“Someone aside from Game Freak should make Pokémon. Scarlet and Violet are just too buggy”
So I’ve seen criticism like that before, and I think it kind of misses the point of why these games came out in the state that they did. Because when comments like that are made, they always seem to be in bad faith. They in large seem to argue that the developers were lazy or didn’t know how to do their jobs. And while that is certainly possible, I highly doubt that. If only because people passed all of the slow down and occasionally wonky looks, I think Scarlett and Violet are legitimately very fun games. I honestly think this is more of a matter of a lack of polish. If the game could have been in development for another year, then I don’t think people who be complaining nearly as much (they would of course be complaining because Pokémon fans are never happy [which is a much longer conversation and I plan to eat dinner at some point today]). But I think that hits on what I see as the major problem. Time.
Game Freak has said before that Gen IX started development right after Sword and Shield came out in 2019. So a three year development time. Not an impossible development time and Game Freak have always been very good at scope management. But that’s far less manageable if you look at it more holistically. I wasn’t able to find like an average development time for Open World Games, but looking at the two other big open world games the Switch has to offer, The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild and Xenoblade Chronicles 3, does give us some kind of idea. BotW had a 6 year development period. Xenoblade had a smaller one in 4 years. Both games had longer to cook the Scarlet and Violet did. Even the other Open World Pokemon game that came out this year, Pokémon Legends Arceus, had 4 years of development time. And I think that’s speaks to the other time problem.
BotW And Xenoblade had the benefit of only having the one game to work on. Development for Gen IX started after Sword and Shield came out in 2019. And what came out after that game? The DLC Packs and Legends Arcus. So not only does this game have a larger scope, but it also had to be developed in a company that was working on other games during the COVID Pandemic. You can tell just how stressful and exhausting all of that is just by the nature that the Gen IV remakes I didn’t mention earlier in games Game Freak were making. That’s because it was developed by another company. The first mainline Pokémon game made by another company because they were already working on two other games at the time. 1 of which would have to be released with less time devoted to it.
Now, I suggested earlier that they should have delayed the game by a year to keep working on it, but I don’t think that would have been possible. And that’s because of the Pokémon Company which manages the multimedia aspect of the series. If Gen IX is delayed then it’s not just a game that’s delayed. It’s a card game. A manga. An anime. A number of toys, and tie in products. If the developers looked at all they still had left to do at the start of 2022 and said ‘we can’t do this by November’ then I doubt they would have been able to convince the people in charge to delay it. And bringing in new people to basically work overtime on these sort of stuff in hazardous in a lot of ways save for moments where it’s slow enough to actually train new people. And given the pandemic and multiple overlapping development cycles going on, I imagine most new people wouldn’t be able to really pitch in.
I think to solution here isn’t to give Pokémon to a new developer or to double the size of the company. It’s to let the developers at game freak have the time to actually make a game. Because the system and conditions they currently have seem untenable. After all, the cracks are already beginning to show.
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the thing is there's like, a point of oversaturation for everything, and it's why so many things get dropped after a few minutes. and we act like millennials or gen z kids "have short attention spans" but... that's not quite it. it's more like - we did like it. you just ruined it.
capitalism sees product A having moderate success, and then everything has to come out with their "own version" of product A (which is often exactly the same). and they dump extreme amounts of money and environmental waste into each horrible simulacrum they trot out each season.
now it's not just tiktokkers making videos; it's that instagram and even fucking tumblr both think you want live feeds and video-first programming. and it helps them, because videos are easier to sneak native ads into. the books coming out all have to have 78 buzzwords in them for SEO, or otherwise they don't get published. they are making a live-action remake of moana. i haven't googled it, but there's probably another marvel or starwars something coming out, no matter when you're reading this post.
and we are like "hi, this clone of project A completely misses the point of the original. it is soulless and colorless and miserable." and the company nods and says "yes totally. here is a different clone, but special." and we look at clone 2 and we say "nope, this one is still flat and bad, y'all" and they're like "no, totally, we hear you," and then they make another clone but this time it's, like, a joyless prequel. and by the time they've successfully rolled out "clone 89", the market is incredibly oversaturated, and the consumer is blamed because the company isn't turning a profit.
