#also I wanted to make Satoru into your so called ‘player’ which we know he isn’t in modern AU

[sukunasdirtylaugh]

a/n: I’ve had this AU in my mind for too long (months) so forgive me for the messy thoughts as this is unedited and written in like 10/15 minutes

tags: gojo x f!reader, 3 pink roses AU, readers mother has passed so now she’s a guardian to her younger brother, first date(s) with satoru, character development(?)

plagued with the idea of meeting satoru through a “lonely” phone service dating line. It’s similar to kento’s dating web match program, but more direct. You’re barely starting off as a caller going by a cover name to ensure your privacy, and you think you probably shouldn’t be this drunk answering a call. Until you happen to match with Satoru.

Several phone calls later, he asks you out. You’re at a restaurant wearing a tight black dress your friend was kind enough to let you borrow and you fear he’s going to ask you for something all men do in exchange for the bare minimum, but he doesn’t.

A second date happens, and the same thing happens. By the third date, he kisses you. It’s soft, you feel, and the excitement rushing through your veins feel so unfamiliar it nearly frightens you.

A week after your third date is when Satoru offers to pick you up from your apartment, which you only accept as you’re outside your building. He doesn’t have to know you have a (younger) brother and that your life isn’t as composed as you make it out to be. You’d rather drown than see anyone, especially him see you with pity.

It isn’t until your heel breaks on your way back to Satoru’s car (after another successful date), your ankle bends inwards causing you to wince. Luckily, Satoru is there to catch you. “Let me walk you to your door this time,” he tells you gently.

You really think you can make it on your own, but the flight of stairs to your apartment and the long walk with nothing to hold on to followed by the elevator lead you to hesitantly accept. You couldn’t make it even if you tried.

So now you’re walking inside your building with this insanely handsomely rich ‘stranger’ arm around his shoulders as you walk towards your door. Surely the look one of your neighbors gives you as they leave gives you the impression that they will in fact talk about this with others within the unit or worse, ask you directly. You’re only thankful Satoru doesn’t notice as he’s too busy guiding you through the door of the elevator.

“You didn’t have to do all that,” you breathe, catching your breath as you’re now at your door leaning against the wall.

“Sure I did,” his smile makes your heart flutter, “I can’t possibly let my date walk with a bad ankle at this hour. What kind of man would I be?” And yet again his million dollar smile makes you playfully roll your eyes.

“You’re probably going to look for another date with better ankles than mine at this rate.” You grin and Satoru laughs at your comparison.

“Believe me, I don’t mind having to walk you up and down your place. It gives me a better excuse to visit you up here. Besides,” he takes a step towards you, placing a strand of hair behind your ear that it feels so intimate.

“I happen to like your ankle-”

“sister!” you hear a voice shout your name, causing you to shove Satoru away, “you’re back!”

You don’t know who to look at, so you awkwardly smile at your brother and then at Satoru, giving them your best ‘keep down and carry on’ look.

Thankfully, your brother pays no mind to the man in front of you who just pushed a strand of hair behind your ear, and instead he wraps his arms around your waist and tells you, “can we get McDonald’s? Auntie Utahime said we can but only if you return and said yes,” and for some reason, you turn to Satoru wondering if he’s still here and not scrambled away.

“I...” you’re puzzled for a split second, “I don’t know-“

“I think he’s been good,” Satoru says, and your younger brother nods. “He’s been waiting for you since you’ve been gone, so maybe it’s only fair to get him something , yeah? Only if you don’t mind.” He adds towards the end, eyes and voice slightly cautious. “I’ll pay.”

“I...” the encounter leaves you wordless, struggling to make a decision.

“I’ll just order him what he wants through the app,” he clarifies, pulling out his phone to show you, “I won’t even go inside your home if that’s what you’re worried about.” He tells you, and you can only nod slowly as a smile follows his features. “What would you like?” He smiles, bending down to bring his phone to your brother’s height. Your brother, being raised by you, turns to you for guidance.

“Be fair.” You give him a look so as to not overdo anything.

“Nonsense,” the man smiles, “let him get what he wants. It’s only once in a lifetime when a kid gets this offer, yeah?”

You’re relieved to see he only picks out his usual order along with two other items he’s always wanted to try. Relieved with this, you instruct him to wait inside while you and Satoru finish talking.

“She’s right,” he nods, “your mom is probably waiting to pick you up too.” And your brother turns to you with a look you can only dismiss as you tell him ‘we’ll talk later’ as he closes the door and you turn to Satoru.

“He, um...” you find the words as your hands fidget behind your back, “he stays with me.”

“Oh.” It’s a quiet silent moment after his realization. “I’m sorry, I-”

“-His mom passed away 8 months ago, so...” your eyes look away for a moment, “he’s with me.”

“I didn’t know you were raising a 10 year old.”

“He’s starting middle school next year,” you tell him, “I... his dad isn’t involved.”

“He’s your dad too, right?”

You shake your head.

“No. Same mom, different dads.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” you chuckle dryly, “not exactly the story I was hoping to tell either.”

He remains quiet for a minute as you grow slightly anxious at his silence.

“I-I’m sorry,” you say, “I...” you sigh, “I didn’t mean to make this awkward.”

“You didn’t.” He gives you a look, “I just... I didn’t think you had so much on your plate.”

“I...” you breathe, “I understand if you want to stop seeing me after this...”

“Why would I do that?” His question makes your shoulders tense, “it’s not your fault, things happen. Besides, you’re giving me way too little credit for walking you up here with a twisted ankle.” He chuckles, “you should get that check out by the way, and... I don’t mind it. It’s okay, we’re...” he corrects himself , “we’re good. I still want to see you.”

“Oh.”

“Is that... okay?”

“yeah,” you nod, slightly breathless. You’re only glad the doorsdasher comes in before handing the bag of McDonald’s to Satoru who hands it to you.

“You should probably hand these to the little guy before they get cold.” He tells you, “get some ice and rest, call me if you need anything okay? even if it’s just to walk your room, I’m here.”

And suddenly, he leaves without a further word. Leaving you with a full, confused and fluttering heart.

#I’m not gonna say too much but let’s just say men like these exist #based off a few true events (not entirely accurate btw) #also I wanted to make Satoru into your so called ‘player’ which we know he isn’t in modern AU #baby is just lost #so I kinda wanted to make this the beginning of his found family yk? #I will always stand by this couple as they’re my favorites (more will come from the drafts I swear) #gojo #jjk #gojo satoru #jujutsu kaisen #jujustu kaisen #satoru #gojo headcanons #JJK gojo #jjk Satoru #toru #satoru gojo x you #satoru gojo x reader #gojo satoru hcs

[kaveehs]

Not So Secret — Gojo Satoru

gn!reader, wc 0.8k, fluff, established relationship, high school au, jealous!gojo cuz he’s silly

synopsis: Gojo was not a “jealous” guy, but he also wasn’t the best at keeping your relationship a secret.

a/n: JJK 2 IS HERE SO I HAD TO WRITE MY SILLY <333

In his own eyes, Gojo was not the jealous type.

He hated the title more than anything. Although it without a doubt summed up the tight feeling he would get in his chest when other guys approached you, or the ever growing need he felt to tell the world you were his, he would never call himself jealous.

In part, he blamed his feelings on the fact your relationship with him was a secret. After all, that bit was your idea, but he can’t put you at fault for the reasoning. You wished to keep your relationship with him a secret because of how different you both were.

You were a quiet, straight laced student— you always kept to yourself despite being at the top of your class. He was the exact opposite, infamously known as a troublemaker around school, as well as being dubbed as some kind of “player” by your classmates. You knew the types of comments people would say about your relationship if it were to ever go public.

Gojo understood this completely, but there was just one small factor you overlooked— you were incredibly pretty. You were beautiful and he wasn’t the only one who recognized it. He wasn’t the only one to be intrigued by your personality. Gojo told himself that he was ok with this fact, and he wasn’t insecure either— far from it. His heart always knew in the end, you would choose him over the people that would try to pursue you with romantic interest.

When he saw one of your classmates attempting to drop subtle hints to you today, he couldn’t help but feel something had to change. He knew you would probably make some cute excuse as to why you can’t take the guy’s number, or how you’re focused on your studies rather than relationships, and how you would wonder if they would be convinced or still persist, he couldn’t take it anymore.

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” he let out a sigh of synthetic relief as he snaked his arms around you from behind. He already knew where you would be— seeing as you texted him which classroom you were in and to come find you later. You were shocked by his actions, smiling meekly at your classmate who was also in dismay.

“Satoru, hi,” you muttered quietly, but Gojo was able to sense the annoyance in your tone. He laughed cheekily, squeezing you harder, fully knowing you would probably kill him for this later. “I thought I told you to come find me later,” you spoke with your jaw fully clenched.

“No could do. Missed you too much,” he sighed dramatically, rocking you back and forth. You could tell your classmate wanted to say something, but bit his tongue and kept quiet.

“Excuse us for a minute,” you said sweetly but apologetically as you dragged Satoru out of the classroom and to an empty one. He could practically see an aura of fire radiating off your body as you let go of his arm and shut the door.

“What was that about?” You crossed your arms, glaring straight at Satoru who’d made himself comfortable on one of the desks.

“What was what about?” He nonchalantly replied to your question. Him pretending to be oblivious set you off even more.

“You know exactly what I’m talking about. You’re a horrible actor Satoru,” you marched over to his desk. “What happened to keeping us a secret?”

“Oh, so that’s what you mean,” he nodded in understanding as he sat up. “It’s really hard to do that,” Satoru shrugged, patting the empty space next to him for you to sit. Although annoyed, you complied, arms still crossed and all.

“I know I promised to keep us a secret,” he admitted. “But I can’t stand the thought of someone else trying to flirt with you.”

“So you’re jealous.”

“No, not jealous,” he scoffed, looking at your usual smile slowly creeping back to your lips. “I just think we shouldn’t care about what others think about us.”

“I know,” you relaxed a bit too as you felt Satoru lean his head on your shoulder. “I guess I’m kinda scared.”

He let out a small chuckle, taking your own hand into his. He understood your fears all too well, and wanted nothing more than for you to be confident.

“You don’t have to be,” he shook his head softly against you, interlocking your hands together. “No one’s words can make me think less of you.”

“You don’t have to be jealous either,” you affirmed, sarcasm heavy in your tone. He pouted, pretending to be dramatically hurt by your comment.

“I don’t get jealous,” he clicked his tongue, as if he was correcting you. “But you know, you get really angry. Even though you’re subtle about it, you have such a cute angry face.” He knew exactly how to bring light into your mood, attempting to recreate your so-called ‘angry face’.

“I really can’t stand you,” you exaggerated as you leaned into him, stroking the back of his hand with your thumb. “You really are the jealous type, Satoru.”

#jujutsu kaisen #gojo satoru #gojo satoru x reader #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jujutsu kaisen fluff #jjk gojo #jjk x reader #jjk fluff #gojo fluff #gojo satoru fluff #gojo x reader #gojo x y/n #gojou satoru x you #gojo imagine #jujutsu kaisen gojo #gojo fanfic #[ ʚ♡ɞ ] — rena writes — fluff

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

Ari! If you could choose between satoru , suguru or shoko as your significant other, who would you choose and why?

ANONNNNNNNN YOU’RE SPOILING ME 😭😭😭😭 an excuse to talk abt sashisu…… ok but can i say all three 👉👈 jk we’re gonna discuss this thoroughly actually. for the sake of the argument let’s assume we’re in a no curses au <333

see here’s the thing right ….. when you get down to it, i see sashisu as very similar people. in the sense that when you first meet them they appear really Mysterious & Sexy & Perfect but they’re actually all losers. all three. they’re barely functional <33 I SAY THIS WITH ALL THE LOVE IN MY HEART BTW it’s their most endearing trait!!

but loserism aside i firmly believe all three of them would make such good partners :((( they’re softies once you get down to it!! but i think the first impression you get of them is farrrrr from even scratching the surface of their true selves… i’m just gonna ramble a bit about all of them aaaaaaa

satoru is the kind of guy who instantly intimidates the hell out of you because he’s just …. sooooo out of your league? like he’s tall and hot, he smirks and teases you and he has this charisma that you can’t deny. he’s a people magnet!! and as if that wasn’t enough, he also just so happens to be good at Literally Everything????? so even if he obviously likes you there’s that sense of him being totally out of reach… and he’s so friendly with everyone that i think you might assume that he’s a player which he isn’t at ALL but like 😭😭 that’s the impression you might get. he’s just so effortlessly perfect.

…….. except not really because as you grow closer to him you soon come to realize that he’s a loser. a silly little loser guy. absolutely infuriating. the type who trips you up in public and calls you cheesy petnames in front of your friends just to embarrass you. and he’s clingy. whiney. will make himself cry if that’s what he needs to convince you to stay home with him instead of going to work like he’s soooo ridiculous?? also eats out of his childhood digimon bowl even though he’s pushing 30 and forces you to watch the first three seasons with him (he literally will Not let you leave or even look away because he needs to see your reaction to every single scene)….. makes you handfeed him treats and nips at your fingertips. tickles you if you’re angry at him which makes you way angrier but he thinks it’s hot so he just continues.

yeah. silly little satoru. perfect and infuriating and childish — but, really, he’s just a softie. a lonely guy who gets attached too easily but doesn’t let anyone in. a lonely, sappy little guy who gets terrified at the thought of you leaving once you’ve peeled back those layers he tries so hard to hide. a silly, sappy, lovely little man who will stop at nothing to see you smile, to laugh, to watch you thrive. who just wants you to be happy, and just wants to be near enough to see it. that’s enough for him. he doesn’t have the courage to ask for anything more, right now, but he hopes one day he will. he wants to be yours in the softest of ways. he knows he’s not the easiest to be with, you know? he can be annoying, and emotionally unavailable, and he can seem terribly out of reach — but i firmly believe that satoru is the softest of these three. he just has so much love to give :( wants to be with you forever, as a friend, as a lover, as whatever you’ll have him as.

and then shoko …….. when you meet shoko your immediate thought is like . okay hi mommy <33 we all know it’s true so let’s not lie. to put it simply she just has bad bitch energy — all laid-back and mysterious, cuffed sleeves and loose cigarettes and murky eyes that see right through you but never stare too intently. and she’s nice, you know? just has that allure about her. she’s so easy to talk to, so easy to fall in love with. just reels you in so effortlessly — and suddenly you have the hottest girlfriend on the planet and you’re scared because what if you’re not good enough?? what if she gets bored of you????? it makes you nervous. shoko is just so cool, you know?

….. buuuut then you start dating her and find out that she’s a wreck. <3 uses the same coffee mug over and over without washing it, wears dirty boxers around the house, can’t cook to save her life, will try to make out with you while you’re studying and apparently purposefully lit her cigarette in a really sexy way when you first met just to impress you. she tells you as much when she’s a little tipsy, clinging to your back like a koala and giggling sheepishly. <3 similar to satoru in that she can and will manipulate you into sleeping in with her. don’t let her fool you — she’s just as silly and teasing as her counterparts. it just so happens that she’s a woman so i would let her get away with literally anything no matter how heinous you can’t stay mad at her because she’ll pout and frown oh so sadly and you know she’s tricking you but how are you supposed to stay mad at your little baby?? :(( yeah. she knows you’re whipped and she uses it against you all the time.

she’s just as whipped for you, though. she can be troublesome but i really do think a love with shoko would be so soft and mature; she cherishes you so earnestly, respects you so deeply. always, always takes you seriously. such a warm, warm presence in your life because she’s so stable. never leaves, never lets you forget how important you are to her. never ever takes you for granted. she’ll tease you sometimes, yes, and some of her habits might be a little irritating — but there really isn’t anything she wouldn’t do to ease your burdens. she sees the two of you as a team, and she’s determined to be just as much of a positive influence on you as you are on her. shoko really is such a sweetheart. she’ll still wake you up at an ungodly hour because she wants coffee and ”yours just tastes better 🥺🥺” but it’s okay because she’s cute <33

and suguru ….. arguably has the greatest whiplash factor of them all. you meet him and you’re instantly smitten — there’s really no other option. you can’t help but fall for him. a handsome, brooding, mysterious guy, with his leather jacket and piercings and keen eyes, and all of it just pulls you in….. but then he’s also such a nice guy? it doesn’t feel forced, either. it feels genuine — he puts you at ease, always listens to what you have to say, so patient and grounding. so intelligent, passionate, so good at making you fall even deeper in love. sugu is a different kind of people magnet than satoru; you’re stuck in his orbit before you even knew what hit you, because how could you not love someone like him? his charm in lethal.

buuuut guess what !!! he’s a loser too <333333 god where do i even begin with this guy. when he’s truly, truly comfortable around you i just feel like he’s a couch potato . a cuddle bug . literally won’t let you leave the house. and he’s such a little bitch??? steals your sweaters and gaslights you into thinking they were his the whole time (it works), puts your phone on top of the fridge if you misbehave, loves to read with your head in his lap but exclusively reads classics and will judge you so deeply if he finds out you like anything else…. he doesn’t say anything, never, just silently judges you with the meanest side eye and then acts like he doesn’t know what you’re talking about when you call him out. smh. also he gets super giggly when he’s sleepy and i just know he snores. sometimes he wakes you up and he’s soooo apologetic :(((((( such a sweetie. yeah sorry i can’t criticize him for too long i truly believe this man is an angel.

like. flaws aside…. suguru just cares so much. he cares more about you than he cares about himself. once he’s truly let you in, into his life and into his mind and into everything he hides from the rest of the world — he’s never falling out of love with you. it’s simply not an option in his mind. you’ve earned a place in his heart and it never even shrinks, just keeps extending and extending until he feels a little lightheaded with bliss. because you understand him, you accept him, and he’s just so eager to return that loves tenfold. he cooks, he cleans, he holds you and listens to your soft breathing when he can’t seem to calm down. he orbits around you like the moon to the earth. he is just so, so soft for you. would do anything to keep you safe. wants to be your safe space so badly that he’ll rearrange his ribs to make it more comfortable for you. always looking at you, making sure you’re comfortable, asking if there’s anything else he can do for you. you’re his baby, and he lives to tend to you. it makes him happy. :)

so!!!!! with all that being said …………………. 🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁

let’s be real we all saw this coming wbk i’m gonna have to go w sugu . sorry . 😔😔😔 my type is milfs and i fear he is the closest out of all three i like my men motherly ok </3 BUT I LOVE THEM ALL SM I WANNA DATE THEM ALLLLL they would all be such great partners i know and perceive the truth just trust me ….. emotionally unavailable and silly and teasing but the softest little marshmallows once you earn their trust :(((( sob. they mean the universe to me

#THIS WAS SO FUN ANONNNN ty for indulging me my beloved <333333 i got carried away instantly LMAO #poly sashisu x ari is the dream tbh ……. need them all to mother me #ALSO WHAT ABT UUUUU ANON WHO WOULD U PICK 🎤🎤🎤 they’re all so so wonderful :(( #ask tag ✩

[ssatoritendou]

Love Affair at the Museum

Pairing: gojo/reader

Gojo Saturo

Word count: 2k

+ summary: You are Megumi's babysitter for when Gojo goes out to work. Gojo and you are secretly dating behind the little boys back while going to the museum one day Megumi thwarts Gojo's advances towards you because of Megumi's little crush on you.

Genre: fluff, humor

Warning: N/A

“I’ll be back around 10 p.m. Gumi you be good for ___ like we promised. You be good then we go to the museum tomorrow.”

He gave Gojo a blank stare then responded, “Nanami is coming too?”

“Yes, he said he would. I will tell him again.” He patted his head.

“Don’t worry Mr. Gojo Megumi is always good. Plus I brought a puzzle for us to do.” You told him lifting the puzzle box lid showing the movie Aliens.

You watched as his little blue eyes lit up. He got up from the table he was coloring at and went to push Gojo out of the apartment.

“Someone really likes puzzles.” Gojo chuckled. “Also ___ don’t call me Mr. Gojo we are the same age. If there is an emergency you have my number.” He winked at you.

“Gojo stop hitting on ___ and go already.”

“Alright kiddo I’m going I’m going. Be back soon.”

Megumi slammed the door shut and locked it.

“He’s gone. Can we watch the movie and can you please make ice cream sundaes again?”

You smiled down at him. “You pop the movie in the DVD player and I will prepare the ice cream.”

You scooped the ice cream into small bowls and added Megumi’s favorite toppings which were Oreo cookie crumbles and gummy worms.

You spoiled Megumi. He was a good kid and he was definitely not a wild child.

There were a few things he did like was violence, horror, and ice cream that looked like dirt with worms.

You came over to the den placing the bowls on the coffee table. You sat down at the table across from Megumi.

Seeing paper, crayons, and markers spread across the table. Mixed with a few drawings.

You noticed a picture of black and white dogs. Frogs with wings. Then the ever disturbing photo of Gojo with his unnaturally crystal blue eyes.

“Hey, that is a great portrait of your Uncle.”

“Gojo isn’t my Uncle ___. How many times do I have to tell you? No wonder your mom says you are failing English your comprehension skills are not that great.”

