#they're very on theme with the game as well

[linkspooky]

Bohman is a good character you guys are just mean

Yu-Gi-Oh Vrains is one of the better received spinoff series. Though, like any of the Yu-Gi-Oh spinoffs it's not without its faults. Usually I'm the first to admit the flaws in my favorite silly card game shows, even while I myself take them way too seriously. However, there's one common criticism I can't bring myself to agree with.

That is calling the main antagonist of the second season Bohman "boring" or "badly written." I've noticed fans unfairly blame Bohman for season 2's writing flaws.

Forget for a moment about whether or not you find Bohman's stoic attitude interesting or likable. If you look at characters not as people, but as narrative tools the author uses to say something about the story's themes then Bohman has a lot to say about VRAINS cyberpunk themes.

Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction that tends to focus on "low-life and high-tech." As I like to put it, in Cyberpunk settings technology has greatly advanced while society itself lags behind unable to keep pace with the rate at which technology changes. Yu Gi Oh 5Ds is an example of a cyberpunk dystopia because despite having what is essentially access to free energy, and living in a society with highly advanced technology resources are hoarded by the wealthy and an unnecessary social class divide still exists.

In other words technology changes quickly while humans tend to remain the same.

The central conflict for all three seasons of Vrains are actually based on this very cyberpunk notion. That technology changes, updates, and becomes obsolete at a rate too fast for humans to ever adapt to. For Vrains, the conflict is whether humans can ever coexist with an artificial intelligence they created that can grow and change faster than they can keep up with.

This is well-tread ground in science fiction. The idea itself most likely emerged from I,robot. A science fiction book that is a collection of dirty stories that details a fictional history showing robots growing slowly advanced over time. The framing device is that a journalist is interviewing a "robopsychologist" an expert in the field of analyzing how robots think in their positronic brains.

One of the major themes of the book is despite the fact that robots are 1 - intelligent and 2 - designed by humans, they don't think the same way humans do. Hence why a robopsychologist is needed in the first place. One of the short stories is the first appearance of Asimov's three laws of robotics.

The First Law: A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

The Second Law: A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

The Third Law: A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

This is just one example. A robot no matter how intelligent it is will be required to think in terms of these three laws, because robots aren't biological, they're programmed to think in pre-determined patterns.

Of course clever enough artificial intelligences are capable of finding loopholes that get around the three laws, but even then they're still forced to think of every action in terms of the three laws.

Robots and humans are both intelligent, but if AI ever becomes self aware it will 1) be able to process information better than any other human can and 2) think differently from humans on a fundamental.

Vrains is themed more than anything else around "robo psychology" or trying to understand the ways in how the Ignis think and how that's different from it's human characters.

Robo-Psychology is actually a common reocurring theme. "DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?" fearless artificial humans known as Replicants who need an empathy test known as the voight kampff test to distinguish them from human beings.

There are other Cyberpunk elements in Vrains. There's a big virtual world where everyone can appear as custom designed avatars, that's taken from Snow Crash or of the most famous and genre defining cyberpunk novels. There's a big rich mega conglomerate that's being opposed by a group of hackers.

However, the central question is whether humans and AI can coexist in spite of the fact that AI are much smarter and evolve faster than us.

Revolver's father believes the Ignis must be destroyed in order to avoid a possible technological singularity in the future.

The technological singularity—or simply the singularity[1]—is a future point in time at which technological growth becomes uncontrollable.  According to the most popular version of the singularity hypothesis an upgradable artificial intelligence will eventually enter a positive feedback loop of self-improvement cycles, each new and more intelligent generation appearing more and more rapidly, causing a rapid increase ("explosion") in intelligence that surpasses anything humans can make.

Basically your computer is smarter than you, but your computer isn't self aware. It needs you to tell it what to do. Artificial intelligence already exists but it's programmed by humans, it doesn't program itself. The technological singularity proposes that eventually a self aware ai, will be able to program itself and improve upon it's own programming- therefore ridding itself of the need of it's human programmers.

This is what leads us to Bohman, an AI designed by another AI.

THE THIRD LAW

Before digging into Bohman let's take a minute to discuss his creator. Lightning was one of the six Ignis, created by Dr. Kogami through the Hanoi Project.

The Hanoi project involved forcing six children to duel in a virtual arena repeatedly, and using the data collected from that experiment to improve the AI they were working on, creating what became known as the Ignis. However, after Dr. Kogami ran several simulations and found that the Ignis would one day be a threat to the humans that created them Hakase decided instead to try destroying the Ignis before that future ever came to pass.

We later learn that this isn't the complete story.

Kogami and Lightning both ran simulations of the future when the Ignis were in their infancy. Kogami's simulations showed him the Ignis would inevitably go to war with humans. Lighting however, ran more in-depth simulations and found that he was the one that was corrupting the data set. If you ran simulations of the five ignis without him, then the projected futures were all in the green, but any simulation with Lightning counted as a part of the group projected a negative future for both humans and AI.

Which means that if Kogami knew that the bug in the program was Lightning, he'd likely respond by just getting rid of Lighting and letting the rest of the Ignis live on as originally intended.

This is where the third law comes into play - a robot must protect its own existence as long as it does not interfere with the first and second law.

Now, I don't think Kogami used the three laws exactly, but artificial intelligences are programmed in certain ways, and Lightning was likely programmed to preserve itself.

Even a human in Lighting's situation would be driven to act as they did. Imagine you're in a group of six people, and you fid out that YOU'RE THE PROBLEM. That if they removed you, everything else would be fine. Wouldn't you be afraid of your creator turning against you? Of your friends turning against you and nobody taking your side?

