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tumbling-odyssey · 3 years

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Games I played in 2020

Just felt like getting my thoughts out on all the games I played this year. I’ve been wanting to do something like this for years but I always let it pass me by. Well not this year! Fuck you laziness!

I played the first half in 2019 but finished it in 2020 so I guess I'll count it. DQ11 was my intro to Dragon Quest and what a good starting point. I'm not exaggerating when I say this is one of the best traditional JRPGs on the market. Characters, story, combat, it all clicks in just the right way to make a flawless game... until the end credits roll that is.

I have no idea what happened with the post game but by god does it dive off a cliff. It undermines everything you worked to do in the main plot. The characters act brain dead and it shamelessly reuses events from the main game. Please pick up and play DQ11 but for the love of god just stop when the credits roll.

Doom is a game I knew I'd like. The heavy metal ascetic and soundtrack were right up my alley, but I just never found the time. With Eternal on the way though and having found it on the cheap at a pawn shop I figured there was no time like the present. Needless to say but I was right. I loved everything about this game. The thrill of combat, the screech of the guitars, and the silent take no shit attitude of Doomguy. Make no mistake though, I SUCK at this game. I played on easy but still got my ass handed to me on the regular. But I don't care, I was having way to much fun.

I flipped my shit when this game got leaked at the tail end of 2019. Zero 3 is my all time favourite game. To celebrate this getting announced I went and 100% Zero 3 as I hadn't done it on my current cart, and Zero 3 was still the first thing I played when I got this collection! I love that game to death and I’m glad to have it on modern consoles again. As I was under a bit of time crunch with other games releasing soon I only played 2 other games in the collection Zero 4 and ZX Advent. Until the DS collection those and 3 were the only Zero/ZX games I had so I have a lot of nostalgia for them.

Zero 4 hold ups better then I remember. Not as good as 3 but a damn solid game with tweaks I honestly wish hit the series before its end. I remember having issues with the stage design and ya it’s not perfect, but it’s far from as bad as I thought. For ZXA this was the first time I beat the game on normal difficulty. For some reason the ZX games have always given me more trouble than the Zero games, so finally beating one on normal was very exciting. Maybe I can now finally go and beat ZX for the first time...

The Mystery Dungeon series rising from the depth to punch all those unexpecting in the face was a very welcome surprise. I had a lot of hype going into this one as I have very fond memories of my time with Red Rescue Team and even more with Explorers of Darkness. And the game lived up to it! The remastered music is great and crazy nostalgic, the 3D models are well used and don't feel as stiff as they do in the core series, and the QOL changes are near perfect... So why did I drop this game like a rock once I finished the main quest?

Anyone familiar with Mystery Dungeon will know that the post game is the real meat of it. The story is short and all the really cool shit comes in after it's done. But I just couldn't bring myself to put more time in after I finished said story mode. I'm definitely chocking that up to me just not being in the mood then an issue with the game. Here's hoping we get an Explorers DX sometime soon. That will fucking hook me for all it's got.

Second verse same as the first. I loved this game and sucked at it horribly. Out of all the games I've played this year Doom Eternal is the one I want to go back to the most. I was not the hugest fan of some of the changes made and retained a stance that I liked 2016 better. First person platforming has never been a fun experience in my opinion and Eternal did little to change that. And I know this a lukewarm take at best but fuck Marauders!. They are so unfun to fight and ruin the pace. The Marauder in the last mook wave took me so long I was worried I wouldn’t be able to finish the game. But the more I've seen of Eternal after my playthrough makes me think I was being far to harsh. I haven't played the DLC yet either. Mostly cuss I haven't heard great things about it. Gonna wait for the rest of it to come out to see if it's worth getting. Might just replay to whole game at that point to see if it clicks with me better.

This was my second favourite game of the year, and was going to take the top slot until a certain other game came out. Addressing the elephant in room right away, I hated the ending. But I was expecting something like that, I think we all were. I won't let the ending ruin the rest of the game though. Not gonna let 1 segment colour everything that came before it. We have to see how the later parts play out to truly see if this ending was trash or not anyway.

It took Square over a decade but they finally got an action RPG battle system that works and feels good to play. This may be my favourite battle system in an RPG period honestly. All four characters are a blast and it only gets better the more time you spend with it. Figuring out the nuances of each character’s skills and how to combine them not only with the skills of the others but how to enhance them with the right Materia set. This makes fights thrilling and satisfying when you finally best whatever was giving you trouble. Tis was the best way to bring 7′s mechanics into the modern landscape while also fixing the BIGGEST issue the OG had. The fact every character feels the same aside from Limit Breaks.

All this on top of graphics that just look fucking stunning, a few glitched out doors aside. Fuck I still feel blown away looking at the characters models (mostly Tifa) and see how god damn pretty everyone is. Also Tifa’s Chinese dress is gift from the Gods and I still haven’t picked my jaw up from the floor after I first saw it.

In my circle of the internet there was a lot of hype for this game. So much so that I ended up buying it to see what all the hubbub was about. I had never played a Streets of Rage game before and my only experience with beat'em ups was playing a LOT of Scott Pilgrim and last year's River City Girls. Turns out Streets of Rage plays quite a bit different and it kicked my ass! So sadly I had to switch to easy to make it through but I still had a fun time with it.

I started playing mostly as Blaze but once Adam hit the scene oooooh fucking boy. I didn’t play anyone else. There's a deceptive amount of content in this game. You can unlock almost every character from the previous games and all of them rocking their original sprites and moves. If I had more of a connection with this series I'm sure I would have gone nuts on unlocking everything. I stopped after my one playthrough and I was happy with that. Always glad to support a long overdue franchise revival.

To properly talk about P5R I think I need to air a lot of my feelings on the original game and the importance it has to me. You see, prior to 2017 I barely played games, only sticking to specific franchises. AKA Pokemon and Mega Man/Mega Man like games. Until 2016 though I still bought a lot of games. Eating up Steam sales and deals I found at pawn shops. This lead to a Steam library and shelf filled with games I've never touched outside of maybe an hour or 2. So in 2016 when I took interest in the newly released Kirby Planet Robobot I made a deal with myself. I could get the game but I HAD to beat it. And I did just that, gaining not just a new fav Kirby game but a new rule for game purchases. If I knew I wouldn't beat a game I was not aloud to buy it. Now what does ANY of this have to do with P5 you may ask? Well... almost everything.

I was immediately interested in P5 when it hit the west in 2017. I loved the 20 or so hours I but into P3 years ago and really liked the P4 anime I had watched around the same time. So of course with all the hype around it I wanted to dive into the series full force with P5. But I knew myself. Putting over 100 hours into a game was beyond me and I had a weird relationship with home console games as I was predominately a handheld gamer. Add in the fact I didn't even have a PS4 and I was convinced P5 would be something I always wanted to play, but never would. So when I went to the mall with a few friends and they showed me that P5 had a PS3 version, I had a dilemma on my hands. I knew I wanted to play it and I now had a way to do so. But doing that would require me to change 2 HUGE hang ups I had with games. Would I being willing to waste 60 bucks with so much working against me? Apparently I was. I immediately started going to town on this game. Making sure I spent no less then 2 hours a day playing NO MATTER WHAT. Which may not seem like a lot but it was to me... at the time.. I also had just moved to my current house, so coming home from my still relatively new job and going straight into P5 was the first real routine I formed during this heavily transitional part of my life.

I of course ended up loving P5 and put 200 hours into it. As such my outlook on gaming was forever changed. Console games were no longer out of reach and I knew I could handle playing monster length game. I started playing way more games then I ever did before and trying out generas I never thought I would play. P5 is the main reason for this and why I'm able to make a post like this. To actually touch on Royal though? It's unarguably the better version of the game and Atlus learned all the right lessons from P4G. The new characters are great and the added section at the end is possibly the best shit Atlus has ever written. I only wish Yoshizawa joined the party sooner so I could play as her more.

The release of this really came out of nowhere huh? Wayforward announced it was being made mid way through 2019, then there was its weird half release on the Apple store... and then suddenly it was out! Very little fanfare for this one. Is that indicative of the games quality? Luckily no. Seven Sirens is a solid addition to the series and follows up Half Genies Hero nicely. The game goes back to Shantae's Metroidvania roots and makes a TON of improvements.

Transformations are now instant instead of having to dance for them (don't worry dancing is still in the game) making the game feel more like Pirates Curse in its fast flow. They also added the Monster Cards which take heavy inspiration from Aria of Sorrow's Soul system. A feature I'm happy to see in any Metroidvania since Aria is one of my all time favourite games. Sadly though the game does not take the best advantage of these improvements.

Over all the game feels kinda empty. The dungeons aren't super exciting to explore nor are they challenging in any way. And the plot is very repetitive, with each dungeon repeating the same beats. Really this game feels more like set up for a better game down the line. The mechanics are all here and Wayforward has a solid art style with the sprites from Half Genie Hero. Hopefully they capitalizes on this for Shantae 6 and we get the best game in the series.

While it may not have been the most thrilling game, Seven Sirens really put me into a Shantae mood. So much so that I went back to play the 2 games in the series I had never touched. This being the first game and Risky's Revenge. Shantae 1 really is a hidden gem in my opinion. Don't get me wrong, it's the definition of jank, but there's a lot of heart to this game. The sprites are great, the soundtrack is good, and the characters are funny... but it's still on the OG Gameboy and that's a massive hindrance for any game. I'm hard pressed to recommend this with how poorly its aged but I think it's better then it looks.

Risky's Revenge on the other hand was a game that shocked me by how little it had to offer. I know this game went through a hellish development and what we got was far from what Wayforward planned to make, but it's hard to imagine a world where this was the technical BEST Shantae game. It's not a bad game by any stretch... just a boring one.

For the record my ranking of the games goes Pirates Curse>Half Genie Hero>Seven Sirens>Original>Risky’s Revenge

Sword and Shield are mediocre games at best. I know, real steaming hot take there. I managed to make my Sword playthrough a lot more fun by not spoiling myself on the new Pokemon designs for the first time since Gen 3. Either way, I enjoyed myself enough that I didn't mind playing more of it with these DLC campaigns. Plus I love the idea of Game Freak switching over to this method as apposed to making a third version, so I wanted to support it.

Klara is a fucking top tier Poke Girl both in design and personality and is probably the highlight of Isle of Armour. GF actually went out of their way to give her multiple expressions to sell her toxic bitch personality and I love every minute of it. She sadly drifts into the background for the second half of the DLC’s story which hurts an already rough section even more. Not more then having to grind Kubfuu all the way to fucking level 70 though! That put a serious hamper on my motivation to finish the story but I pushed through anyway. Having to solo the tower with Kubfuu was at least a fun challenge though, as was the final fight with Mustard. Fuck the Diglett hunt though. Ain’t no one got time for that.

Crown Tundra may be my fav of the 2 though even if there isn't a character as good as Klara in it. The hunt for the legendaries was just pure adventure and I had a fucking blast doing it. The joy I felt when I figured out Registeel’s puzzle put a smile on my face unlike any Pokemon game since I was a kid. The whole Regi stuff was honestly a nice Nostalgia trip to my times with Emerald. The story around Calyrex was enjoyable, even if I still hate its design. Not revealing the horses before release was a good call to as it gave an honest surprise. Having to chase down the Galar forme Birds in the overworld is a great way to evolve the roaming legendaries idea and I hope GF sticks to this. Plus the Galar forme birds are some of the best legendary designs since Gen 5 and I love Chocodos way to fucking much.

Here we are folks, my GotY. I love Panzer Paladin so fucking much. A combination of mechanics from Mega Man, Castlevania, and Blaster Master? Sign me the fuck up! This game is tailored made for me and I knew I had to play it once it started making the rounds on social media. I'll admit though, I was a bit worried when the the first full trailer dropped and showed the weapon mechanics. Breakable weapons that you have to sacrifice for checkpoints and power ups? I'm not sure about that.... Luckily I was being a complete moron and those mechanics are near perfect.

I love the set up of each boss being a mythological creature from different cultures. They didn’t just pull the easy ones either. A lot of these things I learned of for the first time here. I love how Grit controls. Using the upward stab as a double jump and being able to pogo off enemies Shovel Knight style just felt great and satisfying. Flame was limited but it made her sections feel tense. She does more damage then you think she could at first glance. Also the only way to heal Grit being to use pods that only Flame could access was a cool idea.

I am begging you Tribute Games, you have to make more Panzer Paladin games. Slap some new upgrades on Grit and expand what Flame can do and you have an even better sequel on your hands. Also maybe not have so many 'gotcha' moments with enemy placement. That's really my only complaint about the game. Great music, great sprites, giant robots, unique premise, and a reference to Canadian legends. The ultimate self indulgent game for me.

It felt super out of left field for Curse of the Moon to be getting a sequel. The games fucking amazing but it was really just a tie in for the main Bloodstained product. Not something I expect to get a continuation. Either way I was pumped. If this was even half as good as the original then I was in for a great time. Which held true... cuss this legitimately is only half as good as Curse of the Moon. I still like the game, quite a lot actually. I mean how could I not with a fucking Corgi piloting a Death Train Mech.

Something was just missing here that never made this click like the first game. Maybe it was the stage design, maybe the bosses, maybe the fact that it's a bit to long. I'm not sure. All I know is I couldn't bring myself to play all the modes like I did in the original. . Stopping part way in to the one where you can get the first games characters. I want to go back some day... I just don’t know when someday is.

This was an announcement I never saw coming. A Gundam Verses game coming to the west? That hasn't happened in the entire time I've been a Gundam fan. I had played a bit of Full Boost on my old roommates PS3 thanks to him having a Japanese account and I played Force on the Vita a few years ago. But to have the latest version fully translated with open servers? Holy hell that's a dream come true.

Having the open betas every weekend leading up to launch was some much needed fun during this shit hole year. I had a lot of fun just fucking around with different suits and seeing what I could do with 'em. Absolutely trashing two Bael players as the Kapool is a memory I'll keep with me for a long time. Fucking danced on their graves. This gave me some new appreciation for suits like the Baund Doc and Hambrabi, the later becoming a lowkey fav as it was my main.

I've fallen off with the game in the last few months but I definitely want to go back. I hope to start learning the game and take parts in tourneys when cons aren’t death sentences anymore.

It felt like everything in my life was SCREAMING at me to start the Yakuza series. From 2 of my friends playing 0 recently, a youtuber I following live tweeting as he played through the WHOLE series back-to-back, and Yakuza 2 having a run at AGDQ 2020. Plus the constant pleas to play this series you get from following Little Kuriboh on Twitter. I finally broke and picked up 0 in the middle of August. Boooooooooy howdy did I not know what I was getting in to. And no I don't mean the content. I knew Yakuza was a series of wildly conflicting tones between the main story and side quests. What I mean is the length. I legit thought this was gonna be a 20-30 hour game. When i reached hour 30 of my playthrough and realized I wasn't even close to a conclusion, I think I knew I had bitten off more then I was planning. That misstep aside I ended up loving this game and want to play the rest of the series.... I just need to rest up first before I dive into Kiwami 1.

Let's actually talk about the game for a moment here. Kiryu and Majima quickly clicked as likeable characters to me and I cared about their stories. Combat is fun and the multiple styles are all great.... though both the default styles take a while to get there. The mad rush I felt at the end was fantastic and the last bosses are a joy to fight. Only real complaint is the pacing of the side stories. I loved being able to just stumble into various different events while on route to the next plot objective. But this became less common as the game went on and side stories started getting more tucked away. Also hot take here, the host club mingame is more tedious then fun and I like Kiryu’s business stuff as I could do that in the background. I’m excited to dive into Kiwami and probably Kiwami 2 this year... Though I’m not sure when just yet.

Just gonna say it flat out, I think this is better the the 2018 game. The smaller scale helps in this style of game and Miles just naturally has a better move set then Peter. I'm not sure if they actually tightened up the combat system or if they just threw less bullshit enemies at you but fighting feels so much better in this one. Traversal is better too, simply because they changed the button for tricks. In the original you have to hold down 2 face buttons to enter trick mode??? In hindsight that was such a bad call.

Having both the heal and venom powers run off the same meter was a good idea. Making the choice between keeping yourself alive guaranteed or potentially ending a fight quicker/disposing of a problem enemy is super fun. The player having to make small choices like this during combat is what helps it not be brainless. I love all the different venom skills you get. While they all achieve the same thing in stunning opponents, how you achieve that goal is up to you. Do you want to just slug the bastard, throw 'em up in the air, tackle the shit out of them? The choice is yours.

Only real big complaint is certain upgrades being NG+ locked. I know you want to encourage replays, but this is a shitty way to do it I feel. Also can we retire Rhino for the next game. Man has had 2 shitty boss fights now and I need a break. Between this and Spider-Verse, I'm honestly starting to like Miles as Spider-Man more then Peter.

I got this game more on a whim then anything. I was definitely interested when it was first announced for the west. Vanillaware's beautiful art style in a story about giant robots beating the shit out of Kaijus? Sign me the fuck uuuuuu-oh wait it's an RTS? I had never played an RTS's before, mainly due to the sheer concept stressing me out. So I let it fall to the wayside. The game started coming up again though towards the end of the year with GotY on everyone's minds. This revived my interest, especially as what I HAD planned to be playing around that time was... well. Cyberpunk. Don't think I need to say much more. Also I had worried for nothing as the Real Time Strategy was not that Real Time.

This game really lays on the analysis paralysis once you're out of the tutorial. Do you want to fight, do you want to do story, who's story do you want to do, what branch should you follow, how much should you play with this one character? It's very overwhelming at first. I decided to not go ham on just one character and swap around all the time. The twists in this game are equal parts exciting and infuriating. Learning something new always came with the caveat of more questions, or something you knew 'for sure' being disproven. Like when I learned 1 characters was actually 4 separate ones! Anyone that's played knows exactly what I'm talking about.

Natsuno ended up being my fav and not just because of.... obvious reasons. BJ was cute if unfortunately named and her relationship with Mirua was my favourite in the game. Not that there was much competition except for maybe Ogata and Tomi. I ended up really liking the combat but I can see why RTS fans say it's the weakest part. It's far from complex and I had a winning strat by the third or so real fight. Aka spam turrets and have the Gen 1′s gank all the bosses.

One quick thing I want to share was how I beat the boss at the end of Area 2. The one where Inaba is singing. I had Hijiyama use the limit break skill to bum rush the boss right off the hop. I took out half its health in one hit but Hijiyama’s Sentinel was on death’s door. Only thing that saved him was sending in Amaguchi to blow up a bunch of missiles. Hijiyama took it out on his next attack but lost his Sentinel at the same time. It was a real clutch victory and crazy fucking anime.