‘The attitude on this kid. Insulting his elders like that. Eavesdropping on a conversation.’

“Gumi it’s disrespectful to say that to your elders. You and I both know this is not the first time you have been caught eavesdropping on other people's conversations. All these attributes you develop from Gojo. You even style your hair like you Uncle.”

He stood up and shuffled his hair around looking at a picture of Gojo and his friends on the wall seeing the resemblance of the hairstyles.

“Hey, guys I got off work early…” Gojo had gotten home to see you and Megumi sitting on the couch watching as Newt was floating in the water waiting for Ripley and Hicks to save her.

“What are you guys watching?”

“Aliens,” Megumi stated shoving some pretzel mix into his mouth.

“Aren’t you seven? Doesn’t this scare little Gumi?”

“I’m not little. I’m almost taller than the kids in my class and Panda.”

Gojo smacked the back of his head at the mention of Panda.

“Kid it’s time for bed.”

“Oh come on Satoru it’s a Friday night the movie is almost over. Just sit down.” You patted the couch.

As the end credits were filling up the screen.

“Can we color?” Megumi asked not wanting to go to bed.

“Megumi it is bedtime. You need your eight hours so you can enjoy the museum tomorrow.” You told him.

“Can you put him to bed? I’ll give you tip.” Gojo flashed his flirtatious smile.

“Anything for my little Megumi.” You pinched Megumi’s cheek.

Megumi jumped onto his bed picking up a quarter and scratching the little square off his movie poster box that read Aliens.

“Next time you watch me can we watch the Dark Knight?”

“Sure. You want the night light on?”

He got a little embarrassed, shoving the blankets over his face. You flipped his wall socket blue light. You went to close the door.

“Oh, Megumi there’s one thing more thing I had to mention..”

“What is it?” He asked.

“I love you goodnight.” You closed the door and went to the front hall.

“The kid asleep?” Gojo asked starring at his phone.

“Yeah out like a light.”

“Great.” He smiled getting up from the couch kissing your cheeks. You giggled at his over affection.

“Hey, how come you never told me that Megumi was not your nephew?”

“I didn’t think I had too I just thought you knew he wasn’t related to me. I thought it was pretty obvious. Wait you thought this whole time that..” The man started laughing his ass off at the thought of Megumi being his actual nephew. “We are dating and you thought I was an uncle. Megumi and I don’t even look alike.”

“Not true you guys style your hair the same way. Gumi must look up to you a little bit.”

He continued laughing handing the cash over. “Here is the money for tonight.”

“Thanks, Gojo and I can babysit anytime Megumi is the best kid.”

“Too you. He can be a brat sometimes. Speaking of which he is going to upset tomorrow.”

“Huh? Why?” You asked putting your items in your backpack and putting the dishes in the sink.

“Nanami can’t come to the museum with us. He has to work tomorrow. He felt bad about not being able to come for Megumi but he is happy he doesn’t have to hang out with me.”

“I can come with you guys.” You stated.

“I don’t know you are a pretty expensive babysitter/ date and I promised Megumi museum food and two gift shop toys.”

“One I will do it free of charge. Two museum food is bad. I will make lunches and I need to get out of the house tomorrow my mom is going to be mad.”

“English?” Gojo asked.

“It is not an easy class.” You argued.

He chuckled again.

“What time do you want me here tomorrow? I’ll pay for my train ticket and museum pass.”

“I’m paying for that stuff. Just make some lunches and be here at 9:30.”

“Who are you making lunch for this morning?” Your mother asked. “You aren’t going out with your friends this weekend missy until you get your English grade up.” She swatted your head with a spoon.

You rubbed the top of your head. “Ma I’m going to the museum with Satoru and Megumi.”

“A date certainly not.”

Your face turned beet red at the comment your mother made about you going on a date with Satoru. “Mom it is not a date. Satoru told me that one of his friends couldn’t come and it would crush Megumi. Look at him mom, I couldn’t let the kid get his heart crushed.” You show a picture of Megumi that was on your phone.

“That Satoru is very irresponsible. Getting a girl pregnant at a young age and now a single dad.”

“Mom I have told you a million times that he isn’t his dad. He is his guardian. Megumi’s father and mother passed away and his stepmother too. Gojo told him that he would take care of him.”

“What kind of grown man lets a teenager take care of his child?”

“According to Gojo, their families have a special connection something about them working with the same organization or company.” Her eyes went wide, she gasped to ready to yell about you hanging out with a gangster. “Mom they are not in the mafia or were in the mafia. Satoru does not have any tattoos. And I don’t like gossiping about this. I’m going to finish making our lunches and then I’m going to go up to their apartment and leave.”

She hummed. “Be home before 4 o’clock.”

“Ok, mom.” You kissed the side of her face and wrapped up the little boxed lunches.

“So Gumi what are you most excited to see at the museum?” You asked holding his hand walking inside the building.

“The dinosaur exhibit.” He said confidently.

“Me too buddy,” Gojo said.

“I personally am excited about the sea life exhibit. I wonder if you got on Gojo’s shoulders if you can touch the whale's nose.” You said.

“Let’s test that theory.” Gojo picked up Megumi and put him effortlessly on his shoulders. “Hold the hair Buddy up there.” Gojo held your hand going into the museum.

Megumi felt a tinge of jealousy go through him. He tugged at Gojo’s white locks.

“Hey kid easy with the grip. I’m going to get our tickets can you put our jackets in the check.” Gojo gave you his and Megumi’s jackets. You nodded and went left as he went right for the tickets.

The first exhibit was the dinosaurs, Megumi asked to get down from Gojo’s shoulders and went to running around the museum as the pair of you watch him.

But it was like the kid had a sixth sense as soon as Gojo got an inch of you. Whether it was holding your hand or putting his arm around your shoulders, Megumi was dragging you away to look at the dinosaurs.

Even when you finished those exhibits and went to a little galaxy film he sat in between the two of you.

As soon as you got to the sea life exhibit Megumi went back up on Satoru’s shoulders.

He told Gojo to go straight for the whale. He reached for the whale with his small hands. You were a few feet behind them taking a picture of them.

Megumi tugged at Gojo’s hair while they were alone.

“What is it kiddo?”

“Do you like ___?” He asked nervously.

“Sure I do Buddy. I have to make sure you are being taken care of by someone I like and trust when I’m out.”

“I mean do you like-like her?”

Gojo sighed pulling him down. “Something tells me with your sneaking around and always lurking in the doorways you already know that answer. Which is a good thing for a sorcerer to know but for a kid is troublesome. Sorcerers and teachers keep coming to me about it.”

Megumi puffed his cheeks out and huffed. “You taught me to do that.”

“Ok ok, we can talk about this another day. But yes I like her. I am scared though.”

“You get scared?”

“Yeah of course I get scared. I’m scared now because she is normal. She is lucky to not live as we do. I’m also afraid of what my parents will think of her even if I think they are shit people. You will understand that when you are older. However, I know I can handle it as life goes on.” Gojo told him. “Do you have a crush on ___?”

“NO!” Megumi shouted.

Gojo wrapped his hands around Megumi’s face. Parents around the museum starred him down. “Not trying to kidnap just trying to stop a tantrum.” Gojo laughed.

You walked over to them. “Gumi is this gnome bothering you?”

He nodded his head yes.

“Remember what I taught you to do when Gojo covers your mouth.”

Megumi thought for a minute and then a light bulb went over his head. He licked the palm of Saturo’s hand.

“Of course you taught him that.” He said pulling his hand away. “Come on let us go to the cafe and eat the little boxed lunches ___ made for us.” Gojo came back up and kissed your cheek. Walking towards the door to the courtyard.

You were a little shocked and you stuttered some syllables following after him and Megumi.

“Don’t worry cutie he already knows. He has been eavesdropping and watching.”

“Some of that content was not safe for children.” You smushed your face into your hands.

“As soon as you started kissing Gojo I closed my door and started playing with my dogs.”

“What dogs?” You asked.

Gojo smacked his head again. “Gumi we will cross that bridge when we get there.” He growled.

“Sorry. I have secret dogs.” He made a puppet with his hands in the sunlight.

“Aw shadow puppet dogs. Those are cute.”

Gojo gave Megumi a warning look so he wouldn’t say the keyword. He stuck his tongue out.

“Alright, let's eat boys, and then I have to go home.”

Gojo smiled at you and sat down across from you and Megumi. He finally had a little family again. He hoped it wouldn’t get ruined by him or his life.

#jjk masterlist #jjk x reader #jjk fluff #jjk #jjk megumi #jjk gojo #jjk gojo x reader #gojo x reader #jjk satoru #saturo x reader #gojo saturo x reader #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jujutsu kasien #jujutsu kaisen megumi #jujustu kaisen #jujutsu kaisen gojo #saturo gojo x reader #saturo jjk #saturo gojo #gojo fluff

[sapphire-dreamsky]

Past, Present, Future

Starring: Yuuji Itadori, Nobara Kugisaki, Megumi Fushiguro, Satoru Gojo, Reader, Sukuna

Pairing: Satoru Gojo/Reader

Warnings: Cheating is mentioned, Satoru might be ooc

A/N: I don’t condone cheating. I wanted this fic to be light and fun but it turned out a bit differently. I hope you enjoy it anyway! Also, in this fanfic, Satoru was an a** when he was younger.

It was not their fault they thought their sensei was single. While beautiful, Gojo was so immature that it was hard to imagine him with someone. This person deserves a trophy for being able to put up with the ball of energy and immaturity that was Gojo Satoru. Besides,...after the Kyoto Goodwill event, they heard some...ahem...interesting rumours concerning the white head. Apparently, their beloved idiotic sensei cannot settle down. There were so many rumours surrounding the strongest; some were hard to believe because of their level of ridiculousness, others were not so hard to believe because...well...it is Gojo Satoru. He could make anything possible. One of them, while ridiculous, seems highly probable. It was Utahime-sensei who told them about it when they pestered her about Gojo-sensei in his adolescent years. They wanted to be able to relate to him a little bit more. What they heard though, left their mind reeling with questions.

"Gojo-sensei dated more than twenty girls in a month?!"

That sounded so ridiculous, cruel, and impossible. However, Utahime was not one to lie or slander one's reputation like that. Even if it was someone as annoying as Gojo. After that, they were unable to picture their sensei as the type to settle down. It was just impossible. Even if that little anecdote was years ago, as Megumi specified to his friends. It was possible that Gojo changed and was not the same man anymore. But the other two’s minds were set on the fact that their sensei is a player. Or a serial-dater. Although, they have yet to catch him in the act. As of right now, they haven’t seen Gojo with anyone. Maybe Utahime did exaggerate his reputation a little after all. But their curiosity was already set. They wanted to catch their sensei in the act. So, they decided to trail their sensei when the latter was seen heading out in casual clothing and his horrible out-of-style glasses. Kugisaki sighed in despair when seeing the infamous pair of glasses on his face. She was persuaded that he couldn’t be heading out on a date with this offending accessory. 

Low and behold, they were able to trail Satoru without getting busted yet. Their training with the second-year students must have paid off! Or so the three ‘spies’ thought. Truthfully, Satoru noticed them a while ago. Actually, it was as soon as they left the school. But he thought their little game was amusing so he let it go on. After all, it wasn’t like he was trying to hide where he was going. If he was, he would have teleported to the alley near the cafe he loves to go to. Just thinking about the cafe and the sweets which they sell makes him salivate. He couldn’t wait to go and try out the new Friday special. So, with a new spring in his step, completely forgetting about his poor students who didn’t have long legs like his, he practically jogs to his favourite cafe, the new sweets calling for him. The three students curse as they are forced to practically run to catch up with their excited sensei. In their mind, Gojo was late as usual, and to not make his date angry, he was hurrying to their meeting place. An angry woman is scary. The proof of that statement lies in Kugisaki and Maki-senpai. Both were scary when angered.

The little cafe was quiet. There were not many people dining in. In fact, it was a perfect place to have a date in, Yuuji noted. Particularly if you don’t want to get caught dating multiple girls at the same time. Luckily for the three of them, the windows were see-through. They could easily see inside as their sensei plops down on one of the comfortable seats. Immediately, a waitress comes and takes his order. Yuuji and Nobara squint as they try to somehow decipher the exchange between the waitress and Gojo. 

‘‘Do you know what they are saying?’’

‘‘Of course not you idiot! They are too far.’’

The only proof of Gojo being on a date will have to be to see someone sit across Gojo then. The three of them desolate over that fact. Knowing their sensei, it could take forever before they realise he is, in the end, not on a date. 

‘‘I don’t think he is on a date.’’

Nobara and Yuuji look at Fushiguro with question marks on their head. The latter sigh, before pointing at their sensei.

‘‘If he was on a date, I think the date would have been waiting for a while now. No matter the circumstances, Gojo-sensei is always late.’’

‘‘Don’t you think he would try to make an exception for a date?’’, Yuuji ponders.

‘‘If he is dating around, I don’t think so. He could care less if he is on time.’’ After that, Nobara and Yuuji fell silent. They were losing their time after all. Sad and looking like kicked puppies at their failed mission, they were ready to head back to the campus when they noticed a young woman watching them with inquisitive eyes. 

‘‘Ah, uh, we were...uh’’

Yuuiji was not making any real sense as he tried to explain why they were hiding behind the bushes in the park. He quickly relaxes as she lets out a little laugh. ‘‘I see. So you are these guys then.’’ Before they could question her on what they mean, she continued. ‘‘Do you want to come to the little cafe? It’s on me.’’ 

That offer sounded suspicious but they were jujutsu sorcerers in training. They were sure they could handle a civilian. She doesn’t seem to have any curse energy. And if she was indeed linked to the group of curses after Yuuji, they could always count on their sensei who was currently typing on his phone. The woman’s phone went off at the same moment. Multiple arrays of texts follow each other. They felt sympathy for her phone as it seems to be getting bombarded by numerous texts. All of which she ignores as they follow her to the cafe. 

The inside of the cafe was as nice as they expected, if not much better. The smell of coffee and sweets was overwhelming but in a good way. Their sensei was seated at the far back of the cafe, meaning if they were noticed, they were screwed. They couldn’t really find any explanation on why a stranger would invite them in a cafe. One that is coincidentally the same as their sensei. Before they could steer away from the back though, the woman grabbed their shoulders and gently pushed them towards where their teacher was sitting. The latter was frowning at his phone, typing some more before the woman made her presence known. 

‘‘I’m here. There’s no need to send me multiple messages again.’’ 

Rolling her eyes, she pushed the three frozen students in front of him. ‘What is happening,’ is the only thought ringing in their minds as their teacher waved at them, grinning widely.

‘‘Oh? You found my beloved students?’’

‘‘They were hanging around in the bushes. You could have invited them in, instead of just sitting and dreaming about all the cavities you will get.’’

The woman sits in front of their teacher as the three young adolescents sit near her. They didn’t really understand the peculiar situation anymore. ‘Was this woman dating sensei?’ ‘She is far too nice to be dating him.’ ‘Oh no! She must not know about sensei’s reputation!’ These were the thoughts that simultaneously rang in their heads. One thing for sure, they had to warn her. She was nice enough to invite them on their date, they felt that she didn’t deserve the heartbreak. In fact, no woman deserved to be heartbroken by the cruelty of their sensei. 

The couple were discussing their respective days while waiting for the sweets Satoru ordered earlier. Both seemed to be on good terms, laughing at each other’s jokes. They were in all, having a good time. Yuuji felt guilty. What if in the end, Gojo-sensei was serious about her? But knowing their sensei, he had so many secrets that they felt they must at least tell her about Gojo’s habits. 

‘‘So...Uhm...Miss?’’

‘‘Ah. How rude of me! I didn’t introduce myself, did I? I’m (Y/N). You can just call me that. I don’t mind.’’

Her smile was so sweet that Kugisaki felt it was her duty to kick Gojo if he was indeed playing around.

‘‘How did you two meet? Are you a sorc- oof’’

The kick in the angle was by Megumi. The gloomy boy glared at Yuuji while drinking his drink silently. 

‘‘Funny thing is, we actually met when we were in high school. I didn’t go to that fancy school of yours though. I went to an all-girl school. I was in dire need of some sweets when we ran into each other and I spilled his drink. All over myself.’’

She glared at Gojo who only smiled innocently. He was not innocent, however. The students knew why the drink was only spilled on her while he remained spotless. 

‘‘And then did you start dating since then?’’

‘‘No. I hated him.’’ 

That statement did not surprise any of them. Gojo feigned hurt while he clutched onto his shirt. 

‘‘How could you hate me?! I am as sweet as a strawberry cake!’’

‘‘Maybe if someone poisoned it. Then yes. You would be the strawberry cake.’’

The students watched them banter back and forth. 

‘‘Then...when did you start dating?’’

‘‘Hmm...When did we start dating Satoru?’’

‘‘After I declared my love for you during our third meeting anniversary of course!’’

The students sweat-dropped. That sounds like something Satoru would do. 

‘‘But then...what about all the girls Utahime-sensei said you were dating? The twenty girls in a month?’’

Both Megumi and Nobara froze. As soon as the shock from Yuuji’s bluntness faded, they stomped on his feet. He winces at that. Even Sukuna, who didn’t mean to spy on them, but was curious about the annoying sorcerer let out a sigh at the lack of tack of his vessel. 

Satoru’s smile seemed frozen on his face. Nobody moved as they waited for the young woman’s reaction. The waitress brought in the sweets at that exact moment but no one dared to dig in the delicious food. Finally,

‘‘Oh, that. Yeah. I knew about it. Although it wasn't really twenty. It was five girls. He thought he was so slick with it too. He dated one of my ex-friends. I’m pretty sure you forgot about her though.’’

‘‘Ah...uh...I can’t remember…’’

Satoru seemed sheepish and awkward. Such a strange and alien sight of their always composed sensei.

‘‘Of course, you wouldn’t. You dated so many people I’m surprised they never found out. I would have slapped you if I was one of them. You got off easy.’’

(Y/N) drinks her coffee as if what she just said was a mere comment on the weather.  Satoru glances at his girlfriend every now and then while Yuuji was feeling awful. 

‘‘I am so sorry Gojo-sensei, (Y/n)-san! I shouldn’t have brought it up!’’

The female cocked her head to the side, throwing a slight smile in his way. 

‘‘It’s fine Itadori-kun. It’s not like I wanted to date him back then. I told you, didn’t I? I hated him.’’

This time, it was Kugisaki who was curious.

‘‘Then, how did you and sensei date? He dated your friend right?’’

(Y/n) shrugged carelessly, digging into her cake with her fork before thrusting it in Satoru’s face. The man was far too silent for his own good.

‘‘It was into our second years of being frenemies. He was awful as you must have heard. He was a true player back then. But then, mysteriously, he cleaned up his act. He broke up with my friend and seemingly with the other girls too. I didn’t see him hanging around the city with any girls for a good year, nor did he get any calls from any one of them when we hanged out. After all of this, my friend, the one who dated him, came to meet me after class and started shouting at me. Apparently, Satoru was in love with someone for real and after some digging, she came to the conclusion that it was my fault since I knew him as well. For her, I was jealous and tried to seduce him. It was a ridiculous and frivolous idea. Or so I thought. Because a year later that dork comes and tells me he loves me.’’

Yuuji and Megumi were in awe. So, their sensei really did go and date multiple girls at once? 

‘‘How were you certain he would never cheat?’’ This time it was Megumi asking the question. Surely, you must have had some reservations about dating such a character.

‘‘I was unsure of it too at first. I rejected him and stopped talking to him. He was persistent and wouldn’t stop. So I agreed to one date, which turned into multiple ones. As of now, I haven’t caught him cheating. But if he does, then I will get sad and leave him. I can’t stand cheaters. What he did is disgusting, but people do change I guess. That is, only if they really want to. A lesson for you kids. Don’t go and date someone who is horrible to you and think you can change them. In the end, only they can change themselves. They are not worth your time if they are stubborn and refuse to see the wrong in their actions.’’

She reaches over to squeeze Satoru’s hand. The latter was still quiet about it all. The silence continued even after the kids’ excused themselves, having been called back to the school by Nanami.

‘‘Aren’t you going to finish your cake? It’s your favourite, you know?’’

‘‘You know I would never cheat on you right? I was young and dumb and an asshole. And while I can’t take it back or apologise enough, I would never cheat on you.’’

(Y/n) only smiled at that. ‘‘I know. You have changed. You are not that guy anymore. You can’t change your past, but you can change your present self. I’m glad I met your students. They are a joyful bunch. When we have children one day, I hope they will be like them.’’ 

Satoru grinned, slowly reverting back to his old self. ‘‘I don’t know. I was thinking another me would be perfect.’’

‘‘If our child turns out like you, I’ll fear all my hair will turn as white as yours, dear. Now finish your cake. I want to go and check out that pet store you mentioned.’’

‘‘Right away, vanilla bean!’’

‘‘What did I tell you about nicknames Satoru?!’’