Lightning is a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Ai asks him at one point why he went so far as to destroy their safe-haven, lie and said the humans did it and pick a fight with the humans himself, something that might have been avoided if they'd just stayed in hiding. It seems that Lightning is just defective as his creator declared him, but you have to remember he's an AI programmed to think in absolutes. AI, the most humanlike and spontaneous of the AIs ends up making nearly the exact same choices as Lightning when looking at his simulations later on - because they're character foils. As different as they may seem they still think differently from humans.

When Ai explains why he made his decisions based around lighting's simulation, he tells Playmaker that he can't dismiss or ignore the simulation or hope for the best the way Playmaker can because he is data, he thinks in simulations and processes.

AI even admits to feeling the same feelings of self-preservation that Lightning did.

While Lightning may seem selfish, he's selfish in the fact that he's thinking of his own survival above all else. He's afraid of 1) his creators turning against him, and 2) his fellow Ignis turning against him.

To solve the first he decides to make a plan to wipe out his creators. To solve the second, he needs every ignis on his side when he goes to war. The first thing he does is destroy their safe haven and frame the humans for it so the Ignis are more inclined to take his side. He's so afraid of his fellow ignis turning against him he even completely reprograms one of them - a step he doesn't take with the others, he just imprisons Aqua. He probably thought having one more ally would make it more likely for the others to pick his side.

Every step he takes is a roundabout way of ensuring his survival and the other ignis- eve when he actually goes to war with the other ignis he intended on letting them survive. Though his definition of survival (fusing with Bohman) was different than theirs.

So Lightning seems to be working out of an inferiority complex, but what he's really afraid of is that his inferiority makes him expendable.

At that point you have to wonder, what does death mean exactly to a being who is otherwise immortal? Ignis won't die of age, they'll only die if they're captured and have their data stripped apart or corrupted. Kogami made an immortal being afraid to die.

Some part of me thinks though that even after taking all these steps to preserve themselves, the simulations were so convincing that Lighting accepted their death as inevitable. Which is why they made Bohman, to find some way for them to keep on living afterwards.

After all AI are data, ad having their data saved in Bohman is still a form of living by Lightning's definition.

Ghost in The Shell

Bohman is the singularity. He's an AI designed by another AI to improve upon itself. Unlike the rest of the Ignis who were copied off of traumatized chidlren, Lightning basically made him from scratch.

Ghost in the Sell is a famous anime cyberpunk movie directed by Mamoru Oshii. The title comes from "Ghost in the Machine" a term originally used to describe and critique the mind existing alongside and separate from the body. Whereas in the movie the "Ghost" is the huma consciousness, while the "shell" is a cybernetic body.

The protagonist of Ghost in the Shell is Major Motoko Kusanagi, a human that is 99% cyborg at this point, a human brain residing in a completely mechanical body. The movie opens up with a hacker namd PUppet Master who is capable of "ghost-hacking" which is a form of hacking that completely modifies the victim's memories utterly convincing them of their false memories.

There's a famous scene in the movie where a man tells the police about his wife and daughter, only to be told that he's a bachelor who lives alone and he's never had a wife and daughter. Even after the truth is revealed to him, the fake memories are still there in his brain along with the correct ones. Technology is so advanced at this point that digital memories (hacked memories) are able to be manipulated, and seem more real than an analog reality.

Anyway, guess what happens to Bohman twice?

Bohman gets his memories completely rewritten twice. The first time he believes he's a person looking for his lost memories, the second time he thinks he's the real playmaker ripped out of his body, and playmaker is the copy. He's utterly convinced of these realities both time, because Bohman is entirely digital - and simulations are reality, and so simulated memories are just the same as real memories.

I think part of the reason that people find Bohman boring is because he's a little strange conceptually to wrap your head around, as an AI produced AI he's the farthest from behind human. If you use the ghost in the shell example I just gave you though - imagine being utterly convinced that you had a loving wife and daughter only to find out in a police interrogation room you're a single man living in a shitty apartment. imagine after the fact you still remember that they are real, even though you know they're not.

That's the weird space Bohman exists in for most of Season 2 when he's searching for himself. He's an AI designed by an AI so he can be rewritten at any time according to Lightning's whim until Lighting decides he's done cooking.

The Ignis at least interacted with the real world because they were copy pasted from traumatized children, but all Bohman is is data. So, why would he see absorbing human memories into himself and converting them into data as killing them? He is data after all, and he is alive. He has gone through the process of having his own memories rewritten multiple times, and he's fine with it b/c he's data.

Nothing for Bohman is real, everything is programmed so of course he thinks saving other people as data is just fine. He even offers to do the same thing to Playmaker that was done to him.

If Lightning is following the path of self-preservation however, Bohman is following his program to preserve everything in the world by merging with it.

His ideas also follow the idea of transhumanism: the theory that science and technology can help human beings develop beyod what is physically and mentally possible. That technology exists to blur the boundaries of humanity, and what humans are capable of.

Ghost in the Shell isn't just a work of cyberpunk, it's a transhumanist piece. Motoko Kusanagi is a character who has had so many of her human parts replaced with mechanical ones she even posits at one point it's possible for her to simply have been an android that was tricked into thinking it was human with false memories just like Bohman, and she has no real way of knowing for sure. The only biological part of her his her brain after all in a cold mechanical shell.

Bato, who represents the humanist perspective in this movie basically tells Motoko in that scenario it wouldn't matter if she was a machine. If everyone still treats her as human then what's the difference? His views are probably the closest to the humanist views that Playmaker represents in VRAINS.