and like - take even something digital like the tumblr "live streaming" function i just mentioned. that has to take up server space and some amount of carbon footprint; just so this brokenass blue hellsite can roll out a feature that literally none of its userbase actually wants. the thing that's the kicker here: even something that doesn't have a physical production plant still impacts the environment.
and it all just feels like it's rolling out of control because like, you watch companies pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into a remake of a remake of something nobody wants anymore and you're like, not able to afford eggs anymore. and you tell the company that really what you want is a good story about survival and they say "okay so you mean a YA white protagonist has some kind of 'spicy' love triangle" and you're like - hey man i think you're misunderstanding the point of storytelling but they've already printed 76 versions of "city of blood and magic" and "queen of diamond rule" and spent literally millions of dollars on the movie "Candy Crush Killer: Coming to Eat You".
it's like being stuck in a room with a clown that keeps telling the same joke over and over but it's worse every time. and that would be fine but he keeps fucking charging you 6.99. and you keep being like "no, i know it made me laugh the first time, but that's because it was different and new" and the clown is just aggressively sitting there saying "well! plenty of people like my jokes! the reason you're bored of this is because maybe there's something wrong with you!"
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can’t talk about it
[ID: Black and white comic of Vash and Wolfwood from Trigun Maximum. The comic starts with the sounds "thud, thud, click". Vash, mid-action of peeling an apple, turns to the sound, noticing who it was that entered, and says, "Oh, Wolfwood, you're back." He resumes back to his apple in the next panel as he speaks, "Where'd you go? You snuck out of bed quickly this morning..." Wolfwood's hand then enters the panel, hovering over Vash's cheek and Vash looks up as Wolfwood asks, "Can I?" Vash responds, "Not going to talk about it?" while using a hand to gently hold Wolfwood's hovering hand and presses a kiss to his inner palm.
Vash then gets up fully, setting down the knife down on the table and the apple onto a plate, He leans into Wolfwood as Wolfwood explains, "Had to meet someone. Nothing interesting to talk about." Vash kisses Wolfwood's left cheek and a hand moves to cup his other cheek while muttering, "You're being vague." Wolfwood says neutrally, "If yer really that curious, keep askin'. We can talk about that instead of doing this." Vash leans back and responds, "Let's talk after, since... You look so tired."
The panel pans to a close up of Wolfwood's downcast eyes, bags heavy underneath his eyes. He doesn't allow Vash to sit in that moment for long though, then saying, "Yer not helping, Spikey. Being all slow with it... I could fall asleep right now." He moves his hand to start unclasping Vash's coat, starting from his collar. Vash with red cheeks, responds briskly, "Oh, shut up. I'm worried about you. I can't be worried?"
The final shot shows Wolfwood's back to the viewer while Vash's softened expression can be seen as he holds gently onto the side of Wolfwood's face and a hand firm on his waist. Wolfwood responds, "I'm fine, seriously," pausing for a moment before continuing, "Is it okay to still..?" Vash responds, "Yeah, it's okay."
The next image is a shot from later that night after the previous comic. Vash and Wolfwood are now in bed, half naked. Wolfwood's buries his face into Vash's chest, his arms wrapped around him, while Vash is petting at his hair. Vash reminds him, "Hey. You said we'd talk about it." Wolfwood pauses for a moment before piping up, "In the morning? I'm sleepy." Vash says, "Okay..."
The next two pages start from the morning after. Wolfwood is already fully awake, pulling on his outer jacket as he says to Vash, whos' still bundled in his blankets, "Breakfast is on the table. Make sure to eat it. I'm going to grab some things in town and then we're leavin'. Got it?" Vash says, "Mh." Wolfwood responds, "Good. See ya in a bit." The dialogue starts to shift into Vash's inner thoughts now, as he gets up and eats toast, thinking, "Wait. Weren't we supposed to... talk about it?" The next shot then shows him fully up, meeting Wolfwood in town. He carries a half worried expression with him while Wolfwood slides on his glasses for him. A quick panel shows Wolfwood's tired expression from the night before and quickly juxtaposes with Wolfwood in front of him who's smiling gently, the shades covering his eye bags. Wolfwood asks him, "Still not awake yet?" Vash pauses, his thoughts stirring, thinking, "Oh. I guess I was getting ahead of myself... thinking you owe me that kind of honesty." He smiles at Wolfwood and responds, "I'm awake!" His thoughts continue, "Maybe one day, you'd trust me enough to share your burdens."
