introductory post
May. 12th, 2030 12:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sidewaysWelcome to sideways :)
• Winger, mid 30s, she/her, Australian. There are few things I love more than being told stories, and occasionally I engage in story-telling as a strange side-effect. I'm especially interested in filling up my reading page with people sharing their writing journeys and/or media commentary, and if I subscribe out of the blue it's usually because I think it would be fun to follow along.
• Mostly a media musing blog, occasional observations from life. I keep chatter about my work under private access these days but if you ask I'll likely grant it - and you certainly don't have to ask permission to comment or unsubscribe! Some key tags include:
→ paperwork: general chatter
→ fiction: all writing
→ media roundup: commentary on recent media
• There are many things that spark my enthusiasm, some of which I've written for. A short list of things you'll always grab my interest with include:
→ Video games: Fallout: New Vegas, Mass Effect, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Destiny, Soma, Uncharted, Pillars of Eternity, Inside, A House of Many Doors
→ Books: His Dark Materials, The Old Kingdom trilogy, CJ Cherryh, Realm of the Elderlings, Yoon Ha Lee, Tamora Pierce, Animorphs, Books of the Raksura, Matthew Swift, sci-fi and unusual fantasy in general
→ TV: Orphan Black, Dirk Gently, Person of Interest, Young Justice, TMNT 2k3, Infinity Train, Killjoys, The Wire
→ Animanga: Ergo Proxy, BLAME!, Fullmetal Alchemist, Darker Than Black, Wolf Children, Mob Psycho 100
→ Comics: Spider-Man, Unsounded, Widdershins, The Property of Hate
• I track my video game playing at GG.
• I'm arkosic on AO3 and PS4, and you can catch me over at darkwingerduck on Tumblr.
• Winger, mid 30s, she/her, Australian. There are few things I love more than being told stories, and occasionally I engage in story-telling as a strange side-effect. I'm especially interested in filling up my reading page with people sharing their writing journeys and/or media commentary, and if I subscribe out of the blue it's usually because I think it would be fun to follow along.
• Mostly a media musing blog, occasional observations from life. I keep chatter about my work under private access these days but if you ask I'll likely grant it - and you certainly don't have to ask permission to comment or unsubscribe! Some key tags include:
→ paperwork: general chatter
→ fiction: all writing
→ media roundup: commentary on recent media
• There are many things that spark my enthusiasm, some of which I've written for. A short list of things you'll always grab my interest with include:
→ Video games: Fallout: New Vegas, Mass Effect, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Destiny, Soma, Uncharted, Pillars of Eternity, Inside, A House of Many Doors
→ Books: His Dark Materials, The Old Kingdom trilogy, CJ Cherryh, Realm of the Elderlings, Yoon Ha Lee, Tamora Pierce, Animorphs, Books of the Raksura, Matthew Swift, sci-fi and unusual fantasy in general
→ TV: Orphan Black, Dirk Gently, Person of Interest, Young Justice, TMNT 2k3, Infinity Train, Killjoys, The Wire
→ Animanga: Ergo Proxy, BLAME!, Fullmetal Alchemist, Darker Than Black, Wolf Children, Mob Psycho 100
→ Comics: Spider-Man, Unsounded, Widdershins, The Property of Hate
• I track my video game playing at GG.
• I'm arkosic on AO3 and PS4, and you can catch me over at darkwingerduck on Tumblr.
no subject
Date: 2020-06-24 12:10 pm (UTC)video game fandom on dw
LOL me too me too! I was drafting up a post about tlou2 (oh mmy god... have you played it/watched it.,,) and I was like "wow I'm so glad I know there's someone on here who might read posts about video games now" alskjdfh. I was really excited to see
games we're both interested in
I'm going through your listo and it looks like we've got our eye on a fair few of the same games! Disco Elysium looks so cool, if you do end up playing it soon I would love to hear your thoughts/progress as you play. Tacoma, Frostpunk, Tyranny, yep yep yep, I also want to play them at some point! Did you enjoy Detroit: Become Human? I want to play it as some point but like I said I don't have a PS4 so maybe when the new console comes out, I'll nab a last-gen at a steal. (Or steal a family member's huhu.) I bought Destiny 2 a while ago and then it went f2p before I ever really got stuck in. I've played a total of an hour and it was very overwhelming - I played with a friend who was not the most patient with my newbie cluelessness, alas xD Related to Destiny: I downloaded Warframe earlier today. Now that my ovw phase is well and truly buried, I want something more sci-fi. Have you any interest in Warframe?
mass effect
!!! I got a bit nervous, in most of the spaces online I've seen discussing Mass Effect, people - especially regarding fem!shep - seem to think lawful good is boring? It could have just been that specific reddit post, I mean, I don't know. I'm glad you love her too!! I booted up ME3 to play after finally getting my laptop repaired last month (my graphics card is??? dying orz) and I couldn't remember anything! I didn't know what quest I was trying to do, how to control various things, even important decisions I was in the middle off HHHH. I think I have to restart it for the third time oTL I'm determined to finish it! SAMANTHA IS SOOOOO CUTE, I'm going to play a morally grey hacker lesbian shep at some point and then Samantha better watch out for all the wooing. (It was such a crime not to make Tali bi. I'm still mourning.)