The best way to really describe Carrion is that it's a fantastic proof of concept. Can you make a game where you play as The Thing? Why yes, yes you can. Carrion just needed a bit more tweaking to really bring this concept home and be the A+ game I know it can be. As it is now the game is a bit empty. The level design is super samey and the lack of a map is fucking brutal at points. I know it would make no sense for a blob monster to have a map but somethings you just have to gameify for convenience. The level design must have done something right as even though I was completely lost I still moved from area to area properly. Hell by the time I actually looked up a map I had 1 more item to get and I learned I was one door away from beating the game.

I love the idea of losing mass as you take damage and gaining more by eating people, but having abilities tied to size was a terrible idea. It just leads to tedium as I have to go and shed myself to the right size, do the puzzle, then of course I'm going to go back and rebuild myself to see if I can do the next segment at full power. Just make it so you can swap between abilities using the d-pad or something. I hope this game gets a sequel just so this sick ass concept can be fully realized.

#games #goty #Final Fantasy #pokemon #spiderman #yakuza #gundam #bloodstained #panzer paladin #shantae #persona #streets of rage #doom #mega man #dragon quest #13 sentinels: aegis rim #carrion

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kareofbears · 3 years

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Ok. . . but can you give an in-depth explanation as to how you feel about akeshu?

yes.

rest is under the cut since this is going to be a long answer

im a big big big big big fan of enemies to lovers. love it. loved the initial hate, the heightening tension between two characters with conflicting situations or personality types. i love the anger, the arguments, the sighs from everyone around them because they’re tired of the repetitive beef. during quarantine, i even wrote out and gave a verbal presentation to my beta explaining how an enemies to lovers arc would work through writing and all the needed dynamics in order to justify a person falling in love with their enemy.

and yeah, the process is the best part of it. i want to be able to see the transition between worst enemy to begrudged partner to lover. that’s the best part!!! the character development!!! the molding around each other and learning to accept their character flaws!! the willingness to defend that flaw in front of other people!!

but here’s where the problem lies: akechi goro.

oh akechi. oh akechi goro, the bane of my existence and the object of affection by everyone in this god forsaken fandom. look, i get it. it’s really really fucking hard to resist the charm of akechi goro, i admit it. he’s so interesting, he’s so in-depth, he’s so cool and rugged and he’s such a bastard that you end up kind of being obsessed with him, and that’s fine. I'm also kind of obsessed with him.

but i don't like him. because he isn’t a likeable character. there’s a huge difference between thinking he’s a fantastic character and loving him. because i don't love him. i hate him. i despise him. he’s caused so, so, so much grievance, so much pain to so many characters in persona that it honestly impossible to give him a redemption arc. it’s not possible. even if you go down the Black Star route (amazing fanfic, brilliant work) it still doesn't redeem him. he killed futabas mom (which literally led her to her spiraling depression and self hatred and manifested intense mental illness that led to her isolating herself from the world and made her lose her mom that she loves so much) and killed haru’s dad (how on earth can you justify that one??? god, haru wanted nothing more than to just see her dad happy again) and killed so many other random people!! and don’t feed me that “oh he had a sad life” shut the fuck up literally everyone in p5 had a sob story and you don't see them killing people. he’s complex, not likeable.

but here’s the good part: the game doesn't want you to like akechi. i mean it. they never said what he did was okay (never. they never said it was okay), they never said that you had to like him. all they said was that you had to work with him. even in the third semester, the one people are so insistent on calling a redemption arc, isn’t a fucking redemption arc. they just want you to see who akechi really is!! without the facade!!! all they want is for you to see how complex he is, see him spiral and angry and bitter and they want you to see him turn out the complete opposite of akira.

and here’s where we actually start talking about akeshu

akechi and akira are two halves of the same coin. akira chose the side of justice (by ironically being a criminal) while akechi chose the side of vengeance (which is ironic, since he’s a detective.) see, even with that whole crime vs justice thing, they’re connected. the person who ruined their life is the same person (shido), they both have had hard lives. but they turned out as opposites, with akira having a much better life than akechi--which is why akechi is so obsessed with akira. what does akira have that he doesn't? why did he turn out happy when he’s still miserable? and that creates a tension (which we will talk about later)

akechi and akira are rivals. they are connected, they always will be. it’s a hero/villain narrative that we all love, it’s an interesting character dynamic. it’s fun to see them interact.

but by god, it does not mean that akechi and akira are good for each other. i would go as far to say it would do akechi a huge disservice as a character if you made them end up together.

remember how akechi is a complex character? if akechi ends up with akira, you would essentially be ripping out all of his complexity just to have both of them date. akechi doesn't want to be with akira, and if you honestly think akechi is in love with akira id be surprised because he’s not--he’s obsessed with akira, infatuated with him. what he’s feeling isn’t love, it’s the feeling of frustration. he doesn't care about akira, or anyone. he cares about himself, and that’s it. which is what makes him so interesting because this never changes throughout the entire game!!! that's so FUN!!!

and the game never wants you to forget that complexity!! because they never gave akechi a redemption arc!! they want you to remember him as someone who’s willing to die for himself. (and, in a way, that’s the extent of akechis mercy. because before shidos palace, he wasn't even willing to die for himself, you know what i mean? he was willing to die in shidos palace because that’s what he wanted, he wanted to defeat shidos cognition of himself, he wanted to save the thieves because they were the first to listen to him and understand him, but he didn't really do it out of empathy. he did it because he’d rather die than continue living shidos lie--funny because that how he ‘dies’ in the third semester. nice one atlus)

and i get it. the game gives them such an undeniable tension that its super easy to see it as love, but its not. it’s not love, guys. that tension isn’t love, because what it’s actually tragedy. it’s tragic that akechi can’t have happiness (in canon, at least.) it’s tragic that akira, the person who loves his friends more than anything, who would die saving someone he doesn't even know, it’s tragic that he can’t save someone who’s the most desperate to be saved. and that is why i love platonic/non-romantic akeshu, because i think that concept is way more interesting than them falling in love. it’s about akira’s obvious trauma that he couldn’t save everyone, it’s about akechi’s hard-headedness about not wanting to be saved because he’s been let down too many times for him to ever put trust into anyone again.

it’s tragic. it’s meant to be tragic. persona 5 is a game about fighting for reality, and reality is fucking hard. so the fact that these two people have such a tragic ending despite what we, as an audience, are used to (happy endings), is part of the game. they’re not meant for each other. they won’t work, they don't work. that tension isn't made out of love or sexual tension--it’s stemmed from tragedy and hate and confusion and such a deep rooted sadness from inside of them.

they both deserve better than each other. akira deserves to be with the friends he made in tokyo, and akechi deserves to be with someone (if he lives) who isn’t associated with the metaverse at all. he deserves a clean slate, he deserves a fresh start. he deserves a reset.

and another reason is that akira loves his friends too much. he would do anything for them. it’s supposed to be funny--the wildcard, with no vulnerability, no weakness, has the most weakness out of all of them because he cares too deeply about his friends that if one single thing were to hurt them akira would fold like a deck of cards. you think akira would do that to haru? to futaba? yeah, right. he would never. akira can forgive but he would never forget. he’d never compromise. not for his friends.

so going back to the topic of enemies to lovers--akeshu is not enemies to lovers, because there are certain rules for enemies to lovers. enemies should be fun. it should be people on the opposite team with different perspectives. enemies should not be morally horrific. the ‘enemy’ should be forgivable. both characters should still come off likable. they should both be able to stand up on their own legs as characters even if you take away their love interest. for example, hermione/draco wouldn't work because draco calls Hermione a slur on many occasions. that is not forgivable. if draco instead, i don't know, cheats off her test or something and she gets mad and they have a back and forth thing, then sure, hermione/draco could work.

a fantastic enemies to lovers would be snowbaz from carry on. uh, zootopia? thats a great one. natsume and mikan from gakuen alice is good too!! basically, there’s a lot of actual good enemies to lovers out there. enemies to lovers shouldn't be morally ambiguous. it should be fun. it should be the right kind of tension. the characters should be likable from both sides. and akeshu does not have that.

tldr stan akiryu and akesumi instead

#this took me like an hour to answer #my bubble tea is melting #ask #asks #sorry anon lmfaoooo enjoy my thesis paper

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mypunkpansexualtwin · 3 years

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Sumire and Ryuji from persona 5!

Hi volt! Sorry this took a while! Under a cut cause it’s gonna be a little long.

And for context for the rest of my followers, send me a character and I’ll talk about them!

Ryuji first! Because it’s the boy!

do I like them: Like him? Like him??? I adore the boy! That’s my boy!

5 good qualities: 1) Okay I know a lot of people put it in the negative qualities, but his anger. It consistently comes from a place of compassion, of seeing people being treated less than they deserve! I love a good example of righteous fury and Ryuji has it in spades. Plus, for me at least, it’s relatable. 2) That said, even if it’s (in my humble onion) good anger, it can get ahead of him/out of hand, and he recognizes that. And when it goes too far, he apologizes! He knows, admittedly often in retrospect, when he’s gone too far and needs to make up for it. And then he does! 3) Loyal, kind of to a fault. He’s ride or die for the protag from day one to endgame, even if you take the options to be an asshole to him and throw him under the bus for the entire game. He’s still looking out for the track team even though they don’t want anything to do with him. He deserves better. 4) He loves his mama. 5) That smile. Enough said.

3 bad qualities: 1) Always putting himself down. He’s fantastic and needs his confidence back. No, honey, you do not deserve to be beat up by your ex-teammates from track. I’m gonna beat them up right back, and then the people who let you think this way, starting with Atlus. 2) Protag can’t romance him. It’s not his fault though. 3) Poor boy got slapped with the Token Perv designation. (There is a pattern here to his bad qualities that are more about Atlus than the character himself.)

favourite episode/etc: I love his awakening (granted, I love all the awakenings) but probably my favorite thing is when he just. Invites you to go fishing on his birthday? Without actually telling you that’s what day it is? He just decides that what he wants for his birthday is to spend the day with his best friend just chillin’??? But doesn’t wanna pressure you? He’s! A good! Boy!

otp: Akiryu, pegoryu, whatever you wanna call it. Skull and Joker are soulmates and that’s that on that.

brotp: Ryuji&Ann and Ryuji&Futaba are my favorites, but just in general he deserves all the friendships.

ot3 ot4: Ryuji/Akira/Makoto/Haru. I could go on at length about why I adore the potential dynamic here. But I won’t on this post. Feel free to ask me about it sometime though. Buuut it’ll probably take me a while to answer, fair warning.

notp: Honestly, as long as it isn’t something Overtly Gross (cause 16), I don’t really have a notp for him. He’s full of love that needs to be shared.

best quote: Listen, we all love the “bein’ free” and “my place is next to you” quotes, so those go without saying. Instead, consider: “My whole life I thought I was banned from watching R-rated movies because my mom told me it stands for no-Ryuji.”

head canon: Shit, normally I have a few dozen headcanons rattling around in my brain at a time, but today I got nothin’ that I can dredge up and put to paper (metaphorically) so instead, uh, this song always makes me think of him.

And Sumi!

do I like them: I really do, partly out of spite for the part of the fandom that doesn’t like her, mostly out of genuine enjoyment for the character.

5 good qualities: 1) I’ll say it flat out, I respect her saying that the Phantom Thieves aren’t a permanent solution to society’s problems and that while they’re doing good work for those with no other options, society as a whole would stagnate for relying on them and not facing their own problems head-on. Because she’s absolutely right (as seen in the 12/24 Bad Ending), regardless of the particular irony of her circumstances when she said it. 2) Her overall growth from depression and self-deprecation to unflinching determination is super admirable and tbh kinda resonated with me. 3) Again, respect for turning down the Phantom Thieves to focus on herself. I like an ally character who won’t immediately bend over backwards for a player character, it keeps things interesting. 4) Impressively sneaky. Very important for a Phantom Thief, even if she isn’t officially one until almost the end. Tailed them in Sae’s palace without tipping them off on the 18th, eavesdropped on the conversation with Lavenza and just turned up in Maruki’s palace like it was no big deal, she’s fuckin’ impressive. 5) Who doesn’t love a good cook?

3 bad qualities: 1) Not her fault, but the big gap in the story between maxing her confidant early on in the game and then not being really relevant at all until 3rd semester save for a couple of “hey remember she’s still around” cutscenes leaves her feeling really isolated from the rest of the game. It’s more an issue of the writing not making an effort to connect her to the rest of the group/story at large. (I have my issues with Persona 4 Golden, but the New Girl confidant was at least better linked to the rest of the team during her social link.) 2) Girl I get the depression aspect, but why did you think Kasumi wouldn’t have mourned your death beyond, “well now I’m gonna keep working at this goal for both of us”??? (I know, I know, she is grieving, but a lot less that we see her do as Sumire, and again, the depressive spiral that made her take off like that anyways, but still.) 3) Another complaint more at the writing team than at the character herself, but I do wish that the protag could have been a little more of a smartass to her like he can to the rest of the team. “Are you going to the park cleanup too?” “Nah, I’m wearing my school gym clothes for fun.” Y’know, harmless sass like that. She suffers from a little bit of “Here’s The New Waifu, Now Love Her” writing. 4) Atlus, please give me a Confidant item that gives me those sweet, sweet perks back in NG+.

favourite episode/etc: Her second/real awakening during the third semester. Partly because by the time we got to Makoto’s awakening, the tearing-off-the-mask moment was more of a “okay you’ve seen this part, on to The Reveal” and that was disappointing because I liked how visceral and cathartic the first three were, and boy did hers fuckin’ deliver on that. It was fantastic.

otp: I’m a sucker for Sumitaba. Although Harusumi snuck up on me recently.

brotp: Ann&Sumire and Yusuke&Sumire, but again just give her all the friends. And then a couple more just for good measure.

ot3: Sumire/Enough Food To Fuel The Growing Athlete/Writing That Doesn’t Food Shame Her

notp: Again, as long as it’s not an Overtly Nasty, You Need Jesus ship (saw one person ship her and maruki and just. Yikes.), I don’t really have a notp for her. That said, my first playthrough was more “that’s my little sister” than a character I wanted to romance, so shusumi took a little bit of a brain adjustment.

best quote: “I am myself! I’ll never forget that again!” Fuck yeah, girl, heal from that trauma!

head canon: Haru and the Yoshizawa twins were friends as very little kids in the same beginner ballet class.

#persona 5 #p5r spoilers #voltdracoatl #answers to questions y'all actually asked

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repentantsky · 3 years

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5 Unpopular JRPG’s Takes

I could probably make an entire career of my unpopular opinions, people seem to love to get angry about them, but seem to enjoy that anger. With that said, here are 5 unpopular takes on JRPG’s. Beware minor to major spoilers for every game mentioned on this list.

5. Cloud, is an asshole, and he sure ain’t no hero - Final Fantasy VII.

Final Fantasy 7 is often revered as the best story and game of not only Final Fantasy, but JRPG’s in general, and yet, even though it would have been a bit less dramatic, Cloud’s horrible decisions, led to even worse consequences. Cloud knew that Sephiroth could control him, hell he even suggested staying back because of what could happen. Regardless of this knowledge, he kept bringing the Black Materia and himself in close proximity to Sephiroth, and kind of just let things play out as they would. If he had stayed back, his party likely would have been able to beat Sephiroth on their own, and Tifa could have even had a dramatic highlighted moment where she beat Sephiroth to death for Cloud’s sake and hers, and all could have been right with the world. Instead, Cloud went with his party, got tricked again into giving the Black Materia to Sephiroth, thereby making Aerith’s death a required sacrifice to make the planet strong enough to withstand a meteor, but not strong enough to avoid essentially an apocalypse.

4. Veronica didn’t have to die, and time didn’t have to be restarted to save her. Dragon Quest XI.

It goes without saying that hindsight is 20/20, but that doesn’t mean something entirely stupid didn’t happen that led to the death of Veronica, and the subsequent restarting of time before her death that could have dammed the whole planet. When The Hero, or Eleven as he should be called by DQ cannon, found the Sword of light, he just sort of, stood there gawking at it for a while. In the long run, this hesitation led to Veronica sacrificing herself, and as we saw when time was put back to before her death, that lack of hesitation resulted in more shenanigans than should ever be needed to save one person’s life, when the rest of all non-monster life is at risk. Simply put, grabbing the sword faster might have led to the same results as restarting time, but they pulled through that just fine, so it could have all ended just as well. But no, we had several more hours of adventuring to do, only to erase all of that, start over, and basically end up at the same place, and some people, might have actually preferred the original ending, and having Serena, grow a strength both literally and in game, that she ended up not needing.

3. Persona 5′s Social Links, are all kind of bad, and Persona 5 Royal proves it.

Yes I’m calling them social links. Excuse me for playing other Persona games first and not liking the changed name that means the exact same thing, but Persona 5′s attempt to flush out it’s characters via non-required story all sort of fall flat. In games past, the characters grew up by handling their issues head-on, and in Persona 5, they kind of just, work through them while a nothing character spurs on their changes. Almost every character in Persona 5 is either being pushed around by another character and getting past them as a way to develop, or they are trying to help another character, and doing so does it for them. While it’s not a bad idea to let some growth come from handling the adversity that comes with getting involved in someone else’s life, to do it so often, and even to have many of the characters that move everyone’s plots by at times, entirely off screen characters, was just a bad choice, and felt extremely lazy compared to Persona’s 3 and 4. Other characters in those games, sometimes on screen, and sometimes not, helped other people as a small bit of their development, or let themselves be helped by others as a part of it, but to have the same kinds of characters be driving forces to character development, even if they aren’t or are hardly ever on screen, took the focus away from the people you interact with, thereby diminishing their roles, in their own stories. The popularity of Kasumi, who did have a story focused on her character development, and how she develops by interacting with Ren, the protagonist, and Goro who’s roll changed in Royal, proves that fans wanted that, and for whatever reason, Atlus originally, dropped the ball in that regard, almost entirely.

2. Hating Final Fantasy XIII, but not Final Fantasy X, is kind of stupid.

If you aren’t a fan of FFXIII and it’s endless corridors, but love FFX, you might have a taste of nostalgia blinding you, or you might not be paying attention. Both games rely on corridor’s with limited space to move, FFX just, sort of hides it better, sort of. They do manage to make it feel like your traveling towards an end goal that’s worth fighting for better than XIII does, but even with that, they used a pretty similar idea, corridors with one open space towards the end, and then back to corridors. The only really noticeable change is that it’s far easier to get back to the open area, The Clam Lands, than it is to get back to FFXIII’s open space as you can get the airship sooner in FFX, than you can get to the area before you take on what is basically the Pope in FFXIII. I can already hear some people saying it was mostly about a difference of hardware capabilities, but that’s obviously not true, as games ranging from The Simpsons Hit and Run, to Grand Theft Auto, to Jak 3, to even Shadow of the Colossus to Yakuza 2 proved there were plenty of ways to implement a more open world, and Final Fantasy’s past, absolutely had open worlds as a standard.