#gojo satoru x reader #gojo satoru x you #gojo satoru x y/n #jjk gojo

[satorugojowidow]

Jujutsu Kaisen analysis episode 158

spoilers

Panda reveals that Yaga was killed, but he is not very specific about the conditions of that death. What it calls more the attention is his answer when the others are trying to say sorry for his lost. I think we must interpret this in consideration that Panda is not a human. In the fight against Mechamaru and his last meet with Gakuganji, he tries to separate himself from humans. What is the mean of this separation? I believe Panda has feelings but he is not attached or determinates by it how humans are. I will bring this quote from Vision in WandaVision that helps to understand the point: “But what is grief, if not love persevering”. Our feelings tend to remains inside and it’s stay even when situations changes, that feeling transmutes in a different one (love to sadness, love to hate). In Jujutsu Kaisen, the feeling that does not go away are transmute it negative feeling and create curse energy. Panda is able to feel but he is no attached to those feeling, which gives him more freedom to move on. What we saw is not Panda being apathic to Yaga’s death, but Panda being able to accept his death and let him go. Is also probably, he didn’t want others to worry for him, especially Yuji who is so determinate to feel guilty for everything. Poor baby.

Hakari proves to be a very nice guy. Of course, he is not like Yuji who is warm, innocent and kind. Hakari has his own ambition but that doesn’t mean that he won’t help his comrades. Even if he would try to take something in return, he would have helped anyways. He may be the “appearances are deceptive” type of character. We get to know him because of his incident with elders and others students’ opinions, then he is presented like a gangster who want to start a pyramid scheme, and we distrust on him. The idea of him manipulating Kirara is the result of this wrong perception. He may not be the typical “nice guy” but he has good feelings, like Kirara pointed. Probably he comes from a very nice non-sorcerer family, I assume this because his line “I haven’t been this bummed since Yakul got hit by an arrow in his butt”, this probably means he doesn’t come from a problematic environment. I believe he has a lovely parent who are distressed because he is just problematic.

He seemed to have a nice relationship with Gojo and Yaga.

Megumi really is up to the top. He is doing amazing. He really has progressed a lot, he is not only stronger, he is also more thoughtful and strategic. He is becoming more similar to Satoru, because he is not only strong but also a very a smart fighter.

Megumi and Yuji’s dynamic. Megumi is taking the leadership in terms of their mission, elaborating strategies and making the decision. But in terms of their friendship, he is assuming the role of supporter. Yuji is very hurt; he barely keeps himself ongoing in his strong belief that he must keep going. Megumi is aware of this and he is keeping Yuji by his side, not only because he needs him, also because he is taking care of him. “Not your fault, out of your own will, we all failed” those are Megumi phrases to comfort Yuji and relief him a little from his great distress. Megumi has the words that Yuji needs to listen, the answer to the question “Why did you save me?”. In my analysis of Yuji, I pointed how for everyone Yuji’s death is out of the question, even for Satoru. But Megumi seems the only one who wants to Yuji to survive somehow. In Megumi is the chance to find the possibility to save Yuji from his fate. Beside if that chance exists or not, Yuji finds in Megumi someone who worth his life and that is very important for someone who only listen that he should be death.

Whatever if Megumi manages to save Yuji or not, he is giving him the comfort he needs to go through this hell. We really need Nobara back, she and Megumi are Yuji best supporters.

May the game accept Megumi new rules? Highly possible. He is switching rules by compensation. The rules to have kill the players who remains in 0 points can be removed if it’s compensated by the rules who allows players to leave the game by switching with non-players. It’s all depends in what the “master game” considerate more convenient, so its probably that the game requires stronger sorcerer to switch with those sorcerers who wants to leave the game. Megumi must considerate to have a powerful sorcerer outside the game to switch with Tsumiki when the times comes.

Since there is no technique to live forever young as Tengen and Kenkaju stablished, these sorcerer from 400 years ago and Uraume must being incarnated. Probably by a binding to Kenjaku. They must participate in the Culling Game in return for Kenjaku favor. Its clearer that Kenjaku gave birth to Yuji to incarnate Sukuna.

#jujutsu kaisen spoilers #jjk 158 #megumi fushiguro #yuji itadori #hakari kinji #hoshi kirara #jjk panda #kugisaki nobara

[kuredono]

Sing Sing Sing [part 1 of penpals] | Fushiguro x gn!(clarinettist)reader

TW: mentions of throwing up, hospital despite the TW this is v fluffy! basically you and Meg have been penpals and you meet for the first time! but not in the way either of you would’ve imagined... 

"i think they're coming around now..."

"hello..?"

all you remember was taking a wrong turn down an empty alley on a sunny day, then you were in a cold building with an ugly looking monster holding the back of your neck.

you grasped at a knee, or maybe an arm, squeezing as your felt your stomach churn, though you kept your lips pursed together, willing for it to stay down.

"i think they're gonna be sick..."

"GOJO-SENSEI! HELP! THE CIVILIAN IS GOING TO THROW UP!"

fresh air suddenly hit your face and you threw up in a bush before everything went black again.

"-the thing up. afterwards it was pretty easy to deal with."

"you say that, but the civilian still got injured."

"hey! i didn't see you trying to catch them."

"i had my hands full already!"

your eyes were immediately assaulted with the bright sunshine as you tried to crack them open. you decidedly kept them shut and moved your lead weighted arms to cover your eyes.

"oh?"

"you awake?"

"what happened?" was all you could ask. you had tried to beat the ugly thing with-

"my clarinet!" you bolted up, eyes wide open and met with three equally wide ones (person one had a black blindfold?), but suddenly your head exploded with pain.

"go slowly. you hit your head pretty hard." a voice said as you groaned, squeezing your temples with your trembling hands. "do you remember what happened?"

"got lost walking back. woke up in a weird building and there was a funky looking thing. tried to run away, then some people turned up and the thing exploded. kinda gross."

"gross?!"

"i mean, they are super gross." 

"where are we? what's going on?" you dared to open your eyes again, more slowly, as you took in your surroundings. you were sat on the floor, leaning against a big black dog. how cute. you nuzzled your head into its fur, easing your killer headache. 

"we're in Akihabara, and i think you're concussed. we'd like to take you to a hospital." the one with white hair and the blindfold spoke with a kind smile.

"who are you?" you furrowed your brows together, feeling like you should run away because stranger danger ! but the dog was comfy, lulling you to sleep.

"ah, i'm Gojo Satoru, i'm a teacher at the Tokyo Jujutsu Tech High School, and they are my first year students. we were out on a field trip when we found you." the white haired male answered again. he was a teacher? you'd never be able to guess.

"Jujutsu Tech High School?" you repeated, the name distantly ringing bells. you turned your attention to the students. "i recognise that uniform."

"we've been in Akihabara and around Tokyo before! did you see us then?" the pink haired boy asked with a bright smile. you buried your face into the dog with a thoughtful hum.

"it's only natural we stand out you know!" amother voice voice sung.

"never in a good way." a calmer voice grumbled.

"i guess i just exude that kind of eye-catching aura."

"it's easy recognise beauty such as mine."

how did you get here? why was this happening to you? you were just performing with a marching band this morning, doing your absolute best and playing your loudest for someone. you wanted to stand out for someone. he said he'd come by but didn't. you weren't disappointed... well... you were, but you understood he had his reasons. he probably had classes because it's Thursday.

"Megumi Fushiguro?" you mumbled, the students around you falling silent.

"what did you say?"

"oh yeah, in Japan you say it the other way round don't you?" you chuckled, remembering how embarrassed you were when Megumi cared to point that out when you were discussing nicknames. "Fushiguro Megumi. think he goes to your school."

it was quiet for a moment before the students erupted into excited chatter, 

"Fushiguro! you know them?"

"why didn't you tell us!"

"what? i - i don't—" the calm voice was not calm, but his breath stuttered, "Y - Y/N?"

you had first met Fushiguro via letter in first year middle school, your middle schools partners for a penpal project. you had sent the first letter and even went through the extra effort to try and make a translation, though your characters were very messy so you made sure to also send the English original in case it was unreadable. it was nearly a month before your class got their responses, and it appeared you were the most lucky as Fushiguro's English was far better than your Japanese, and when comparing letters with your classmates, you had the most interesting response.

nearly a year and 7 more letters later, you were the only one in your class still in touch with your penpal, and with the year drawing to a close, the teachers explained that you could only send one more letter. so with a wish, you sent your phone number and downloaded several Japanese chatting apps. sure enough, 2 weeks later, there was a friend request on LINE from a Megumi Fushiguro. his profile picture was just a night sky, but you couldn't say anything, yours was sheet music. this anonymity continued indefinitely. at first you had no idea how often he was okay with you messaging him, and you added the Tokyo timezone to your clock app so you didn't message him at ungodly hours, but after a few months, Megumi would be your first thought when you saw a cute cat or something and you'd quickly snap a photo to send him. he also did the same, mostly pictures of the sky.

on Megumi's birthday, you sent a recording of you playing his favourite piece on clarinet, and for your birthday he sent you a playlist of songs he thought you would like. from then on, you continued to send him your repertoire and small recordings of your practices. then one day, when you talked to him about your most recent performance, Fushiguro asked for the link to the video. you did, but didn't tell him which clarinet player you were. he didn't ask either. you toed the border of your anonymity when you first moved to high school with a picture of you in your new marching band uniform, but from the neck down. you weren't expecting a photo back, but he surprisingly sent one back of his uniform from the neck down. his uniform looked much comfier.

then a spot for a Japanese high school exchange opened (one of the main reasons you chose to attend the high school you did), and though it was for second years, you fought and won the spot. you immediately messaged Fushiguro without checking the time in Japan. and as if that wasn't enough, the wind band in your Japanese high school were having a performance in Tokyo! Fushiguro was in Tokyo! you told Fushiguro, but then dread began to pool in your stomach. what if he didn't want to meet? you were totally fine with that. but you wanted to so badly! you remember your elation when he stopped you mid-anxious text ramble to say he would meet you.

you woke up to a white ceiling and the potent smell of disinfectant. the hospital curtain slid open to reveal a beautiful boy with deep blue hair and long eyelashes, his eyes widening at you.

"ah- good afternoon."

"good afternoon, how can i help?" you smiled, "i think you might have the wrong bay?"

"no. i- uh- do you remember what happened? do you, do you remember me?"

"um... no? i'm not really sure what you mean? i mean, i recognise your uniform- do you go to Tokyo Jujutsu Tech High School by any chance?"

"they said you would be concussed and you might have some memory problems..." the boy mumbled, "is it alright if i sit down?" your eyes darted to the curtain in panic, "ah, i'll leave the curtain open, our teacher is just signing you out the hospital, i'm Fushiguro Megumi."

"Megumi?!" you gasped, the boy smiling softly as you fumbled for words, "i- you- huh?"

"yeah... we have a lot to talk about."

"then, please! sit! i can't believe!" you covered your mouth with your hand, which did nothing to muffle your delighted squeal as he sat in the chair next to your bed. "wow. i mean, it's so nice to finally meet you in person!"

Megumi couldn't help smiling too.

"it's nice to see you too... and i'm sorry i didn't make it to your performance."

"hey, it's okay! we still met up!" you grinned brightly. Megumi then found his hands very interesting.

"and, um... your clarinet is broken..."

"that--" will be very expensive, the thought alone bringing tears to your eyes- your precious baby! it was worth more than your entire wardrobe and shoes! but you shoved that thought away until later. Megumi was here now, visiting you in hospital. "-actually, why am i here? what happened?"

Megumi thankfully didn't push the topic of your clarinet and gladly filled you in on what had happened. by the end of his explanation, you had your face buried in your hands.

"i'm so sorry you had to see that."

"it's fine, i've seen worse. besides, you were concussed, it's normal."

"still..." you whined, peeking between your fingers to find him offering you a hint of a reassuring smile. you gave in with a sigh, "i must say, that's some weird religion you have and they teach you, no offence."

Megumi chuckled, eyes distant, "you're right, it is pretty weird."

"but, um, thank you for saving me Megumi." said boy snapped back into reality very quickly, his cheeks flushing red as it dawned on you that everyone probably called him by his last name. "or do you prefer Fushiguro? am i pronouncing it right? sorry, i got used to-"

"it's fine." he uttered out, "Megumi is fine."

"what about honourifics?"

"whatever you're comfortable with."

"then... Megumi-kun? or is that too weird?"

the boy's cheeks darkened, "it's fine..."

"then you can call me Y/N-chan! then it's not as weird right?" you suggested, starting to feel the second-hand embarrassment.

"yeah." Megumi flinched too much when his phone chimed, and he hurriedly read it over. "Gojo-sensei -my teacher- said he's signed what you need to let you out. you just need to sign a few things before you go."

"right." well, the moment had to end at some point. you couldn't stay in the hospital bay forever. it was just an amazing coincidence that you had met Megumi, so you should be thankful you even had the opportunity to speak to him like this. "am i okay to move?"

"um, i'll call a nurse."

Megumi stepped out as you were examined by the nurse, and you saw him again in reception as you gave him and his teacher a thumbs up before signing the hospital forms.

"thank you very much for everything you've done. i'm so grateful. and please pass my thanks on to the other first years!" you bowed formally to the pair, Megumi flushing red while his teacher just waved you off.

"no worries. sorry about your clarinet and the concussion." the teacher responded.

"it's fine, i was always told i have a thick skull! comes in handy sometimes."

"i have to go now, but Megumi will walk you to the station, right?"

Megumi scowled at his teacher with an unreadable look in his eyes which seemed to make the teacher's smile brighten.

"well it was nice to meet you sir!" you bowed again at the adult, who nodded to you.

"nice to meet you too! hope you enjoy Japan. Megumi, be nice."

Megumi glared at the older man as he skipped away, seemingly pleased with himself for winding the younger up. Said male sighed.

"you don't have to walk me back if you're busy, i have GPS on my phone."

The boy startled at your comment, brows furrowed, before shaking his head, "it's fine, it's no trouble. i would feel better if i walked you to the station at least."

you couldn't stop the wide smile stretching on your lips, "thanks!"

"it's nothing."

you mentally thanked all the deities for letting you spend a little longer with your penpal, chatting easily as if you hadn't just met him less than 10 hours ago. by the time you had made it to the station, you had mentally prepared to part.

"so... i guess this is it?"

"yeah..."

"it was so nice to meet you- i cannot fully explain how nice this has been! even if i did spend a while in a hospital." Megumi chuckled at your words. you felt your cheeks heat up, his smile squeezing at your heart.

"i feel the same."

your train arrived.

"well. i'll message you later then?" you grinned hopefully, Megumi nodding. "hug? or do you not do those? i don't mind."

you nearly burst out laughing at the rush of emotions that flickered in Megumi's eyes- mostly panic. he blinked out his state when a giggle slipped out. he flushed red but nodded stiffly, opening his arms for you. you smiled as you wrapped your arms around him, feeling his wrap behind you too, surprisingly quickly considering how awkward he was at first. keeping it short because of the train behind you, you pulled away to find him also smiling. so he did like hugs.

"until next time?"

"yeah."

the doors shut and you waved to him as the train set off. and that was that.

your phone buzzed in your pocket.

Megumi: the school offered to pay compensation for the damages to your clarinet, so please let me know if and when you're free to go to a music shop in Tokyo to buy a new one.

sorry this hasn’t been proofread and the ending is kinda rushed because i just really wanted to publish it hahaha (catch me constantly editing this for DAYS now, so i probably shouldn’t post it but we die like men)

#penpals #jujutsu kaisen #jujutsu sorcerer #fushiguro megumi #x reader #gojo sensei #itadori yuuji #kugisaki nobara #fluff #idk how to tag: a series #just wanted to write fluff #high school romance #hospitalisation #concussion #jjk megumi #jjk #jjk x reader

[nullset2]

Mother 3 - An In-depth Critique and Review

Ah, Mother 3, how I love you so!

The game which with which I forwent all possible aspirations to healthily integate into normal High School society: imagine walking into a party, people are drinking and being cool, and you ask them if they have ever played a very underground, very deep RPG only released in Japan called "Mother".

Yeah! I know! It's like you're asking to be bullied, and I realized it too late.

But anyway!

Mother 3 is one of the most important games you could ever play --alas, if only it wasn't near impossible to obtain it.

Yet, perhaps this adds to its allure and to the power of its narrative --a narrative which, by the way, I'm convinced is the very actual reason why it will never release formally in the United States.

As time has passed, I've actually become more and more impressed about how relevant the game is to the socioeconomic reality that we are in nowadays. I'm impressed that Shigesato Itoi had all of this in his mind's eye as early as 1996, and that the story was already written down in 1999!

Right now it's been 14 years since it's release on the GBA, but I think that the game is a timeless classic and warrants a playthrough now more than ever. Wanna know why?

Wanna find out?

Part 1. "A Japanese Copywriter's Americana"

The year is 1989 and a Japanese Copywriter --somebody who writes "Catch Copies", which are a sort of a long-form slogan that is very common in Japanese pop culture to advertise)-- by the name of Shigesato Itoi became a fan of the Dragon Quest series of RPGs, which are massively popular in Japan, even to this day. He also loved video games: he's asthmatic, so he recalls only being able to sleep sitting up as a child, and having to occupy his lonely time through asthma attacks playing video games, since he had to sit up and had nothing else to do at night.

His love of RPGs would linger in his mind until 1989 when he had an opportunity to meet with Hiroshi Yamauchi and Shigeru Miyamoto and was offered the opportunity to develop a video game with Nintendo. Harkening back to the endless hours he poured into Dragon Quest, his concept eventually took form by deriving from it. He called the story "MOTHER", as a reference to John Lennon's "Mother", since he is a very hardcore fan of The Beatles. The games have tons of obvious influence by old American films and comics, like ET and Peanuts, which he also loved very much.

For MOTHER, he wanted to explicitly go against the grain, by designing an RPG without "Swords and Magic", which stereotypically most RPGs follow, even from things as minor as to design a protagonist who was weak and vulnerable, asthmatic and without a Father Figure, yet, still heroic through much toil --which reflects Ninten from the original MOTHER for the famicom.

Miyamoto, in his usual taskmaster persona, arranged a team to work with Itoi for the creation of the RPG, by bringing in people from HAL laboratory and APE Inc, and thus MOTHER was born to great Japanese Acclaim. A game which took many risks in its genre, such as eschewing the idea of a separate overworld from navigation in the towns, the subject matter, the movement system and many other things which made it quite Unique. It was so popular that soon after the first project was released, MOTHER 2 started development, involving people from what's currently known as Game Freak and HAL Labs.

MOTHER 2 is a very unique game because it was the very first time that the series attempted to make an incursion in the Americas. Releasing in a big flamboyant flashy box, with a strategy guide and a bunch of goodies included, MOTHER 2 released as Earthbound in the states, a bigger and better version of the vision of the first game. Better graphics, Beatles references, sampled audio, pop culture cornucopia, it's all here and then some!

Famous for its role in technically driving the game, Satoru Iwata, ex-CEO and software developer for Nintendo,7 of Wii acclaim, helped the game meet its 1996 release date. It is known that the original version of the game ran into deep technical issues which the original dev team was not able to overcome. Once Satoru Iwata got involved, the game was reworked to a viable version and released to much critical acclaim. In his own words, he proposed to rewrite the tech that powered the main game. It was a matter of either continuing with the current code and be done in two years, or redoing everything and being done in six months under his vision, he said.

No matter its strong promotion from Nintendo, the marketing got botched, and the game paled compared to the flashy and bombastic magical RPGs of its era, like Final Fantasy VI, Super Mario RPG and Chrono Trigger of all things. So, Earthbound faced a very bad destiny in the states, by releasing to low acclaim, bad review scores and terrible sales numbers --even though it eventually reached Cult Classic status, due to its pure hearted nature, its hallucinogenic themes and characters, and its fantastic spirit over all.

And this game is worthy of discussion by itself a whole bunch because of the ripple effects it had in video game culture in the Western world. Enter starmen dot net. To this date, the epicenter of discussion for everything related to the MOTHER series. There you had me as early as 2002, browsing a half-rendered version of starmen dot net in a dingy computer in some dingy internet cafe in some shitty neighborhood in Mexico, trying to be a part of the discussion and the hype.

To this date, I consider starmen dot net as the non-plus-ultra case for how passionate Internet fan cultures can become.

Flat out, no other fandom has ever came close to the level of dedication, attention to detail and passion to tribute the original creation around which its fans congregate. A massive amount of fan paraphernalia has come out of starmen dot net --yes, even Undertale, 2015 indie darling RPG thing, originally got started on the Starmen dot net forums. People married and even started large, commercially viable enterprises, such as Fangamer.net, the firm which publishes Undertale, from starmen dot net.

...and then... silence...

After Earthbound's 1995 release, we enter a ten year hiatus for the series.

Even though both MOTHER games were incredibly popular in Japan, HAL Laboratory and APE Inc. weren't able to successfully make a jump onto the third dimension for the series come the Nintendo 64 era. They had a demo come the infamous Spaceworld 96, where a bunch of pre-release games for the then called "Ultra 64", which was the codename for the Nintendo 64, were showcased. And lo and behold, we have a sequel to Mother coming out, called Mother 3, the ROM for which has never been found by the way.