You know, when I heard that Garrus and Tali would romance each other if you don't romance either of them, I think my brain rebooted. It— I'm torn between exuberance and I-wish-that-was-me. ♥ It's so funny trying to take both of them on missions as well because they're so twinky, especially in the first game, like. LKjsdsfdhlsdkfhjg I was laughing they kept falling unconscious constantly.
pillars of eternity
Pfff re: godlikes, yeah, they all just wanna be cool fire babies. Go off, backers. My initial character was an Orlan, but I stopped playing before I really learned how to play, so when I revisited I was like "fuck it, let's go edgy boiz" and made an outcast cypher (??) mistic from the barren ice planes. And her main motivation is "I want to make friends". Aha, I will report back!! Their paladin system seems pretty strict, so I feel like I'd need to know how to play the game properly, or I'd have chosen one to start with tbh. I want to see how well the game bends to an evil playthrough mwahaha.
horror games
Ooh, I'm glad to hear that tbh! lmao I would watch the shit out of that. My friend and I are going to try stream Dead Space 1 and 2 so we can play the third together, and I hear it's scary but not like, SUPER terrifying. Action-spook. We will see hhhh
naughty dog
I had a Last of us Marathon yesterday, watching a no-commentary playthrough of the sequel, and I have. Thoughts. Mostly I just want to go and play the first game again, though :') I've only played it once but the characters were so beautifully done that I miss that warmth and humanity. (Yeah, I know right. Feels like you can't really trust any super rich entities, they're all so sus -.-)
recently played
I think Sundered's gameplay is a nice do-it-to-do-something loop, but we all now I'm really here for the sexy eldritch monster lmao. Inside was so good!!! I watched a letsplay of it ages ago and tbh I was like, yeah, it's all right - liked Limbo more. But then I played it, and it suddenly felt so much shorter? Even knowing what was going to happen, I just UGHHH loved it! I love short games a lot, and PlayDead have a good bleak platformer formula haha.
I finished Ghost 1.0 recently! I was so taken aback, it's actually so great?? I haven't played many metroidvanias but it convinced me to start newgame+ immediately after finishing! The voice acting is really well done, I'm just super impressed! A lot of love went into that game, I could tell. I also started The Surge because I wanted some sci-fi mech action. It has more of an industrial vibe than a sci-fi one, and I've given up on it after a few hours. It's okay, but I think too slow and "hhrrr dark souls harrrd" for me. That's a pass.
OMG THE YIKES GAME I STILL RMB SO CLEARLY ITS SO YIKES DUDE LKJSGHSDLGJKH LMAO
no subject
Date: 2020-06-28 05:01 am (UTC)where are the gamers
I joined indie_pop! :D Doesn't seem terribly active yet, but it's nice to have it there. And yesss, a few friendly folks I know of include
games of mutual interest
Haha, I've had fun using your games log as a guide for ones to wishlist and prioritise, I must admit X3 Detroit: Become Human was good insofar as it was enjoyable to play, the animation is gorgeous, the choice tree was truly impressive, and there were some fun character moments. It was bad insofar as it's the most boring and overdone version of What If Androids you could expect. ("What happens if people who look and act exactly like humans are mistreated for nonetheless being different?" That's just racism, David. "What if androids had to sit at the back of the bus?" David. "What if they march shouting actual slogans from real civil rights movements?" David no.) If you can get it on discount it's worth a spin, just keep the expectations low.
I am a little interested in Warframe! Mostly for the aesthetic - I have limited interest in pvp games, mostly because I am just not very good at them lol. But... dem customisable robots...
You're obviously on Steam, correct? Would love to add you if you're willing!
mass effect
I'm not surprised people are bored by lawful good, but to me half the fun of Mass Effect was getting to be such a paragon. I don't pretend it's especially realistic, but it's NICE to get to save the world by insisting we will work together and do things the right way, goshdarnit. Also, especially in the first game, renegade speech options are often so petty and mean?? I can't do it.