1. Vivi not stopping, would have actually been sadder - Final Fantasy IX.

At the end of the Final Fantasy IX, my personal favorite in the series, Vivi has stopped, and we learn that he spent the remainder of his time, building smaller versions of himself. The ending text by him is supposed to make the ending bittersweet, after all Garnet and Zidane end up together, and there’s all those small Vivi’s are there celebrating the reunion of the two lovers in place of their creator who didn’t live to see it. However, as far as we know, Vivi wasn’t the last Black Mage to stop, meaning he got to avoid seeing much worse happen to his home, Black Mage Village. Vivi obviously felt a huge connection with the other Black Mages, even to the point where he considered staying with them and leaving the party to handle Kuja on their own, and while he missed seeing his friends reunite, he also got to miss seeing all the other mages stop, which arguably would have been more heartbreaking, espeically since the future of the village could have been in dire straits if everyone but Vivi had stopped.

And that’s my list, did I miss any of your unpopular JRPG’s opinions? Let me know in the notes below, feel free to reblog this if it interested you, and have a wonderful day.

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clickbliss · 4 years

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13 Sentinels is a meandering, emotional mess of a science fiction story--that only just works

by Amr (@siegarettes)

13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim

Developer: Vanillaware

Publisher: Atlus, SEGA

PS4

Relentless in artistic and storytelling ambition, 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim still comes off as lacking in confidence. It takes plenty of risks, and in presentation at least marches forward with a swagger that makes it clear Vanillaware knew how many people they could bring in purely on the promise of their incredible 2D artwork and its time-travel, mech centric premise, myself included. Yet by the time the credits roll on the game 13 Sentinels’ big ideas and ambitious remixes of the adventure game formula feel more like distractions than essential components of its storytelling.

At its heart, 13 Sentinels is a visual novel style adventure game, played from a sidescrolling perspective. In order to produce the absurd level of detail put into the 2D artwork, scenes and animations are constantly reused, restricting the story to only a few key locations that’ll become very familiar by the end of the game. It’s an intimate story that seems borne both of necessity and intention, trading detail for pure visual variety. Returning Vanillaware and visual novel fans will feel right at home here, while fans of more sprawling adventures might initially be surprised.

What it lacks in geographical scale it makes up temporal scale and its rapidly expanding cast. 13 Sentinels takes place across five different time periods, and, as you might have guessed from the name, tells the story through thirteen different protagonists. Stories jump around through points in time, with various time specific incarnations of each of them even making appearances.

It becomes complicated to track, especially given character storylines often leave out huge chunks of a timeline in order to let it be filled in during another character’s plot. One chapter might have you complete an objective, only for the next to take place far after the results of your actions, leaving you at a loss to what happened in the meantime. It’s convoluted to the point where the game offers a dedicated Analysis mode, where you can unlock glossary entries for characters and places, as well as put the game’s events into proper chronological order.

There’s an enjoyable puzzle box aspect to reconstructing what’s actually happening alongside the characters, but it doesn’t always pay off, particularly when you have to put one character’s story on hold to dip into other character stories, or the bothersome Destruction segments, which provide the “action” part of the game. Just over a third into the game however, I’d practically solved the puzzle box conspiracy beneath it, then spent about 20 more hours waiting for the reveals to occur within the story, and not exactly in a “dramatic irony” kind of way.

I was still plenty invested in the characters and their fates, and story progress is at least gated in a way that paces out the story well, but at this point the broken up plot structure was more getting in my way of seeing the story through than adding any real intrigue. Especially with so many character stories rewinding back progress to reiterate ideas already explored. It became little more than a distraction, one that betrayed Vanillaware’s confidence that they could sell the game on its story alone.

If the mystery box structure is a distraction, though, the Destruction segments are the equivalent of setting the next town over on fire. Attached to the main part of the game are pseudo-real time strategy sections. Action takes place over a short amount of time where you need to defend a specific point, with the game pausing to give you a moment whenever you choose commands. Up to six of the thirteen cast members can be operated during a mission, with the rest staying back to defend the point. Plenty of sub-systems and unit types are introduced during its runtime, but in the end it all boils down to rudimentary tower defense that isn’t particularly challenging for anyone with a basic understanding of the genre.

Destruction mode is flashy, inoffensive, and sometimes even fun, but it misses a trick by not integrating any of the incredible art seen during its main game into the action. Aside from character portraits and small, postage sized previews of each attack, Destruction mode takes place entirely within a cold tactical map view, with little more than small icons representing your characters and enemies. The sound and hit effects manage to still sell the impact of your moves, and there’s excitement in seeing so many missiles and explosions take place that they cause the frame rate to plummet, but without even animated cut-ins of the attacks, the action here really lacks the humanity and charm present in the rest of the game.

At the same time, the interface manages to be so visually busy that it becomes difficult to make out important information. I felt relieved that it never asked much of me, because the few times I did manage to fail it was because I lost important information in the noise, like the fact a certain enemy was shielding others, or even the fact that my character was taking damage.

Destruction mode in ultimately nothing more than a break from the story, and not always a welcome one. It gives of the feeling of something grafted on because Vanillaware felt they couldn’t hold their audience’s attention without some kind of action sequence. Honestly, aside from a few moments near the end, it rarely does anything to add to the story, and the few events that occur during its events are almost entirely disconnected from anything that happens within the main plot. Vanillaware struggles so hard to make this part compelling, they literally had to stop me from progressing the story by gating character progress behind it, and forcing me to unlock entries in the glossary with currency that can only be earned here. It could be cut entirely, vastly improving the pacing of the game as a whole.

Nothing makes it more clear how out of place it is than the prologue, which chops up segments of several characters’ plots, jumps between timelines and interrupts itself after each chapter with a Destruction segment that acts as a tutorial, making the narrative even more disjointed. I’d go so far towards saying that the prologue itself is the worst part of 13 Sentinels as a whole, condensing all its flaws into the weakest pitch for what eventually becomes a genuinely fantastic tale.

The prologue makes sure 13 Sentinels gets off on a weak start, and combined with its first steps treading immediately in well worn science fiction tropes, you’d be forgiven for not believing that Vanillaware won’t be able to pull it off. Time travel, terminators, kaiju and plenty of other in-universe homages to 80’s pop culture create a familiar atmosphere, getting you a little too comfortable in your assumptions before setting up a constantly unraveling thread of reveals. Shades of Koji Suzuki’s RING novels appear here, foreshadowing similar late story twists with a similar kind of investigative voice.

Through all its narrative experimentation, what ties it all together by the end is the cast itself. 13 Sentinels is ultimately a romantic tragedy about the ties made by a group of survivors. They change, develop, falter and even transcend time and consciousness, but they remain connected and can’t help returning as catalysts for each other. And like its characters, 13 Sentinels is often a mess, confused about what it wants to achieve, and not always able to express itself well. But it’s a heartfelt mess--a genuine one--and sometimes saying it with your heart means more than picking the perfect words.

#13 sentinels #13 sentinels: aegis rim #vanillaware #review #adventure game #visual novel #sega #atlus

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vinylgomez · 5 years

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the way i wear my noose like a necklace

WARNINGS: death, ptsd, heartbreak, insecurity, loneliness, domestic abuse (verbally/emotionally & physically), car accident, self harm, mentions of suicide, intrusive thoughts, depression, anxiety, trust issues, guns (kinda), implied dissociation, sad ending, also she forgets to feed the dog

seriously, do NOT ignore the warnings if you are easily triggered

Pairings: Fuuka Yamagishi x Minato Arisato/Makoto Yuki

Summary: 10 years after the events of Persona 3, Fuuka is still having trouble dealing with her trauma. She blames herself for her boyfriend Minato’s death and is still processing everything that happened with S.E.E.S but also in her home. Meanwhile everyone else, even Junpei, seem to be okay, Fuuka is on the path of self-destruction. [AU]

Word Count: 1,509

A/N: before you read, please note that this is in no way belittling abuse survivors, the only reason it might seem like that at some parts is because it’s from fuuka’s point of view and she doesn’t believe that she deserves better. this is not meant to make it seem like minato cured her either, so i’m sorry if it comes off that way!! also the writing is amateur but i’m just here to vent.

this is an alternate universe of the game persona 3 from 2006 developed and released by atlus (massive spoilers so don’t read unless you’ve finished the game!!), none of the characters are mine.

it’s been 10 years since her hero had sacrificed himself to save the world, and she was forever grateful

and fuuka actually thought she was getting better for a while

but most nights ends with her curling up in a ball sobbing silently to herself in her bed

recalling the way she was the reason for his first smile in months

and the way he used to look at her like she’s the reason the world keeps spinning

she thinks about the way she had always been insecure about their relationship

because really, who in their right mind would choose her over someone like mitsuru kirijo or yukari takeba?

but he was so patient, understanding and sweet. every time she voiced her concerns he just smiled faintly

“i will always choose you” he had whispered, resting his palm on her cheek

he was the quiet type, but whenever he did speak, it was always something important

it always made her feel better

but then he had died in another girl’s arms

and it just so happened to be the girl who always had a close connection to him

and everyone knew about it

i'm not the right match for him, i never was

doesn’t trauma cause you to lose your memory?

then why did she remember those moments so clearly?

almost as if it was the present

like when they all ran up the stairs leading to the rooftop

and the way he looked so peaceful

almost as if he was only sleeping

she remembered the sinking feeling in her stomach when she realized what was happening, her throat tightening, and the way it felt like time slowed down as she fell to the ground, wailing. this can’t be happening

at this point, she had lost count of the amount of times she had wished her evoker could be used as a real gun, just so she could put herself out of her misery.

over the years, she had slowly lost contact with her former teammates, because she kept herself isolated in her stupid room in her stupid apartment, afraid somebody would notice the scars on her wrists or the way her whole body flinched at the faintest sounds.

koromaru had stayed at her place for a while

but then yukari had visited

they were only supposed to have a cup of coffee

but really the girl came to check up on her friend

and she had noticed how thin the dog was getting, and how pale fuuka was

“fuuka-chan, are you sure you’re okay?”, her voice cracking

fuuka had tried to reassure her worried friend that she was just fine

but of course, yukari wasn’t stupid, and had seen right through her lie

weeks later, koro no longer lived with her, now he was with akihiko.

because fuuka had apparently forgotten to feed him.

but she didn’t understand it, she was sure she had filled his bowl everyday

was her mind playing tricks on her?

and to make matters more complicated, yukari kept recommending therapists

she knew she needed to talk to professionals, and she had tried. but really, how can they help? they can’t time travel, and the anti-depressants had never seemed to help her feel any better. she was a lost cause, too far gone.

yukari was the s.e.e.s member who had tried the hardest to help, but eventually she had given up as well. fuuka couldn’t say she was surprised, it’s not like she was ever going to escape the destructive lifestyle she was trapped in. she was grateful for her friends, but she stopped feeling understood a long time ago.

sometimes she felt like she was losing her mind completely. the trauma of everything that had happened when she was only 16 haunted her everyday.

why can’t I just be like the others? at least they’re functioning like normal human beings.

but minato had been the best thing that ever happened to her

and some nights, she can’t escape the guilt. the guilt of so selfishly wishing it had happened to somebody else. does that make her a terrible person? no, she tells herself. but her mind tells her otherwise. her disordered mind always makes matters worse for her.

“it’s your fault. it’ll always be your fault, you could’ve stopped him. and look at you now, it’s been a decade and you’re still crying. how pathetic. you’re a failure, fuuka.”

every time she thought of that horrible day, her head would repeat those words over and over again. isn’t grief supposed to have five stages? she knew that much, but for some reason, she seemed to be stuck in the worst one. she screams into her pillow, hoping something would make all the pain go away. but who was she kidding, this was a routine.

or a cycle, a never-ending cycle of pain that was far worse than anything she could’ve ever imagined before it had happened.

it was worse than being lost in tartarus surrounded by dangerous shadows.

it was worse than how her father would hit her and call her a disappointment when she refused to become a doctor.

and it was certainly worse than having to accept the fact that her parents didn’t look for her when she went missing for 10 days.

“why can’t you just be like other girls, fuuka? why do you have to be so special? what’s so interesting about that damn computer? you think hacking will get you anywhere in life? grow the hell up and get a proper job! think about your mother and i, and how humiliating it is for us to have a daughter like you.” her father would shout, while her mother sighed and looked the other way as he threatened their daughter, saying that he would disown her if she “didn’t get her shit together”.

those days always ended with her upper arm covered in bruises, tears streaming down her red cheeks as she fell asleep wishing she was somebody else.

she knew it was sad, tragic actually, that she would go right back into her abusive household in a heartbeat if it meant that he would come back to life.

but the thing is that at least she had a safe place back then. it was him, no, it’s not like in those cliché love stories where the boy saves the princess from all of her problems. it wasn’t like that at all, but she had him to talk to about anything, he always listened so well.

and whenever she was around him it felt like nothing was wrong with the world.

like when he first kissed her, she had never felt so safe.

pressing a shaking finger to her lips, she smiled faintly at the memory.

but it only lasted for a moment.

“he’s gone and he’s never going to come back. you’ll be alone forever, fuuka.”

now she had nowhere to go, no one would truly understand her

she had once thought that maybe junpei would understand, he had lost chidori in a similar way

and he had lost his best friend, too

but then she realized she didn’t know how to talk to him anymore

and there was no way she could tell him everything

not to mention, she wouldn’t want to upset him. he deserved better than having to deal with her shit too

all the bad memories replayed in her head. like a nightmare.

or a horror movie that constantly rewinds and plays the scariest parts over and over again

she thought about her fathers words, and she knew he was right.

but he had died in a car crash a few years back, and she no longer had contact with the woman who used to be her mother.

so she couldn’t tell them that they were right about her all along.

not that she would’ve given them the satisfaction, anyway.

maybe if he had just killed me when he wanted to, they could’ve had another daughter, or a son, who would’ve been picture perfect. and they would’ve been happy.

once she gets up and slumps towards the bathroom, she knows it’s just another messy night that proves how weak she is.

fumbling through the cabinets, she retrieves what she was looking for.

she's not crying anymore, everything feels slow and distorted, as if time had stopped passing and nothing was real.

dragging the razor blade across her skin, tears start to flow again. watching the blood drip to the floor, she can’t stop telling herself that she deserves everything bad that has ever happened to her.

she smiles.

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callie-the-snarky-geek-blog · 5 years

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RvB16 Episode 7 Review: It Just Winked At Me

Last time on Red vs Blue: O’Malley came back bitches. That’s it. That’s all you need to know. No need to go into how Grif is all alone with only a talking lens flare and all the potential angst that writers can dig up from that. Or that Atlus is a dork who obliterated Tucker and Sister into subatomic particles. None of that’s important at all. Only O’Malley matters.

Alright, so this episode has been hyped for awhile. Joe hyped it up. Kyle Taylor (the Machinima director) hyped it up. Even Gus hyped it up. Any of this can mean anything. So as we enter the shortest episode so far (only 7 minutes… I guess Joe couldn’t make the episodes longer unless he’s holding them back for later), what has all the talk been leading up to? Well… I can say it was like nothing I’ve seen before!

Overview

So good news, Tucker and Sister are alive! Yay… yeah I knew that was coming. There is no way that they’d kill a long-time character and a fan favorite character they finally made a main like that. Also it looks like the blast sobered them up. So there’s your lesson kids: if you are drunk off your ass, being blasted by God is how you sober back up! Atlus tries to kill them a couple more times before finally realizing that ‘his’ protection is making that impossible. Also we find out that Kalirama is his sister, which explains her being the Queen of the Cosmic Powers. So goign into some speculating, Kalirama mentioned being the Daughter of Time. My guess has been that the villain is Chronos, the Personification of Time. It can also refer to Cronus, the King of the Titans and father of Zeus. If Joe made Chronos and Cronus the same person who Atlus overthrew and he and Kalirama and his kids trying to keep him locked up… wow and I thought the Church and Grif families were fucked up.

Since Atlus can’t obliterate Tucker and Sister, he goes with the option of ‘let my mindless minions do it’. So he summons up a cyclopes… I am NOT joking. Some may find this too bizarre, but as someone who likes mythical shenanigans I do NOT give a shit! Plus it fits the myth theme since cyclopes’ are part of both Greek and Roman mythology. So the cyclopes obviously isn’t a Halo character, so what did they do? They… put Gus in a costume/a ton of makeup and made him do it. Yes, you read that right. The cyclopes was RvB’s very own Gustavo Sorola. It is also, I believe, RvB’s first implementation of live-action within the show, at least on this level. It’s pretty good! I mean the cyclopes is butt ugly, but I’m pretty sure that was the point… sorry Gus.

So Atlus sicks… Grugh, I think? Screw it, I’m calling him Gus. My blog, my rules. Atlus sicks Gus on the two Blues. They understandably, make a run for it. At least until Sister quips that Tucker could prove how great a fighter she is. Which she meant as sarcasm… but Tucker of course has to decide to be Mr. Macho and face Gus. The result? Both the time gun and the sword get knocked away from him. I should also point out that Gus is about 100X larger than Tucker. So he can easily crush him… yyyyeah… not your best plan Tucker.

Back in the 6th Century (not the 16th like I wrote last week, Past Callie is stupid), Huggins is trying to figure out what to do now that O’Malley has gotten away and both she and Grif are stranded. Grif is currently… I guess looking for mushrooms since he mentions eating them later. Guess since he can’t talk Italian, that’s the only way he can survive, I mean it worked on the moon! Anyways, Huggins contemplates her options. Now because she’s talking fast, it’s hard to make out everything and for whatever reason,t he RT site doesn’t have a subtitle option that I REALLY hope they fix soon. But anyways, Huggins comes u with three potential solutions:

Wait it out and let time move along until she’s back in present day. This is ruled out because it would take far too long. This one is declared a ‘maybe’.

MURDER! Kill Grif and prevent at least one dirty shisno from fucking everything up! This is also ruled out as it goes against Huggins’ code and it’s also forbidden. Oh, but Atlus can obliterate people? I sense abuse of power!

Talk to Grif and convince him to team up so that they can find a way out of the 6th Century. But if she does this, thee penalty is getting tortured int he Underworld for all eternity. But this is the only option that could work, so… ye, she risks it.

Alright, so reasoning! Huggins goes to Grif, who is pretty much refusing to believe anything that is happening. Huggins tries to convince him to help her since otherwise hey’re both gonna die. Grif doesn’t buy any of it, especially when Huggins reveals that the Gods sent her to spy on them. SO he just walks away and Huggins is probably re-considering the murder option now.

Alright, back to the moon! Tucker tries to shoot Gus… and of course fails. Stupid guns! Sister retrieves both the time gun and Tucker’s sword as Tucker himself ducks inside the base. He tries to think of what to do… and sees his old armor set, giving him an idea. Gus reaches in and grabs what looks like Tucker, eating his head. Eww, Gus! That’ll ruin your teeth! Also is this an Attack on Titans reference? I’m positive that it’s an Attack on Titans reference. But of course it was really the empty armor which Tucker stuffed with grenades. Which go off, distracting Gus and Tucker drives in with the Warthog, driving it straight into hos face. It finally knocks Gus down and Tucker along with him.