I'd love to get a look at the materials in that ROM.

The scarce footage we have available from it exhibits some of the elements we ended up seeing in the final released version of the game, like some of the original music like the Mozart ghost theme, and the DCMC section, albeit in a more primitive low poly way. It is known that both studios weren't very proficient at 3d Game development yet, which was still nascent. This together with other factors, such as the fact that at some point development was moved onto the unreleased-in-America, unpopular 64DD addon, undisclosed factors dropped the game into development hell, which ultimately led to its cancellation in the year 2000.

Plenty of mystery surrounded the now defunct project, to the dismay of a bunch of passionate fans in Starmen.net and elsewhere online. However, it turned out that the valiant effort of the fans, who made a huge amount of effort to campaign for the revival of the series, even mailing fanmail, fanart and other materials to the Itoi Shinbun offices in Japan (a titanical task in the world of the early 2000s).

Fast forward to 2003, and the Game Boy Advance, the little portable console that could, was in its Apex. Due to Satoru Iwata's campaining, it was announced that development on MOTHER 3 would be restarted, this time in 2D, for the gameboy advance. Much anticipation in Starmen.net followed this announcement, since it finally validated its efforts...

Come 2006, once the console was well into its end-of-life, with small nudges to play the game on a Gameboy player if possible, perhaps to try to follow suit with its predecessors, the sequel finally released to much acclaim. But what did Shigesato Itoi have in store for everyone all along? What kind of beast had just been unleashed onto the World?

Part 2. "Of Monkeys and Men"

Mother 3 follows the story of a young boy, Lucas, in a multi-chapter structure, which is novel for the series but not unheard of in the RPG genre. Besides this, the RPG plays very similar to your usual JRPG fare, and basically uses the Ultimately polished version of the MOTHER series' mechanics, groovy backgrounds and all.

The first three chapters of the game follow the perspective of different characters residing in Tazmilly Village as the plot of the game unfolds. The plot is centered around the residents of a peaceful town in an Island in an unspecified location, Nowhere Islands, which in my opinion is an allegory both of Japan and America, moreover with the fact that the game of the logo very clearly has a rising sun covered in metal, in a logo that's an amalgam of two different things which don't match, a subtle reference to the game's undertones to come.

From these residents we come to know the daily lives of a particular family: Flint, a farmer; Hinawa, his wife (a name in reference to Sunflowers, Himawari, her favorite flower), and their twin children, Lucas and Claus.

The game begins in the midst of their idyllic life in the mountains visiting Lucas' grandfather Alec, and playing around with meek dinosaurs which inhabit Nowhere Islands. See, in the world of Mother 3, no violence truly exists, and people have come to live peacefully with each other and nature. There's no such thing as the concept of money, Instead relying on an economy that's mostly based around bartering and hospitality.

However, everyone's lives veer into turmoil once strange alien beings invade, the Pigmask army, an army of big, fat and slovenly creatures dressed in pig-like attire, who seem to have a vast amount of technology and resources at their disposal yet aim for Nowhere Islands for colonization.

The Pigmasks have an as-of-yet unnamed leader, who is demanding them to make everything in the World "bigger, cooler, stronger and faster", and thus they seize Nowhere Islands by force of bombings and a forest fire to use its flora and fauna. And thus, while escaping from the forest fires returning from Alec's home, Hinawa tragically gets killed by a Drago which has been modified to be aggressive against its nature through robotics implanted in it by the Pigmask army.

There's an unused cutscene in the game's ROM data where Hinawa, instead, dies by bomb explosion...

...yeah, I'm just... gonna let you process that one by yourself ;)

The Drago left a fang in the middle of her heart, which is recovered by one of the Tazmillians and provided back to Flint along with a fragment of her crimson dress. Besmirched and angry, Claus, the festier one of the twin children, sets out to try to hunt the drago and achieve revenge, but he goes missing... Flint embarks in search of Claus and to kill the drago, and thus the first chapter of the game concludes, with the implication that Claus has gone missing...

With Lucas' family torn to shreds and The Pigmasks invading Tazmilly, it seems that we're in a situation ripe for disaster.

Chapter 2 follows Duster's adventure, which runs in parallel (as every other chapter will) to other chapters' stories. Duster is the last heir in a bloodline of Cat Burglars whose abilities are not in use anymore given that Tazmilly has no more commerce or crime. However it turns out that the Pigmask invasion puts his skills back in demand to infiltrate Oshoe Castle and retrieve an artifact which the Pigmasks are after and which Duster's family is the guardian of. The nature of the artifact in Oshoe Castle is as of yet unknown, however it is implied that it is important to the fabric of Tazmilly village.

At Castle Oshoe, Duster meets a mysterious princess, Kuma-tora (which translates literally to "beartiger", in allusion to the dichotomy of her existence, since she is very... masculine in attitude and refers to herself with, yes, male pronouns, perhaps anticipating identity politics by 14 years at least), who is also after the artifact in the Castle, the Hummingbird egg. The chapter ends with the Hummingbird Egg going missing, and a mysterious peddler of goods arriving into town, while Kumatora and Duster's father realize he has gone missing...

Chapter 3 follows the adventure of a little Monkey, Salsa, which gets flown into Nowhere Islands to perform a job. This is a novelty in a town where the concept of a job doesn't exist as of yet, however, the peddler of goods is going to need a lot of hands if he wants to fullfill his vision. The peddler, Fassad (which is a tongue in cheek way to say "facade", right?) promises to all residents in Nowhere Island eternal happiness if they buy his newest product, the "Happy Box", a television-like contraption which glows with a warm light and which people are attracted to and engrossed by. For this, he introduces the concept of money and swindles people his way, convincing them that this is the way to go and promising them excitement and benefit if they listen to him.

Salsa delivers Happy boxes throughout the whole chapter, and gets shocked, even in the middle of the night, if something goes wrong with his job or tries to escape due to a shock collar implanted by Fassad. However, he runs into Kumatora and Wess, Duster's father, and they ploy together to free up Salsa and mess up Fassad's forceful takeover of Oshoe Castle, when Lucas shows up with several dragos in tow and fights against the Tank invasion of Oshoe Castle.

(A foreign animal being introduced into a new society with the express intent of exploiting it to propel forward a commercial enterprise by toil... geez, I dunno, where have I heard that one?)

From Chapter 4 Onwards the game adopts a more conventional JRPG scheme, through a timeskip which happens literally two years in the future. In this future version of Tazmilly, money (Dragon Points) and ATMs are now existent, similar to other Mother games. The game follows Lucas' adventure through a now-modernized and industrialized technologically advanced Tazmilly, trying to retrieve the "seven needles" from the island, which are soon enough shown to be a source of great power that the pigmask army is also after and to which Lucas must try to get to first due to a calling by mysterious beings which inhabit Nowhere Islands, the Magypsies. With a lot of emotional moments, such as Lucas having visions of his Mother in the middle of a field of Sunflowers, we follow the adventures of the party as they infiltrate the pigmask ranks and gather information about its nature and intentions.

It is then discovered that the pigmasks are commanded by a Masked leader, who dominates the power of thunder through a tower which was built in the middle of the town and which strikes anybody down with thunder if they overstep the Law and Order that the pigmasks have implemented. The party fights this masked leader in bouts while exploring the world and reuniting with a now missing Kumatora and Duster, who are found to have settled as employees in a Nightclub called "Club Titiboo".

Eventually, through his travels, Lucas gains an artifact from Mr. Saturn, the inhabitants of a special region in Nowhere called Saturn Valley and which has been passed down through all three Mother games, called the "Franklin Badge". When equipped, this item allows the bearer to become immune to lighting attacks and reflecting them back.

The party soon discovers that the world is inhabited by an special elder race, existant from before the creation of Tazmilly village and who know more about everything going on with the invasion, called the "Magypsies", a race of transexual, magical creatures who help Lucas discover the fact that he has Psychic abilities, also known as "PSI" within the MOTHER canon. He uses these to proceed further in his adventure to pull the seven Golden Needles, the first of which Fassad was attempting to get to, in the Courtyard of Oshoe Castle.

Lucas moves into a city called "New Pork City" in the conclusion of the game, which is a town built by the pigmasks completely in the honor of Porky, full of all sorts of Pigmask paraphernalia and amusement. It is found that the seventh and final needle is inside humongous tower in the middle of the city, the Porky tower.

Moreover, it is also revealed that the Pigmask army is led by Porky, known as "Pokey" in the American localization of Mother 2, Earthbound. Pokey is shown to have developed into a tyrant as an adult, with unlimited lust for blood and power, who used Doctor Andonuts' Phase Distorter after the events of Earthbound to mess around with the unlimited realities and dimensions it gave him access too, as a petulant child does with a video game. Once he got kicked out of every other possible reality due to the chaos he created, he found the Nowhere islands and decided to mess with it.

The climax of the game comes around Chapter 7, when the now fully-developed party runs into Leder, one of the original Tazmillian villagers, a lanky and really tall person who never spoke, not a single word, in the game until now. Leder is revealed to be the only person who knows what is the true nature of it all: tazmilly village is the remanider of civilization once the world of Mother 2 collapsed by cataclysm. A flood wiped away everything and the very last remainder of people who survived fled to nowhere islands in a big white ship and settled there, willingly forfeiting all technological advances and knowledge of the world into the Hummingbird egg, the artifact that Duster's family protected in Oshoe, a device which wiped everyone's memories, with the intent of undoing civilization and living back in a peaceful village-like state again.

It is revealed that when all seven needles are pulled, a supernatural power on which the island is built will be awakened. This supernatural power is revealed to be a Dragon by Leder, who had to be subdued by the ancestors of the Magypsies so people could live in Nowhere islands as their last resort. Whoever pulls out the needles which keep it in slumber will pass the intentions and nature of their heart onto the dragon. Thus, Lucas must be the one who pulls out the last needle instead of Porky or the masked man, in hopes that a second cataclysm like the first doesn't happen again.

After making their way through all the pigmask defenses, Lucas and Co. face off with Porky, who is now a bedridden, pathetic man. Doctor Andonuts from Mother 2, appears here, and is revealed to have developed a solution to contain Porky, the Absolutely Safe Capsule, which is a capsule which once it's sealed, it can never be opened again, trapping whoever is inside forever in a parallel universe where only them exist. The party is successful in locking Porky in the absolutely safe capsule, so, porky is not hurt by the end of mother 3, instead, he just has been locked away forever in a place far away from everyone else --perhaps, providing the ultimate form of comfort that a personality like his would seek after.

At the end of the game, Lucas and Co. face against the masked man, who is revealed to have been Claus all along, who, brainwashed with Pigmask ideologies, is hellbent on drawing out the final needle to awaken the dragon. Lucas and Claus face off in an emotive fight, where they suddenly remember each other and how friendly they used to be with each other... and moreover, their Mother. Claus strikes Lucas with thunder in a final murderous attempt before snapping out of the Pigmask brainwashing. But since he had the Franklin badge on, the attack is reflected and mortally strikes Claus, who, in his final moments, finally remembers Lucas...

The ending of the game is open ended, without showing much of what happened once the seventh dragon needle was released, so the ending of the game is subject to interpretation. However, it is heavily implied that, since Lucas was the one who released the needle, the dragon, once awakened, did not destroy Nowhere islands and instead led to a regeneration of existence.

Part 3. "A Musical-Adventure"

One of the pre-release materials for the game called it a "Musical" adventure, and I think this is completely warranted: the musical beautifulness of Hip Tanaka, famed Nintendo composer and long-time MOTHER music autheur, is joined by the expertise of Shogo Sakai, who gave the soundtrack a more mature, sample-based vibe, compared to the early two more "chiptuney" soundtracks in the series. The songs are all-time favorites of mine, and I still the soundtrack every so often given all of its mystique, its eclectiness and curiosness.

But the musical aspect to the game doesn't stop here: as an addition to the mother series, the battle system has now been changed to become rhythm-game based instead of simply turn based. If the player attacks an enemy during a battle, it is possible to strike additional damage as long as the player continues to press the attack button in rhythm to the background music in upwards of 16 hits. A full combo is incredibly effective and plays a nice fanfare if executed correctly.

As an enthusiast of rhythm games, this premise captivated me from the get-go and it works wonders, functioning as a breath of fresh air to the way overplayed mechanic of turn-based combat, which has existed since the 80s. It also provides a certain nice feeling to combat, given how every character has their personal musical instrument, with lucas being a guitar, Kumatora being an electric guitar, Duster being a bass, and Boney, Lucas' pet, being... barks.

Besides this the mechanics from Mother 2 are translated almost completely: every character has a rolling HP and PP counter, which rolls down over time as an airport display instead of immediately as in other RPGs. This may seem minor, but it adds an amazing element of strategy to the game, since it is possible to recover an ally from mortal damage if a healing PSI is executed against the clock before the counter hits 0.

Besides this you got almost completely conventional standard JRPG fare, with the character being able to move in eight directions in the overworld, with the addition of a run button, preemptive attacks and overpowered kills. Once you start facing enemies in the overworld, the first one to attack can be decided depending on the angle that the enemy was approached with: sneak up on an enemy from behind and a green swirl will display, which means that you get to attack first; if an enemy sneaks behind you, you'll see a red swirl and they will attack first instead. Otherwise, a gray swirl will display, which follows conventional order according to your stats.

Part 4. "WE WANT MOTHER 3, REGGIE!"

...Mother 3 will never be released in America.

This may be too dramatic of an opinion to have but I see no other alternative. For the most of fourteen years, Nintendo of America's head honcho Reggie Fils-Aime was requested to release and distribute the game in the americas, and for twenty years the request fell on deaf ears, citing commercial inviability, potential copyright infringment and many other reasons.

But I think the main reason that the game will never be localized is because Mother 3 was a passion project, pushed for by people with personal involvement in the series and very special sensitivities about it. Shigesato Itoi and Iwata were personal friends. The game appeals to japanese tastes and touches on issues and subjects that the American population is very politically sensitive to.

For example, in chapter 6 Lucas and the party experience a bad trip because they eat hallucinogenic mushrooms in a swamp. This leads to Lucas having visions of his family in a very bad light, with implications of violence and abuse, to try to get at the players' deepest sensitivities. Even the name of the real player is used here.

I think that it's impossible that nintendo will release a game which openly involves Hallucinogenics no matter its innocent exterior. This is the kind of subject in media that Japanese audiences usually handle better than American audiences.

Besides this, the game has very clear allusions to accelerated capitalism, anti-capitalism, colonization, slavery, transexuality and the changes and chaos they have brought onto the world, which is a tough subject to tackle in the Americas, which is still part of an ongoing, vicious culture war.

Particularly, I adore how the game even tries to convey its points through the Sound Test, of all places. Mother 3 has a collection of music pieces, which are available on demand within the game itself. Of those, there's a music piece which is a remix of Pollyanna, the Mother 1 theme, which is present throughout the series, in an nod to the previous games in the series. The hallway where this plays is full with mother references and it expects the player to sit down and watch passively all the references in order.

But this is meta, amazingly enough. The hallway is located in the final section of the game, before facing Porky, who is presented as the effigy of vicious capitalism in the game. As if he left them in his palace just as collectibles, things to be purchased or acquired.

The name of the song which plays during this sequence? "His Majesty's Memories". Subtle.

Nintendo is a company which tries to keep its image clean and sterile, so it can be used broadly for a variety of projects, usually with family friendly intent behind --and even more so in the US.

However, Nintendo has a history of risky bets with Mature content, which has become even more glaring lately: you got Eternal Darkness, Astral Chain, Bayonetta, No More Heroes, the disappointing Metroid Other M... this together with the fact that most of their target audience is of age now, could, at least remotely, mean that, perhaps, Mother 3 releasing in some manner in the future, localized in English, could happen: however, this is not happening at least the way I see it.

Once the game was released, there were several different campaigns online to try to gather Nintendo's attention: a 10k signature strong petition was completed among several other things, and if this hasn't lead to results... I don't know what will.

Part 5. "No Crying Until the End"

Mother 3 is a beautiful, engrossing and captivating game which is hidden away under a cutesy exterior. Its complex themes and characters are evoking of deep human truths which call out to us and ask us to reflect on things and the way we're living. Of strong pedigree in its series and with a superb musical production behind it and a mastermind of writing, MOTHER 3 excels at what it sets out to do.

When the game released, the game had a "Catch Copy" written for it by itoi himself, which called the game "Strange, Funny and Heartrending", and I think this is a beautiful way to bring everything full circle. Itoi wrote on the Advertisement that if you wanted to cry because of Mother 3, you should save it until the end. And those three words are a fantastic way to close off this review: if you want a game that will provide you with bizarre and laugh out loud moments one second and tear-jerkers the next, Mother 3 is the game for you.

And the game is just so poignant... to this date not only do I think it's one of the most expressive and well done pixel-art based game, I still find myself impresse at how much I can connect with the characters through small, cutesy sprites and pastel color pallettes, lack of Unreal engine and RTX graphics card be damned. Themes of grief, missing a loved one who's gone, the feeling of loss of identity due to accelerating social and economical change, how tyrannical political figures establish themselves and change communities, sexual and identity politics and how the modern world was to have shaky and voraginous sexual identities become commonplace... it's all there, and masterfully, tastefully expressed, without that icky feeling of "agenda"ism that you can get sometimes from Hollywood productions when they try to hamfist tropes and "messages" down people's throats. You know that feeling? I hate it when it happens in movies or shows I'm watching just to have a good time, and then I get some succint propaganda.

But MOTHER 3 is a kind beast, trying to reach to your heart and directly speak to the mind of the player. It tries to show us what it thinks of modernity and to make us seriously ponder what the frick is up with all of this shit, and thinking it has kept me for the last 14 years, and I anticipate another 20 ahead of me. And you can join me in reflecting about this...

Or maybe you can just go back to your happy box. Whichever way you choose.

#works #review #mother 3 #gba #game review #shigesato itoi

[woolishlygrim]

Winter Weebwatch #10

We’re very much hitting the final stretch of the winter anime season now, and to be honest, I still don’t know exactly what I’ll be doing for Spring Weebwatch (Spring Spreebspratch?). Kami no Tou, Digimon Adventure 2020, and Yu-Gi-Oh Sevens are shoo-ins, but a lot of the shows that start in Spring are the second seasons of shows from Autumn 2019, and I’d rather not do those.

Anyway, on with this week’s shows.

Pet.

★★★☆☆

Okay, so apparently Pet did air last week, I just didn’t see that it had, which is weird, I was looking out for it.

Also weird is that the character I originally thought was called Tsukasa and then thought was called Tsubasa is actually called Tsukasa. Did … did the subbers make a mistake at some point, or did I make the mistake? I genuinely do not know.

Anyway, last week and this week, Pet saw Hiroki discover Hayashi, still not entirely crushed but rather in a mostly-crushed state similar to the one he found Tsukasa in. Realising from exploring his memories that Tsukasa was the one who crushed Hayashi, Hiroki, feeling betrayed, confronts Tsukasa and eventually runs away. Meanwhile, Tsukasa, faced with the prospect of the Company separating him from Hiroki and then with Hiroki running away, grows more and more unhinged, eventually deciding to manipulate Satoru into going after him.

Things are definitely winding their way towards a conclusion, and I honestly can’t see what that conclusion will even be, or how the writers plan to tie this up in two episodes, but it’s fun to watch, at least.

That said, my god, Tsukasa going off the deep end is … something. The animators are having a whale of a time, drawing him wide-eyed, pale, and practically twitching. One scene has him drooling as he talks and occasionally having to wipe it away with his sleeve. If this was an actor, I’d say they were chewing the scenery, but it’s not, someone intentionally made him like this.

ID: Invaded.

★★★☆☆

This is another episode that just doesn’t quite deliver on the promise it set up. While I felt I was being a little harsh with last week’s score, this time I feel like I’m being a little lenient. It’s really a two and a half star episode.

With the set-up of the last episode going forward, Anaido just turns out to not … really have any kind of diabolical plan at all, whereas Hondomachi in the Well-Within-A-Well just kind of puts a couple of clues together and discovers who John Walker is.

John Walker is, incidentally, the character everyone expected him to be, since we’d seen that Walker has a white beard and moustache and only one other character had that.

As far as twists go, it’s … weak. It’s very weak, and the downplayed way the episode presents it suggests that the creative team were well aware of how weak the twist was. Similarly, the reveal that Kiki is inside the Mizuhanome is pretty much expected.

However, we still have two episodes to go, so there is plenty of time for the show to pull a rabbit out of its hat, so to speak.

Darwin’s Game.

★☆☆☆☆

I’m beginning to lose patience with this show, and if we weren’t in spitting distance of the end (this is episode nine, there are eleven episodes total apparently), I would drop it.

So continuing on from last week, the protagonist (nine episodes in and I still have no idea what his name is) engages in a fight to prove that his clan is worthy of allying themselves with the boxing gym-y clan, after which the top-ranked player in the game kidnaps him to … ugh.

Kidnaps him because she is the head of an ancient clan of psychic assassins and she wants him to be the father of her child, and fuck knows writing that sentence made me seriously reconsider watching the last two episodes.