The final image shows Wolfwood pulling at Vash's cheek and Vash complains, "Owwwww why..." Wolfwood quickly says, "You were thinking something stupid, right? It's all over yer face." Vash mutters, "Nooo, I wasn't..." END ID]
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Idk why people think it's funny to buy shit from shien or temu or whatever slavery-corp is popular at the time just to video themselves laughing at the quality of the products. It's badly made because it's unrelentingly shoved through a production line for a few pennies each garment- this isn't fucking "content" and honestly these rich influencers should feel ashamed to openly admit that they're buying from companies that force their workers into slavery conditions.
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glass houses and all, I've made bad deals in my time and I've failed to consult IP lawyers in cases where I probably should have, but putting your entire codebase up as collateral on a loan that you're paying more or less entirely through someone else's charity feels like it really shouldn't be fucking Plan A
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frustrate how many advocates & groups & companies & even non profit organizations who advocate for AAC users / people who can’t or can’t only use speech / etc are like:
“terms we do not use: no nonverbal, no severe, no profound, no disorder, no impairment” and go on say is because these words “factually incorrect”
so no me, no my friends, no friends with rigid think or struggle with change words or remember change words or idk, language communication disorders that goes beyond speech that affect all words all communication or even nonverbal communication?
okay not like those words for self. okay even not use in advocacy and say “hey am/know many don’t like this term because __ so use different term” but need need add say in words that some people do like these words for self.
but. not okay say these words all wrong inherent wrong and force us (who you should be include in your advocacy) chase down everyone and correct (which. not everyone able do. you of all people should know.) and say actually some do like these some find it accurate for self and be called ableist and wrong and be silenced told shut up.
even “own group” want erase us
“nothing abt us without us” yeah you kind of doing the without us part
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Can i request fluff alphabet with graves? I dont mind what letters you do x
Hey! I did the first eight letters of the alphabet!
Fluff Alphabet for Graves
A ctivities - What do they like to do with their s/o? How do they spend their free time with them?
If it was up to him, then he’d go grilling with you every day. Loves teaching you how to barbecue, telling you about how hot the grill should be, what its components are, how long the meat and sausages should be on the iron, that sort of stuff. Graves also loves inviting his Shadows to a barbecue as well. That way he gets to unwind with you and them and you get to know the people he works with. Those are the small celebrations he looks forward to the most.
B eauty - What do they admire about their s/o? What do they think is beautiful about them?
On the one hand, he loves the fact that you’re independent and can go a long time without him. It’s necessary since he’s away a lot of the time. On the other hand, he does love how dependent you can be on him. Even just the small stuff gets to him, such as you having forgotten your wallet and wanting some ice cream, or you leaning into him for comfort when you’re watching a scary movie together. Yes, he loves you, but he also loves it when you need him. You’re his world, and he’s yours. He’s the big, strong man in your relationship and he’ll protect you from everything there may be.
C omfort - How would they help their s/o when they feel down/have a panic attack etc.?
I feel as though he’d try to give you some unsolicited advice. You’re more than welcome to tell him to shut up, though. But other than that, he’ll try to crack some jokes here and there to get you to smile again. Also not above cuddling you and holding you close to make you feel protected and loved. Your panic attack wouldn’t be the first one he’s experienced, in all honesty. Sometimes, he helps with calming down his Shadows. Will calmly talk to you, play some games to help you get your mind off things as well. Will breathe with you too, if you’re okay with that.
D reams - How do they picture their future with their s/o?
If it was up to him, then you’d be living on a ranch together. He grew up on one in Texas and sometimes wants to go back to that life. Just you being surrounded by cattle, sheep, horses and other kinds of animals. You’d have a nice German shepherd together and would tend to the animals together. Of course, he wouldn’t give up his PMC either, but he can dream about that sort of future. He doesn’t think it would ever become reality anyway. However, as long as he gets to spend his future with you, he’s happy.