So it looks like Tucker wins, right? Haha… yeah… about that. Sister points out that normally when you beat the boss, they come back twice as powerful. You’d think that Tucker, living in a video game, would know this but meh. SO yeah, Gus gets back up and he is not happy. Hey Tucker, tell him that they should go to Vegas! That’ll make him REALLY angry I bet! Tucker runs into the caves and seems safe since Gus’ hand is too big… until Tucker says he needs to do it one finger at a time. And Gus can understand English, so… yeah…

Fortunately before Tucker can get grabbed, Sister channels her inner Xena and attempts to use the sword, jump down form the cliffs, and stab Gus in the head. But Tucker informs her too late that the sword only works for him. SO she gets smacked away and when Tucker exits the cave to help, he gets knocked over to her. Sister points out that cyclopes’ have a fatal weakness, so Tucker goe sin and… attacks Gus’ groin. I… don’t think that’s what she meant Tucker… but it works as Gus finally hits the ground. Well… not the defeat I was expecting, but it was a defeat!

Unfortunately, Atlus decides to sick Gus’ wife on them who is rather peeved that due to this, they can’t do hanky panky and have kids. Having had enough, Tucker and Sister FINALLY do what they should have done before: open a time portal and get the fuck out of there. Where do they end up? Well remember the medieval scene from Episode 1? Well they FINALLY connected it to the main narrative as the two end up on the same tower as medieval Grif and Simmons. And the two get arrested… WELP.

Review

This episode has had a lot of mixed reception so far. I haven’t seen anyone hate it, but many were disappointing. It’s understandable why. After all the hype, it was really just about a dumb joke. A very well shot dumb joke, but a dumb joke. There’s still so little about he plot we know, nothing advanced any further here, the episode was incredibly short, and it’s still unclear what all of this is leading us to. We’re on Episode 7 and no progress has been made. I think so far Joe has the opposite problem he had last year. Last year, he rushed it because he only ha done season. This year he has more than one, but due to it he slowed down. A little too much maybe. This coming off the heels of last week’s O’Malley plot bomb and… yeah I don’t blame people in being disappointed and viewing this as completely pointless.

I didn’t know how to feel during the first viewing… but when watching ti again to write this review, I was laughing so much. I got a LOT more enjoyment out of it. To be fair, I am always like that. I always like stuff on the second watch than the first one since I knwo what’s coming and I can better process it. And watching ti again… I don’t think that this was pointless at ll. There’s no major progression with the plot, and I agree that it’s been long enough. But… I got a lot out of this episode, even form Grif’s brief scene. Not just with plot, but the work on this episode is truly impressive imo.

Before we talk about that, lets do Grif’s scene. It’s only about a minute long and the only machinimated scene. Yeah, 95% of the episode was CGI animated. But Grif’s scene, while brief, was good. I wish we saw a bit mroe follow-up on how he’s doing after O’Malley left him stranded, but him living off mushrooms I can buy. Him also goign into denial over everything I can also buy. So not as much as I was hoping for with him, but good stuff that matches his character.

The scene’s actual importance is mainly setup for what’ll happen later. It also FINALLY gave us some time with Huggins’ since Episode 1. And OMG, I absolutely love her. Her rapid fire dialogue is kind of hard to make out, but her actress did a good job at it. Huggins is cheerful, but serious about her job. She understands the importance of what’s coming, but has to resort to breaking law since she’s in a position where otherwise, everyone is doomed. She’s cute, but also sassy as evident with her response when Grif calls her Tinkerbell (is that gonna be his nickname for her when he warms up to her? I want it to be!) Seriously I am already loving the interactions between Grif and Huggins and I am really excited to see more of it! Now how they’ll get out of the 6th Century IDK, but we’ll just have to wait.

Okay, back to the res tof the episode. As I said, pretty much the entire episode is CGI animated. it’s the first major CGI fight in the season, and it was awesome. Okay it was mostly running, but it was fun to watch. Tucker plowing the Warthog into Gus was freakin’ badass. The voice acting was also on point. I have never laughed harder at Jason Saldana’s performance than I have today and Becca continues to crush it as Sister. Seriously, going all Xena with the ‘alalala!’ war-cry had me dying. An ProZD as Atus… OMG ProZD. He was fantastic in this episode and it added so much to Atlus as a character. Like he is just enjoying the show and is so unimpressed with Tucker and Sister even when they win. His animation where he’s just celebrating watching Gus winning was also so freakin’ fantastic and again, dds to the character. Seriously, I wasn’t sure what to think of Atlus before, but he has already become one of my fav RvB villain ever after this episode alone.

So onto Gus… I have no idea how Joe talked him into this. I mean he’s done worst and IDT anything will be as bad as when he did the Baby Gus RT Short. That short man… anyways! I think Gus did really well! It felt like he was truly interacting with the environment. He didn’t have to do much acting aside form grunting and going around wildly, but it felt like he was playing a monstrous cyclopes. Credit also to Joe and his directing. I don’t knwo what inspired him to do this, but OMG I am so glad he did. I mean it looks weird and it’s ridiculous.., but it’s RvB. It’s always been weird and ridiculous. Plus using live action again sells the effect that the cyclopes is a monster compared to what we’re used to with the machinima. It sold the effect really well. So kudos to Joe and to Gus because shooting this and then editing it in had to be a nightmare.

It’s why I don’t think the episode was at all pointless. I mean we DO have some minor things. We find out that Kalirama is Atlus’ sister, the villain si indeed a locked up time God, get a taste of how powerful the Cosmic Powers forces are, have some characterization for Atlus, setup for Grif and Huggins’ plot, an actual fight scene after so long, and it FINALLY ties in the medieval scene. It’s also huge on a cinematic scale, which is probably why it’s only 7 minutes. I mena Joe and his team had to fully animate the episode, shoot Gus’ scenes where he’s pretty much just interacting with air, combined the footage together, likely do re-shoots if the live action was even slightly off, edit it all together with the machinima, and… yeah. This was likely a huge pain it he ass to do for everyone involved. But I appreciate that they did. Joe is going above and beyond what he has to do. he could just do solely machinima and it would be fine. But he’s trying new things, implementing more CGI, and taking the show to the next level. Is it a hit? That’s for one to decide on their own. I think it worked here, but I don’t think they should regularly implement live action as they did. Special occasions are fine though. But I still appreciate Joe trying things and putting in the effort when he doesn’t have to. He wants to make the show as good as he can, and I can absolutely respect that.

Final Thoughts

Did they hype this one too much? Maybe a little. It was not what I was expecting at all. But I don’t thin that’s a bad thing. Again, I appreciate them going out of their way to do this. Plus the animation, dialogue, and voice acting were really good. Can I understand why people don’t like this episode and are getting weary of the season? Absolutely yes. I do hoe that Joe starts to speed up the plot soon. But I still had a fun time watching the episode, and in the end that’s what matters: having a good time. It was weird and ridiculous and I wouldn’t have it nay other way.

#rvb #rvb16 #rvb reviews #old blog repost

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calliecat93 · 6 years

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RvB16 Episode 7 Review: It Just Winked At Me

Last time on Red vs Blue: O’Malley came back bitches. That’s it. That's all you need to know. No need to go into how Grif is all alone with only a talking lens flare and all the potential angst that writers can dig up from that. Or that Atlus is a dork who obliterated Tucker and Sister into subatomic particles. None of that’s important at all. Only O’Malley matters.

Alright, so this episode has been hyped for awhile. Joe hyped it up. Kyle Taylor (the Machinima director) hyped it up. Even Gus hyped it up. Any of this can mean anything. So as we enter the shortest episode so far (only 7 minutes... I guess Joe couldn't make the episodes longer unless he’s holding them back for later), what has all the talk been leading up to? Well... I can say it was like nothing I’ve seen before!

Overview

So good news, Tucker and Sister are alive! Yay... yeah I knew that was coming. There is no way that they’d kill a long-time character and a fan favorite character they finally made a main like that. Also it looks like the blast sobered them up. So there’s your lesson kids: if you are drunk off your ass, being blasted by God is how you sober back up! Atlus tries to kill them a couple more times before finally realizing that ‘his’ protection is making that impossible. Also we find out that Kalirama is his sister, which explains her being the Queen of the Cosmic Powers. So... I made a post a few days ago about Kalirama’s titles and she mentioned being the Daughter of Time. My guess has been that the villain is Chronos, the Personification of Time. It can also refer to Cronus, the King of the Titans and father of Zeus. If Joe made Chronos and Cronus the same person who Atlus overthrew and he and Kalirama and his kids trying to keep him locked up... wow and I thought the Church and Grif families were fucked up.

Since Atlus can’t obliterate Tucker and Sister, he goes with the option of ‘let my mindless minions do it’. So he summons up a cyclopes... I am NOT joking. Some may find this too bizarre, but as someone who likes mythical shenanigans I do NOT give a shit! Plus it fits the myth theme since cyclopes’ are part of both Greek and Roman mythology. So the cyclopes obviously isn’t a Halo character, so what did they do? They... put Gus in a costume/a ton of makeup and made him do it. Yes, you read that right. The cyclopes was RvB’s very own Gustavo Sorola. It is also, I believe, RvB’s first implementation of live-action within the show, at least on this level. It’s pretty good! I mean the cyclopes is butt ugly, but I’m pretty sure that was the point... sorry Gus.

So Atlus sicks... Grugh, I think? Screw it, I’m calling him Gus. My blog, my rules. Atlus sicks Gus on the two Blues. They understandably, make a run for it. At least until Sister quips that Tucker could prove how great a fighter she is. Which she meant as sarcasm... but Tucker, of course, has to decide to be Mr. Macho and face Gus. The result? Both the time gun and the sword get knocked away from him. I should also point out that Gus is about 100X larger than Tucker. So he can easily crush him... yyyyeah... not your best plan Tucker.

Back in the 6th Century (not the 16th like I wrote last week, Past Callie is stupid), Huggins is trying to figure out what to do now that O’Malley has gotten away and both she and Grif are stranded. Grif is currently... I guess looking for mushrooms since he mentions eating them later. Guess since he can't talk Italian, that’s the only way he can survive, I mean it worked on the moon! Anyways, Huggins contemplates her options. Now because she’s talking fast, it’s hard to make out everything and for whatever reason,t he RT site doesn't have a subtitle option that I REALLY hope they fix soon. But anyways, Huggins comes u with three potential solutions:

Wait it out and let time move along until she’s back in present day. This is ruled out because the Reds and Blues will still be time traveling, evil time God goes free, and the universe dies. This one is declared a ‘maybe’.

Alright, so reasoning! Huggins goes to Grif, who is pretty much refusing to believe anything that is happening. Huggins tries to convince him to help her since otherwise they're both gonna die. Grif doesn't buy any of it, especially when Huggins reveals that the Gods sent her to spy on them. SO he just walks away and Huggins is probably re-considering the murder option now.

Alright, back to the moon! Tucker tries to shoot Gus... and of course, fails. Stupid guns! Sister retrieves both the time gun and Tucker’s sword as Tucker himself ducks inside the base. He tries to think of what to do... and sees his old armor set, giving him an idea. Gus reaches in and grabs what looks like Tucker, eating his head. Eww, Gus! That’ll ruin your teeth! Also is this an Attack on Titans reference? I’m positive that it’s an Attack on Titans reference. But of course, it was really the empty armor which Tucker stuffed with grenades. Which go off, distracting Gus and Tucker drives in with the Warthog, driving it straight into his face. It finally knocks Gus down and Tucker along with him.

So it looks like Tucker wins, right? Haha... yeah... about that. Sister points out that normally when you beat the boss, they come back twice as powerful. You’d think that Tucker, living in a video game, would know this but meh. SO yeah, Gus gets back up and he is not happy. Hey Tucker, tell him that they should go to Vegas! That’ll make him REALLY angry I bet! Tucker runs into the caves and seems safe since Gus’ hand is too big... until Tucker says he needs to do it one finger at a time. And Gus can understand English, so... yeah...

Fortunately, before Tucker can get grabbed, Sister channels her inner Xena and attempts to use the sword, jump down from the cliffs, and stab Gus in the head. But Tucker informs her too late that the sword only works for him. SO she gets smacked away and when Tucker exits the cave to help, he gets knocked over to her. Sister points out that cyclopes’ have a fatal weakness, so Tucker goe sin and... attacks Gus’ groin. I... don’t think that’s what she meant Tucker... but it works as Gus finally hits the ground. Well... not the defeat I was expecting, but it was a defeat!

Unfortunately, Atlus decides to sick Gus’ wife on them who is rather peeved that due to this, they can't do hanky panky and have kids. Having had enough, Tucker and Sister FINALLY do what they should have done before: open a time portal and get the fuck out of there. Where do they end up? Remember the medieval scene from Episode 1? Well, they FINALLY connected it to the main narrative as the two end up on the same tower as medieval Grif and Simmons. And the two get arrested... WELP.

Review

This episode has had a lot of mixed reception so far. I haven’t seen anyone hate it, but many were disappointing. It’s understandable why. After all the hype, it was really just about a dumb joke. A very well shot dumb joke, but a dumb joke. There’s still so little about the plot we know, nothing advanced any further here, the episode was incredibly short, and it’s still unclear what all of this is leading us to. We’re on Episode 7 and no progress has been made. I think so far Joe has the opposite problem he had last year. Last year, he rushed it because he only has done season. This year he has more than one, but due to it he slowed down. A little too much maybe. This coming off the heels of last week’s O’Malley plot bomb and... yeah I don’t blame people in being disappointed and viewing this as completely pointless.

I didn’t know how to feel during the first viewing... but when watching ti again to write this review, I was laughing so much. I got a LOT more enjoyment out of it. To be fair, I am always like that. I always like stuff on the second watch than the first one since I know what’s coming and I can better process it. And watching ti again... I don’t think that this was pointless at ll. There’s no major progression with the plot, and I agree that it’s been long enough. But... I got a lot out of this episode, even form Grif’s brief scene. Not just with the plot, but the work on this episode is truly impressive imo.

Before we talk about that, let's do Grif’s scene. It’s only about a minute long and the only machinimated scene. Yeah, 95% of the episode was CGI animated. But Grif’s scene, while brief, was good. I wish we saw a bit more follow-up on how he’s doing after O’Malley left him stranded, but him living off mushrooms I can buy. Him also going into denial over everything I can also buy. So not as much as I was hoping for with him, but good stuff that matches his character.

The scene’s actual importance is mainly setup for what’ll happen later. It also FINALLY gave us some time with Huggins’ since Episode 1. And OMG, I absolutely love her. Her rapid-fire dialogue is kind of hard to make out, but her actress did a good job at it. Huggins is cheerful, but serious about her job. She understands the importance of what’s coming but has to resort to breaking law since she’s in a position where otherwise, everyone is doomed. She’s cute, but also sassy as evident with her response when Grif calls her Tinkerbell (is that gonna be his nickname for her when he warms up to her? I want it to be!) Seriously I am already loving the interactions between Grif and Huggins and I am really excited to see more of it! Now how they’ll get out of the 6th Century IDK, but we’ll just have to wait.

Okay, back to the res tof the episode. As I said, pretty much the entire episode is CGI animated. it’s the first major CGI fight in the season, and it was awesome. Okay it was mostly running, but it was fun to watch. Tucker plowing the Warthog into Gus was freakin’ badass. The voice acting was also on point. I have never laughed harder at Jason Saldana’s performance than I have today and Becca continues to crush it as Sister. Seriously, going all Xena with the ‘alalala!’ war-cry had me dying. An ProZD as Atus... OMG ProZD. He was fantastic in this episode and it added so much to Atlus as a character. Like he is just enjoying the show and is so unimpressed with Tucker and Sister even when they win. His animation where he’s just celebrating watching Gus winning was also so freakin’ fantastic and again, dds to the character. Seriously, I wasn’t sure what to think of Atlus before, but he has already become one of my fav RvB villain ever after this episode alone.

So onto Gus... I have no idea how Joe talked him into this. I mean he’s done worst and IDT anything will be as bad as when he did the Baby Gus RT Short. That short man... anyways! I think Gus did really well! It felt like he was truly interacting with the environment. He didn’t have to do much acting aside form grunting and going around wildly, but it felt like he was playing a monstrous cyclops. Credit also to Joe and his directing. I don’t know what inspired him to do this, but OMG I am so glad he did. I mean it looks weird and it’s ridiculous.., but it’s RvB. It’s always been weird and ridiculous. Plus using live action again sells the effect that the cyclops is a monster compared to what we’re used to with the machinima. It sold the effect really well. So kudos to Joe and to Gus because shooting this and then editing it in had to be a nightmare.

It’s why I don’t think the episode was at all pointless. I mean we DO have some minor things. We find out that Kalirama is Atlus’ sister, the villain is indeed a locked up time God, get a taste of how powerful the Cosmic Powers forces are, have some characterization for Atlus, setup for Grif and Huggins’ plot, an actual fight scene after so long, and it FINALLY ties in the medieval scene. It’s also huge on a cinematic scale, which is probably why it’s only 7 minutes. I mean Joe and his team had to fully animate the episode, shoot Gus’ scenes where he’s pretty much just interacting with air, combined the footage together, likely do re-shoots if the live action was even slightly off, edit it all together with the machinima, and... yeah. This was likely a huge pain in the ass to do for everyone involved. But I appreciate that they did. Joe is going above and beyond what he has to do. he could just do solely machinima and it would be fine. But he’s trying new things, implementing more CGI, and taking the show to the next level. Is it a hit? That's for one to decide on their own. I think it worked here, but I don’t think they should regularly implement live action as they did. Special occasions are fine though. But I still appreciate Joe trying things and putting in the effort when he doesn't have to. He wants to make the show as good as he can, and I can absolutely respect that.

Final Thoughts

Did they hype this one too much? Maybe a little. It was not what I was expecting at all. But I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Again, I appreciate them going out of their way to do this. Plus the animation, dialogue, and voice acting were really good. Can I understand why people don’t like this episode and are getting weary of the season? Absolutely yes. I do hope that Joe starts to speed up the plot soon. But I still had a fun time watching the episode, and in the end, that’s what matters: having a good time. It was weird and ridiculous and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

#rvb #rvb16 #rvb16 spoilers #rvb reviews

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sillyfudgemonkeys · 6 years

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FeMC in P3D Op? Theory pt 2

Didn’t think I’d make a pt 2, but anyway if you haven’t read pt 1 here you go (for the tldr; the hands are either human!Aigis or FeMC, but for the sake of this theory let’s still pretend it might be FeMC, btw a point against the Aigis theory for that one is that they do hold hands while dancing as seen in his PV...but it’s with his left hand in that dance...and by then in the P3D Op he has changed to his P3D outfit so it cannot be his left hand so yeah.... 8U it’s a theory let’s have fun guys).