The whole thing ends with said top-ranked player (who can psychically incapacitate people somehow) joining the protagonist’s clan, because I guess we don’t need stakes? Nah, nah, who needs narrative tension, right?

Congrats on another episode I actually remembered, Darwin’s Game. You might’ve done better if I hadn’t.

In/Spectre.

★★★★☆

Okay, I admit it, In/Spectre has wormed its way into my good graces. I enjoy this show now, I guess.

This is just a really good episode, and it manages to be a really good episode while working with material that I’m not sure most writers would be able to make interesting. As the plan to take down Steel Girder Nanase kicks off, Kotoko begins what is essentially a reddit forum argument in which she attempts to cast doubt on the existence of Steel Girder Nanase by proposing an alternate theory and arguing in its favour. As she does this, however, Rikka is attempting to argue back under several different accounts, trying to sway people into believing in Nanase’s existence.

Do you see what I mean? This is … this is banal. This is people arguing in the comments section while one person uses transparently disguised sockpuppets. This is something I can find by just going to a forum and scrolling down a few inches, and yet this episode is absolutely fascinating to watch.

When the episode ended with Kotoko saying that it’s time for her to present her second theory, I wasn’t even annoyed. I’m genuinely interested to see what the second theory is. I hate that I really like this show now.

Infinite Dendrogram.

★★★★☆

This is another one where I was honestly not sure what score to give it. It was a three-and-a-half star episode, really, and I wavered back and forth for a while over whether to bump it up to four stars or down to three stars, before eventually deciding to be nice. 

Honestly, it could have gone either way.

With Franklin/Penguin-san having kidnapped the princess and enshrouded the arena in a barrier, he begins his invasion of the city, remarking to the princess that he will break the spirit of the Masters of Altar before the war between Altar and Dryfe can resume. While Franklin’s own Superior class ability, which allows him to invent and spawn monsters, is a potent threat in his own right, he is also joined by numerous other Masters, from both Dryfe and Altar, along with Hugo and what appear to be the other three Dryfe Superiors.

So this is an actually really fun episode, even if it’s also kind of a nothing episode. With Shu and Figaro both trapped in the barrier, Ray and Rook learn that any player below level fifty can pass straight through the barrier, and use that to mount a counterattack. A small chunk of the episode is devoted to what amounts to a ‘Ray And Rook (And Later Hugo) Show Off Their Awesome Abilities’ scene, and honestly it was enough fun that I’m willing to forgive it for being mindless fluff. I do like the touch that while Rook can use his abilities to convert female monsters to his side, his Embryo Babyl can use her abilities to convert male players to her side, making them a nice team.

Meanwhile, Marie, who had bonded with the princess earlier, tracks down Franklin and shoots him a bunch, and exactly nobody is surprised because we all basically knew already that she was the monster-bug-shooting gunslinger who killed Ray before. Franklin is still alive, though, and as the show, as all shounen shows must, descends into shounen anime battle match-ups, Marie finds herself facing off against another Dryfe Superior with power over music.

Also, can I just express my irritation that Franklin combines both chess metaphors and poker metaphors. Those games are the antithesis of each other: Chess is a game all about planning multiple moves ahead, figuring out multiple paths and multiple outcomes to those paths and then choosing the best one; whereas Poker is a game all about taking a hand dealt to you by luck and tricking, scheming, and gambling your way to getting the best possible use out of it. Either one will work for a scheming villain, but they work for very different kinds of scheming villain.

#infinite dendrogram #darwins game #id invaded #pet #in/spectre #anime #winter weebwatch

[lintheotaku]

Watched Anime Genre

Watched List: Isekai 2016-Present 

Anime:  The Rising of the Shield Hero 

Plot:  Naofumi Iwatani is an otaku that is summoned through a book as 1 of 4 heroes to the world of Melromarc, to stop the Waves from destroying the world. Betrayal and ruined reputation causes Naofumi to be shunned by the people of Melromarc as well as the other heroes, forcing him to fight the Waves in his own way, all because he bares the shield. Pros: One of the more unique isekai animes out there. Instead of just one hero, there are four heroes, each from different versions of Japan. Instead of having a quirk or completely overpowered from the beginning, the main is instead knocked down to his lowest, resulting his not so heroic approach to situations. Gradually he begins to trust those closest to him and out of the bunch, he is the most grounded person and grasps reality far better than his fellow heroes. Cons: Pacing can feel a bit slow in the anime since there is a lot of small things building up before you get to the next big thing.(omg I want to knock some sense into the other heroes) And the anime tends to throw in a tad more details to make it feel as those Naofumi has a harem than it really is. (the one filler moment actually contradicts a detail the following canon scene) Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4.5/5] Comments: With the pacing, it’s perhaps better to be reading the manga. And since this is originally a Light Novel, I HIGHLY recommend watching AniNews’s youtube channel on Rising of the Shield Hero: Skipped Content as it helps fill in gaps not placed in the manga and/or anime. 

Andddd I really can’t wait for the Scythe Hero to appear in ep 22<3

Anime: KonoSuba: God's Blessing On This Wonderful World! Plot: “When high schooler Kazuma Satou dies, his given the choice to be reincarnated in a fantasy world much like a video game and be granted one item or ability. But can a dimwitted Goddess, explosion craze crimson demon,  masochist crusader, and a lucky/unlucky adventurer to defeat the Devil King?” Pros: A very clever and humorous adventure with a group of misfits. Cons: There were a few points that felt a bit much or overly done. *cough*Aqua*cough* but luckily goes back into genuinely funny scenes. Too easily can turn into perverted moments for a non harlem type series. Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4/5] Personal Thoughts: Honestly can’t help comparing Megumin’s ability to another light novel character. Agnis, from Adventures of Duan Surk, a fire sorceress that can only use high level fire magic and passes out after each use.  Except in Megumin’s case it’s Explosion magic. Besides that, and the quite troublemaking goddess- this series is unique enough as a comedy of misfits trying to live in a fantasy RPG world.

Anime: Re:Zero - Starting Life in Another World Plot:  “ With the biggest crisis of his life being summoned to another world and no sign of the one who summoned him, things become worse when he is attacked. However, when he is saved by a mysterious silver-haired girl with a fairy cat, Subaru cooperates with the girl to return the favor.” Pros: A series with mix of carefree moments as well as suspenseful.  Cons: Subaru can have some very unlikable moments, other times you can feel your heart being torn to shreds to the point you wonder how would you fair in his shoes. Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4/5] Comments: Seriously Sabaru- Forget Emilia and go for waifu-Rem! TTATT

Anime: Saga Of Tanya The Evil Plot:  “An unnamed atheist Japanese salaryman, in the moment of being murdered by a disgruntled subordinate who he had fired due to poor performance at work, is confronted by a entity that could stop time which he refers to as "Being X" or god, who condemns the man for not having 'faith'. He is sentenced to be reborn in a world that is similar to World War I Europe, mixed with early aspects of World War II and magic, in an empire torn apart by countless wars with all nearby countries.”  Pros: Seeing the main getting bested and even frighten by “Being X” in an endless mind game while in a world in middle of war. Cons: ... uh what else is there to this series? Like how is the plot still moving? Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡  ♡ [3/5] Comments:  I’m not much into war types but this was alright I suppose. Not terrible, not a fave, and not memorable.

Anime: Overlord Plot: “When the shut-down time arrives, Momonga finds that the game hasn't vanished. Instead it appears as if Yggdrasil has been recreated as its own reality along with its various NPCs having been brought to life while Momonga has been trapped in the form of his game avatar, leaving him unable to use the normal player functions, such as General Message, or even to log out. With no other option, Momonga sets out to learn if anyone from the real world is also in this new world with him.” Pros: Curiously await what the future holds in Ainz’s adventure in this fantasy world and his NPCs seeking control of the world in his name. Cons: Albedo needs to dial back just a smidge. Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4.5/5] Comments: Don’t get attached to anyone outside the Great Tomb of Nazarick . 

Anime: Isekai Quartet Plot: 12 minute comedic episodes of characters (Overlord, KonoSoba, Re:Zero, and Saga of Tanya the Evil) are sent to another world to survive ‘school life’. Pros: Ever wonder what it would be like to have different series come together and temporarily work together at school? Wanna see what character would get along and their reactions? Yep, this would be the show for ya.  Cons: Episodes are too short! Once you finally get somewhere interesting, it gets cut to the next episode. Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4.5/5] Comments: Best way to watch this series is to binge tbh. It’s actually a lot of fun seeing the mains becoming friends and understanding their strengths and weaknesses. 

Anime: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Plot:  “Satoru Mikami, an average 37 year old office worker from Tokyo with no girlfriend, is stabbed to death by a passing robber. After making some requests during his death, he is reincarnated in another world as a slime with the ability known as predator (which can devour other creatures and obtain their abilities)” Pros: Unique concept of an overpowered little slime Cons: Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4/5] Comments: I really need to watch the rest of this series TTwTT

Anime: The Wise Man’s Grandson/Grandchild Plot: “A young salaryman dead in an accident was reborn in another world filled with magic and demons. As a baby, he was picked up by the patriot hero "Sage" Merlin Wolford and was given the name Shin. He was raised as a grandson and soaked up Merlin's teachings, earning him some irresistible powers. However, when Shin became 15, Merlin realized, "I forgot to teach him common practice!"” Pros: comical moments and fun action scenes. Interesting uses of knowledge from past life. Cons: Um... when/why did this become a gakuen life show? Why should we care about the very generic classmates that add little to nothing to the plot besides the crown prince? .... and you call that romance? Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4/5] Comments: Has a very strong start and I REALLY WANNA LIKE it but I’m starting to lose interest whenever Shin isn’t using his magic in a battle as everything tends to be ‘oh noes we can’t let the world know of Shin’s gifts’ to ‘Look what Shin did for us!’ in the next instant.... everything looks pretty at least.

Anime: How NOT To Summon a Demon Lord Plot:  “Takuma Sakamoto is a hikikomori gamer who is mysteriously transported to the world of his favourite MMORPG, Cross Reverie, with the appearance of his own character in the game, the Demon Lord Diablo. The two young girls who summoned him, the pantherian Rem and the elf Shera, attempt to use a spell to make Takuma their servant, but due to his passive "Magic Reflection" ability, the spell rebounds, and both end up with magic collars stuck on their necks, thus becoming his slaves instead. With a serious case of social anxiety, Takuma decides to act like his character while interacting with others, and makes use of his high stats and vast knowledge of Cross Reverie's lore to survive in his new environment, traveling along with Rem and Shera to look for a way to remove their slave collars while helping them with their own, personal issues that led them to summon him in the first place.” Pros: The comedy and Diablo’s battles are satisfying to watch. Cons: The not so subtle ecchi moments, in particular one ritual scene that was... a bit much personally. Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡ [4.5/5] Comments: If you don’t mind watching ecchi stuff, you’ll have a fun time with the story and overpowering battle moments.

Anime: Death March To The Parallel World Rhapsody Plot: “Ichiro Suzuki is a 29-year old gaming programmer who was tasked with fixing several bugs in two MMORPGs his company is preparing for publication. After taking a nap, he mysteriously wakes up in a parallel world that resembles some of the fantasy RPG worlds he had worked on, as a 15-year old named Satou Pendragon. However, before he could grasp his current situation, an army of lizardmen ambush him and launches an all-out attack on him. In desperation, he uses all three of his special 'Meteor Rain' attack options (a quick fix he added to the game for new players which kills all enemies in the vicinity) at once and wipes them all out.” Pros: A very casual journey of a character with too much exp points and money. Cons: Everything always works out in the end. Is a harlem REALLY needed here? Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡  ♡ [3/5] Comments: It’s a nice laid back Isekai series. I just wish the Elf arch had more of challenge and thrill, and the very cliche harlem girl gimmicks doesn’t make the relaxing scenes all that pleasant. Guess I was really hoping more to the story? I mean it has potential just doesn’t go there quick enough.

Anime: In Another World With My Smartphone Plot:  “ Fifteen-year-old Touya Mochizuki is accidentally killed by God. As an apology, God allows him to be resurrected, but since he cannot send him back to his old world, he instead reincarnates him into a fantasy world along with a single special request. Touya uses his request in order to bring his smartphone into the new world with him, which God modifies so that the phone will function in the new world. God also greatly amplifies Touya's physical, magical, and cognitive abilities to a certain degree as a further apology for the inconvenience of killing him. Taking full advantage of his second chance at life, Touya befriends many different people, mainly females and high-ranking people in the new world. He begins to travel from country to country, solving political disputes, minor quests, and nonchalantly enjoying himself with his newfound allies.” Pros: Visuals are pretty Cons: What was meant to be ‘basics’ in magic turns out to be the over power ability of knowing all affinities, thus you’re the strongest being in the world. There’s little to no consequences for his actions... everything always works out because of his op ability and the number of girls grow.  Personal Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥  ♡  ♡ [3/5] Comments:  This is straight up a LITERAL harem anime.  I’m having to stop watching after episode 12 as it reveals he’ll wind up with 9 wives by the end of the series. Given how everything is hunky-dory and the girls are just being unreasonable- yeah- lost interest.

#anime genre #current watch

[bethygauw]

[1/2] Online B’s-Log Interview with Satoru Kuwabara

Update:  - (2 Sep 2020) Correction “ When we started making the unit songs, we didn’t make hip hop songs, afraid that the female players may stab us” --> “When we started making the unit songs, we didn’t make hip hop songs, afraid that it wouldn’t resonate with the female players”

* * *

Released 4 June 2018

Original source Part 1 The original article has pictures that complement well so please check it out too.

B’s-Log started a new project, “Creator Touch”, an interview series with creators of popular series. The first person they interviewed was Satoru Kuwabara, the music producer of Ensemble Stars!.

In this first half of the interview, they asked about how Kuwabara started to get involved with Enstars unit songs. Kuwabara also talked about the points he focused on in the song series that have been released so far. (~2.8k words)

In the second half, they talked about song numbers that left the biggest impression on Kuwabara, the 3D live concert, the voice actor live concert and Enstage. (~2.2k words)

Some of the info has already been published somewhere before, so this may be a repetition to some. But otherwise, it can be a refresher as well. Enjoy!

Q: Kuwabara-san, you’re also Arte Refact’s representative. Could you tell us what your job entails?

K: As part of Arte Refact, my work revolves around anime and game music. It doesn’t mean that I’m not working with other genres at all, but Arte Refact is basically a company where people who love anime and games gather around. So we want to surround ourselves in that world and conform to it as much as we can.

Q: Could you tell us what started your involvement in Enstars unit songs?

K: Before the game release, a person I was indebted to gave me a tip, “There’s this game that’s coming up,” he said, and showed me the proposal and illustrations. I had a look at it and thought, “I really want to do this!” If I remember it correctly, it was around about the start of the preregistration period, so the only information I had in hand was that it had the high school idol theme and idol units. It also had a simple description of each character and a main theme song. I was sure that they would already have songs for the units prepared as well, so when I was given the chance to introduce myself to Happy Elements, I made some unit songs while expecting to be shot down. There were 8 announced units, so I visualized and prepared 2 songs for each unit and went to present.

Q: This was before the game even started… So you made these songs with so little information to go on with.

K: The unit that I misunderstood the most was fine. It’s pronounced like “fee-nay”, which is different from the English pronunciation of “fain”, right? I ended up making a song with lots of the “fain” version in the lyrics (laugh). Other than that, I thought the “bits” in Ra*bits referred to, say, 1bit, so I thought that maybe their songs have lots of pinging sounds like those in a game. Turns out I was completely wrong for both (laugh). On the contrary, Trickstar, UNDEAD, and Ryuseitai were easy to figure out and I remember that it was a smooth process.

Q: Among the songs that you presented, were there any that actually got released as unit songs?

K: I think it would be Knights’ Checkmate Knights and Ryuseitai’s The Unrivaled☆Meteoranger!. Although we remade those after receiving the units’ proper background setting.

Q: You have been playing the actual game. Can you tell us your first impression or what it is about the game that attracted you?

K: My true first impression would be during the pre-release, but I thought that their illustrations were nice, generally speaking. In general, the art in a female-oriented series has that touch that doesn’t sit too well with guys. But Enstars feels like anime and its head count for the character design is actually pretty close to that of a real person and without being deformed in any weird way. So it’s also easy for guys to accept. When I first saw the illustration, it gave me a gush of inspiration and I could keep churning out songs. But after the game got released and I started playing, my impression shifted to, “It’s this dark?” (laugh) If I had to choose, male-oriented series have a fundamentally happy atmosphere and not many would delve into the characters’ upbringing or pasts. Even if they do, they only do it lightly or they would only touch on some characters with a considerably rough past… just like that. But pretty much all Enstars characters have something that they’re worried about, right? That’s what makes female-oriented and male-oriented series different, and what I think makes Enstars attractive.

I think of them as idols and create.

Q: Can you tell us specifically how you make these songs?

K: All units have already had a few songs released by now, so I would start from thinking about what kind of songs a particular unit would need next, while also taking their previous songs into account. I have the image within my mind that these characters are alive. My way of thinking will also change depending on the unit and the CD’s month of release. Take Ryuseitai’s album as an example (released on 7 March 2018). It was released around the “Repayment Festival”, so it had a White Day theme. If there are songs made based on established event stories, there are also those made simply because we wanted to make this kind of songs—the origin may vary. But if I know a lyricist who fits the image of a particular song, the first thing I’ll do is to place an order with that said lyricist.

Q: How do these lyrics come about?

K: Our main lyricists are Youhei Matsui-san and Saori Kodama-san. Enstars had its 3rd anniversary and at this point, a lot of content has been fleshed out. We want someone who understands the story and won’t cause discrepancies in the lyrics, so in the end it’s difficult to ask someone who isn’t used to the series. If I do ask someone other than those two, it’s often the case that I think their usual writing style fits a particular unit.

Q: An example would be how Arika Takarano-san from ALI PROJECT worked on Valkyrie’s Bewitching Theater.

K: Exactly. I asked Takarano-san beforehand that we may cause her a lot of trouble and may ask her to retake so many times and if she was alright with that, but she still said that she was going to do it. And in actuality, it was accepted without any revision so it was really cool!

Q: I believe there would be a lot of fans out there who would listen to one song and think, “This is the feel that this unit has, huh!” and then would get surprised by the approach of another song. But it was actually just the perfect balance. How do the artists begin their work on the songs and the lyrics?

K: It goes without saying, but Matsui-san and Kodama-san play the game as well. There are times when they come up with a selection of scenes because they want to write about those parts. The lyricists rely heavily on the script, but on the other hand the composers have told me that they make progress when they are given visuals. It’s really easy to understand when you look at an illustration, "so this is going to be a song where this character sings with this kind of expression, huh.” I’ve heard that the event CGs are their most helpful reference.

Q: Rather than a 2-dimensional character, they imagine that it’s a real singing idol as they make the songs.

K: That’s what I do—I think of them as idols who really exist as I make the songs. I don’t even think of them as game characters anymore. I’d say things like, “Hey check this out, this kind of song is nice, don’t you think? What? The pitch is too high for you? Nah, I know you can do it. You can, can’t you?” (laugh)

The 3rd season’s theme is “Love”!

Q: So far, the series has released 3 seasons of CD singles and right now the album series is ongoing, with one album being released after another. Could you tell us their concepts and any fixation you had on each series? To start with, how was the first season?

K: The first season was something that we made with zero-based budgeting, so in that sense, it was probably where I participated like a music producer the most*. In the first season I was being rather pushy about my opinion on how this particular song would definitely suit this or that unit. It was also because Happy Elements was not used to music production, so if I was hesitating, they would too. I thought that it would be better to give out a clear-cut proposal, so I told myself to express my opinion properly while also offering some options.

*[T/L note] I wasn’t sure if this would make sense to the readers since I still translated it quite literally, but basically since the unit song series just started out they didn’t have much luxury to call out to other composers/lyricists like they do now, so they had to use the limited resources (and human resources) to the best they could. Please note that this is my interpretation since the whole original sentence looked pretty vague to me.

Q: I feel that the first season is filled with many songs that exude each unit’s character and public image.

K: Personally that’s my intention. That being said, to be honest we started making the songs when the game was not even out yet. We didn’t know how far we could experiment with these songs. We also didn’t know if there was going to be season 2. So, of course we wanted to make more, but if there was no second season, we decided to make songs that would make these units complete. We wanted these songs to be popular too, so we made a lot of up-tempo songs that have a good beat. But I also wanted to make some ballads, so I included Checkmate Knights for Knights and Love Letter of the Brilliance of Cherry Blossoms for Akatsuki.

Q: Now, onto the second season. Some units have songs with a different taste compared to those from the first season. Did you intend to show another side to them that you couldn’t in the first season?

K: Let’s see. Now that the fans are aware of these unit songs, we started the second season by creating songs meant to be something original and asking artists we would like to place an order with. I had the impression that my job was to materialize the unit image that Happy Elements had in mind. If they had artists whom they would like to work with, I’d go around making offers, become the middleman, and suggest to brush up some parts of a song as we record the music. That was the kind of job I did. But among that, I think I let myself loose quite a bit when making songs for Valkyrie and Switch, who joined from the second season.