E qual - Are they the dominant one in the relationship, or rather passive?
He leans more towards being the dominant person in your relationship, but he can be passive at times as well. Usually has his hand on you somewhere as well as an act of dominance. Loves having you sit on his lap too, sometimes even in public when there are no chairs. People should know that you’re together and that he’s the one protecting you. He’s more than happy to consider your suggestions, but it’s usually him who decides where you end up going. Especially if you’re indecisive.
F ight - Would they be easy to forgive their s/o? How are they fighting?
He’d be somewhat petty and resentful, but he wouldn’t let it out on you. He wouldn’t really let it out on anyone, he’s far too mature for that. However, you’d have to apologize to him for him to forgive you. As long as you’re being nice about it, he will. It’s rare for him to apologize unless he’s truly hurt you. When he was in the wrong about some fact he’ll usually ignore it. When he fights he gets a bit louder, his accent becomes a bit stronger, but that’s it. He won’t call you anything mean, but it will be known that he’s upset with you.
G ratitude - How grateful are they in general? Are they aware of what their s/o is doing for them?
He’s pretty grateful. Not as much as other people, though. He doesn’t always consider everything you’re doing for him. Not that he takes it for granted either, far from it, but he just doesn’t always think when he doesn’t need to. However, generally speaking, he is grateful for what you do for him. Will show it by either taking you on a nice date to somewhere you’ve always wanted to go, or by taking care of your home in your stead for a while. You, too, deserve to have a day off from it all, after all.
H onesty - Do they have secrets they hide from their s/o? Or do they share everything?
There are plenty of things he doesn’t tell you. Sure, it may seem like he’s very open about his job, but you’ll always get the feeling he’s not being entirely honest with you. However, aside from job related things, he’s a very honest man. While he may sugarcoat some things for you sometimes, he will tell you pretty much everything. You can ask him about any personal detail and there’s a good chance he’ll tell you about it. In fact, I encourage you to do so, Graves enjoys talking about himself to you. Ask him about his plans for you and him and he’ll get quite sappy too and won’t stop talking for an hour.
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𝐁𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐱 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐌 𝐍𝐘𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 🏒
But at a certain point in a person’s life you either sink or swim, and nothing really matters anymore. What else could they do to him now beyond this? Fuck them.
photos: mark blinch / mark blinch / andrew lahodynskyj
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Just curious what the average level of personal investment in these sorts of things is. Like, how much do people usually get into silly stuff like this their friends ask of them? etc. etc. Which I know, only surveying a small sample on a very specific website means I'm not getting an exact average idea lol, but.. curious nonetheless .. Maybe reblog for bigger sample size but also this is not very serious at all/not worth a call to action gbhjbhjb
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it's...missing smackjeeves hours..
telling myself if no one makes a good alternative for smackjeeves in the next like five years, im gonna start making one myself (only 10% serious)
i just miss like that atmosphere of 100% unmarketable, just comic sharing/making space.
where we all knew that 99% of the time the comics we see will never get finished bc ppl get busy, kids grow up and change interests ,etc. (i mention kids bc most of my memories of smackjeeves was when i was a teen, so it was a significant like developmental years as an artist kind experience for me)
like i remember most of the comics were like
barely legible sketch pages with like text written in mspaint.
there was absolutely no quality standard. and that's why it was so good
it made me as a kid feel like oh i can do comics! cause it can be WHATEVER YOU WANTED IT TO BE AND LOOK HOWEVER WAY.
and the collaborative ones on smackjeeves were so fun to look at
just overall.
having that. rough, crude, unmarketable space for art/comics was significant.
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something something WRESTLING IS GAYYYYY
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People on twitter sometimes draw young G. Corp gregor with a crew cut and i love it....
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blue art today
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Even though I don't fully identify as loveless I find myself thinking yeah what does love mean anyways? I don't think there even is a concrete definition of love. It's whatever you want it to be
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marc's parents, bezz and uccio have a group chat where they are constantly working on keeping rosquez apart
under NO CIRCUMSTANCES would marc's parents talk to UCCIO are you kidding me. its spy vs spy up in there
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