Btw kinda also going to take the time to point out parallels between P3D and P3P’s opening because I don’t wanna do hw :’D But yeah, first the theory (aka is it (human!)Aigis or is it FeMC?, also don’t worry it’s uber short), then analysis.

So I may have alluded to a scene in the P3D Op in my last theory, about whether the silhouette was Aigis or FeMC.

Btw this beam of silhouette was created/preceded by Minato doing the Seal motion, which.....tbh the FeMC has done too and would be an interesting way to connect them. 8U Anyway....

Now before you say anything, I always assumed it was Aigis. I did wonder for like a second if it was the FeMC (esp since it does a call back to P3P’s Op too)...but I had decided not to get my hopes up...tho after someone else mentioned it and the unknown hands shown in the full OP.....maybe it is? I mean...from the side that’s silhouetted....they look similar. I mean the FeMC’s bun can take a similar shape as Aigis’ pixie cut, both have bangs in a similar area and when bouncing (from the side angle while silhouetted) it could be either. No really look at their P3P battle icons:

When you take away all their unique features, you are left with a similar shape. Which is extra hard to tell in the P3D Op because the back end of her hair is.....camouflaged into the white background on the right’s side.

And like, when Minato’s trailer dropped, for a second I thought it was FeMC dancing, cause it started with a silhouette. I actually really honest to god had a heart attack.

See? The bun makes it seem like she has short hair, so akflj;asjfda ;w; (I’m not joking guys, I did have a heart attack, it physically shocked and hurt me for a second, guys we’ve reached a point this isn’t good for my health :’D ;w;)

But now I’m sure you see why......I can’t be 100% sure. On top of the fact P3D’s opening has a lot of references to the past P3 openings (even FES, it has two to be exact, the rest are P3/P majority tbh, we’ll only focus on P3P’s).

And now to segway into the analysis part which kinda sorta backs the theory (but again this is just a pipe dream theory and we’re just having fun so just let me have my fun I know it’s probably not it but alkdsfjaf ahhhh I can DREAM ;w;)

Before we get to the parallels, bonus side theory, I’m thinking Atlus is already putting in a budget for.....the Phoenix Ranger OP, like they’re making a fictional OP for just this game. If it really IS the FeMC in the P3D Op, who’s to say Atlus won’t do the same with her? I can dream right? ;w; (also I mean like....both with P3D and P3P the MCs don’t really....spend a whole lot of time on screen....so yeah....maybe that was one way to make it easier on them to do an alt opening...also....I’ll use that to segway into the parallels~! 8U)

Anyway under the cut cause lots ‘o pictures~! 8U

Ok so like first the stair scene, now I know it can parallel P3 Vanilla’s OP, or maybe it parallels both Vanilla and P3P (cause like....a lot of these are very symbolic to P3 and some were also used in P3P, like this one, but don’t worry this is the only one I’m bringing up that’ll overlap). Anyway here’s what I mean:

“But Silly, one has stairs and the other has an escalator, also he’s going down in P3P” Well to the first thing, shhhhhh roll with it 8U To the second part I’d say you need a perspective change!

BOOM! Now he’s going up. 8U Oh hey and it’s in the same direction now too. Well that’s if you just flip reflect on the image, not rotate it. If you just rotate it then they aren’t going the same way, but he’s still going up. 8U Here’s what it looks like just rotated (btw later with the Ken picture it’s just flipped not rotated too):

Also did you notice that the FeMC is blinking at the same time on both sides? Just....something I noticed. 8U It’s the only movement she does, Minato moves more and later but it’s at the end and by then the Minato in the background on the FeMC’s side is gone. Anyway moving on, but not too far. 8U

As you can see Minato’s they even have the close up just like P3P and....wait....hold on....w-what’s this?

w-wHAT IS THIS?!

WHAT. THE. FU-

(ok was just trying to find a funny gif but this worked out well I had to use it anyway) .I...I’ve noticed this well before but.....I.......I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE THEY STOLE HER HEADPHONES! ;W; YOU TAKE HER SONGS, YOU TAKE HER HEADPHONES, WHY ATLUS WHY?! *sobbing* just take her dignity why dontcha? ;w;

Anyway, Ken’s scene is also a call back to P3P (btw I flipped both the P3P and P3D so the bottom is showing on top for both of them just cause it’s fun):

And lastly back to the escalator scene *looks up*....I mean the one with the MCs (plus one other P3P scene).

So remember when I said Minato turns towards the FeMC? Well it looks like it parallels the scene where Aigis is looking at that silhouette. And the 3rd picture is to showcase that there is a bit of a bond with the FeMC/Aigis (in opening form that is, aka other than in-game).

I think I got everything.....*shrugs* Time for bed. 8U

#persona 3 #persona 3 portable #persona 3 dancing moon night #hamuko arisato #minako arisato #p3 #p3p #p3d #p3dmn #was not expecting the little fox lady to have a very on point gif for this situation 8U

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ask-the-phan-site · 3 years

Text

Phan Cam: Some Hot Wheels... For Phantom Thieves

>Handler’s Corners, Arizona, USA. We came here to investigate our possible next target: Sheriff Johnson. Something about taking his rules a little too far. I wonder what awaits us.

>After a drive, we arrive at some pizza diner.

Ah, this looks like a good place to start our investigation.

Yes, let’s. I can already smell those pizza pies all the way from here. Hey, can we get some while we’re here? We haven’t eaten anything since we left Phoenix.

(reading a sign tapped on the front door) It says that due to COVID, they only do deliveries now.

For real!? Well that sucks.

I’ll make you all something later. Yusuke, where is he?

He and his team will be here soon. I called them while we were in Phoenix and he said they were close by.

Who are you guys talking about?

>Suddenly, the sound of cars could be heard coming. Then, several cars with a fire theme drive in... We recognize one of them.

The Scorchers!? You called them here, Yusuke kun?

Fox: Yes.

Skull: Man, it’s like Thanksgiving all over again.

???? ??????: And his birthday.

>The driver side door opens and Taro Kitano, the leader of the Scorchers came out. The other Scorchers followed from their cars.

So tell me... What’s Wheeler gotten himself into this time?

Is now really a good time for this?

Taro Kitano: Can’t help it. But when Yusuke mentioned "Vert Wheeler” and “Handler’s Corners”, I had to see this for myself.

Sounds like he just wanted to see his old friend.

Taro Kitano: I heard that. Me and Wheeler are many things, but we’re definitely not friends. Friendly rivals, maybe. But not friends... But I thought it wouldn’t hurt to check up on him after all these years and see what he’s up these days.

So you did wanted to catch up with him.

Taro Kitano: More like catch up to him.

So you’re the one I helped Kitano get that gift for? So it’s true? You bambinos are really the Phantom-

Taro Kitano: (sternly) I don’t think they need it to be shouted out, Vesuvius. We maybe the only ones out right now, but still, show some decency.

Vesuvius: Scusati. It’s just that me, Everest, and Krakatoa are huge fans of yours. We’ve followed your work since you took down Medjed. And since Thanksgiving, we were blown away to know we were at a place you had your latest heist. È stato magnifico.

Queen: (smiling) Sono contento di sapere che abbiamo ammiratori anche in gruppi come il tuo.

>Vesuvius almost fainted at what Queen said. I only know a little Italian from my Uncle Vincent, but it sounded good.

Though I’m not sure why you would call us “kids”. Zenkichi is the oldest with a daughter of his own. Joker and some of the others are already in college.

And the rest of us will be in college soon.

Vesuvius: I know. I couldn’t help it. Some of you are young than us.

Crow: It’s understandable.

Joker: If you are our fans, it makes me wonder what became of your car, Everest san.

After learning that the leader of the Phantom Thieves just drove my car, I swore never to sit in the diver seat or use the stirring wheel again.

So he took them out of his car. Now they on some sort of shrine we set up for you in Vesuvius’ room... And I probably shouldn’t have said that. You’re not weirded out by this, are you?

Joker: No, it’s fine.

Taro Kitano: But we will have to talk about that later. But for now, we should got on with what you needed our help with.

Vesuvius: (agitated whisper) And we’ll talk about the rules again.

>We tell Taro Kitano and the other Scorchers about our latest heist.

So you want us to go after a guy who’s just doing his job?

I know it seems odd, but that’s pretty much it. That’s why we’re asking around.

We’re not going steal from him now, eh? We passed the sheriff station not that long ago.

Wolf: It’s a lot more complicated than that. Even I’m still trying to figure it out.

Taro Kitano: Yeah, I think Goemon said something about that. Something about an app on your phone.

Fox: (taking out his phone) Yes. To enter the sheriff’s Palace, we need not only his name, but the location of his Palace and what he sees it as.

Harrison Lau: That sound a lot to look for.

Crow: He has a Palace. We already entered his name. Now we just need to know where it is and what it is. What don’t know them, so we have to find out.

Taro Kitano: Sounds like a lot of guess work. What have you got so far?

Queen: All we could find what that his full name is John Johnson (not very original). He was born April 30 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He graduated from high school and got a high degree in college. He also served in the US Army for 11 years until he left due to injury to his leg. Since then, he moved here to his father’s hometown where he became the town sheriff.

Sounds like he lead a charmed life.

Queen: But it doesn’t really tell us anything. That’s why we’re here to ask around people who know him. It won’t be easy since even small towns like this are not unaffected by the coronavirus.

Krakatoa: Won’t everyone think it odd for a bunch of out-of-towners asking around about their sheriff?

Panther: I’ve already come up with a good cover. We’re doing a story on small town life. Starting with its most prominent citizen... The law enforcement.

Harrison Lau: Are they really going to buy that?

Panther: That’s what we’re hoping would work. Unless you have anything else.

Taro Kitano: I have one, actually. As you know, the Scorchers are just getting into smaller races and street races until the return of the World Race on Highway 35... I say we found the location of our next small race that was inspired by the Thanksgiving Race at Racer Academy.

Mona: That sound good, too. Not as bad as Lady Ann’s, though.

Panther: But you have to admit, it makes a little more sense. But are you sure Vert Wheeler won’t find out about you being here.

Taro Kitano: As long as we don’t run into him or any of his teammates, it should be fine.

Jet Blaney: I didn’t know the Teku were here.

Taro Kitano: They’re not. Wheeler’s the leader of a new team here, or so I’m told. But I was also told that lately, he’s been helping the Teku again. Something about “Infinite Loop”. I don’t have all the details, let’s leave it at that. I don’t know if Wheeler’s back right now, but we still have to watch out for this Battle Force 5.

Joker: Then it’s settled. Let’s do our best and find some answers. We all meet back here in an hour. If we haven’t found anything before then, we try again tomorrow.

So, are we ready?

Everyone: Ready!

>With that, we part for now. I go with Fox and Taro Kitano.

>We were walking through town when I noticed the sudden tension between Fox and Taro Kitano. I know I probably shouldn’t... But I decide to break the ice.

Joker: So... Nice weather we’re having. You don’t get stuff like this back in Tokyo.

Taro Kitano: Yeah, Los Angeles has the same problem with its smog and pollution.

Fox: Indeed. If I hadn’t left my sketchpad back at the camper, I would sketch this place.

Taro Kitano: I know... (still a little unsure) So... Umm... How’s Tokyo these days? Aside from the lockdowns. I haven’t been back since the Love Meets Bonds Festival.

Fox: It’s... Shiny... Like it normally is at night.

Taro Kitano: And you’re in college?

Fox: I’m finishing my first year.

Taro Kitano: And you’re dating someone?

Fox: Yes.

Taro Kitano: I see... So... What’s she like? ... Or he? ... Whichever goes well with you.

>Fox nods over to me.

Taro Kitano: I see. That’s cool. He seems like a good person to be around.

Fox: Yes. Ren helped me when I was in a slump and I helped him in return. After being with him all those times, we grow closer and closer and we realized how connected our hearts are. I know that there are versions of him where he is mostly with one of the girls (curse you ATLUS) and fan version with our male members and even his contractors, but this is one of the versions who’s with me.

Joker: And we’re happy about it. Though it is not cannon, we’re happy that in this fanmade timeline, me and Yusuke are together.

>Me and Fox hold hands with loving passion.

Taro Kitano: I’m happy for you. Both of you. Just try not to blow... Like it did... Twice.

Fox: Yes, we know after Mom, you were with Lani Tam, formally of the Wave Rippers.

Taro Kitano: Yeah, our relationship didn’t last very long. She said I was too hard to talk to. I understand that. I’m not normally the social type. I’m always more focused on my races than most other things. I’m trying to work on that. Not sure I’m ready to get into a relationship, but I’ll think about it... I’m sorry, it’s just, I’m still trying to get used to this. I left your mother before you were born and never knew about you. Then I learn about you, not knowing a thing about being a father.

Joker: I know how you feel.

Taro Kitano: Really? How so?

Just trust me on this.

Taro Kitano: Okay.

Fox: Anyway, you may not have to be. I’m already a grown man. I’m happy with the way things are. I know the man who raised me was not who I thought he was, but I still have some respect for him for taking me in. I don’t think I’ll ever accept you as a father. Not yet, anyway. But we could start off as friends or brother-figures. How does that sound?

Taro Kitano: ... I guess being friends could work out.

Sophie: Then we should start off with introductions. (Sorry for eavesdropping.)

Joker: You think that will work?

Fox: We could try... Hello, my name Yusuke Kitagawa. My main subject is art.

Taro Kitano: Really? We’re doing this? (sighs) Alright... Taro Kitano, leader of the Scorchers. Just call me Taro... And could you stop strikethroughing me name? It’s already public on who the leader is and I won’t let anyone know who you are.

A pleasure to meet you, Taro.

Taro: (slightly smiling) Same here... Not it’s your turn.

Joker: Alright. I’m Ren Amamiya, I live above a cafe, my mom’s an alien? ...

Sophie: In a lot of games, you don’t speak very much. Including about yourself.

Yeah, that pretty much comes with being a silent protagonist.

>Suddenly, my phone rings.

Sophie: You have a text from Makoto and Haru.

Me, Haru, and Jet kun found someone who might know a little about Sheriff Johnson.

Okay, we’ll come to you and help you gather info.

Thank you. We’re in front of the town library. We’ll meet you there.

Alright, we’re on our way there now.

>End of chat.

Taro: Right, I guess we should exchange numbers while we’re at it.

>We nod and me and Fox exchange numbers with Taro.

Taro: Got it. Now we should go and see what the others want.

>With that, we go to the town library.

>Later on, we arrive at the town library where Queen, Noir, and Jet were waiting for us with... a young Asian boy.

Jet: So no fooling? You know something about Sheriff Johnson?

As much as I am told by my friend, the Chosen One?

Ch- Chosen One?

Monk Boy: Well, he does not wish to be called that.

Noir: I see. It’s that kind of story.

Monk Boy: We still wish him to lead us, but the path he has chosen seems to be leading him elsewhere. I wish I could fully understand it.

Jet: (a bit confused) You’re one odd kid.

Taro: We’re here.

Noir: You came.

Taro: So this kid knows something about the sheriff?

Queen: That’s what he said. Sort of.

Monk Boy: Hello, my name is Zen. I am mainly here to visit the Chosen One, but this town’s law enforcement was yelling at me saying, “Where is your dog-gone mask, kid!? Do you want to catch COVID!?”

Jet: (surprised) You don’t know about the pandemic? Where were you, under a rock?

Zen: I was actually in another dimension.

>We were silent by what he just said.

Zen: ... That was a joke.

Jet: (a bit relieved) Oh! It was a joke! (forced chuckle) I get it. I get it!

Queen: Anyway, what do you know about Sheriff Johnson?

Zen: Seeing as I am not a citizen of Handler’s Corners, all I can really tell you is what my friend told me. He said that the sheriff can be really gruff, but means well. However, there are times when he can get on his and his friends’ nerves. Particularly the leader of their group.

Noir: Really? How so?

Zen: Well... Whenever Vert Wheeler goes racing on the Salt Flats, it is usually Sheriff Johnson who pulls him over and scolds him for racing there, even though he is not above the speed limit and that it is not illegal to race there.

Taro: (a bit surprised) Wheeler?

Queen: I see. So Sheriff Johnson’s mainly on the Salt Flats making sure no one is on it.

Zen: That is all I know.

Joker: Very well. Thank you for your time.

>With that, we leave... Then the library door opens.

Seriously, they deliver the books to us, but they expect us to return them ourselves? You know if they have someone pick up the books when they’re due back, then people wouldn’t have to leave them homes just to pay the fine.

Zen: It is to teach the library patrons about responsibility.

Headband-wearing Young Man: Or they’re just lazy themselves. So, anything happened while I was inside?

Zen: Well, some people where asking me about the sheriff.

Headband-wearing Young Man: Really? Who?

Zen: They were from out of time, just like me. Four of them looked around your age. With them where with two men.

Headband-wearing Young Man: Two men?

Zen: Yes. The men where wearing racing uniforms.

Headband-wearing Young Man: Racers in town? What’s that about? ... Maybe I should talk to Vert and the other about this.

>Back with us, Queen, Noir, and Jet leave to gather more info. Then, my phone rings.

Sophie: It’s from Ryuji and Ann.

Yo. Me, Ann, and Krakatoa got somethin’. Wanna meet us with us?

We’re on our way.

Glad to hear it. We’re at the Drive In.

They still have a drive-in movie theater here? This place really is a small town.

Futaba says they’ve become quite popular again since the pandemic hit America. I’ll have to remember to take Ren to one sometime.

Yeah, Harry told me he’s thinkin’ about takin’ Pete to one. If they can find one in New York City.

>End of chat.

>We go to Handler’s Corners Drive-In Cinema. We find Skull, Panther, and Krakatoa talking to a regal looking man. No doubt another out-of-towner like us.

Skull: For real? You’re royalty?

Panther: (in disbelief) That’s what all British people say.

Now I’m just hurt. I can assure you that I am indeed royalty. Simon Ian Rhodes II, currently 188th in line for the throne, at your service.

Krakatoa: (also in disbelief) Sure you are.

Panther: Look, let’s just get this over with. You said you know something about Sheriff Johnson. The sooner we get some answers, the sooner we’ll be out of your hair (and mine).

Simon Ian Rhodes II: Well, most of what I know, I was told by my little brother that the sheriff can be a bit of a killjoy. He’s fart too much of a stickler for the rules. And some of those rules are actually a bit out of date... But if his problem is mostly with my little brother and his friends, I don’t mind what he does.

Skull: Dude, that’s a brutal thing to say. He’s your brother. Your little brother.

Simon Ian Rhodes II: Well, as long as he doesn’t get himself handcuffed and thrown behind bars which could cause a scandal in the family, it should be fine.

Krakatoa: Really?

Panther: Anything else?