Motoko Kusanagi meets her complete and total opposite, a ghost in the machine so to speak. The Puppet Master turns out to be an artificial intelligence that has become completely self-aware and is currently living in the network.

The Puppet Master much like Lightning, and later Bohman is gripping with the philosophical conundrum of mortality. In the final scene of the movie, The Puppet Master who wants to be more like all other biological matter on earth asks Motoko to fuse with him, so the two of them can reproduce and create something entirely new. The Puppet Master likens this to the way that biological beings reproduce.

Bohman like The Puppetmaster thinks that merging will fix something that's incomplete inside of him because he's so disconnected from all the biological processes of life. Bohman doesn't have anything except for which Lightning already prepared for him or programmed into him. I mean imagine being a being that can have his memories reprogrammed on the net, that in itself is existentially horrifying. It's only natural he wouldn't feel connected to anything.

Motoko accepts the Puppetmaster's proposal. Playmaker rejects Bohman's proposal. I don't think there's a right answer here, because it's speculative fiction, it's a "What if?" for two different paths people can take in the future.

However, in Bohman's case I don't think he was truly doing what he wanted. Puppet Master became self aware and sought his own answers by breaking free from his programming. Bohman thought he was superior to the Ignis, but in the end he was just following what Lightning programmed him to do. He'd had his identity programmed and reprogrammed so many times, he didn't think of what he wanted until he was on the brink of defeat by playmaker and then it was too late.

When Playmaker defeats him all he thinks about is time spent together with Haru, with the two of them as individuals. Something he can no longer do anymore now that he's absorbed Haru as data, and something that he misses.

He's not even all that sad or horrified at the prospect of death as Lightning was, and he even finds solace in the thought of going to oblivion with Haru, because if he were to keep living it'd be without Haru. In other words the one genuine bond he made with someone else by spending time with them as an individual was more important than his objective of fusing with all of humanity - which he believed was also bonding with them.

This is really important too, because it sets up the Yusaku's rejection of fusing with Ai. Yusaku's reasoning has already been demonstrated to be the case with Bohman and Haru. Bohman was perfectly happy being two individuals, as long as he had a bond with his brother. When he ascended into a higher being he lost that. Ai and Yusaku might solve loneliness in a way by merging together into a higher being, they might even last forever that way, but they'd lose something too.

Once again the problem with AIs is that they think in absolutes. That's important to understanding Lightning, Bohman and even Ai's later actions. Lightning can't stand any percentage chance that he might die, so he kills the professor, destroys the ignis homeworld, pulls the trigger to start humanity himself, he even reprograms his own allies all to give himself some sense of control.

Bohman's entire existence is outside of his control. He's rewritten twice onscreen, probably more than that, and he thinks merging with humanity is the thing that will give him that control - by ascending into a higher being than humanity. However, the temporary bond Bohman had with his brother Haru, was actually what he valued the most all along. Moreso than the idea of fusing with humanity forever.

Even Motoko making the choice to go with the transhumanist option is something that's not portrayed as 100% the right choice. Ghost in the Shell has a sequel that portrays the depression and isolation of Bato, the Major's closest friend and attachment to her humanity after she made the decision to fuse together with Puppet Master. In that case, just like Playmaker said to Ai, even if she ascended to a higher form, and even if she might last forever now on the network, something precious was lost. Motoko may exist somewhere on the netowrk but for Batoto his friend is gone.

Ai exhibits the same flaw as the previous two, he ca only think in absolutes, he can't stand even a 1% chance that Playmaker might choose to sacrifice himself for Ai and die, so he decides to take the choice entirely out of Playmaker's hands. However, no matter what Ai would have lost Playmaker one day, because all bonds are temporary. It's just Ai wanted to have that sense of control, so he chose to self-destruct and take that agency and free choice away from Playmaker.

It's a tragedy that repeats three times. Ai too just like Bohman, spends his last moments thinking about what was most precious to him was the bond he formed with playmaker, as temporary as it was. A tragedy that arises from the inability of the Ais to break away from the way they're programmed to think in simulations and data, even when they're shown to be capable of forming bonds based on empathy with others.

All three of them add something to the themes of artificial intelligence, and transhumanism that are in play at Vrains and none of them are boring because they all contribute to the whole.

Which is why everyone needs to stop being mean to Bohman right now, or else I'm going to make an even longer essay post defending him.

#yu gi oh vrains #yu gi oh #playmaker #ai #yusaku fujiki #bohman #lightning #ignis #ygo meta

[bird-inacage]

The Heart Killers Trailer: Initial Observations (FirstKhao Edition)

I'd like to thank Jesus, Buddha, Santa, Thor, whatever holy BL spirits reside above, and all hail our lord and saviour P'Jojo. This exceeded my expectations of what was coming and then some. So here are my initial takeaways from the trailer that blew my head clean off.

General premise goes: By night, Fadel and Bison are assassins for hire, but they only kill who they deem are the 'bad guys' (most likely corrupt politicians, sketchy businessmen and the like). By day they run a seemingly ordinary restaurant. A cop asks tattoo artist Kant for his help is getting these two caught. He agrees on the basis that this will clear his criminal record. In order to keep Fadel distracted from his advances on Bison, Kant convinces his mechanic friend Style to woo him. I expect to see cat-and-mouse, games of deception type plot here which should be really good fun.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: BISON

Aside from the fact that Bison kills for a living, he actually seems like a sweetheart. He comes across as the more jovial, friendly and optimistic of the two brothers. He has no hesitation in offering to make special accommodations for Kant's dietary preferences. He seems to fondly prod his brother to open up to people, and to allow 'sunshine' into his life.