Q: How about the third season?

K: After observing the audience reception until the second season and receiving fans’ responses, we made songs “that are needed” and “that it should be like this!” on top of putting the unit members into consideration. The hidden theme of the third season is “Love”. Basically, there’s “Love” on the A-side. It can be love for their fans, or for their friends—it varies. Even though the word “Love” itself is not used in the songs, they still have “Love” as their theme.

Q: This makes me want to listen to them once again to find some “Love”…! Then, what about the album series that are ongoing right now?

K: The theme for these albums are “Presents”. It’s a thanks to the fans of course, but it’s also a thanks to their supportive friends. I want to make something that everyone can enjoy, so basically there are a lot of songs with lyrics that are filled with gratitude. It also has something akin to the third season’s “Love”, but that’s what idols are! I think fans would be happier to receive love that’s almost excessive (laugh).

Q: The albums also include the idols’ solo songs.

K: To many of the voice actors in the first season, it was their first time recording a song, so we talked a lot before we began to record. There were 8 units at that time and I was talking with this kind of feeling, “I want to make something that can get each of the unit up on the Budokan stage for 8 days and on the last day I want to see everyone perform at Tokyo Dome together. So let’s make lots and lots of songs!” The voice actors were really happy about that and they sang for us. So to me it felt like it’s the long-awaited solo songs.

Q: Especially with these solo songs, I can feel that you understand a fan’s mentality and the characters really well!

K: It’s because I love everyone (laugh). I also think of them as real people while creating. I think I do as I please during the recording, like suggesting that we should change the lyrics because I don’t think he will say this kind of thing for example (laugh). I also dare to play around with the song and rip things apart. Although I would also record a few versions and present it to Happy Elements to see which they would prefer, like, “(I think this one here is better but) what do you think?” (laugh) Also, I wouldn’t change the rough outline of the songs I receive, but I often discuss with the composer to tweak the melody line or adjust the key to match with the character.

The teachers’ songs are Mr. Kuwabara’s long awaited production!

Q: Apart from songs by the students of Yumenosaki Academy, you have also released songs by the teachers and the rival unit, Eden. How did the teachers’ CD come about?

K: I had always wanted to make songs for the teachers! Even when I first introduced myself to Happy Elements, I asked them if the teachers would sing as well, and then they replied “I suppose not.” (laughed) I asked them the same thing a few times after that as well, and finally around about the 2nd anniversary of the game’s release they finally said, “We’d like to make songs for the teachers,” and I replied, “I’ve been waiting to hear those words!” (laugh) That’s how it started. I personally like Jin Sagami a lot and in the game I just keep entering the nurse’s office “by mistake” (laugh). My wish of making the teachers’ songs came true just before the third season. In Akira-san’s mind, apparently they’re idols who dance with roller skates.*

*[T/L note] A reference to an older generation idol, Hikaru Genji, who performed with roller skates in the 80s. [YouTube]

Q: It felt like we had moved back a generation or two…

K: Yes, I also stopped myself and thought that the teachers were probably around 30 years old (laugh). I chose the direction that would lean towards that age group as best as I could.

Q: The CD jacket and design labels made a big impact.

K: This is, well, a total grownups’ practical joke (laugh). Someone suggested to make it an 8cm CD, but going that far would be difficult after all.

Q: I also felt that the sound quality felt close to that of the CDs released some years ago.

K: True, we added a bit more echo than usual to get close to the era we were aiming for. But the art and craft of audio recording continues to evolve from day to day, so without dropping the sound quality down too much, we chose to focus on bringing out the intended atmosphere and made it into a 12cm CD to match with the current age. Likewise with the acoustic pressure—if we dropped it down too much, it would also not be a good thing to suddenly hear a drop like that in quality if the listeners chose to add the songs into a playlist.

Q: On the other hand, Eden’s CD also ended up with a different taste than that of Yumenosaki Academy’s units’.

K: Eden’s setting is that they’re a rival unit that stands up before Yumenosaki Academy’s representative, Trickstar, and block their way. So Eden’s song has to surpass Yumenosaki Academy’s unit songs like Trickstar, fine, and Akatsuki. We’ve always been serious about making these unit songs, so the moment I was told that, I didn’t know what to do (laugh). And then, I asked them to lift the ban on rap songs. In the end the song wasn’t a pure rap, but up until now I had been asked to avoid rap as much as I can.

Q: Is that Happy Elements’ request?

K: Yes. When we started making the unit songs, we didn’t make hip hop songs, afraid that it wouldn’t resonate with the female players… But various series have made a hit with the genre and maybe it’s now recognized, so I went to discuss about lifting the ban. I asked them like this, “When they fuse into Eden, please let me give them rap”.

Q: With a hip hop-like element included, it became a unit song that had a different orientation from Yumenosaki Academy idols.

K: Right. I think they managed to exude out a different kind of mature feel. Their CD booklet is amazing too, don’t you think? It used special paper, special printing, unusual cutting… (laugh)

Q: Was the packaging your idea too, Kuwabara-san?

K: No, it was Happy Elements’. They wanted to make it that way. Each piece’s lumber quality was just so extravagant. The third season had clear sheets as well, but Eden’s CD booklet was really a surprise (laugh).

Continued to the last half of the interview: song numbers that leave the biggest impression, 3D live concert, voice actor live concert and Enstage.

#ensemble stars #staff #satoru kuwabara #B's-log

[neni-has-ascended]

7 Urban Legends from the Persona Series and the Real World!

This is the script to a video I uploaded onto my YouTube Channel as a Halloween Special. If you want to see the actual video, click here. 

If there is one theme that has drawn itself through the entirety of the Persona series since day one - Jungian psychology and demons non-withstanding - it's the series' repeated use of ghost stories and urban legends as a narrative device and sometimes even as a gameplay element. 

Literally, the first scene in the very first game has our main characters trying their hands at what amounts to a room-sized Ouija board. No surprise, given how popular these sorts of stories are in Japan - I mean, there IS a reason Japanese horror movies are pretty much considered a genre all of their own. This theme also makes a lot of sense considering it in association to the games' borrowings from Analytical psychology, since rumors and myths of all kind can be seen as an expression of the country's collective cultural unconscious, very much in-line with Jung's ideas. This interpretation is only helped by scenes such as one in Persona 2 where Nyarlathotep outright calls rumors the collective wishes of the people, or a page of the P3 club book, where Ikutsuki claims that information spread on the internet has been an important tool for feeding the collective death wish Erebus embodies, or the scene in Persona 4, where Izanami claims the Midnight Channel was her way of reflecting mankind's own desires back at them--- I think my point is clear, right?

So yeah, how about we take a look at some rumors from the Persona Universe and their roots in real life urban legends?

#1 "Persona-san" VS "Square" (Persona 1)

Literally the first thing we saw in any Persona game. Ever.

Hidehiko Uesugi coaxes his pals - this includes you and the majority of your future party members - into playing a game that involves 4 people standing in the corners of an empty room, one after another walking over into the next corner, tapping the shoulder of the next person, calling for "Persona" to "come", then the person who's shoulder has been tapped moves to the next corner, rinse-repeat. Eventually this results in awkward CGI- I mean a ghost girl appearing, lightning striking everyone and, bam, Philemon hands out Personas like butterfly Oprah.

This little 'ritual' is very directly based on a ghost story from real life Japan, however, unlike the Persona version, where the rumor claims the game's purpose is to predict the future, in the original story the shoulder-tapping carousel's purpose was very explicitly NOT DYING.

Context: The story called “Square” begins with 5 members of a hiking club going up on a mountain and getting lost in a blizzard. One of them gets hit on the head with by rock, dies. The others manage to carry their dead comrade to an empty hut, sit there for a while, then decide "Well, body count of 1 is quite enough for an after-school activity, dear chaps, let's try to not get ahead of ourselves!" So they keep each other awake by walking from corner to corner and, what else, tapping each other's shoulder. Only after a few rounds of that, the last one of them, let's call 'em "D", realized: 

"Wait a minute. If A is in corner B, B is in corner C, C is in corner D and D is in corner A... Then WHOSE SHOULDER DID I JUST TAP!?"

Eventually, they decided that this mysterious fifth person -let's call 'em F- was their dear, fallen friend, who'd come back from the dead to help them out with staying awake and alive by... lightly tapping someone's shoulder. Because that's what friendship is all about!

And no, I have no idea what this has to do with Philemon. Or Personas. Or anything. But hey, at least the ghost in this one is benevolent! That's more than I can say for pretty much anything else on this list!

#2 "Joker" VS "Satoru-kun" (Persona 2 IS)

The Persona 2 duology has no shortage of creepy rumors, given that there's an entire game-mechanic that involves gathering and spreading stories around town, however, none is quite as unsettling and familiar as the one that pretty much kicks off the plot. And when I say "familiar", I mean "familiar" to Japanese players, because, again, this one is based directly on an actually existing Japanese Urban Legend.

In Persona 2 IS, "Joker" is an entity that one can contact by calling their own cellphone's number and chanting "Joker, joker, come here." Joker will then appear behind the caller and grant their wishes, unless they don't have any, in which case he'll pretty much just steal their minds and erase them from our plane of existence. Neeaaaaat. There's another version of JOKER in EP who's pretty similar, except this one only grants wishes that involve murdering people, but we're not gonna focus on that one right now.

P2 IS' Joker is based on the urban legend of "Satoru-kun", which goes as follows: Grab a 10 Yen coin and search a payphone. You can't use any other types of phones or coins, it has to be a 10 Yen coin and a payphone. Satoru is very specific like that. Anyway, once you've located both of these, call your own cellphone wait for the call to connect, then try not to feel too embarrassed about yourself as you chant "Satoru, Satoru, come to me" into the payphone.

By the way, this is also where the "Persona, Persona, come to me" chant from the previous number on this list comes from. That one wasn't originally in Square.

Anyway, once you're done chanting, you hang up the call and turn off your cellphone completely. If you did everything correctly, within 24 hours you should start getting calls from "Satoru" on your turned-off phone, informing you where he is right now. Once he says "I'm right behind you", you can ask him a question, any question, and he'll tell you the correct answer. Anything! There's only a few things you gotta watch out for: 

A) Never turn around to look at Satoru.

B) Never be a smartass and ask Satoru a question you already know the answer to, and finally 

C) Never ask Satoru more than one question. 

What happens if you break any of these rules? Ohhh, you'll just get mysteriously spirited away. To hell.

#3 Reiko Kashima (Persona 2 EP)

I'm cheating a little with this one, since it's literally just a real life ghost story that *happens* to appear in the game as a sidequest, but I just liked it too much to not mention it. Japan has a rich, fascinating culture of school ghost stories, which has spawned equally fascinating academic discourse in the field of Japanese Studies. A common trend among Japanese ghost stories is the appearance of female ghosts appearing in weird places doing terrible things to people for various reasons. This is one of those.

Reiko is a ghost without legs. How she died varies depending on who's telling the stories, but the most popular version seems to be "After World War II American soldiers raped her, then she jumped onto a train track and killed herself." (A KIDS’ GHOST STORY!!) 

Anyway, she'll appear to you when you enter the bathroom, often at night. She'll ask you "Where are my legs?" You're supposed to answer "At Meishin Expressway." She'll ask you "Who told you that?" You'll say "Reiko Kashima did." If she's feelings especially persistent that day, she'll also say "Give me your arms" ("I'm still using those!"), "Give me your legs!" ("I still need those.") or "Do you know my name?" (Trick question. The right answer is "The masked demon of death".) If you answer any of these wrong, she'll dismember and kill you, so the two of you can go on tour together! Oh, also, it's said she'll appear to you within one month of first hearing about this story. You're welcome.  

#4 Fuuka's Revenge VS "Hikiko-san"

In Persona 3, your first encounter with one of the most adorable members of your party also happens to be one of the creepiest friggin' party member introductions in all of the franchise. Before you ever even get to meet her, Junpei's theatrics and the Shinjiro Aragaki rumor mill are so nice to inform you that Fuuka is considered A) dead B) a ghost haunting Gekkoukan High School and C) responsible for inflicting two of her worst bullies on the mortal coil with a hefty bout of Apathy Syndrome. Of course, it quickly turns out that  none of this true and actually she's just been trapped in a parallel dimension filled with blood hungry monsters for the last couple of weeks (Because that's, y'know, so much better) but the spread of those rumors at Gekkoukan isn't surprising, given how common this exact kind of Ghost Story is around Japanese schools.

One such example is the story of "Hikiko-san". She appears on rainy days, wearing a tattered white Kimono and carrying no umbrella. Behind her. She is dragging something that looks like a mannequin on first glance. If you look closer, it's actually a kid. If you happen to meet her, she'll knock you out, and drag you behind her, on and on, until you finally die, then, she'll dump your corpse somewhere. Now, here's the good news: Hikiko only targets school bullies. So hopefully all of you guys should be safe! ...Hopefully 

(If you’re, in fact, not safe, I’m seriously judging you.). 

Hikiko is actually the ghost of a girl who was either bullied to death or into suicide. Either way, the place where she dumps her victims tends to be the same one where she herself died. Her motivations is to rid the world of the very bullies who've made her life hell. So remember, kids: If you don't want to get brutally murdered in one stormy, stormy night, play nice.

Fun fact, there's a theory that the story was originally derived from a short-story titled "Fukiko", which is my reason for thinking that this might be the one that specifically inspired Fuuka's rumor in the game. Also, Hikiko's full name is often given as "Hikiko Mori". ..."Hikikomori". Very subtle.

#5 Cursed/Magic TV Shows/Websites (Persona 4 with a side of dancing)

Okay, these ones are so numerous and varied, I really couldn't pick out just a single one, even if I tried. 

Both, the Midnight Channel in Persona 4 and the Cursed Video in Persona 4 Dancing All Night are based on a long-lasting trend of urban legend about screens or radios showing or playing things that aren't supposed to be there, and causing effects to the people viewing them that are either extremely desirable or extremely bad. 

One example I found are a story about a man who found a Quiz Show at night on a channel that was meant to show Anime. In said quiz show, people admitted to doing various, awful crimes. Finally, the man himself was asked about 'his' crimes by the quiz show. When he refused to answer, he was tossed off his balcony and died. 

Another example is the story of the "Red Room", a pop up that will appear on your computer after you attempt to research the story. Well, sucks to be me I guess. It says that after you attempt to close the pop-up several times, it will ask you if you 'like the red room'. Then, you'll kill yourself and paint your own room red with your blood. So if I go on another 6 months hiatus after this, you'll know what happened.

#6 High School... of YOUR death (Persona Q with a side of Dancing and Arena-ish...)

This one.... has got to be cheating, but I found it relevant, so hear I go. Of course, Persona Q is full of school ghost stories, I mean, one of its major plot points is about a literal School Ghost (spoilers?) but the one that stands out to me the most is the legend claiming that those who hear the long idle school bell strike shall die - a story very similar to another rumor from early in Persona 2 IS, where hearing the school bell while wearing the school emblem would result in one's face getting terribly disfigured. This story is--- sadly not one I could find a direct real life equivalent to.  (cry) BUT! I do have something else.

Dalies and Mentlegen, the Tale of the Dream School.

There's a guy, let's call him Kei. One night, Kei has a very strange dream. He's wandering around a school he doesn't know, full of closed paths he can't go. The school is built like a Labyrinth that goes nowhere and the hallways seem to be going nowhere, which Kei finds very strange indeed. Now, unfortunately for Kei, he neglected to retrieve the key for the emergency exists and leave through there, because that might just have saved him. Instead, he stumbled upon a room of dismembered, dancing students. Yes. Dismembered AND dancing. It's a weird school like that. Anyway, at that point, Kei's fate was sealed, he stayed trapped in the dream world forever and never woke up. The end.

Stories like these are a nice potential source of the Persona series liking for school hallways turning into an impenetrable maze of death, as well the tidbit about "never waking up" in the cursed video's rumor from Persona 4 Dancing All Night.

I, on the other hand, can only wonder if this means that I should be very worried about my recent tendency to flash back to the horrors of my high school years at night. Again. If I disappear, you know where I am.

#7 Magic Message Boards (Persona 5)

And finally, for the grand finale...! Drumroll, please... 

The rumor... Is YOU my friend! Yes, you! The Phantom Thieves! Oh, wait, you thought I meant the real you? Eh, no, sorry. You're just... someone, I don't know... (JK I love you) CARRYING ON!

While Persona 5 is, for the most part, surprisingly light on the traditional sort of Ghost Story we've been getting used to from previous installments. It gives us one big Urban Legend right there in the premise: You, the Phantom Thieves, as an unexplained, supernatural force, granting the pleas of the oppressed and punishing the very minds of those corrupt. How do you contact this mysterious power for its aid?! Why, via an internet message board, of course! An urban legend of the modern age, indeed. 

Reflective of current trends or not, the way how the world's belief in the Phantom Thieves strengthens and weakens their power over Tokyo over the course of the game -something that is actually measured with an in-game meter- is very reminiscent of how rumors work in Persona 2, and while you may now say "The Phantom Thieves aren't an urban legend in the game's world, they're one hundred percent fact!" Well, the same is true for almost everything else on this list now, isn't it?

The Persona series is and has always been a story about thoughts altering reality, and what thoughts are more powerful than those passed on from person to person, shaping a story so well-known, it already seems real at times! In a way, Nyarlathotep was right, rumors, myths and Urban Legends are reflections of how we, as a collective perceive our world, how we fear it, and what we want from it.

Now, if only the collective unconscious could keep me from suffering the dire consequences of all this forbidden knowledge I have uneart- *disappears spookily and suddenly*

#Megami Ibunroku Persona #Persona 2 #Persona 3 #Persona 4 #Persona 5 #Neni Theory #Neni Talks

[tokikurp]

If its okay with you, UshiSemi 72 or 140 please :")

I was going to do both, but this one got long enough (￣▽￣*)ゞ

72: “They’re going to love you, don’t worry!”

😱 Over 200 prompts to pick for your OTP °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

It isn’t often that Ushijima gets nervous, it’s rare actually. 

Upcoming exams? Nope! 

Volleyball games? Nope! 

University interviews? Nope!

Meeting Semi’s family for the first time? …about that.

Meeting his boyfriend’s parents is something Ushijima knew would eventually happen, but it still didn’t stop him from getting nervous. From what he’s heard about Semi’s family is that his Father is a lawyer and his Mother is a business woman. The two of them often traveled a lot and because of that, they weren’t home that often. Semi doesn’t often talk about them a lot just because they can be overseas at times. Time differences are often to blame, but other times, they’re busy with their work. So because Semi doesn’t talk much about them, Ushijima has no idea what they’re like!

But Semi’s Grandmother on the other hand, he is looking forward to meeting her! From what he knows about Grandma Semi is that she loves to travel, crafty, loves cooking & baking and is a big volleyball fan. She often took care of Semi when his parents were off on business and formed a bond with him; a bond that everyone could see. She called him everyday to make sure he was well, asking how training went (and would gripe about Washijo for pushing her Grandson). She also makes food for Semi and give him it on Sundays before he would return to school. She would even make a batch of cookies for the team that would be gone by Monday evening.

While Ushijima is looking forward to meeting Grandma Semi, he’s nervous about meeting Semi’s parents.

“’Toshi, there’s no need to be nervous. They’re going to love you, don’t worry!” Semi reassured as they walked up to the setter’s home. He placed a hand on his nervous boyfriend’s shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. 

“I’m not so much worried about your Grandmother, it’s your parents I’m nervous about. You talk about your her so much, but not so much about your parents. I know little about them.” Ushijima has a point and Semi realizes that.

“I know,” Semi answers as he rubbed the back of his neck. “But they’re really looking forward to meeting you. Last week, my parents were in Seoul and I was able to talk to them for a little bit each day. I told them as much as I could about you and they’re looking forward to meeting you.”

“Well…that helps a little.” It sort of did, but he still is very nervous. Semi sighed and pushed up to give the wing spiker a kiss on his cheek.

“Come on, Grandma is making hayashi rice just for you!” The setter smiled as he lead his boyfriend into his home. “I’m home-”

“Oh would you two put your ring-a-dings and computers up! For once, can your works not get in the way of dinner! We are meeting Eita’s boyfriend tonight and I don’t want him to be talking to two walls!” Came an angry elder’s voice, making Ushijima look up from removing his shoes. Semi chuckled as he stood up.

“Don’t worry, Grandma is very sweet.” He smiled at his confused boyfriend.

“I…see?” Ushijima asked when a raised eyebrow.

“I’m home!” Semi called out again. Ushijima stood up when a short elderly lady poked her head out of the kitchen and gasped. 

“Oh there’s my grandbaby!” The elder smiled as she walked over to the two and kissed Semi’s cheeks, the setter embracing her in return.

“Hi Grandma, do you need any help in the kitchen?”

“Oh no, I have your parents doing all the work.” She smiled and then noticed the very tall man that stood behind the setter. “Oh now is this the Ushijima Wakatoshi I’ve heard so much about?”

“Yes this is. Grandma,” Semi started as he pulled the wing spiker over. “This is Ushijima Wakatoshi. ‘Toshi, this is Grandma.”