Simon Ian Rhodes II: I believe there is... Your number. We could get together for some tea later.

Excuse me!?

I think that’s enough outta you, man.

Krakatoa: Seriously, and I thought real royals were suppose to be charming.

Simon Ian Rhodes II: (offended) I beg your pardon!? I should challenge you to a duel right here and now.

>This is bad. Better step in.

If you’re going to challenge someone to a duel, challenge me, not my friends.

Simon Ian Rhodes II: !

Joker: But I have to warn you, I’ve studied about someone with great aim and my boyfriend taught me a thing or two with the sword.

Simon Ian Rhodes II: ... Never mind.

Taro: Good. Thank you for your time. Let’s go.

>With that, we leave.

Panther: (whisper) When this is over, that guy is so next.

Skull: (also whispering) No arguments from me.

Krakatoa: (also whispering) Same here.

>Back with Simon, his brother, who was watching the whole time, comes in.

Shot down? So much for the charming older brother.

Simon: (upset) Sh- Shut it, Stanford.

Stanford: Though I have to admit, something was odd about them. I wonder if these are the people Zoom told us about.

Simon: Who cares. Did you get the tickets?

Stanford: They’re all right here. But I have to warn you, the only movie they had available is a musical. They said they would get more movies later on.

Simon: Very well.

>With that, Simon leaves... and Stanford gets out his phone and begins texting.

>Back with us, Skull, Panther, and Krakatoa go their way.

Taro: Well that guy was a bust.

Fox: I’m sure there are more places to look. Joker, check to see if anyone else found anything.

>I check my phone. It looks like Violet text me.

Hey, Senpai! Me, Zenkichi, and Vesuvius found someone who actually knows Sheriff Johnson.

That’s great, Sumire. We’ll be right over.

Thanks. We’re at the Salt Flats. Bring plenty of sun screen.

It’s not that hot and sunny. It’s still pretty much winter.

>The Salt Flats. We meet up with Violet, Wolf, and Vesuvius who were next to a car.

Taro: That’s quite the car. Nice paint job, too. But why do I have the feeling that I’ve seen that driver somewhere before.

Violet: Ah, you’re here.

Wolf: These Sault Flats sure are something. Not sure why the stars are already out... The other admin’s really lazy, isn’t he?

???? ???????: Now what do we have here?

>The door window rules down... Taro has a look of surprised shock.

Well, and here I thought my son decided to race his old man today. I guess you both have that kind of fire in you.

Taro: I’m still getting used to your son’s new element, too, Mr. Wheeler.

Wolf: You know each other?

Taro: Me and Jack Wheeler have crossed paths before. Mainly through his son.

Mr. Wheeler: Yeah, I remember Vert used to beat you in pretty much every race.

Taro: (standing his ground) Not every race... Just most. Sometimes I do beat him.

Joker: Not sure if that’s helping.

Mr. Wheeler: So, these fine folks here are telling me that you want to know about the sheriff. Care to explain why?

Taro: It’s for a race that me and the other Scorchers are setting up and Handler’s Corners sounded like the perfect place to have it.

Mr. Wheeler: And what does it have to do with Sheriff Johnson? If you wanna start a race here, you should talk to him first.

Wolf: We know. We just want to know a little about him before we talk to him so we’d know how to ask him. I would normally suggest the same thing you are since we’re both men of the law, but I prefer the more non-traditional approach.

Mr. Wheeler: Well, if you think so, alright. The first thing you should know about Sheriff Johnson is that he can be tough. But he is fair. Although, he does like to take the rules a little too seriously. Most folks around here are not too happy about it. I can see where they’re getting at. I mean, the way he treats his job, you’d think he was still in the army or something. Heh, probably why the twins were writing about him on that Phantom Thieves website.

Violet: Twins?

Mr. Wheeler: Just a couple of my son’s friends. I don’t know much about it, but I could tell those twins and their Russian friend are fans of theirs.

Fox: I see. I think you have told us plenty.

Mr. Wheeler: Already? Well, happy I could be of some help.

Wolf: Well, we’ll be seeing you.

Taro: See you soon.

>With that, we leave. Mr. Wheeler was curious and took out his flip phone and calls... his son.

Vert’s Voice: Hey dad, what’s up?

Mr. Wheeler: Vert, you’ll never guess who I just ran into today... Go ahead, guess.

Vert’s Voice Seriously? Okay... My high school science teacher?

Mr. Wheeler: Nope. Try again.

Vert’s Voice: Okay. Sarah Worthington, my ex-girlfriend?

Mr. Wheeler: Nope. Last chance.

Vert’s Voice: You never said how many chances I had. Can you at least give me a hint?

Mr. Wheeler: Alright. He’s an old flame and the last time you saw him was on TV where he was in a race at Racer Academy on Thanksgiving.

Vert’s Voice: Wait... Taro’s here!?

Mr. Wheeler: And from what I can tell, so is the rest of the Scorchers. They’re here in town with some other folks. They’ve been asking about Sheriff Johnson. I think it’s a little odd that those two friends of yours wrote about him online and they suddenly show about asking about him... I think your friends need a refresher course on Internet Safety and what they should be careful about posting stuff.

Vert’s Voice: Yeah, I’ll be sure to talk to them. Actually, my other friends told me about people in uniforms that looked like Scorcher Uniforms. And now learning that Taro’s here in Handler’s Corners, this can’t be some coincidence.

Mr. Wheeler: He said it was for a race they were setting up. But I don’t really but it. I don’t think you do, either.

Vert’s Voice: That’s right. I know Taro, this seems a little too odd even for him... I think this is something we should look into.

Mr. Wheeler: Even me?

Vert’s Voice: Not just yet. But we’ll call you if anything comes up.

Mr. Wheeler: Alright, but be careful. I don’t know what’s going on right now, but I get the feeling it’s more than just whatever you and your friends go through everyday.

Vert’s Voice: Dad, it’s me. Remember?

Mr. Wheeler: (smiling) Right, how could I forget?

>End of call.

>Back at the camper.

Joker: Sophia, let everyone know the hour has passed and that it’s time to meet back here.

Sophie: Will do.

>Later, the rest of us arrived back at the camper.

Crow: Okay, let’s go over what we’ve found out.

Queen: Me, Haru, and Jet found out that Sheriff Johnson usually frequents the Salt Flats because people race there. But even though people obey the speed limit and that it’s not a crime to race there, he still arrests and fines them for being there. I know it’s important to protect nature, but it sounds like he’s taking it too far.

Noir: Hear this, we have reason to believe that the Salt Flats is the location of the Palace.

Jet: You think?

Joker: We should try it.

>I take out my phone and open the Nav.

Joker: John Johnson and the Handler’s Corners Salt Flats.

Nav: Candidate found.

Joker: That confirms it.

Crow: We now have the who and the where, now we just need the what. Has anyone discovered more about the sheriff?

Panther: Obviously, we didn’t learn anything from that Brit.

Krakatoa: Yeah. Anyone else?

Violet: Me, Zenkichi, Ren senpai, Yusuke senpai, and Taro san found out that the sheriff acts like he’s still in the army. So maybe the Palace is something related to the military.

Skull: Well, the closest I could think of is an army base.

Joker: I’ll enter it. Army base...

Nav: Results found. Updating guidance system.

We’ve got it! We’re in!

Taro: I take it that’s good.

Fox: That’s right. We can now enter the sheriff’s Palace.

Krakatoa: (a bit excited) Sweet. The sheriff’s heart’s as good as ours.

Queen: Maybe so, but not right away. For now, we can go in and see what it’s like.

Taro: Good. It would be unwise to just go in without fulling understanding the situation.

Joker: Right, then let’s get going.

>We all agree.

>Later, we were all at the Salt Flats.

Vesuvius: You’ll really let us come with you?

Skull: Well, it sounds like what you guys went through in this Highway 35 thing is a little to similar to ours. So we thought it couldn’t hurt.

Queen: Besides, we might need more skilled drivers with us just in case.

Harrison: So you guys have other skilled drivers besides your leader?

Mona: That’s right. Aside from Joker, Lady Panther, Queen, Crow, and Wolf are our best drivers.

Wayne: Really, eh? I would have thought Yusuke would be skilled, too, just like his old man, eh.

It is mainly due to that I take after my mother. I am mainly an artist.

Taro: It’s true. I have seen it. But it never hurts to learn what you can about driving.

Mona: I don’t know. I still remember the last time Fox drove.

Taro: Really? What happened?

Queen: Let’s just say he still has a long way to go before we put him behind the wheel again.

Sophie: (confused) Wouldn’t it be easier just to show them the video? I found it on Oracle’s computer.

Wait, you don’t have to do that!

>Too late.

youtube

>The Scorchers just saw the video and laughed a bit.

Wolf: (a bit shocked) How did you record that?

It’s a long story.

Taro: Anyway, even though some of your might have some trouble driving, you might still have to do so. I’m guess you might even have to do it wherever we are going.

Fox: But as you just saw, we might have a problem with that.

Vesuvius: We can help with that. We’ll show you we’re just as good a teaching than Racer Academy.

Mona: That would actually be good for us. I guess we can take you up on that offer.

Vesuvius: Magnifico.

Mona: Joker’s your call.

Joker: We could use more help on driving. I know I already asked Zack and Ivy to help me with stuff like this, but I’m sure it wouldn’t hurt to get more.

Taro: They only know how to drive away from a heist when it’s over. But what about driving into it or into battle? Like we do.

Joker: I guess we can do that. But I’m not sure what we could give you in return.

Fox: I think I know.

Taro: What would that be?

Fox: I learned from the birthday gift you gave me that you still have much to learn about art.

Taro: Well, I’m learning from Vesuvius.

Vesuvius: Art is not my first subject, but I’m trying my best as most Italians could. Though, I’m guessing you want to take a try at it.

Fox: Indeed. I know as a racer, art does not mean much, but you never know when you might need it.

Taro: That’s true. When I was learning from your mother, I was sort of getting the hang of it... When I wasn’t... Well, you know.

Fox: I can assure you, I’m very professional and very taken. Of course, I wouldn’t mind a couple of assistants. Ren? Vesuvius?

Vesuvius: Well, I may not be there often, but I think I can help.

Joker: And you know you can count on me.

Taro: I think that would be great. Alright, you’re on.

>I think we made a deal here.

I am thou, thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow.

It shall become the wings of rebellion that breaketh thy chains of captivity.

With the birth of the Force Persona, I have obtained the winds of blessing that shall lead to freedom and new power…

Confidant: Taro Kitano

Arcana: Force (This Arcana is made up for this Confidant.)

Rank: 1

Ability: Ride Into Battle

Chance that enemies will be Down after a successful ambush.

Mona: Okay, let’s get in.

Everyone: Right!

>I was tapping on the app... when I heard something. It sounded like... engines... The Scorchers probably have their cars running.

>The familiar red wave passes over us. When it was over, there on the Salt Flats was a giant distorted-looking military base with search light going around. There were even some race-tracks running around including some loops.

(Insert Song: Welcome To The Jail)

Oh my goodness! That’s suppose to be Sheriff Johnson’s view of a base?

It totally looks like a race track. Guess the honorable sheriff isn’t as honorable as he claims to be.

Harrison: (surprised) Holy smokes. When did you guys change clothes on us?

It is the our rebellious spirits made manifested. This becomes so when we enter the Medaverse.

Harrison: I see... Okay, I don’t.

Taro: Harrison, I think by now you should learn to go with it. You’ll hurt your head less.

Harrison: Now that’s harsh... But it’s kinda true.

Jet: So what do we do now? We go in or what?

We’ll go in a little ways to get a feel of the layout. We’ll really sneak in the next time we come here.

It’s time like this, I wish we still had those cars we had for that heist in Racer Academy. Whatever happened to them, by the way?

Oracle: Lavenza stored them in a part of the Velvet Room known as the “Impound Lot”. She said that whenever we need them, Joker was to let her know.

>As if on queue, the door to the Velvet Room appears.

Leave it to me, I’ll get them.

>With that, I enter the Velvet Room.

Welcome to the Velvet Room. First of all, I would like to congratulate on forming another bond today. And now, for your vehicles. Me and Jose have tuned them up and they are ready. You merely need to wait outside for him. But I sense something may happen. Your new bond will soon reconnect with an old bond. I wonder what may come of it. Be ready for anything that may happen.

>I nod and leave the Velvet Room.

>Back outside in the Palace.

Oracle: And here come our cars!

Here you go. I’ll expect payment for this.

For real? We still gotta pay ya?

Jose: Don’t worry, I’ll just ask Miss Lavenza to put it on your tab.

Oracle: I didn’t know we had that.

Joker: It never occurred to me.

>With that, Jose leave, leaving Phantom Flyer, Flaming Kitty, Freedom’s Strike, and Howling Silver with us.

Wayne: So these are your cars, eh? I’d like to shake the hands of whoever designed them.

That would be my hand.

Wayne: Really? You did a great work here, eh?

Oracle: Thanks. We should get together later and brainstorm later.

Wayne: I’ll think about it. Thanks.

I’m glad to see us making friends. So, shall we move forward?

Now the question is, who gonna drive me in?

Noir: I’ll do it. I’ll drive you.

Please don’t and we’ll say you did.

I’ll do it! I just got my license and can drive you.

It’s true. I checked the records from her driving instructor. She extremely did well on the written and the practical exams.

Mona: Well if that’s true, I guess I can allow it. Okay, Violet, it’s up to you. Morgana, Transform!

>With that, Violet, Skull, Noir, and Sophie get in the Mona Van. Fox and I are in Phantom Flyer, Panther and Queen are in Flaming Kitty, Crow and Wolf are in their respective cars Freedom’s Strike and Howling Silver, Oracle gets into Wayne’s Dodge Charger R/T, and the rest of the Scorchers get into their own cars. Then, we drive off towards the Palace... What we didn’t know was that we were being followed.

>After about a minute’s drive, we arrive at the entrance to the base. Thankfully, no Shadows in sight.

Oracle: No guards here. The gate is down, but it looks like we can try to get by without any problems.

Everest: I don’t know. I’ve seen enough spy movies to know that there’s always some kind of trap ahead.

>Me and Fox get out of my car and Taro gets out of his. We approach the guard booth when an automatic voice sounds.

Automatic Voice: Welcome to Area 05. By order of the General, all personal, army or otherwise, must have an entrance pass. Do you have an entrance pass? If so, please present it to the guard at the guard booth.

Taro: (confused) What guard?

Automatic Voice: It’s automated, you maggot. Everything’s automated these days.

Taro: (a light chuckle) So even someone as old fashion as Johnson is up to date. Not so much of a caveman.

Automatic Voice: Please do not speak ill of the General and please present your entrance pass.

Joker: We don’t have one. Do you know where to get one?

Automatic Voice: That’s classified. Please present your entrance pass.

Joker: But how are we suppose to get an entrance pass if we don’t know how to get one?

Automatic Voice: That’s classified. Please present your entrance pass.

Fox: I don’t think it’s going to be much help.

Taro: (getting irritated) Are you kidding me? This ‘automatic voice’ didn’t sound very automatic when it told me not to speak ill of their general. I guess I was wrong about this guy.

Automatic Voice: ... (sounding stern) This is your last warning: Please present your entrance pass or there will be consequences.

Fox: What do we do about this, Joker?

>Go inside anyway. >Bust up the guard booth. >>Make a fake pass. >Find another way in.

Taro: That would work. Fox, are you up for the challenge?

Indeed. It’ll be my finest work yet.

>I give Fox a Blank Card and he begins drawing away. A little later, Fox was finished with the fake pass.

Fox: I must warn you: Since I do not know what the entrance pass looks like, I had to work with what I imagined.

Joker: You did what you could, baby. Don’t worry.

Taro: Okay, let’s give it a shot.

>Taro takes the fake pass to the guard booth. Then, a scanner comes out and scans the fake pass.

Automatic Voice: I see... I almost bought the fake pass trick. Alright, you maggots, you had your chance! Everything maybe automated, we still have actual guards. Security!

>Then, two Shadows dressed like American soldiers appear.

Shadow 1: You want in, you’re gonna have to beat us.

Shadow 2: We’d wish you luck... But you don’t get any.

>With that, the Shadows transform.

Taro: (a bit surprised) Yikes! ... Never thought I’d see an oni defend an American military base.

Panther: Nothing ever makes sense in the Metaverse. Persona!

Queen: I’ll help you. Persona!

Joker: Let’s do this together!

Fox: Always.

Joker and Fox: Persona!

>Oni 1 uses Rampage. Oni 2 also uses Rampage. Carmen uses Lullaby and Oni 2 falls asleep. Johanna uses Marakukaja. Arsene uses Maeiga. It was a technical hit for Oni 2 which woke him up. Goemon uses Masukukaja. Oni 1 uses Snap on me. Luckily, I dodged it. Oni 2 uses Memory Blow. Queen and Fox both dodge it while Panther and I got hit. Fortunately, neither of us got inflicted with Forgetfulness. Carmen uses Maragion. Both Oni were Burned. Johanna uses Mafreila. It was a technical hit due to the Burn. Arsene uses Maeiga. Goemon uses Mabufula. Oni 1 uses Rampage. We all dodge it. The Burn eats away at his health. Oni 2 uses Giant Slice on Queen. The Burn also eats away at his health. Carmen uses Maragion. Johanna uses Mafreila. It was another technical hit. Arsene uses Maeiga. Goemon uses Mabufula. The Burn wears off on Oni 1 and he uses Snap on Panther. She dodges it. Oni 2 also recovers from the Burn and uses Snap on me. Carmen uses Lullaby. It doesn’t work on them this time. Johanna uses Marakukaja.

Oracle: Persona!

Go! Power up!

>Necronomicon casts Matarukaja on us. Arsene uses Masakunda. Goemon uses Masakukaja. Oni 1 uses Memory Blow. Panther, Queen, and Fox all dodge it, but I get hit and I Forget. Panther uses Harisen Recovery on me and Carmen uses Concentrate. Johanna uses Flash Bomb. Though they resisted the attack, Oni 1 became Dizzy. Arsene uses Maeiga. Goemon uses Mabufula. Oni 1 tries to attack Panther, but he misses due to him being Dizzy. Oni 2 uses Rampage. Queen and Fox dodge it. Carmen uses Maragidyne. Both Oni are seriously Burned. Johanna uses Mafreidyne. It was a technical hit. I use an Air Cannon on Oni 1 and Fox also uses one on Oni 2. Both were a technical hit and both Oni were now getting weaker. Both Oni uses Rampage. It was a critical hit on me. The Burn eat away at their health. Carmen uses Diarama on me. Johanna uses Marakukaja. I get back up and use a Rasetsu Ofuda. Goemon uses Masukukaja. Oni 1 recovers from the Burn and uses Snap on Panther. It was a critical hit. Oni 1 then uses Snap again on Fox. It was also a critical hit. Oni 1 then uses Ramapge. Oni 2 uses Giant Slice on me. Panther gets back up and Carmen uses Concentrate. Johanna uses Mafreidyne. Arsene uses Maeigaon. Both Oni were now really weak. Fox gets back up and Goemon uses Mabufudyne. Oni 2 was Frozen. Oni 1 uses Memory Blow. We all dodge it. Oni 2 is Frozen and cannot act. Carmen uses Blazing Hell. Both Oni are gone.