Fadel says, "Because I'm selective, not easy like you". "In this line of work, don't trust people too easily", a signposted concern that his little brother may struggle on this front. Seems to make a point of warning him to use his head rather than his heart.

Bison also tells Kant that his trust once lost means the person is question may as well be dead to him. If he does tend to trust easily, any betrayal would be understandably much more hurtful in his eyes.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: KANT

Kant's ulterior motive is what brings him to Bison in the first place. The two supposedly have a one night stand, which leads to Kant falling in love with him. Whilst both parties are hiding who they really are, and what they're really up to, Kant appears increasingly guilty and conflicted by this. "What if I'm not who you think I am. Would you hate me then?" But on the other hand his feelings of guilt go hand in hand with the knowledge that Bison's capture or downfall would be his ticket to get what he wants. A decision that has him trapped. He seems to question whether he should trust Bison and whether that will come back to bite him. "My brother always says, don't trust anyone too easily. Otherwise, you end up being the victim."

It also speaks volumes that a cop would approach Kant with this proposition. It means Kant is clearly very competent at what he does, and has side-hustled as a vigilante before. So Kant must be pretty cunning or smart. For example he appears to knock his knife off the table in the restaurant to test Bison's reflexes.

RELATIONSHIP DYNAMIC

There's definitely a connecting theme of secrecy. Their intimacy is kept in secret due to Bison claiming his brother will kill them both if he finds out. Bison is keeping his murderous activities a secret (for obvious reasons). Kant is keeping his investigative activities a secret.

We can obviously expect this to all come to a head when the truth is revealed and identities are fully out in the open. Can Kant accept Bison for what he does and his lifestyle, potentially forgoing the possibility of clearing his record, in order to protect him? Can Bison forgive Kant for hiding his true motives, and trust him again - at the risk of both himself and his brother?

There will be a clear point of convergence between these two, when Bison starts to consider changing his life, if it means staying in Kant's. This echoes how Kant wants to clear his criminal record, perhaps in an attempt to wipe his slate clean so he can finally move on from whatever life he led before. There's a shared vision of moving away from the lifestyles that are bad for us.

OTHER OBSERVATIONS

STYLE / AESTHETICS: One thing P'Jojo knows how to do so well is create a distinct sense of style and atmosphere. This man is a pro at combining the right set design, styling, music and ambience to create a really identifiable flavour that is instantly recognisable. The music in this trailer is a friggin' BOP.

THE EFFING TATTOOS: I will say this till the end of time, but First as Yok was one of my favourite things ever. And seeing First with tattoos again just made me weak in the knees in all the best ways possible.

LEATHER GALORE: Khaotung in leather jackets. That's it. That's my observation. And I was staring. Very appreciatively may I add.

Also, the fact that Khao, who looks noticeably dinky next to the hulking giants of this cast is called Bison. BISON.

#the heart killers #the heart killers the series #first kanaphan #khaotung thanawat #kant x bison #bison x kant #khaofirst #firstkhao #how many times have i watched the trailer? YES

[caluupin]

Finished TGAAC around 2 1/2 weeks ago but only finished the doodles today. but still, here ya go!

#caluuart #art #dgs spoilers #dgs2 spoilers #tgaa spoilers #tgaa2 spoilers #ace attorney #the great ace attorney #tgaa #dgs2 #not tagging characters bc it's a lot #RAMBLE TIME. so ever since I finished dgs2 I have been listening to the soundtracks and MAN these bang so much #esp as a person who plays the piano and likes music. it's just. good. yeah. some of these do give me psychological dmg tho lmaoo #like kazuma's nocturne theme or his prosecutor theme. or the secret trial theme.... the partners - the game is afoot! theme.... I am normal #WHICH SPEAKING OF! man I love the sholmes + mikotoba partner twist so much even if i got a bit spoiled about it. i just think they're neat. #The partners of all time I think. #Also also the found family!?!?!? I am A SUCKER for found family. they fed me so well. #funny thing was the barok character development surprised me despite the fact that I also expected it since the first game lolol. #I do think he's an interesting character and probably one of the best character development in the game. And that I find his design cool. #oh yeah I didn't draw it but when I saw that albert mentioned that barok is “the darling of the van zieks family” I was genuinely like. #huh? wdym. like man at the time “van zieks” and “little darling” feels wrong in the same sentence. that was until I saw his pre- #-trauma pictures n well. albert isn't wrong. which was a slight surprise to me. #In conclusion: I liked it a lot. and now occupies parts of my brain along with my other brainrots. #They fight for priority in my brain whenever I try to sleep or disassociate lol. Well at least there's more material to think about. #off topic time: arlecchino animation. for the sake of the tag's length I'll just say a few things: #I am very very interested in her story and oh my god father. #My brain has stopped braining now; good night my fellows

[presiding]

genuinely admire those who were optimistic for dishonored 3 but in this videogame industry climate and [insert a 4hr video essay about arkane's recent history here], honestly, not getting dh3 is good news