“It is an honor to meet you. Eita has talked very highly of you.” Ushijima greeted as he bowed to her. The elder giggled and patted his head.

“Oh what a gentleman. Please, Ushijima-san, call me Grandma or as Satori likes to call me, Grandma Semi.” Grandma Semi replied as she stepped back and bowed back to the wing spiker.

“Alright then.” Ushijima spoke as he stood back up.

“So Grandma, where’s Mom and Dad?” Semi asked as the elder pointed to the kitchen.

“Ushijima-san, I hope you like onigiri because I made some for while we wait for dinner.” Grandma Semi smiled as she grabbed the wing spiker’s hand, Semi going ahead to greet his parents.

“Of course.”

“Wonderful! Come along, I’ve made plenty!” Grandma Semi spoke, leading the wing spiker into the kitchen.

“Oh Eita, your bags are so heavy! When was the last time you got a decent amount of sleep?” A female’s voice came as the two entered the kitchen. Ushijima noticed the woman cupping her hand’s on Eita’s face while the man near them stirred a pot.

“Good question, I don’t know. You know there’s this thing called school, university applications, volleyball training, trying to maintain a social life-”

“Alright Eita, turn your sass down.” The man chuckled.

“Says the one he get’s it from!” The women pouted. Wow, she made the same pouty face as Eita does.

“And he got his temper from-”

“From the both of you!” Grandma Semi barked.

‘She might be short, but she has a bark. Satori wasn’t kidding.’ Ushijima thought while being lead to the table, a plate of onigiri already set out.

“And Dad gets it’s from Grandma!” Semi widely grinned at his parents.

“…yes he does.” The woman agreed as he patted Semi’s cheeks. “Please get a FULL eight hours of sleep during summer vacation.”

“Wakatoshi will make sure of that.” Semi said as he turned his head toward the wing spiker, already taking a bit of one of the rice balls. “Right, ‘Toshi?”

“Yes of course.”

“Oh so this is who we’re meeting tonight.” The man said, turning around to look at the wing spiker. “Nice to finally meet you.

“Yes it’s nice to finally meet you. I’m Semi Koi, Eita’s Mother.” Koi introduced herself. Koi is shorter than her husband and son, dark brown hair and sharp brown eyes that looked just like Semi’s.

“And I’m Satoru, Eita’s Father.” Satoru introduced with a wave of his hand. Satoru looked to be about his son’s height, ash blond hair and round dark brown eyes. 

“Is the sauce done, dear?” Grandma Semi asked as she walked over to Satoru.

“I think so? I have no idea what I’m looking for.” He answered as the elder checked.

“Well if you wouldn’t take so many business trips and stayed home to learn how to properly cook, you would know.” She smiled.

“Duty calls.”

“And so does home. I hope you two aren’t planning on taking any trips during the week of Inter-high.”

“Uhhhh.”

“Whoops, busted!” Semi sang as he walked over to sit next to Ushijima.

“So Ushijima-san, how long have you been playing volleyball?“ Satoru asked, turning his attention of the wing spiker now.

“I was introduced to it by my father when I was young. He use to be a professional volleyball player until he was injured and he retired.”

“Oh that’s interesting.” Koi responded with a nod.

“Were either of you into volleyball?” The wing spiker asked, the pair shaking their heads.

“Neither of us played. Eita was interested after seeing a match on TV one day. He wouldn’t stop talking about it for days.” Koi replied. “So we signed him up for a session at our local gym and he loved it so much he begged to go back.”

“And the rest of history.” Semi smirked.

“Have you decided on what university you’ll be attending?” Satoru asked while glancing over to Semi.

“I don’t see that look you’re giving me, Dad.” Semi said as he looked away.

“I’ve narrowed it down to about three. All of which are in Tokyo.”

“Oh good picks. I went to Osaka and she went to Kyoto.” Satoru said as Ushijima nodded.

“What do you hope to study?”

“I’m looking at business.”

“Oh if you need any help, please let me know. I graduated at the top of my class.” Koi smiled.

“Thank you, I’ll keep that in mind.”

“She’s a smart one, she has a master’s in business.” Satoru pointed out.

“Sauce is done! Koi would you grab the plates?” Grandma Semi announced as Satoru took the pot off the stove. “And drop the subject of school and get to know him. Eita has told me he loves to garden!”

“Yes, I do enjoy gardening. I could give you all the tips I can offer.” The wing spiker answered as the adults came to the table.

“Maybe he can help you with that garden you’ve always wanted, hon.” 

“You have to be home to take care of it though.” Semi pointed out with a smirk.

“Well I’m sure there are some plants that don’t need much care.” Koi assumed.

“There are.” And Ushijima went right into talking about those plants. 

#Alpaca Ask #Sneaky Anon #UshiSemi #And at the end of the night they demand Semi marry Ushi ( ´ ▽ ` ) #Thank you for sending!! #ENJOY 🎉 #tokiwriting

[gamerspasm]

Top 15 Wii U Games

Well, here we are. We all knew this day was coming; it was always inevitable, but it’s still sad that it came around so soon. The Wii U’s life has drawn to a close. Commercially the console could be called a failure. It was unequivocally Nintendo’s “mistake” system, being hit by bad decision after bad decision and undergoing trouble from the very moment the game pad appeared in Satoru Iwata’s hands. It lost support from third parties, mainstream media regarded it as a joke, and no matter how hard it tried it just couldn’t get off the ground. But I’m not here to talk about the obvious and blatant flaws; many other people have been doing that for some 4 years now. No, I want to talk about the successes; more specifically the games. Even though the Wii U had a rocky life, I still defended it for one reason: the games. Honestly, the Wii may be Nintendo’s best selling system, but the Wii U’s library is vastly superior in quality. So, if we are to say goodbye to the Wii U, let’s do it right by honouring the amazing experiences it gave us. And, just to prove a point, I am only going to be including exclusives. Starting with:

15. Xenoblade Chronicles X

Don’t let anyone tell you the Wii U only caters to the young or the casual. Why? Because Xenoblade Chronicles X exists. Simply put, this is, without a doubt, the most complex and hardcore gaming experience I’ve ever played. This is both a good thing and bad thing. Good, because for those who enjoy statistics for days, there’s a lot to love; bad, because for those that don’t, prepare for a rocky ride. There is a gigantic barrier of entry here. Information is thrown at you left and right, and some parts are a little convoluted. It can make your head spin sometimes. So, no, this game isn’t for everyone, but if you’re willing to stick it through and entrench yourself, you’ll be rewarded with an engaging and enjoyable experience. The sheer scale and scope of this game defies description. It is huge. Absolutely enormous; and the best thing about that is the level of immersion it delivers as a result. The genuine feeling of vertigo as you leap off a cliff to the ocean below; the real sense of distance as you make your way toward a mountain on the horizon, and best of all (if you install the game data onto the system) it’s all incredibly seamless. No loading times between areas or lag. It’s all rather astonishing, and when there’s so much to do in this massive world, you’ll be at it for months. Long story short, Xenoblade Chronicles X is a niche time sink and a half, but in terms of adventure, you’re not going to find a greater supply on this system.

14. Nintendo Land

One of the best gaming memories I’ve ever had was getting my Wii and playing Wii sports for the first time. It was a great way to show off the strengths of the console, while still being a fairly decent game in its own right. Even though the Wii U didn’t quite capture the same experience, I have to say the bundled in showcase-game is arguably the better of the two. Not only does this game show off the strengths of the Wii U’s Gamepad, it also has a surprising amount of depth. Even more surprising is that depth has variety. Whether want a quick little mini-game to kill some time, or something a little more adventurous, it’s all here. The game also doubles up as a party game too, offering a lot of laughs as well as some great experiences. Even though the Wii U’s launch was arguably weak, and the first 6 months of its life weren’t much better, Nintendo Land still made me excited for what was still to come. 

13. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker   

It’s true what they say about big things and small packages. One glance at Captain Toad Treasure Tracker and you’d think Nintendo just weren’t trying anymore, and yet, this experience is so utterly delightful, so effortlessly charming, that I dare you not to enjoy yourself. The premise is simple; the design, layered; and the gameplay instinctively fun. There’s also a surprising amount of things to do. There are mission challenges, time trials, and bonus extra mini-games. Not only that but everything looks amazing. Treasure Tracker may not be a full Mario title, but it doesn’t have to be. It’s perfectly good at being what it is, and what it is is wonderful fun.

12. Bayonetta 2

It was clear before the console launch that Nintendo was serious about delivering games. Naming Bayonetta’s sequel as a Wii U exclusive was a huge move. It infuriated a lot of fans needlessly (I mean c’mon, the game wouldn’t be happening at all if it wasn’t for Nintendo footing the bill) but it quickly got on to a lot of people’s “best of Wii U” lists. It’s a shame the game didn’t have the pull to get more people to jump on Nintendo’s side, but regardless it’s still a blast. Platinum keeps its form strong as it echoes the previous cult-classic, whilst also slipping in some new things along the way. It does feel a little too close to its predecessor at times and it can lack the scale, scope, and initial wow factor too, but taken as it is, it’s still a phenomenal title to get stuck in with. Looking for action? This is the game for you. Of course, there’s also...

11. The Wonderful 101

One name: Hideki Kamiya. Bayonetta 2 was missing its size and scope because this man was no longer directing. Put simply, Kamiya likes things to be big. He’s the Rita Repulsa of the video game industry. If he can have a monster the size of a planet, it’s going in his game. If he can fill a screen with so much mayhem and carnage and yet maintain a cohesive experience, it’s going to happen. This is the case for the Wonderful 101. A game I didn’t even know I wanted until I booted it up. An inspired and chaotic game that is completely unique. Its writing is on comic point; its imagery is beautifully creative; its unabashed self-awareness is a breath of fresh air; and it is a wild ride from start to finish. A common complaint from players was that its control style was fiddly and unresponsive inputs tainted the experience, but I very rarely had these issues. It’s a shame this game came out right when Wii U opinion was at its lowest. This game deserves more love. It’s wonderful.

10. Star Fox Zero

Go ahead, call me a fanboy, I’m at the point where I don’t care anymore. I don’t care what you think of me, Star Fox Zero is a good game. I stand by that, 100%. The fact that I am a Nintendo fan makes it harder to convey this authentically. “Oh but the controls are garbage” They’re fine. Seriously, if you think they’re unplayable its because you’re either an impatient gamer or a cynic, or both. I played through the whole first level without using the “awkward” controls at all (granted you have to use them during the final scene but the point still stands), and the more I played, the more adept I became. Also, did I mention that this is the best Star Fox game since the N64? Because it is. Yes, it is more or less a reboot of Star Fox 64 (and I hope they don’t just keep doing this as the series moves on) but if like me you’ve been waiting patiently for another genuine Star Fox outing for some 20 years or so, a reboot is more than welcome. Every now and again I’ll keep thinking about it and I just get the urge to jump back in and have a blast. No other game on the Wii U has that much draw for me. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and the internet has handed down its verdict, but as far as I’m concerned Star Fox Zero is excellent. 

9. Super Mario Maker

When it comes to celebrating the 30th anniversary of their mascot, Nintendo doesn’t mess around. Getting the chance to make your own Mario levels has been the dream of a lot of fans since the franchise first started, and the Wii U seemed like the perfect system to let it happen. With a near limitless amount of fun to be had, Super Mario Maker offers a simplistic design to an arguably complex task. Making levels is highly enjoyable, and seeing what other talented designers can come up with can lead to some of the best Mario experiences ever. Realistically, it could do no wrong, but it’s such a shame Nintendo let the side down by failing to curate the content it was pushing. Genuinely brilliant levels were trampled by a stampede of half-baked, terrible ones, and sometimes creating levels has no value when they can just be deleted at random (thanks again for that, Nintendo, I’m not going to get that hour back). However, even with this in mind, I maintain that this is still a strong game. I don’t regret the hours I poured into it, and it was a fantastic way to flex some creative muscles. It also acted as a basic guide to game design. Sure, it’s now on 3DS as well, but I will still class this game as a Wii U title first and foremost; and it’s one of the best too.

8. Hyrule Warriors

Super Mario Maker may seem like a time sink, but that sink is only as deep as the creativity of those playing. If you really want a time sink on Wii U, look no further than Hyrule Warriors. This game has such an inordinate amount of content it can drive people to madness, and all you do is mash, slam, and maul your way through endless enemy forces. And I love it. Being a Zelda fan helps with the world and characters on display here, but realistically you don’t need to be a fan of that franchise. You just need to be a fan of carnage and all its cathartic wonders. Furthermore it suits all gamers - those looking for a half-hour session or those looking for something bigger. Put simply, Hyrule Warriors is fun. Its design is fun. Its stages are fun. It - is - fun. Yes, like Super Mario Maker, it’s also found its way onto the 3DS, but if you’re asking which is the definitive version, it’s the Wii U, hands down.

7. Super Smash Bros. For Wii U   

Super Mario Maker was a little bit of a show-stealer at E3 2015, but it has nothing on the year prior. Super Smash Bros. dominated that stage with its invitational tournament and promise. It was the first of the franchise to go portable on the 3DS, and whilst I personally think the portability makes that the better of the two, when it comes to content and general quality, it has to be the Wii U version. This game just has so much to offer, perhaps not on the scale of say Hyrule Warriors, but what it lacks in quantity it makes up for in variety. You’ve got 8 player smash; multiplayer in single player modes; events; more courses to choose from; amiibo functionality (for non new 3DS or puck owners) and that’s all on top of everything the series is used to bringing. In terms of direction, this game doesn’t have it, but that’s the best part. What you have here is a playground where you can do whatever you want, however you want, with whomever you want. If I had any drawbacks it would be the DLC. Not that DLC is a problem in general here, but rather the way Nintendo decided to handle it. Having to pay more to get the same DLC on both Wii U and 3DS is not cool, guys, since that actually punishes the loyal fans who bought both copies. It’s stupid. Luckily, you don’t need the DLC to still have an absolute blast with this game. It’s easily one of the best multiplayer experiences on the Wii U. 

6. Splatoon 

Speaking of multiplayer, I couldn’t really make a best of Wii U list without putting Splatoon in there, now could I. This game caught everyone off guard. By all accounts this should have been a massive failure. Not because it’s bad, but rather because the climate around the Wii U at the time was temperamental at best. Not only was the console getting no real support from the media, but also, Nintendo had decided to release a brand new IP for their most unpopular system. With no built-in fanbase, to say this game was a risk is an understatement. Yet, despite it all, it paid off. Almost overnight Splatoon became the Wii U’s most celebrated game. Not only was it a great game, but it also reinvigorated an arguably tired genre, offering a new twist on an already established experience as well as rewarding consumers with weekly updates, keeping the game...well...fresh. Now I will say that multiplayer focused online games aren’t my forte, but even with that said, every time I played Splatoon, whether it was just for a quick few games, or whether I was getting involved in the Splatfests, I had an incredible amount of fun. It’s not hard to see why this game is so beloved and why it’s sequel is already getting a lot of attention on the Switch.

5. Yoshi’s Woolly World

I really loved Yoshi’s Island on the SNES. It’s without a doubt one of my favourite games of all time; but it seems that Nintendo just couldn’t bottle lightning twice. Until Woolly World came out. Finally, we have a worthy successor. Woolly World gets the balance perfect. There’s all the familiar that the fans know and love, but the elements that always felt shoe-horned in before have been dropped. The wool motif isn’t just an ascetic choice either, it’s actually creatively put into the design, leading to some inventive puzzles, as well as ingenious stages. Furthermore, the design here is so tight. This game teaches you about itself as you play. By the last world you’ll be able to see all the hidden areas with ease; and that’s not even going into how each level is completely original. I had so much fun playing I was genuinely saddened when it all came to an end. It’s safe to say that I love this game.

4. Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze

The fate of Tropical Freeze is quite a sad one. Y’see, at the start of 2014 when this game came out, the Wii U was circling the drain as far as public opinion was concerned. Sure, it had one or two good games in 2013, but let’s face it the Wii U was dead in the water - many people thought. As a result, this game received no love from critics. Criticised for its design being too similar to its predecessor, among other petty things, Tropical Freeze just never really saw much of the light of day. Ask anyone now though, and they’ll all tell you the same thing: Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze is probably the best 2D platformer in years. I will admit some critiques stick, but they do nothing to tarnish the strength of this game. Every level is well designed and unique; the introduction of more kongs varies and shakes up the play style; the look and feel is absolutely fantastic; and the music...oh the music. Quite possibly the best soundtrack of 2014, and if you know what soundtracks came out in that year, you’ll know that is saying something. Honestly, I was considering this game for a higher position on my list, but you have to understand, even though this game is amazing (and it IS amazing) there are still 3 games I consider as better. Such as...

3. Pikmin 3

After somewhat of a hiatus on the Wii, Pikmin returned on the Wii U in what can only be described as the series best. I say that in disbelief. The first Pikmin was such a momentous time-management game, and a staple of the Gamecube era; it’s sequel was also a wonderful game, how does the third instalment match up to them? First it truly utilises the Gamepad’s functionality, allowing for insane multitasking feats, and second it reinvents part of its key formula. Pikmin 1 gave you 30 days to succeed; whereas Pikmin 2 didn’t give you any deadline at all. Pikmin 3 however, gives you as much time as you need, provided you can get it. No longer are you searching for salvage in order to escape the planet, you’re looking for food - to survive long enough to escape the planet. Literally, if you are not careful with your time, the game will just end on you. Same pressure, different style. In addition, the game looks gorgeous; has so much love, charm, and character; and has such a draw of replay-ability, my brother actually played it twice in quick succession to try and do things better on the second go. Thinking back, I’m actually struggling to pinpoint anything bad about it. It’s a true marvel.

2. Super Mario 3D World

A lot of people said when the Wii U launched back in November 2012 that it came out a year early. This was because, as I said before, the launch line up wasn’t too impressive, and the wait for some big new games took practically 6 months. Though it pains me to say it, I have to agree. If the Wii U launched in November 2013, we’d have Pikmin 3 and The Wonderful 101 both at launch for a start, But we’d also have Super Mario 3D World on top of that. Whilst the Wii U did launch with a Mario game, there’s no doubt which title is superior. Super Mario 3D World, as many people have said, is the game the console should have launched with. That’s not to say New Super Mario Bros. U is a bad game by any means, but it pales in comparison to this stellar achievement of entertainment and design. Continuing the style of the incredible Super Mario 3D Land on the 3DS, 3D World takes everything up to 11. Level design is some of the series best; power ups are new and are actually interesting; a mixture of play styles and characters to choose from to keep things unique; outstanding graphics and music; and a whole boat load of things to do. Just when you think you’ve beaten the game, another world opens up; then another one after that, and then more after that. It’s truly a gift that keeps on giving and it’s all remarkably fun to boot. Not only that but 3D World delivers what I would say is the hardest level ever made by official Nintendo devs: the infamous Champion’s Road. It is as the name implies: only masters of Mario should attempt, and even then they should be wary. All in all, Super Mario 3D World is easily one of the finest Mario games ever made, let alone on Wii U. It’s absolutely fantastic; but it is still not the best game the Wii U has to offer. It is a majestic game to be sure, but if there’s one title that deserves the crown for best Wii U game, it has to be...

1. Mario Kart 8

Without a doubt. What other game could it be? When compiling this list, as difficult as it was to rank all the other games here, I knew this game was number 1. It is the most refined Mario Kart experience yet. Everything looks gorgeous; environments old and new are beautifully presented; the tracks are some of the best in the franchise; the music is extraordinarily brilliant; and the gameplay is not only seamless and enjoyable, its also addictive. Oh but the fun doesn’t stop there, as online functionality gives this game a near limitless amount of play time. “Oh but what if other players just stop playing?” Ha, what? I wager I could boot the game up right now and find people from all over the world playing it. The only way those servers are going to get empty before April 28th 2017 is if Nintendo closes them down. It’s the best selling and most popular game on the system, and with good reason. But, Mario Kart 8 isn’t just an outstanding game, it’s also served as the flagship of the Wii U. Do you remember before when I mentioned how low the opinion of the console was back in early 2014? This game, when it launched in May that year, was so great, it changed the Wii U perception dramatically, and it gave rise to one of the console’s strongest years. Furthermore it was one of the first Nintendo games to do DLC, and it even hit it out of the park there. For a reasonable fee, players were given extra characters as well as four new grand prixs; essentially, players were getting a bonus Mario Kart game on top of the one they already owned. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, Nintendo just added a 200cc mode for free. The sheer level of content given to us was astounding. Only a short-sighted battle mode brought this game down from perfection, but as far as I’m concerned that’s barely a dent. Mario Kart 8 is the Wii U’s best game, plain and simple, and if you disagree I will fight you.

#Wii U #Top 15 #List #Mario #Zelda #Star Fox #Pikmin #Donkey Kong #super smash bros wii u #Yoshi #Splatoon

[gentlemansaurusrex]

The Nintendos and Nintendon’ts

           Hey all! I apologize for not posting last week, but I was unable to due to a youth conference. This week I will be focusing on a unique history that is very near and dear to my heart, the history of video games. Video games is a very broad topic, so I will be narrowing it down to one specific company that was a pioneer in this field, that company is Nintendo. Before I can go into talking about Nintendo, I must give a brief overview of a section of Japanese history. The history of Hanafuda.

