certainly a trad game. While games like Wanderhome exist, the vast majority of titles I'd list as forever game candidates have a GM and probably use at least two denominations of dice.
A multi-faceted character framework. In other words, a race/class system is better suited for a Forever Game than simple Playbooks, generally speaking. This is for replayability's sake. Some folks play wizards all the time, every time - but if you've just spent five years as Slagnarr the Axinator, it might be nice to start over as a healer for the next go round.
A customizable progression track. The more a game allows you to make a capital-B-Build, the better. This is part & parcel with the above point, re: replayability, but it serves another purpose - embodying your character concept. Imagination is well and good, but there's something special about having a class feature that supports the way you want to play your character. It makes them feel more real.
At least one game mode that involves intricate mechanical interactions. The classic version of this is a grid combat system - but a crunchy exploration system or involved crafting mechanic are also good examples of this. The more rich and interesting a game's... well, game elements are, the better the game will hold up over time. Note that I don't say complex, but rich. There's a reason GURPS light is more popular than the full ruleset. Games tend to last longer when they give more of the table something to be doing at any given time, minimizing dead zones in play.
Little in the way of social mechanics. Hear me out on this - for a lot of tables, the ability to get together with friends, put on a mask, and goof off without fear of social repercussion is a huge draw. Having to do the same kinds of rules reference for politicking that you use for mosnter slaying doesn't facilitate the fantasy; it hinders freedom of play. You want the chance to fail your Will save because it creates interesting drama. The idea that you might be punished for shamelessly flirting with the King while his consort is Right There ruins the fun. A table's forever game is going to be something that lets them play casually. I don't think this is a controversial opinion; the idea of a "beer and pretzels" game is older than I am, and anyone who's been in a long-term game with friends knows how loosey-goosey things can get. I think that facilitating jokes has a solid correlation to facilitating coming back to the game.
This isn't really working towards anything. Really, I just wanted to take the opportunity of my own vagueness to elaborate a bit on what exactly I mean when I say "forever game," so if I decide to keep poking the hornet's nest, we can at least agree on whether I'm using a stick or a branch.
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