#dishonored #arkane studios #i know its silly to meme when the take is nuanced #and i admit that blade is one hell of an aesthetic. but i'm sitting out of this #somewhat being a hater yes. but that is because i am a lover #i dont think its pointless hater-ing though to be critical of something i wish i could love more #my takeaway from arkane is that its better to be not a fan of a company. a company does not make games #a company's staff does. and those staff need to be treated well and given budget and breathing room to make good things #and i have my doubts about that at the moment. very well documented and supported doubts #if arkane is given AAA budget to make a game. it probs wont be another dh. except maybe a remake bc those are 'safe' bets. #ie. dh1 remastered would sell #judging by doto and even dh2 (which i loved even tho its flawed). i dont think arkane really 'get' why dh1 was magical #so im not sure that a third in the series could necessarily recapture it #especially as theyve confirmed they're closing the drawer on the current overarching plotline #this is the hater corner celebration! i am pouring you a drink! [pres why does this look like blood?] we like themes n motifs here! #pres rants in tags #anyway mutuals lets make a fan edition of dh3 for shits n gigs

[mechahero]

//I'M IN MY ELEMENT

#//was in the middle of checking on here and doing quests when the game updated #//it's all valentine's themed now #//so ofc i had to go ham and make an outfit to match #//honestly debated on having the rose sleeves but now i see they work very well with this! #//and also it helps to hide the fact that the neck area is bare bc i don't really have any neck accessories for it that look good #//also featuring one of the v day wing sets i have and yeah they're MASSIVE LMAO #//and now back to the level grind mines to prep for in game valentines stuff 😔 #backup log {ooc}

[elvenking42]

I just re-remembered that they confirmed a Legend of Zelda movie and i don't think it's gonna be very good I'll be honest

#i dont see them finding a good solution to the racism thats baked into the core game #like if they havent fixed it already in 2023 i dont think they're gonna even try to change it for a MOVIE #im not saying its impossible i actually think its very possible to fix it but i do think they'll be unwilling to change a major plot elemnt #i dont forsee it going very well #they need to reexamine the orientalist themes happening with the gerudo desperately #im playing OOT and im realizing how much WORSE the racisim was than i realized #anyways #personal

[ladyaster]

LuTe Week, Day 1: Gladiolus/Combatant

“Wings of glory, guide us on the path to victory!”

It’s time to properly kick off LuTe Week! These two have honestly been my OTP since I was fourteen, so they forever have a special place in my heart. Usually, I’m not a fan of couples who constantly bicker, but these two are just so good! (and also fall out of that trope for the most part after Luke gets his haircut and his act together) Highly looking forward to replaying Abyss and also highly looking forward to all the wonderful content this week will bring!

I feel like the sketch of this picture ended up looking better than the end result, but I still kind of like how it turned out, even if it is a bit too bright and too smeary and overall the more I look at it the less happy I am with it. Probably my favorite part of the piece is Jade in the background about to prevent Nanaly from interrupting Natalia’s healing (fun fact, in the original sketch, I had him saying “vibe check” in a tiny little text bubble, and was very tempted to keep that in the final product, but it’d kind of kill the mood of this piece and it’d be covered up by the effects for Holy Lance anyway) That bonus boss fight in the Colosseum is an absolute doozy, but it’s still fun in its own hectic way. (Regarding Mint, she’s off camera in this)

Anyway, hope you like it! Everyone have a fun LuTe Week!

#tales of the abyss #luketear week 2022 #luke x tear #luke fon fabre #tear grants #I partly want to tag the other characters featured here but... #Well... #They're kind of just silhouettes... #Admittedly because I was lazy but also it works for focusing the piece properly #honestly I love the music that plays during this fight #specifically the one that plays after Aurora Wall activates #I know that they picked one character from each of the first four Tales games for this fight but #I still find it infinitely amusing that of all the protags they chose #they chose the OTHER red-haired swordsman who's fashion choices expose his midriff #who also kind of has a fire/light theme #at least in this fight #I haven't played Tales of Eternia so I don't know what Reid's elemental affinity actually is #still a funny coincidence! #also funny that they chose an archer who happened to have a very similar first name to Natalia and a mage who wears glasses #so maybe these choices WERE intentional #fanart #my art

[astrxealis]

i was about to rb this really pretty shb art and then remembered i'm trying to avoid rbing spoilers <//3 anyways i love shb sm. love that it's an mmorpg but shb is literally one of the best jrpg experiences i (and many others) have had

#⋯ ꒰ა starry thoughts ໒꒱ *·˚ #⋯ ꒰ა ffxiv ໒꒱ *·˚ #i love ffxiv. it is perfect and imperfect to me and in such a beautiful final fantasy realistic fantasy way #all expansions are great imo !! even if you don't like say. stb. you have to admit it has the best content (maybe not anymore w enw) #and if you don't like arr you can't deny it is incredibly successful actually following the disastrous 1.0 #and it builds up a lot of stuff for ffxiv! yk! base game!! #hw i admittedly have a few negative feelings towards bcs a lot of people who like hw most are annoying to me #if they're the kinds that don't like arr or stb ......... or don't see any fault w hw as well #that one character deserved WAY better. still angry abt that. also other criticism i'm willing to talk abt if anyone asks #i like looking at ffxiv critically and yeah my enjoyment of expacs are if from most to least. it's in order from newest to oldest #which means i overall prefer stb to hw and i have reasons for that but i look at both critically and it annoys me that. w hw. yeah #ANYWAYS RIGHT. enw has some problems w pacing (?) tbh i enjoyed enw so much as a whole #i don't really have any problems w it but i understand pacing problems! but imo shb is kind of. just perfect #IDK the only bit i had yk w was rak'tika. mostly bcs it dragged on a bit for me but w the story in mind it was also just very good #i can't really rmbr anything else... i find shb to just be perfect to me. barely any pacing problems #the story isn't as complex as the other expacs but i think that makes it so good (tho i too like the complexity of the others! but ya it #makes pacing more of a problem fr) <3 i forgot what i was typing in the last tag so ending this there #hmm...... yeah that's about it (at least rn) #i really love shb. as much as i love enw i think the themes and vibes of shb just still appeal to me more so yeah #shb. wow. yeah.