           Hanafuda, are essentially Japanese playing cards. Like the ones we have today, typically with the different card suites and numbers. The Japanese counter parts have different characters, animals, or paintings on them. The idea of playing cards came to Japan in 1549 through Portuguese Jesuits on mission. The cards they carried were part of a card game known as Hombre. In 1633, Japan closed itself off from the Western World and banned any foreign goods, these cards were part of that ban. That did not stop the Japanese from having underground gambling dens or secret areas to play cards. Think of it as the American Prohibition era but you had Japanese Metsuke (censors and secret police) looking for you and if you got caught, you could be executed. The creation of hanafuda cards and the metsuke banning them just became a giant game of cat and mouse. This lead to different designs of the cards, as well as other games to be created.  Over time, the different card designs, the games, and basically the cards themselves became very popular.

           This is where Nintendo comes in. In 1889, a Japanese business man who loved the card game decided that it would be a good idea to paint and sell his own hanafuda cards. This man was Fusajiro Yamauchi. Yamauchi opened his little store in Kyoto, Japan calling it Nintendo Koppai which became the first hanafuda store. The store name roughly translates to “Leave luck to heaven” or “To leave one’s fortune in the hands of fate”. During the time of the opening of the shop, Yamauchi’s merchandise of cards was still considered banned. I find it ironic that he named it after luck and fate because what he was doing was certainly a gamble. Despite the fear of getting shut down, his store became very popular and he decided to open a branch in Osaka, Japan. In 1929, Yamauchi retired and gave the company to his son in law Sekiryo Kaneda (he eventually took Yamauchi’s name). Fusajiro left the business to Sekiryo and did nothing with it. He eventually passed away in 1940. The below picture is of Sekiryo.

When Sekiryo took over the family business, one of the first decisions he made was to join with another company. He then renamed the company to Yamauchi Nintendo and Company. In 1947, Sekiryo created a distribution company named Marufuku Co., Ltd for the purpose of spreading more hanafuda cards. Sekiryo passed away in 1949 and his adopted son-in-law did not follow the family business, but his grandson Hiroshi Yamauchi did. A few years later under the leadership of Hiroshi, the newly named Nintendo Playing Card Co. Ltd was the first company in Japan to make playing cards out of plastic. The cards were originally made from tree bark and had been painted on. Through 1956 to 1959 success had begun to slowly creep into the small card company. Hiroshi visited the United States to see what the American card market was like, and was astonished that the world’s producer of cards was operated out of a small office. With seeing that, Hiroshi made a deal with Disney that would allow him to create cards with Disney’s characters on it and sell it in the Japanese market. This was a huge success, and with that, Hiroshi went public with Nintendo. This led to yet another name change, but a name that would stick. This name was Nintendo.

Nintendo did have a great start up in the 1950s, but the confidence and fame got to their head. They released many ventures such as vacuum cleaners, instant rice, taxi companies, and hotels. These all eventually failed, except for toy making. When 1964 hit, Nintendo fell hard for a brief period. The Olympics that year were taking place in Tokyo, which became a huge economic boom for all of Japan, except for Nintendo where the market for playing cards became over saturated. A year later, Nintendo would hire an engineer to look at and fix conveyor belts for the company, his name was Gunpei Yokoi. Yokoi would eventually help change the fate of Nintendo.

From 1966 to 1972, Nintendo was riddled with debt and was facing the ugly head of going under due to bankruptcy. One day, Hiroshi Yamauchi was visiting one of his hanafuda factories where he noticed a man toying with a piece of plastic. The piece of plastic was an extending arm and hand that would move small objects around, for fun. To Hiroshi’s amusement, he had the young engineering make him a similar device to fulfill the company’s busy Christmas schedule. That engineer was Gunpei Yokoi. Yokoi did what he was tasked to do and created the “Ultra Hand” which was essentially a small grabber that kids could use to pick up objects. The “Ultra Hand” was a huge success for Nintendo. Hiroshi then grabbed Yokoi and removed him from his position as a maintenance engineer and placed him in product development. With Yokoi’s experience in electrical engineering, this launched Nintendo into the electronical toy market. Developments in this field under Yokoi consisted of electronic puzzles, “Test Your Love” machines that were invented to see how much people loved each other, and a three-company collaboration project with SHARP, Nintendo, and Masayuki Uemura called the “Nintendo Beam Gun Game”. In1972, the beam gun would revolutionize the entertainment industry, the toy industry, and technology.

Nintendo, in 1972, collaborated with other companies to create the first ever commercialized video game console known as the Magnavox Odyssey. The MO had a game called “Shooting Gallery” that would allow the player to use one of the beam guns made by Nintendo. With the collaboration with the American company Magnavox, Nintendo secured the rights to sell the MO in Japan as well shifted from family entertainment to video games. The first of Nintendo’s video games were like the Atari systems. Atari was big back in the 1970s due to the game console stick that would connect with your tv and allow you to play pong. Pong was basically electronic table tennis. Nintendo released a few arcade games, but they did not strike gold until the 1980s. This is when the famous Donkey Kong arcade game came out. In this game, you were an unknown carpenter trying to save a lady from an evil King Kong figure. This carpenter, also known as Jump Man, would later become a plumber named Mario.

Before the big names like the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), the Super Nintendo, Game Boy, there was the first electronic handheld video games called Game & Watch created by Yokoi. The point of these handhelds was that you could put batteries in it and able to be entertained wherever you went. This made Nintendo a fortune. It also released the first major Nintendo Character from the G&W handhelds called Mr. Game & Watch who was a black silhouetted character.

Eventually Nintendo became more known worldwide which led them to create more video games and more systems. They started off with cards, the cards turned into toys, the toys turned into electronics, the electronics got more advanced and could be taken anywhere. From there, home video game entertainment systems could be plugged into the tv. From there, Nintendo’s game systems evolved and would change constantly, always wanting to push the envelope on what they could do. Flash forward to the 2000s, an old Hiroshi comes out with his last game system, the Nintendo Game Cube. This game system is literally how it sounds, it was a cube that could play video games and it had some of the best games since its precursor the Nintendo 64, in my opinion had one of the worst designed controllers that looked like you needed more fingers and hands to use it than possible. The Game Cube came out in 2002, and in 2005, Hiroshi passed away giving the company to Satoru Iwata.

Iwata, again in my opinion, was a genius. He worked as a programmer for Nintendo before becoming the CEO. His goal was to broaden the field of video games instead of having just one big line of games that were all similar. He created several games, but most of the characters are remembered because most people saw himself in some of those characters because he would always add a dash of his humor into it. They are as follows: Kirby, Earthbound series (Nes and Lucas from Super Smash bros series), the majority of the Pokemon franchise, Super Smash Bros, Animal Crossing, Metroid (Samus is not the main character, don’t you dare call her Metroid), Mario and the many games that came from that franchise, Fire Emblem, and my personal favorite, he gave the world The Legend of Zelda franchise. In 2015, Iwata went in for a check-up only to find a cancerous tumor. It was removed, but health problems persisted. He passed away at the age of 55 due to the persisting problems. Thanks to Iwata, my childhood as well as others were made better due to the adventures he had created.

The current president of Japanese is Tatsumi Kimishima, who honestly looks like a Scooby Doo villain. I honestly do not know the achievements he had made since Iwata’s passing, but he released the Nintendo Switch, which is great because it has The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild on it. But, since this is a post about Nintendo, I am going to talk about the American President of Nintendo. A guy named Reggie Fils-Aime. Reggie is important because he’s a total goofball and I think that he represents the legacy of Nintendo supporting its fans. Much like Iwata, who showed his humor in various ways like awkwardly staring at bananas for several minutes before saying anything in a meeting, Reggie is known to be a huge goofball. In 2007 while advertising the Wii Balance Board, Reggie was asked if he could demonstrate and responded with “My body…My body is ready”. This eventually became a meme, specifically whenever something new and exciting came out with video games, gamers would use his face and this quote to express how they felt. Besides being an overall goof, he’s pretty hilarious and has done good things with Nintendo. 

Nintendo is still around and kicking today. With many franchises still going on strong. They started off as a simple card company in the 1880s, but turned into a gigantic entertainment company today. So, if you ever think that you may not get anywhere, just be reminded about how successful Nintendo became. Even if you aren’t selling cards, if you put enough time and effort into anything, it will grow.

Next Week: I will be writing about the history surrounding world delicacies, like balut or the 1,000 Year Old Egg

#Nintendo Gaminghistory History

[viralhottopics]

RIP Wii U: Nintendo’s glorious, quirky failure

Nintendo has ceased production of Wii U less than five years after its launch. What went wrong, and what will be its legacy?

In late January it was announced that Nintendo had ceased production of the Wii U console. The follow-up machine to the hugely successful Wii had sold fewer than 15m units worldwide since its launch in 2012. PlayStation 4 sold more in a year. Wii sold more than 100m in its lifetime.

What happened? How did Nintendo, one of the oldest and most respected companies in the video game industry, get it so wrong? And did anything good come out of the Wii U era? How will the machine be remembered, if at all?

Certainly, some believe the console was cursed from the start right from the first announcement at the 2011 E3 video game conference in Los Angeles. Before that, Nintendo had made vague references to Project Cafe, a new piece of hardware deep in development at the companys famed R&D labs, but the nature of the device was unclear. The E3 presentation was supposed to be the big reveal.

Then, there it was at the Nintendo press conference, in front of the whole games industry. Wii U. Reggie-Fils-Aim, head of Nintendo America, gave an obtuse introduction and showed the unique GamePad controller, with its built-in display. After this, came a showreel of gaming moments, then nothing. The crowd whooped, but when the lights went down, a few expressed confusion: was the Wii U GamePad an extension to the original Wii? Was it an entirely new console? That evening, in an interview with the Evening Standard, the late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata stated: Because we put so much emphasis on the controller, there appeared to be some misunderstanding.

The PS4 and Xbox One, high-powered machines arrived and changed the gaming landscape. Composite: Xbox One S v PS 4 Pro v PS4 Slim v Project Scorpio

A masterpiece of understatement. In some ways, that misunderstanding never went away. Even when it became clear that Wii U was a whole new console, with a unique motion-sensitive screen pad, consumers were nonplussed. There had been rumours that, with its custom AMD 7 series graphics chipset and IBM multicore central processor, the machine would be more powerful than the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 especially as it was arriving years after those machines debuted. But before the launch, developers were already whispering to news sources that this was not the case driving the second-screen would eat up the graphics processing power and the CPU wasnt that special. It was all academic anyway: barely a year later, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One arrived to completely change the technological landscape.

But Nintendo wasnt competing with PlayStation and Xbox, and never really had. Instead, it needed to convert the tens of millions of Wii owners whod rarely bought consoles before; whod been seduced by the Wii Remote controller and the immediate, social experience it promised. Those people were now quietly migrating to other platforms: smartphones, tablets, set-top boxes … Thats who the Wii U was aimed at.

In the months following E3, it was at least picking up interest from the development community. I had done work on the N64, Gameboy, GameCube and Wii and I still maintain they were my favourite systems to work on, so when the WiiU was announced it had me excited, says Byron Atkinson-Jones of Xiotex Studios I wanted to see how far we could go in game design terms with the two screen setup. Were we going to get new game paradigms like we did with the Wii and its controllers?

However, even before the launch, the games media was complaining about a lack of compelling first-party content. The machine would arrive with only two major Nintendo titles, the mini-game collection Nintendo Land, and New Super Mario Bros U, a decent side-scrolling platformer, but by no means a major Mario title with with little involvement from Miyamoto. There were intriguing moments: Nintendo Land has the clever asymmetrical multiplayer action of Luigis Ghost Mansion and the boisterous arena-battler Animal Crossing: Sweet Day. But there was also nothing as immediately compelling as Wii Sports or Wii Play nothing that completely crystallised the idea of the GamePad.

Veteran developer Rhodri Broadbent once worked for Q-Games in Japan, and met Shigeru Miyamoto while making Star Fox Command. He felt there should still have been a role for the Wii Remote in the new era. The fact that Wii U did not come bundled with a Wii Remote was really disappointing to me, he says. I felt that the identity of the Wii Remote was worth continuing, and that combining the jump to HD visuals with the jump to HD motion control of the Wii Remote Plus would have been a smart play. In terms of marketing, the Wii Remote was iconic from the get-go, whereas the GamePad sadly didnt really get to find its identity in either software, nor marketing. There were some truly excellent, best-in-class games released for Wii U, but very few of them gave life or character to the GamePad.

The GamePad, as a unique selling point, was also a unique curse, an albatross around the neck of the whole project. Designers struggled over its multifaceted nature: should they support it as a standalone screen, a second-screen for the TV, or as a device to allow asymmetrical multiplayer experiences (the player with the GamePad is able to have a different experiences to others using Wii Remotes). It was a tough business proposition too. Games publishers like to be able to transition their projects freely between different machines most modern game engines are platform agnostic making this process easier. But Wii Us controller demanded a different approach, so including the console on multiplatform projects was complicated and expensive even if they were just going to use the GamePad as a mini-map, which many did.

Of the third-party games available at launch, most were quick conversions of familiar PlayStation and Xbox titles: Call of Duty, Batman, Fifa… few of these exploited the GamePad feature-set in truly innovative ways. The best was perhaps ZombiU, a fascinating survival horror title with a neat permadeath mechanic, set in a post-apocalyptic London that made inspired use of the GamePad as both an environment scanner and a cellphone. With its tense, gory action, it also brilliantly subverted expectations of a Nintendo launch title. But it wasnt enough.

The problem is, mainstream game development is all about confidence. Console manufacturers have to be certain that third-party publishers will support the device; third-party publishers have to be sure that consumers will buy it, and draw confidence from first-party titles; and consumers wont commit until they know there will be great titles from both first- and third-party studios. Its a vicious circle of reliance, and it often all depends on that launch week. Nintendo just didnt come up with the goods to inspire consumers, and because of this, the likes of Activision, Electronic Arts and Ubisoft were all backing off right from the outset.

Meanwhile, Nintendo was trying to make things easier for independent developers, noticing the huge influx of excellent indie titles on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. After the success of the 3DS eShop in attracting experimental games, the company set out to improve its digital store for the home console experience. However, its legacy was not good. On the Wii, support for smaller studios was patchy: the submissions process was, according to some studios, extremely lengthy, and there were sales thresholds that made it risky to commit to offbeat projects. Even after these problems had been addressed, Wii U had no support for the important multi-platform games engine Unity until much later in the consoles lifespan, strangling its potential with the indie community.

[The Wii U dev kit] was clunky and far more difficult to setup than its predecessors, says Atkinson-Jones. I remember opening the box it came in and there was a warning saying it was very easy to brick the machine so getting it setup was a terrifying prospect. Id love to say I got further than this but the reality is that even though Nintendo had signed So Hungry to appear on WiiU, Unity would not actually be ready for another year its because of this my other game Blast Em! came about and thankfully that game has kept my studio running. Once you got past all the problems of setup and getting a working build of Unity, it was just that much harder than doing any kind of cross platform work – the big difference being the two displays of course.

Nintendos Wii and revolutionary remote. Photograph: Andrew Parsons/PA

So the Wii U had a lot to contend with: a poorly conceived debut, a unique selling point that was difficult to describe, and a hesitant development community unwilling to commit resources to a quirky machine. But it did provide moments of genuine brilliance. The defining first-party titles Super Mario 3D World, Mario Kart 8, Super Smash Bros, Splatoon and Pikmin 3 may not have been top tier Nintendo originals (theres no Miyamoto Mario, no new Zelda), but they were excellent games, filled with interesting ideas and classic moments of design genius.

Pikmin 3 is one of the greatest games I have ever played on any system, says Broadbent. Its mission mode is so tightly balanced, with so many tricks and techniques to optimise battles, find new routes and shave seconds off your time that I can and often did replay the same mission for entire days without noticing that the my weekend had disappeared. Im a big fan of the oft-overlooked, but to my mind never bettered, New Super Mario Bros U, especially the challenge modes. And keeping with Mario, Super Mario Makers musical, whimsical user interface is a masterclass in hiding complexity and infusing character into menus the way the sound effects harmonise with the background music as you place objects on the screen is endlessly charming to me.

There were beautiful third-party games too, sparsely spread out though the machines lifespan perhaps, but certainly there. Cult Japanese studio PlatinumGames, best known for its demanding brawlers, was an unexpected hero producing two masterpieces for the machine: the extravagant Bayonetta 2, and the kookie super hero puzzler, Wonderful 101. Warner Bros brought us the excellent Armored edition of Batman Arkham City, but also the ludicrously overlooked Lego City Undercover, a hilarious Grand Theft Auto pastiche, which is now rightfully being remade for current consoles.

More importantly however, there were indie developers who truly embraced the idiosyncracies of the system and its development environment. We enjoy letting the quirks of specific hardware inspire new ideas and features here, so from a design point of view, Wii U was a lot of fun, says Broadbent. Gyros, a camera, a touch screen there was a lot there to use. For Scram Kitty, I had the idea of making the titular cat appear as a sort of sports commentator on the TV while the player focused on the GamePad action, and although in the end that element didnt turn out to be an essential feature of the game, it was a great source of personality for the game, and one which kept throwing up new ideas throughout development.

Highlights included DrinkBox Studios crazed platformer Guacamelee!: Super Turbo Championship Edition, the lovely retro platformer Shantae and the Pirates Curse, and the intriguing puzzler Art of Balance. Most were multiplatform, but lots used the Wii U capabilities in interesting ways. A key example was the engrossing Affordable Space Adventures from Danish developer KnapNok Games. In this interstellar puzzle game, the GamePad was used to monitor and interact with your crafts primary systems, including engines, anti-gravity controls and scanner, providing a great Star Trek bridge experience.

There were also thoughtful conversions of iOS titles, including Dakko Dakkos translation of the spooky narrative adventure Year Walk. We took a much more all-in approach to the machines feature set, combining the gyros, touch screen, separate displays, and even subtly altering the audio between the gamepad and the TV, to create very satisfying controls and puzzles, says Broadbent. The end result feels uniquely suited to Wii U.

Its also worth remembering Nintendos unique attempts to create friendly online communities around the Wii U. The Miiverse is a family-friendly social network in which players can chat about what theyre playing, draw and share pictures, and seek gaming advice, all within a safe, charming environment populated with customised Mii characters. It was a much more warm, human approach to networked play than Xbox Live or PlayStation Network and, as Jennifer Schneidereit, co-creator of luscious historical adventure Tengami discovered, it allowed unique relationships between developers and players:

It was possible to post to Tengamis Miiverse from within the game, to show level progress or ask other players for help, she says. As a developer I was able to interact with people in Tengamis Miiverse and help with puzzles, answer their questions and listen to their feedback. Because Miiverse posts are not only textual, players can also hand draw and incorporate stamps, it was a real delight to watch players using our stamps to create artwork of their own.

Wii U had a difficult start, with a difficult idea in a difficult era. The E3 presentation blurred what the machine actually was, and the GamePad was never an easy proposition to market unlike the Wii Remote that people could see was fun, just from the adverts. Meanwhile, with Xbox and PlayStation continuing their graphics arms race, and competition coming in from smartphones and tablets, the gaming audience seemed to be stratifying into two groups: the sorts of players who bought consoles and high-end PCs, and the sorts whod quite as happily play Candy Crush Saga for free on their phones. The idea of a console as the central focus of a party or family event, which had peaked between 2005 and 2010 with both the Wii and the rise of music games like Guitar Hero, had drifted out of favour.

Nintendos Shigeru Miyamoto. Photograph: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

Now here comes the Nintendo Switch, a regeneration of the Wii U concept where the GamePad effectively becomes the console, with its own built-in controllers. If anything, it is a more flagrant attempt to seduce casual players away from their phones, while tapping into the family living-room appeal of the original Wii. Broadbent sees Switch as a reconnection with that machine: Im very happy that the joy-cons have so many little tricks in them, and encouraged to see games like ARMS push forward higher-fidelity motion controls right out the gate. But Im mostly happy that Switchs identity as a home console thats not tied to your TV is being communicated so clearly.

Communication, it seems, is key. The Wii did its own communicating: you just watched people playing Tennis or Bowling and you knew it was fun. Nothing Nintendo has done with its hardware since then has been quite so alluring. But to write off Wii U as a creative failure would be a gross disservice. The GamePad actualised a lot of vague entertainment industry hype about the second screen, and lots of games truly illustrated the magic of the concept. And lets not forget that Wii U also saw Nintendos entry into the toys to life market with its Amiibo characters little figurines that could be placed on the screen to interact with games. They sold over 40m of those.

In years to come, people will pick up the console second-hand, with a few games Super Mario 3D World, Bayonetta 2, Mario Kart 8 and theyll realise what it was that Nintendo had in mind, theyll understand the appeal of the hardware. Much too late, of course.

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