Automatic Voice: The first squad’s been taken down! Send for back-up!

WARNING

>Two more Oni appear. Johanna uses Mafreidyne.

Oracle: I’ll do something about this!

>Neconomicon recovers some of our SP. Arsene uses Riot Gun. The Oni resist it. Goemon uses Mabufudyne. Both Oni are Frozen. Both Oni cannot act due to the Freeze. Panther fires her gun and both Oni shatter. Johanna uses Marakukaja. I use another Rasetsu Ofuda. Goemon uses Masukukaja. Oni 1 uses Rampage. We all dodge it. Oni 2 Giant Slice on Queen. She dodges it. Carmen uses Concentrate. Johanna uses Mafreidyne. Arsene uses Maeigaon. Goemon uses Mabufudyne. Oni 1 uses Rampage. So does Oni 2. Carmen uses Maragidyne. Oni 1 got Burned. Johanna uses Freidyne on Oni 1. It was a technical hit. Arsene uses Masukunda. Goemon uses Bufudyne on Oni 2. Oni 1 uses Snap on me. The Burn eats away at his health. Oni 2 uses Memory Blow. Me and Queen end up Forgetting. Panther uses Harisen Recovery on Queen. Carmen uses Lullaby. Both Oni are Sleeping. Johanna uses Freidyne on Oni 1. Another technical hit that woke him up and leaving him weak. I simply defend myself since I Forgot how to use my Persona. Fox uses an Alert Capsule on me. Oni 1 just hesitates as he recovers from the Burn. Oni 2 is still Asleep. Carmen uses Agidyne on Oni 1. Oni 1 is gone. Johanna uses Freidyne on Oni 2. Arsene uses Eigaon. Goemon uses Bufudyne which Freezes Oni 2. Oni 2 cannot move. Carmen uses Concentrate. Johanna uses Atomic Flare. This shatters Oni 2 with a technical hit which leaves him really weak. Arsene uses One-shot Kill. Though he resisted it, Oni 2′s health is still low. Goemon uses Bufudyne and Oni 2 is gone.

Automatic Voice: Damn, there goes another! Send in more!

>Another Oni appears.

Oracle: This looks like that last wave. But be careful, I don’t think this one’s a pushover.

>The Oni uses Charge.

Oracle: I’m sensing a big attack coming! Everyone, brace yourselves!

>We defend ourselves and the Oni uses Vorpal Blade.

Oracle: How do we deal with this one? Compared to this enemy, the others were just peons.

Taro: I have an idea, but I need you all to buy me some time.

Fox: We’ll buy you as much as you need.

>Taro gets back in his car and drives back a little. The Oni notices it.

Queen: We have to keep the enemy’s focus on us.

Panther: Will do! Dance, Carmen!

>Carmen uses Agidyne. Johanna uses Freidyne.

Oracle: Super move! Ultra charge!

>Necronomicon uses Charge and Concentrate on us. Arsene uses Eigaon. Taro backs up a little more. Goemon uses Bufudyne. The Oni uses Memory Blow. Fox Forgets how to use his Persona. Carmen uses Blazing Hell. The Oni is Burned. Johanna uses Atomic Flare. It was a technical hit. I use an Alert Capsule on Fox. Taro’s car then reveals its grapping hook. Goemon uses Bufudyne. The Oni uses Charge as the Burn eats away at his health. We all defend ourselves as Taro’s car begins to rev up. The Oni, who recovers from the Burn, uses One-shot Kill on Queen. Carmen uses Blazing Hell. Johanna uses Mediarahan. Arsene uses One-hot Kill. The Oni resisted.

Taro: Okay, here I come! BANZAI!!!

>Taro’s car then speeds into the Oni, knocking him down and leaving a lasting attack with the grappling hook.

Hold Up!

Fox: Well done, Taro!

Taro: (smiling) I have my moments.

Fox: Now, let us strike!

>After the attack, the Oni was still up, but now extremely weak.

Fox: I’ll finish him off.

Joker: He’s all yours, baby.

Fox: Then let’s do this. Come, Goemon!

>After that, the battle was over. We won.

Oracle: Nicely done!

Krakatoa: You do this sort of thing every heist?

Wolf: Pretty much. I’m surprised you guys aren’t reacting so much to this.

Taro: We’ve been to other dimensions, fought evil robots, dealt with secret organizations, met aliens. I think by now, nothing can surprise us anymore.

Automatic Voice: Really? ... Then how about this!

>Suddenly, more Shadows appear.

Oracle: This is bad. We don’t have the strength to take on more.

Skull: Damn, we can’t go on. Taro, can you do that thing you did earlier?

Taro: I don’t think my car can take much more.

Oracle: I know. If only we had some dues ex machina to help us now.

???? ???????: One dues ex machina comin’ up!

Phantom Thieves and Scorchers: !

>Suddenly, we hear some engines coming towards us.

Taro: (a bit shocked) No way.

>The front car drives quickly to the Shadows and cuts them all down. Then, someone comes out of it.

Taro: (a bit unimpressed, but grateful) Don’t think you’re so hot just because you saved me today. I’m still the brighter flame here.

Is that all you’ve gotta say to me after not seeing each other for years? I’m crushed.

Taro: Shut up.

Skull: But you gotta admit, that was sweet. Now I really can’t wait to get my license.

Believe me, buddy, in the places we’ve been, we don’t need licenses.

Aww, I should have thought of that one. That’s such a good one-liner.

Next time, big brother. Next time.

Everest: (shocked) That skinny guy’s the older brother? I’ve heard of fraternal twins, but this is ridiculous.

>Then, Crow goes to the place where the Shadows were.

Joker: What’s up, Crow?

>Crow picks something up from the ground where the Shadows were. It was a file.

Crow: (opening the file) Looks like they dropped it. And look, entrance passes with plus one privileges. Enough for all of us. And there’s even a map.

Sophie: That’s great!

Mona: Well, that’s a couple of problems solved. But what about this one?

>He was nodding to Vert Wheeler and his friends.

Spinner Cortez: (confused) Us?

If you’re thinking of doing something weird to us...

Queen: Actually, you all might be of some help to us.

Zoom Takazumi: (confused) Us?

Mona: Yes, you might be right. They live around here and know more about Sheriff Johnson than anyone. Especially the leader since he gets in trouble with him the most.

Vert Wheeler: So this is about the sheriff, isn’t it?

Oracle: We’ll have to talk about this later. If anymore Shadows show up, we won’ be able to take them.

Vert Wheeler: (now is just a little lost) Okay, you’ve lost me a little. What do you mean about shadows? Something tells me this Battle Zone isn’t like all the others we’ve been to... In fact, I don’t even think this is a Battle Zone.

But you have to admit, it’s a lot more convenient since it’s practically next door.

>So, we all leave the Palace for now.

(Sorry about chopping this picture. By now, Joker knows all the recipes collected through Persona 5 Scramble, now known as Strikers. You get the picture. (No pun intended.))

>Handler’s Corners Drive-In Cinema at night. After explaining everything to Battle Force 5, along with Vert’s father, Zen, and BF5′s other member, Tezz Volitov. I was about to make dinner.

Joker: (wondering) Let’s see. Beef. Pork. Egg. Onion. How does kushikatsu sound tonight?

Skull: Sweet. Haven’t had those in awhile.

Fox: I’ll help you with them.

Joker: Thanks, Yusuke.

So, let me get this straight: You’re the Phantom Thieves who took Japan and the rest of the world by storm.

Oracle: (smiling proudly) That’s correct. Are you overwhelmed yet?

Tezz: I’m more interested in how you steal hearts.

Same here. How do you guys do it? I mean, me and Tezz have learned about cognitive psience from some of Horizon High’s online classes before their server was gone for good.

Oracle: So you’ve read Mom’s research.

Sherman: (surprised) Your mom’s Wakaba Isshiki!?

Whoa, watch there, little brother. I don’t think anyone in the drive-in heard you.

Sherman: Sorry. I’m just a big fan of your mother’s work. But I thought she died before she could finish it.

Oracle: I finished it for her.

Sherman: You did? That’s cool of you.

Tezz: I’m still not buying it, though. A world inside people’s hearts. It just doesn’t make sense and is highly illogical.

Wolf: (smiling) If only you could see it.

>Suddenly, the movie that was playing went into a musical number. Crow really liked it, but Agura was annoyed.

This movie stinks. Stanford, couldn’t you have found something better?

Stanford: (upset) I already told you, there were only musicals available at the time. They won’t get any more movies until another time.

Crow: And could you please not say bad things about this movie. Quest Journey for Camelot is an animated classic. One of Warner Warmer Brothers’ greatest works.

Agura: Well, I suppose there are a few good points about this film. Including how they show that even a girl can be a knight. But that doesn’t make the songs any less annoying.

Panther: Well, they’re not as bad as the villain’s song. It’s way too forceful.

>Suddenly, Oracle’s laptop makes a ringing sound.

Sophie: We have an incoming call from... an unknown number?

Oracle: Unknown? Can you trace it?

Sophie: From what I can tell, it’s from nearby. According to the map, it’s some kind of garage.

There’s only one garage in town that’s still in use... Mine... Put her on.

Taro: (a little confused) Her? I’ve heard rumors, but...

Sophie: Okay.

>The screen opens to a video phone.

Finally, I have re-established contact with you. I could not reach you for some reason.

Holy smoke! We already know aliens exist, but you really surprised us.

Queen: (being polite) Sage chan, I presume?

Sage: I am. But I do not know who you are.

Vert: Long story short: They’re here to do something about Sheriff Johnson. They even came with some old friends of mine.

Taro: Konichiwa, Sage chan.

Sage: Greetings. But I do not understand how they are going to do anything about the sheriff.

Oracle: (smiling) Ever heard of cognitive psience?

Sage: I have come a cross that term a few times, but I never looked into it.

Sophie: Me and Futaba know a few things. We could teach you.

Sage: I suppose I could use a little more learning.

Queen: Good. Because after what we’ve been through today, we’re going to need all the help we can get.

Zoom: Really, you want our help?

Mona: You pretty much know who we are, might as well. Besides, you guys know the sheriff better than anyone. Especially Vert.

Vert: That’s true. Although, I think stealing Sheriff Johnson’s heart may be a little too much.

Spinner: Vert, almost everyone in town kept telling the sheriff over and over again that he is taking his job way too far that it’s becoming a nuisance. But does he ever listen?

Vert: ... Okay, I think I see your point.

Taro: (laughing a bit) I guess somethings never change.

Vert: True. I’ve come a long way since my surf n’ turf days. We’ve come a long way since the World Race.

Taro: Yes. Now look at us. You have your team and as do I... And we’re still at it.

>Taro and Vert does a fist bump with a smile.

Spinner: Bromance at its best. And here I thought Zoom was the Mini-Vert.

Zoom: (threatening) Please don’t go there.

??????? ???????: What’s all that racket goin’ on here!?

>A light shined on us. Vert definitely knew who this was... And now, we do.

Vert: (smiling) Oh, boy. What did we do now?

You know what you did, Wheeler. No talking durin' the movie.

Taro: (confused) Uh, this is a drive-in. Everyone’s hearing the movie either on their radios or phones with the windows rolled up. They can’t hear us.

Sheriff Johnson: Don’t get smart with me, fire hazard! I heard that you’re thinkin’ of havin’ a race here. Well, I say, forget it. This town’s already a mess with Wheeler and his group always tearin’ everythin’ up. We don’t need more.

Taro: (sounding cool) Well excuse me. I thought America was a free country and we can pretty much do whatever we want.

Vert: (smug) He’s pretty much got a point. We’re not doing anything wrong.

>It looked like Sheriff Johnson was about to pop a vain... But he composes himself.

Sheriff Johnson: You can’t dodge me forever, Wheeler. You and these hooligans... By the way, you should be careful. This gathering you lot are doing doesn’t look like social distancing to me.

Queen: We have plenty of hand sanitizer and we’re very careful not to cough or sneeze on one another. So you don’t have to worry.

>Sheriff Johnson starts gritting his teeth and lowers his his sunglasses.

Sheriff Johnson: I’ve got my eyes on you, maggots.

>Then he leaves.

Wolf: Yikes. I know I’m a law man myself, but this guy’s totally taking it too seriously.

Vert: You bet. Normally we’d just ignore him, but lately, he’s been getting more and more severe.

Agura: He’s right. Just the other day, he tried to arrest some old lady just because she forgot to put her mask on.

Zoom: And after that, he tried to handcuff me and Zen because we were racing on the Salt Flats and because Zen’s skateboard was jet propelled.

Zen: I do not understand why it is a crime to ride my skateboard.

Queen: Well, having jet engines on a skateboard does seem rather dangerous. But you clearly had some training to it.

Zen: Yes. I owe it all to Master Takeyasu. His memory will always live on in our hearts.

Zoom: That’s right.

Mr. Wheeler: If you think what the sheriff did to them was bad, yesterday, he fined me over $500 simply because my trailer was an eyesore. It’s just a regular old trailer in a trailer park.

Tezz: Though the red flames do seem rather too much.

Vert: (a little offended) Hey, I helped painted those flames!

Mr. Wheeler: And everyone in the trailer park loves it. I think Sheriff Johnson just sees everything that’s different and out of his control as a capital offense. I’d say he needs a change of heart.

And he will with us around. So, will you and your team help us, Vert san?

Vert: A change to finally get Sheriff Johnson off our backs? We’re in. You can count on us.

Joker: Good. We’ll start soon. Bur for now, dinner is served.

>Me and Fox set a picnic table and we all sit down to eat and enjoy the movie. (Except Agura who still complained about the movie.)

>To be continued...

#phantom thieves cam

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blarpus · 7 years

Text

On goro akechi and lost opportunities

Don’t worry this isn’t hate I just need to get my thoughts out in an organized manner so I’m just going to put it under a read more, I guess.

So, I’ve had a VERY tumultuous relationship with goro akechi as a character; at first I could very much have been pegged as a “hater”, and even made some disparaging comments on some goro postive posts (and for that I apologize). Now however, I have come to the conclusion that Akechi is a Complex character done dirty by some admittedly poor writing on ATLUS’ part. The sudden reveal of his entire backstory right before fighting him feels VERY forced and just muddies his entire motivation to the point of not making much sense. Akechi’s desire for attention despite having a large fanbase (in-game) is actually rather interesting and his backstory as an orphan being shuffled around in japan’s horrible adoption system allows that to make sense. Where the problem comes in however, is his connection to shido. I personally think Goro having an ideological disagreement with the phantom thieves over their method of executing justice is a far more interesting conflict than “rargh the phantom thieves are trying to change muh father’s heart before i get my revenge, guess i have to kill them”. Also his “death scene” makes no sense, like at all, but that’s a discussion for another time. I’m not going to try to justify his actions in game however, enough discourse has been had about that topic, and I don’t think there is any valid way to justify the murder of innocent people for one’s own self gain.

I’m not going to drag this into a prolonged thesis, though. After all, I did say I was posting this for my own peace of mind; to gather my thoughts, so to speak. Basically I think that he is a good character that unfortunately had a really shittily written heel turn.

As my final message of this post: If you dislike Goro as a character, that’s fine, he is morally dubious and isn’t the best written in every area. HOWEVER, that does not give you the justification to harass people just because they like a fictional character you don’t.

#Persona #persona 5 #p5 #akechi goro #goro akechi #wew this is the most I've written since school ended two months ago #lots of time and deliberation on hot summer days helped make this post happen #once again to goro fans: I'm sorry for being a prick to y'all in the past #and I'm sorry other people continue to be pricks to you in the present

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shttrdstars · 5 years

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My Random Ramblings of Goro Akechi in Persona Q2 so Far

Goro being surrounded by so many people in Persona Q2 and yet still feeling incredibly alone hurts me, man. He knows he’s not really a Phantom Thief, given how things end up playing out in P5, but he still ends up getting a taste of having teammates while he’s with them. Of having someone watching his back for once despite the line of betrayals that end up happening in P5 after Sae’s Palace.

But then we have the small pocket dimension that is Persona Q2 where he ends up meeting the P3 and P4 cast, watching how everyone gets along so well. How they’re so accepting of each other for who they are and Goro can’t fully connect with anyone, if at all.

He can’t connect because he fully believes that if they all knew his true self that he would be rejected. I’m pretty sure that he felt incredible relief when he realized that he was stuck using Robin Hood and not his original Persona, Loki, because Loki really does represent his true self. Goro just ends up not talking through most of the game unless he has something to contribute, to be useful because that’s really...what he sees himself as. He’s only good to have around so long as he’s useful. -side eyes some shit in P5-

Koromaru picking up that something’s wrong with Goro is so him, that dog is the best. Hands down. Koro-chan was able to make him feel at ease, at least for a little while, during the Special Screening they did together ( AND ATLUS MISSED AN OPPORTUNITY THERE WITH A UNISON ATTACK WITH KEN, GORO AND KORO-CHAN ) and it allowed Ken to pick up that he and Goro were the same. Aside from both representing the Justice Arcana in their respective games, both of them seek revenge and want to kill the person that has brought them great grief/suffering/tragedy. Shinjiro for the death of Ken’s mom and Shido for a lot of things to Goro.

Throwing this boy in this large group of people who so easily accept each other, having to spend so much time with them for however long they’re in there for is tiring for him because he has to constantly keep up the act he has. Can’t let any cracks show, can’t be less than perfect, can’t be useless to them, can’t be his true self.

I was so surprised that he and Naoto got along, but incredibly happy because at least he could somewhat connect with her and she’s one of the incredibly few people in the group of 25+ that is the cast of this game that actually talks to Goro.

And then Ken trying to reach to Goro, trying to connect and attempting to tell him that they’re the same. I wish that instead of Koro-chan barking an interruption to that chat that they could’ve talked it out with Koromaru being there with them both because I’m sure that dog felt like ‘I need to help this boy, I can feel a lot of anger and sadness and loneliness in him. Ken, he’s like you. Let’s keep him.’ Because lord only knows that Goro, though he’ll furiously deny it, wants friends and is jealous that everyone around him can be friends with each other so damn easily. He wants someone he can actually fucking lean on, someone there so he’s not alone, someone who’ll accept him. Ken ending up cutting his chat short just ended up making Goro believe that they’re not really the same.