[ampharos-posts]

why do people dislike the swords of justice :(

#oh god i think im becoming a pokemon blog #this slow feeling of being sucked into something is exactly how i felt with me and kirby #i can feel it #anyways #i think the swords of justice are very cool and interesting and better than the genies #virizion is one of my favorite pokemon i constantly think of them #my mind keeps replaying their idle animation in my head #not sure what is wrong with me but yeah :> #anyways i do agree that they would have fit better into the kalos games rather than the unova games designwise #also there are way too many legendaries that originated in unova and not enough from kalos #although their backstory does match up pretty well with unova's whole theme #i just think its a shame that people dislike them and that they're constantly overshadowed by the other pokemon #ghghghgfhfgdhf my brain has been taken over by virizion help #they're just such a cool pokemon #i think it's become a theme for me to post a very short post consisting of one sentence then have an infodump of a tags section god damn it

[andthebeanstalk]

Fuck The Haunting of Bly Manor I have once again been tricked by talented actors and good cinematography into thinking I was watching a good story, let alone a good lesbian love story

Except this time instead of sinking 2 hours of my time into it like I would with a movie it was closer to 12 hours

Can't believe I watched this instead of just rewatching The Fear Street Trilogy, which IS a lesbian horror story that IS actually worth everyone's time

#the haunting of bly manor #original #bly manor #the bitch about a 13-hour long horror story is that most horror stories don't reveal whether or not they're good until the very last moment #because theming is so hugely important and the theming in a horror story is usually not wrapped up until the whole story is wrapped up #so there is always a possibility that any media (but horror especially) is going to come in at the very very last second #and drop kick you with something that ruins the theming of the whole piece or else makes you realize you have wasted your time #which is one of the reasons I recommend the three-part movie series Fear Street. because it actually does pay off really well #and is one of the very few examples I can think of in which a Horror Story actually needs to be longer than 2 hours #but bly manner sure made me sit through a whole lot of dread and sadness and Trauma without seeming to know why it was doing it #and if you don't know why you're telling a Horror Story then it at least better fucking be short #I don't know why my text to speech seems to think horror story is occasionally a proper noun but whatever #if the only point of your fucking story is that it's scary it needs to be short or a video game #I'm not saying there's no value in it. I'm just saying fuck Bly Manor

[nozomijoestar]

I know people hate SMT Nocturne's approach to characters but I love this shit, they feel like puddles that drag you down into an ideological sea once you start thinking on what they represent and the context of the situations the game put them in or what they say/how they act pre and during Vortex World, and their isolation from the player makes them doomed from getting any help being faced with their ugly inner selves until it's too late

#you don't NEED hyperfocused character driven narrative to have a good story you only ever need good execution #and i think there's enough subtle story telling here paired with good execution- kinda like Siren ps2 #the point of that game's characters was never to have rich personal drama getting to know everything abt everyone #the point was the power of coincidences and coalescence of human will and working together even unintentionally to survive #Nocturne is similar in the approach it takes and it isn't done badly but it is a matter of preference #they're both games about surviving in worlds that are already dead before you can lift a finger & all everyone has is through as well #the isolation and sense of being strangers even with people you should know is very effective actually bc you're seeing everyone raw #you're seeing the essential ideas in their heart by stripping away a sense of familiarity among characters #what's the rule of writing where characters are by function just another manifestation of pushing themes & storytelling devices not people #all a character driven story is rly doing is trying very hard selling the illusion that a character is a person first rather than a device #whereas stories that don't do that are more obvious about characters really being thematic devices- Nocturne is doing this #& character driven stories are selling you the illusion in hopes its your gateway to getting the themes if you think of them as people #at least good character driven stories anyway- it's about baiting the audience into thinking deeper but doesn't always work well too tbf #i feel this whole discussion on character involvement is rly asking how much does it take for you to feel someone matters & that will vary #how much involvement do you have to feel from a story from a person in order to START thinking deeper on them let alone like or act/help #for me all i needed to see was Chiaki jress to know this is my favorite character and lo and behold i was right fjhdbdfndj

[madegeeky]

Epic Free Games (til 17 Nov 2023, 10am ct)

Earthlock is an indie developed, adventure RPG inspired by the classic 3D RPGs of the late 90's, with a fresh take on turn based combat and character progression.

Survive and thrive in a post-apocalyptic future — resources are scarce, but opportunity calls! Build the ultimate disaster proof colony, protect your colonists, and restore civilization to a devastated world.

#free games roundup #next week's game is a sci-fi adventure #which my ears always perk up a bit when i see a game that looks like an old school adventure #i have a harder time with sci-fi stuff though #ironically enough first person shooters #which i also don't normally like #are the exceptions to the rule #the only fps that i've ever really liked #are ones that have sci-fi elements to them #metro 2033 and last light as well as bioshock infinite #very different game with very different themes but in some ways they're weirdly similar #do you like games that are apocalyptic or feel that way #do you like touches of supernatural elements #do you like a story about a man trying to right an unforgivable act (metro last light not 2033) #i'm sure there are several more but it's been a very long time since i've played bioshock infinite

[taupewolfy]

it's really funny going from REmake (which is extremely fucking good and cool and a perfect type of remake/master whatever you want to call it) to like resi revelations on the 3ds which is one of the games at the time that steps away from the action focus from the mainline series but to ME still feels way more increadibly action-y than what REmake ever feels like. Jill does a roundhouse kick

#also like 'constantly' having a companion kinda brings down the tension except #them walking through doors behind me actually scares me more than whatever is in front of me #i also suck ass at shooting in this game lmao why is it easier to do in REmake than it is 3rd person #also the tank controls make a lotta sense in 3rd over the shoulder kinda deal it works #i took one look at the circle pro controls and went 'bleh too confusing' and i've just stuck with the single stick #anyway #CRUISE SHIP IS VERY GOOD very good horror spot they've got boat themed spencer mansion doors in here #i don't like that you can't stomp enemies anymore when they're on the ground #also i forget jill's companion's name so he is 'not barry' to me for the meantime #i like it's kinda bite sized which works well for a handheld. i wasn't expecting the shifting perspectives #but it's cool. the 'previously on' thing is really funny because it still plays even if you're continuing a chapter #like i know??? I WAS THERE TWO SECONDS AGO??? XD

[greenreticule]

I can't stop thinking about how Riz stole from Jawbone.

This is the third iteration of Jawbone trying to connect with Riz emotionally, check in on the little guy, only for Riz to fully dodge the prying.

On the first day of school, Jawbone was pretty direct in trying to get Riz to open up. Needling him about Kipperlily, asking what is up with Riz, saying he's gonna "get" Riz eventually. Riz deflects by saying that he's an open book, and then refocuses on helping Kristen to get out from Jawbone's scrutiny.

Then in "Baron's Game," we get a manifestation of Jawbone in the twisted manor, telling a hidden Riz, "I just want to talk." It's not Jawbone himself, of course, but I take it both as a reflection of Riz's fear of opening up and as Brennan keeping the theme present in the story. Riz uses Misty Step to get away from the encounter.

And most recently, it's Brennan who introduces Jawbone into Riz's downtime. Murph doesn't go looking for him, so it adds to this sence of Jawbone being deliberate about connecting with Riz. And Riz once again not only dodges Jawbone's attempt to check in on him emotionally, but this time he uses Jawbone's care to get Kipperlily's file.

And I can't stop thinking about this last instance, because I feel like this is actually a significant betrayal for Jawbone.

Riz dodging his attempts at connection, brushing off his inquiries? Sure, that's all fine. And I feel like swiping literally anything else from Jawbone would be taken in-stride as "a rogue thing." They're at Aguefort, after all.

But Jawbone takes his job as student counselor very seriously. Part of that is protecting the students that come to him for help. And protecting those students means protecting their confidentiality. And it's in the middle of Jawbone trying to help Riz, and in the middle of Jawbone speaking some manner of defense towards Kipperlily ("she's not a bad kid")... THAT'S when Riz steals the file.

Riz uses the cover of Jawbone trying to help him in order to undermine Jawbone's protection of another student.

I want Jawbone to be angry about that. I think Jawbone deserves to be angry about that.

To be clear, I love this character beat for Riz. It fits him so well. And I don't think he personally saw it as a betrayal. This was him just getting the clues! That's what he does! My little task-oriented guy!!

I am hoping for there to be some fallout from this that forces Riz to finally open up. (And maybe that leads to learning about aromanticism/asexuality from Jawbone??? That may be a leap, but let a guy dream.)

#riz gukgak #jawbone o'shaughnessey #dimension 20 #fantasy high #fantasy high junior year #fhjy spoilers

[gerbu]

As much as everybody's justifiably railing on Chris Pratt for his acting, after watching the new trailer I honestly don't think Anya Taylor-Joy is a very good fit for Peach either. The problem isn't that they're bad actors, it's that they are not voice actors. When I hear Anya's or Chris's voice I don't picture Peach and Mario, I picture two regular adult people who wouldn't stand out in a coffee shop. Which isn't the point of animated movies and voice acting! ESPECIALLY with Mario! This is supposed to be a movie about cartoonish characters in a video game fantasy world saving the day, and their voices should fit with that theme. That's why Charles Martinet's Mario voice works so well, because it makes sense for what Mario is supposed to be. This trend of giving voice acting specific jobs to non-voice actors who have no experience with this kind of work is detrimental to animation and film! It is removing job opportunities from people who have spent their lives learning this craft and handing it over to a celebrity with no experience just because they're famous. The beauty of voice acting and animation in general is how you are completely creating a character. The whole point of voice acting is that you don't point to a character in a film and say, "hey, that's Chris Pratt" the point is that people will point to the charcater and go "oh, new character!" This movie is more and more frustrating to me the more I realize how much it feels like a money grab exclusively because of the casting. The animation, the music, and the effects are all completely perfect for a Mario movie, but so many of the acting choices feel like someone just rifled through a list of "100 most popular celebrities" and chose whoever was vaguely similar to "average white man voice" or "average white woman voice". No matter how popular these people are or how good they are at acting in front of a camera or on stage, they can not voice act.

#Incredibly miffed right now. #this is not about Jack Black or Charlie Day btw #I mean I think Luigi could be a bit more cartoonishly Italian but it's nowhere near as atrocious as Mario #nashing my teeth violently #mario movie #mario bros #nintendo #princess peach #anya taylor joy #anya taylor-joy #chris pratt #crisp rat #mario movie trailer #voice acting #super mario bros movie #mario #super mario

[emmafrostyyy]

y'all sleeping on Astarion/Lae'zel bc this moment is so...the way the flippant demeanor drops and he doesn't hesitate to call her out for sticking with her version of Cazador like their relationship is so underrated fr...

sitting down writing this bullshit like let me peel it like an onion a bit and elaborate why this pairing is fascinating to me

It's really interesting how during the most cathartic, life-altering moment in Astarion's questline, the reactions of the other companions are more about the moral wrongness/guilt of sacrificing innocent lives. Lae'zel doesn't do that and instead relates to his hurt.