I know at some point, I don’t know how much later in the game, Shinjiro talks to Goro because he’s doing the exact same shit that Shinjiro used to do. He sees through the lie of ‘I’m not good with crowds, so I prefer to keep my distance.’ Isolating himself, keeping a distance from the rest of the group with a ready excuse that’s acceptable to anyone else and Shinjiro just knows Goro doesn’t fit in and that it’s because of something dark in his past. Sadly he gets called by Akihiko and can’t talk to Goro more, which I wish people would stop interrupting, let someone talk to Goro, dammit.

With both Ken and Shinjiro, they both manage to tell (sorta tell in Ken’s case) Goro that they’re the same but end up getting called away by their friends. It just makes Goro feel like they’re not the same because they’ve got friends who’ve accepted them for who they are while he’s been going it alone for 2+ years in P5. I like that this shows that he’s got regrets though he keeps going because this is the path he chose and it’s too late to show regrets with how much blood covers his hands. To Goro, he can’t turn back especially when he’s so close but the whole experience in Q2 is making him waver.

I really wish Ken and Shinjiro could’ve talked to him more but sadly all that would’ve been for nothing given the nature of the game and how, when they’re sent back to their respective timeless, none of them will remember their experiences and new comrades they’ve made. Damn you, rules of PQ.

God, I’m still in A.I.G.I.S’ labyrinth but I realize that the only time Goro’s genuinely laughed and smiled was with Koro-chan during their Special Screening so far. Also, oddly enough Ken and Goro make me think of their Arcana they represent in-game but while Ken ends upright, Goro is stuck in Reverse. If that makes sense in the Tarot Card way. Okay, I’m done, didn’t mean to ramble so much about my Pancake Boy.

#the gamer » bianca.#character study » goro akechi.#long post ts #don't reblog

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dlamp-dictator · 7 years

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Allen Rambles About Persona 5

AKA Allen’s Ramblings XVI, but... well, you guys know by now how I do things when tagging fandoms and everything. Anyway, I’ve played about 30 hours of Persona 5 and wanted to give my thoughts so far.

Now, I have been waiting to get my hands on Persona 5 for years. This game was suppose to come out years ago and we in the States finally have it. I gotta’ say, I was salivating when my preorder came in on time for once. The artbook, the CD, the Morgana Plushie, it just felt so unreal to have it all in my hands... but enough gushing and onto my thoughts. I’ll try to keep spoilers vague, but keep in might I’m at the third main dungeon by now. I know the Persona series is really big on not spoiling story-related matters, so I’ll be polite and tried my best to keep things general. Like when I talked about Tales of Berseria I’ll be breaking this down into the good points and not so good points, but first I need to talk about...

The Aesthetics

Oh Lord the aesthetics of this game. The cell-shaping, the red motif, the slickness of movement, the music. Everything just feels so smooth. Hell, this is gonna’ be a new tag for the blog now these are aesthetics are so good. I can’t just stick this one category and call it done, I need give this its own header to break down all I love about how this game looks and feels.

Relateable Topics

I have to say, I’m surprise how much I connected with a lot of the events happening in the game. This isn’t a story about accepting death, this isn’t a story about solving a murder, this is a story about kids trying to fix what they believe is a broken, corrupt world, and dammit you can just relate to that. Before you even begin the game it tells you none of the events in it are related to real life or real people, but Atlus is lying through their goddamn teeth if they think I couldn’t see this stuff happening for real if it hasn’t already. I won’t say what exactly happens, but every scandal that’s uncovered, every problem that’s seen, every case that’s been discussed in this game you can actually see happening in real life. Hell, I’m sure you could look online and see some articles talking about this stuff even here in the US. I won’t spoil anything yet, but... just trust me on this on.

Character Designs

The character designs look fantastic. I love everyone so far in both casual and Phantom Thief attire, with Ryuji and Morgana having my favorite designs. And I have to say, I’m rather surprised how much I like these two specifically, but I’ll get more into that later. Despite having a large amount of black for most characters, the designs really pop out. I’d say that’s due to a lot of the backgrounds being brightly colored, but still. I can’t wait to see other party members and how they look in game. The art book only does so much.

The Artbook

Not much to say here save for making a pun. The Aesthetics art book is... just a really good artbook with a lot of sketches, concept designs, and references in it. It’ll totally help for if I want to do fan art of these characters. And unlike SOME GAMES *cough*trailsofsteel*cough* this game doesn’t have blatant spoilers in their artbook and interviews. So yeah, points for the artbook, real nice.

THE MUSIC

I. Love. This. Soundtrack. I’m not music elitist, but the one thing that just makes me go nuts for any song is solid, audible bass, jazz, and brass. It’s why Persona has always had good music to me, and this entire soundtrack just hits every note in just the right way. This soundtrack is so good I could just... just... [RETRACTED] all over these songs. My favorites so far as Last Surprise, Layer Cake, and Rivers in the Desert... not that I’m far enough in the game to hear that last one, but... y’know.

Okay, so that’s it for the aesthetic, now onto the good points about the game as a whole.

The Good

The Intro

Thankfully, the intro of this game is not hours of hand-holding like in Persona 4. You are right into the action, and even after the intro stuff you still get a bit of freedom to move a little. I think only after a second play-through will tell how long your hand is held and how much freedom you truly have in the beginning, but for now I say this is leagues better than P4.

The Voice Cast

I haven’t heard the Japanese dub since I’ve always been dubs-over-subs, but the voice cast in English sounds great so far. My favorite so far has actually been Morgana and Ryuji, characters I didn’t think I’d like as much as I do right now. Ryuji is just the right mix punk kid and emotional softy that makes me really warm up to him, and Morgana’s cute, but confident sounding voice goes well with her personality. Major props to Cassandra Morris for voicing her. Wait a second... didn’t she do Asahina in Dangan Ronpa? No wonder I like her performance. And special shout out to Jamieson Price as Sojiro. I may not have gotten to hear him as Tager in BBCF, but at least I have hear him in this game. And while I’m talking about the voice cast I must admit that I have mixed feelings about Igor’s voice actor, I know why his voice was changed, but... I still prefer Dan Woren. Hopefully I’ll just get use to it.

Smoother/Faster Combat

The combat has definitely improved in both animations and overall feel. On the fly Persona swapping, lightning-fast menus, flashy as hell attack animations, this game has really improved in terms of quality with it’s combat. As someone playing this game since P3, the combat in that game was fine for turn based, but with this game I’m going to have some higher exceptions for future Turn Based RPG games, and the next SMT game especially in terms how combat feels.

Improved Social Links

The Confidant system is sooo much better than the other two games. Non-Party member social links finally have a higher purpose than just giving you better Personas during fusions. It feels so good to know that my allies don’t just help me with my fusions, but in the actual story as well. From selling you health items and weapons, increasing non-active party members EXP growth, improving the Phantom Thieves PR (and making dungeons easier to traverse through), and so on. It really feels like every person gives me an edge as a rebel of society. And the stories they’re telling so far have me interested. Again, spoilers, so I won’t go into detail, but just trust me on this one.

The Not So Good

Like with my Tales of Beresia Rambling, there are still some issues/critiques I have of this game as a fan. Again, I’ve played Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona 4 Arena, Ultimax, and small handful of SMT games outside of the Persona series so these might just be nitpicks, but I still think they’re worth saying. And for the folks that have seen my Berseria rambling, these points are going to be much longer and more in depth by comparison. So... let’s get started with that.

Demon conversations are still hit-or-miss with me. I like the idea of convince my enemies to my side, when it comes to fusing and hunting for the right Persona in those dungeons it can be a huge pain.

Money management is still balls hard in this game. I’d recommend demanding money every chance it comes along if you already have that particular persona and you don’t need the extra EXP. Trust me, it’ll disappear in a flash.

The early game is brutal. Story dungeon take longer that in past games, and with the small SP pool you have it’s gonna’ take several days to beat it. If you’re struggling through the first non-scripted major boss and even the boss of the dungeon, that’s normal as far as I’m concerned.

Social stats are back and they’re as annoying as ever. It was fine in P3 because their were just three and only effect you near mid/late-game. It was annoying in Persona 4 because they controlled not only social links, but better paying jobs as well (and again, money management is balls hard), as well as prevent certain dialogue options (which SUCKED). And again in this game certain dialogue options can’t be chosen if you don’t have the right stat level. This starts happening in the early game when all your stats are low, practically taunting you about your low level. That’s drives me up a goddamn wall. It doesn’t help that it took me until the second dungeon fully grasp which places upped which state and how. It took 15 hours to realize this shit... goddamn...

After playing Devil Survivor 2, seeing physical attacks that cast from HP for you not apply to your opponent annoys me to no end. This makes physical enemies very unfair and it’s part of what makes the early game so hellish. Those guys take out half your health and are still good to spam that crap.

The dungeons are a daytime option only, and that’s something that’s annoyed me since playing Persona 4. Persona 3 had this done best by having the dungeons at nighttime access, making balancing social life, grinding social stats, and grinding levels so much easier. I was hoping that’d be the case in P5 since “student by day, thief by night” was the tagline, but apparent it should be changed to “student by day, thief by the afternoon, too tired to grind social stats by night.”

As of the third dungeon, I feel like the game is really pushing me to clear the Palaces when I’m not prepared to. All my party members keep pushing me to hurry and clear them, and while that makes since in the story, it makes doing the actual prep work really hard. Also, the third dungeon/arc feels really hand-holding until the dungeon unlocked, which annoyed me a little.

Though not directly effecting the game, the whole Atlus-Streaming thing just... leaves a bad taste in my mouth. It’s a shame that those without access to the right system can’t enjoy the game with their favorite streamers/let’s players.

Yusuke’s inclusion and joining the party could had been written better, and that’s all I’ll say on the matter since I’m trying not to spoil the game past the first dungeon. Message me if you want the details.

The localization is... not good. I’m seeing a lot of “Mr., Mrs., and Miss” thrown in along with Japanese honorifics and it’s a bit emersion-breaking. A lot of the pronunciations could had been done better too. I still stand by the voice acting being good, but the directing and instructions feel a little... off. Maybe that’s because the game is based in Tokyo, which might be a little more culturally mixed, but compared to the other two games this feels messy.

A real minor nitpick, but I still have mixed feelings about the dungeon lair/prison theme of the new Velvet Room. I mean I get it, but it feels a little forced and heavy-handed to me.

So yeah, a few nitpicks aside, I’ve really been enjoying this game. If anyone has any advice for getting through the rest of the game or just some tips in general that don’t spoil the game too much please reblog and add them here. Personally, I’d wait for a guide to social linking and stat grinding before getting this game, but as a Persona fan, I say this game is good so far. Hopefully it gets better as I continue to play it.

#persona 5 #your dictator is speaking

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recentanimenews · 4 years

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Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore Is Sweet Music to Our Ears

When news of a Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem collaboration hit, most people seemed to initially assume it would be some sort of strategy game, like Fire Emblem, with SMT trappings, or a SMT style RPG featuring Fire Emblem in some way. With the popularity of the Persona series due to Persona 4 and the announcement of Persona 5, a lot of people’s thoughts were going in wild places. When Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE emerged, many people were rightfully a little confused about what the game actually was, or how it was even connected to either franchise, as it featured characters no one recognized in a third-person RPG world, centered mostly on… idols?!

The reality is that TMS is greater than the sum of its initial parts, a fun and light RPG with nods to Fire Emblem characters and Persona-lite gameplay trappings. Unfortunately for the game, it was released towards the end of the Wii U’s lifecycle, meaning that a lot of gamers either never got a chance to play it, or easily overlooked the game on its initial release. With the release of Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore, however, Switch owners now have a chance to take this fantastic, unique RPG for a spin; and if you played it before, you’ll find that there’s still something new here for you, as well!

Following a mysterious mass disappearance 11 years ago, the game picks up with the spotlight on Itsuki Aoi, a somewhat bland but otherwise fine protagonist. He isn’t the silent type like SMT protagonists tend to be, and feels a bit more like the player insert character Robin from Fire Emblem Awakening; a character with a set personality that can be adjusted slightly through basic choices. Anime fans will likely pick up on a lot of the character tropes that the cast of TMS are putting down, from the dopey but genki Tsubasa Oribe to the hero-wannabe Touma Akagi, these are familiar characters that are easily likable and have great chemistry with each other.

Itsuki and Tsubasa find themselves in trouble as an idol talent scout turns out to be a trap to capture “Perfoma," a type of energy that humans possess, that the mysterious Mirages attempt to obtain for their own needs. By strokes of luck, Itsuki and Tsuaba prove to be Mirage Masters, able to control and bond with Mirages in order to battle against other Mirages, and these beings prove to be the Fire Emblem flavored link between the two game series; Itsuki partners with Chrom, while Tsubasa partners with Caeda. Other Fire Emblem series staple characters come into play as more Mirages appear, and even Tiki the dragon appears as an “uta-loid," a Mirage that also acts as a virtual idol like world famous performer Hatsune Miku. This is generally where the Fire Emblem connection ends, however, and for the most part TMS is a SMT-lite or Persona-lite RPG, with characters traversing the “Idolasphere” in between visiting real-world locations in areas of Tokyo, like Harajuku or the famous Scramble Crossing.

The real plot of the game revolves around solving the mystery of the disappearances, their links to Mirages and Perfoma, and the individual characters striving to achieve their goals in the entertainment world, as everyone in your party is somehow connected to performance in some manner: Tsubasa wants to be an idol, other members are already idols, some are models, actors, managers, and other entertainment related jobs. TMS has a mini-social link system, like Persona, in which Itsuki’s interactions and choices with characters influences their goals and successes in their dream jobs; if you manage to achieve all of the links to success, the ending will change to reflect this as a bonus.

Characters are lively and animated, and the game has a somewhat unique system of featuring characters as almost full body figures while they talk to you, with expressive facial features (Tsubasa’s “awawawa” shock face is my personal favorite!), and extra dialogue scenes related to side quests happen in a very amusing in-game re-creation of chat app LINE, complete with stickers. These little optional conversations are generally how Itsuki affects the social link options, but they also provide a fun view into how characters talk to one another, with group chats and solo chats appearing as the cast expands, making it feel similar to Vincent’s phone in Atlus’ Catherine series. Gameplay in dungeons works similar to Persona 3 and 4, with players piloting Itsuki around various dungeon maps, striking enemies for first hits, and then transitioning into lavish battle sequences that feature the game’s truly interesting battle system, specifically the Session System.

Battles are turn-based, and the SMT/Persona influence becomes very apparent here, as TMS feels very similar to Persona 4’s battle system (and, in retrospect, almost feels like it had some influence on later mainline game Persona 5’s system as well). The player has control of 3 characters, with Itsuki being a mainstay, and the other two swappable at any time during a battle. Finding enemy weaknesses is the main way to deal extra damage, and each enemy has a range of weaknesses to various physical and elemental damages. Unlike SMT, where weakness striking triggers turn skipping, TMS instead allows players that have discovered enemy weaknesses, and who have the corresponding skills on their various party members, to unleash powerful Session attacks, where multiple characters can attack out of turn sequence to devastate opponents. Exploiting Session abilities is key to survival in TMS, and in all honesty the game is fairly challenging at times, even on normal difficulty, meaning that players will need to stay on their toes and be mindful of what skills work best, when to be defensive, and when to swap party members to ensure victory.

Pursuing character side stories unlocks more powerful abilities, called Duo Attacks, and even more abilities, Ad Libs, can be discovered as players progress further. While the story of TMS is light and fun, the battle system is where the real excitement lies, and this game ensures that players who enjoy SMT style combat will probably find a lot to love. Newcomers to the SMT sensibilities of RPGs will similarly find the game accessible and easier to understand than Persona games, as players aren’t required to worry about fusions or being killed in one hit by the enemy striking your new Persona’s weakness. Instead, as players explore the world, they can farm items from enemies that will allow them to continually unlock new weapons they can equip, letting their Mirages learn new abilities and skills that deepen their usefulness in combat. Having static weaknesses on your player characters lets you learn everyone’s strengths and weaknesses, and allows you to plan better as battles become more challenging, keeping things fresh and exciting.

Overall, the game looks great, and even though it originally came out on the Wii U in 2015, the game has aged very well in the transition to the Switch; in fact, the game looks fairly vibrant and gorgeous in a lot of cases, and the Switch seems to be able to pull out some of the beauty even better than the Wii U did. Travelling between the city scenes and Idolasphere dungeons are always colorful affairs, and the game really does try to make things seem alive and popping, even rendering faceless NPC characters in crowded scenes as rainbow-colored people, rather than grey shapes. Major dialogue in the game is also fully voiced, however there is no dub track to the game, meaning Japanese voices are the only option for audio. While the performances are all great, this does mean that people in need of English audio, or who may rely on non-Japanese audio cues, are a bit left in the lurch by this decision. The fairly barebones release of the game on the Wii U likely meant there was no dub planned, and this re-release seems to mostly work off of existing translations and assets from the original release.

In general, this isn’t a big problem, but it is a bit of a bummer that the game isn’t quite as accessible as it could be due to the lack of dual audio options. Since music is a huge part of the game, players will be happy to find out that the OST and songs in the game are all fantastic, with some being homages to Fire Emblem music, and others being completely new arrangements and performances of unique songs made directly to tie in to the idol-focused nature of TMS. Audio and visual wise, TMS is a real treat for players, and the Switch seems to take advantage of both of these things far better than the Wii U did.

If you already played TMS on Wii U, you’ll be excited to learn that there’s plenty of new things to explore, as Encore features new playable characters and side stories, expanding what you can do and see during the game. I found this to be a really welcome addition, but was surprised that it wasn’t really advertised very well; I actually had no idea until I was presented with options and characters I didn’t have in the original game. These new scenes are all great, and they really help flesh out the already fun cast by adding in some new changes and additions.

Not only that, but each of them feels natural, meaning that you likely wouldn’t know what was new content or not if this were your first time to ever play the game. While there isn’t much other content added, all DLC for the original game is also included, making this version of TMS the superior and overall best version of the game. If you missed it on the Wii U, or you just want to play it again, pick up Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore for the Switch and engage with the truly weird and wonderful mash-up of idols, Fire Emblem, and Shin Megami Tensei.

REVIEW ROUNDUP

+ Lost sleeper hit gets a great new update and wider release.

+ Game runs and looks great on modern hardware, and sounds great too.

+ Controls are simple and clean, with game systems being easy to understand and accessible.

+ Characters, story, and a unique world are all fun to interact with and experience.

+ Variable difficulty provides just the right level of challenge, and even on Normal can prove to be a test of wits!

- Lack of a dub track means that some people may have a harder time accessing the game and enjoying it fully.

Did you play the original Tokyo Mirage Sessions? Will this be your first Fire Emblem or Shin Megami Tensei game? Let us know what you think of the game in the comments!

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Nicole is a frequent wordsmith for Crunchyroll. Known for punching dudes in Yakuza games on her Twitch channel while professing her love for Majima. She also has a blog, Figuratively Speaking. Follow her on Twitter: @ellyberries

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