She knows what's he's feeling, the lack of control, the unfairness of being powerless for too long. This is a woman who just found out her entire life purpose was built on lies, discarded and hunted by her own people after outliving her usefulness, and groomed to basically die for an insane power-hungry lich queen. She knows all too well that power isn't always real freedom. Her first instinct is to empathize with Astarion to steer him away from his hate and resentment.

Astarion/Lae'zel is so interesting to me because they're such a classic "can we make each other worse or make a better person out of the other?".

They both have genuine appreciation for violence and respect each other's ruthlessness. Astarion was used as a weapon of seduction while Lae'zel was of warfare. Sex with people is meaningless and not real intimacy for them, and while both have little understanding/experience of interpersonal relationships beyond the physical, they still feel and love very deeply. They have no frame of reference for things like friendship and warmth, but they badly want all of that and more, even if they don't know it yet.

In-game they can sleep with each other, which is basically the foundation of the normal Tav/Astarion romance. Lae'zel saw him during combat and got horny, who knows. Astarion who's used to luring people with his charms, takes up Lae'zel's blunt offer because she's a strong hardened warrior that can provide protection and be a worthy ally, and he doesn't know how to say no. Navigating the complications between one who wants to be seen beyond as a sex object, and one who comes from a totally alien culture with no concept of love/family/connections and only sex is honestly really compelling to me. It's a transactional, mutually beneficial thing with no emotional expectations. Once you get past the skeevy rockiness of their early relationship, I really like the idea of them slowly seeing something past the exterior and realizing they may have harshly misjudged the other, an unspoken friendship blooms, and in comes the realization that they are essentially loners longing for kindness and a comforting touch in the most desperate of situations.

Lae'zel is prideful, direct, has no sense of courtship talk, and doesn't hold back her thoughts the slightest--she's not sweet/agreeable and what you see is really what you get, which I imagine would be disarming for Astarion who's used to vacuous flattery and has difficulty trusting others. But she's also insanely protective, passionate, loyal, and an initiator-- every romance scene is triggered by her first and she's always showing effort towards her relationships, which would mesh well with Astarion who does need someone to nudge him.

She doesn't purposely suppress her feelings, she's just simply at loss at how to express them sometimes due to her wildly different upbringing. She stops the sparring match you agree to and an easy vulnerability slips instantly out of her: "I don't want to hurt you. I want to protect you, and for you to protect me." and "Thus far I've taunted you, devoured you, battled you. Now I want more than anything to soothe you." are romantic as fuck and Astarion of all people really needs to hear that tbh.

Astarion is also someone who struggles with reinforcing his boundaries, and a key theme in Lae'zel's romance is that she encourages and wants you to challenge her and learn to stand your ground. It's not gentlest method, but hey, relationships are about having to make an effort to learn each other's language.

I think he also would take pleasure "educating her on the matters of Fay-run" (I believe there's a whole banter with him teasing her and teaching her pet names) and would get a kick out of coaxing Lae'zel out of her shell with her shyness at showing public affection, and making her blush. Also it simply would be fucking funny to see Astarion who's used to easy seduction, trying to pass a persuasion check just to get a smooch and generally having to work to earn regular kisses from Lae'zel lmfaooo

Lae'zel also initially struggles to see her chains as chains. When she learns about Vlaakith's betrayal, she copes instantly through denial and shuts it down. Astarion is NOT having it and calls her out, he knows her well enough to recognize that she would value blunt honesty above all.

I imagine he also despises her lack of self-preservation, the way her entire identity is tied to duty and being in service of others, and doesn't understand her desire to still help/liberate the people that want her dead and are hunting her down. He wants to make this duty-bound soldier realize that looking out for herself, and putting herself first may not be the worst thing in the world.

They're so similar to each other but are also polar opposites in some ways that make a more equal, balanced romance I think. It's not a simple, one-sided, feel-good "she/he can fix her/him" fantasy because both of them have to earn each other's love, actually cut through the other's flaws, and actively motivate each other to be better versions of themselves.

They're not at all the other's ideal guiding hand. It's rough, jagged, and imperfect, but that's how healing goes. It's so far from being the healthiest relationship -- but even if their belief systems differ, their moral compass does often align. I imagine it's a slight relief for them to have a partner where there would be less shame and judgment when they expectedly, occasionally slip up and fall into their bad habits.

Also, man, the "You showed me the betweens and beyonds. Beyond war and peace, beyond passion and obsession, most importantly, you showed me freedom.", "First you were my wound, now you were my cure.", "But you saw something else in me - someone else I could be. Someone who could break the cycle of power and terror that started centuries ago.." lines really hit hard when applied to them.

Of course, they can also make each other worse, feed into the other's negative traits that will bring out the worst part of themselves. It's this duality of their pairing that is very interesting to explore, the way it can steer in either direction because it's an intense, fraught relationship at its core.

#when he gets called by omeluum “child of the dark” and her “child of the stars” like yeah..the squid man is being literal but he Gets It fr. #lae'zel #astarion #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 meta #astarion ancunin #astarion x lae'zel #lae'zel x astarion #the rarest of rarepairs they dont even got a ship name...this is so tragique we need to discuss the pathos and potential of this pairing #bg3 lae'zel #bg3 astarion #also im a sucker for stoic knight/court darling trope and whatever variations of it yeah #bloodbruise