Ohhh no, sympathies for trying to jump back into the middle of a complex game hahaha. I burned through ME3 at the time, but the last time I tried to play it... it's not not fun, but there is something a bit sloggy about it. Maybe it's just the part where EVERYTHING is being AWFUL all of the time. The lack of bi is BioWare's gravest sin though. Omg. Even Jack, who MENTIONS having been with women? Tali, who so clearly has a crush on Shepard? The fuck are Thane and Garrus straight for, I don't think they care. And! Yes! I'm sorry, but perfect ot3 RIGHT there. What a missed opportunity.
TWINKY LMAO. YOU'RE RIGHT THOUGH. YOU SHOULD SAY IT. Garrus got mauled to death by a single varren in front of me and I couldn't believe it. He missed every goddamn shot.
Just out of curiosity - are there any companions you don't like, or feel indifferent towards? I always want to apologise to Kaidan and Jacob, who are so perfectly nice I feel almost nothing for them. And poor Liara seems to be trapped in an entirely one-sided love affair.
horror games
Ah, I watched Let's Plays of the first two Dead Space games! I liked the general worldbuild, v eldritch. Being able to actually fight the monsters helps a little, I think. If I remember rightly, Frictional broke the mold with Amnesia being a horror game in which your only options are run and hide? And in fact you get harmed just by looking at monsters. It's very clever and they're terrible people. It looks like they're bringing out another Amnesia game this year, which I'm a little disappointed about; I was hoping for a new IP.
naughty dog
Speaking of actual terrible people... lol. I haven't watched TLoU2 as yet, but I did read a lengthy review that covered a couple of spoilers, and. Yeah. I'm not in the mood for unrelenting bleakness as it is, but I'm also just disappointed that's the route they've taken. I was discussing it (in a non-spoilery fashion) with
recently played
Well, I picked up Sundered in the Steam sale! Took me a little while to figure out what I was doing - I've never played Metroidvania style - but I'm starting to get the hang of it and it's fun. And DAMN, you weren't kidding about the aesthetic. My friendly local geometric shape has a very compelling voice.
Also giving Kentucky Route Zero another go, now that the final chapter is out. It's been so long I don't really remember what was going on, haha.
no subject
Date: 2020-07-02 02:05 pm (UTC)dragon age
Ooh, I gotta get on this. Unlike Mass Effect, I don't really know the spoilers for Dragon Age, or at least as well as I do ME. Once I start my second playthrough of ME I might try play Dragon Age at the same time? Agh, and I still gotta finish KOTOR. So much rpg so little time .__.
game logging
I'm glad it's of use to you haha! I spent more than a year trying to figure out how to log my games, I'm really happy the sheet is suiting. First I just went with Steam reviews, but then there were games that I played through Family Sharing, and all the other platforms, and even off PC, and it was getting impossible to even remember what I had where (especially with Epic's constant freebies). There were a few online game logging websites I tried too, but nothing would stick. In the end, having my own spreadsheet is definitely easiest. ^_^ The only thing I kiiiind of wanted to include were hours' playtime, but I replay stuff so often that I don't know if it would be of any use. And hoensly, it's kind of freeing to not pay any attention to it lol.
games of mutual interest
Oh my god, did they really do that re: irl civil rights movement and Detroit: Become Human? Because that's the most 'video games must be art' white man thing I've ever heard. I'll give it a skip, I LOVE AI and robots and, genuinely, civil rights too (law student hello lmao) but I can do without that particular narrative, I think. *sigh* Please, I just want good robot games.
I want to play a zoomy fashion show robot game so bad. I'm going to give it a spin and if I end up getting into it please prepare yourself for me trying to convince you to queue with me (does the game involve queueing? Almost all of my multiplayer online experience is through overwatch slkdjfh).
I am on Steam! Here is my account, feel free to add <3
mass effect
That's so true omg! I love feeling like Shepard is this do-gooder who's going to save lives while keeping her honour and integrity. *clenches fist* I also reaaaaally love the idea of a lawful good Shepard who's always believed that following orders is the right thing to do having her entire worldview shaken by the corruption of the spectre Saran, and also the beautiful intercharacter play it offers between her and Garrus. Especially when taking into account that Garrus' entire arc in the first game was whether he wanted to do good within or without the system, and it evolves in the second game to him being a vigilante who has decided to take the law into his own hands. And you have Shepard working with Cerberus despite her loyalty to the Alliance. UGh I LOVE THEM MMMM NO SHEPARD WITHOUT VAKARIAN TT__TT
Yeah, the third one makes me kind of sad. The pacing also feels a bit weird to me because? There's the Reapers literally attacking and fucking shit up left right and centre but I'm expected to fly around everywhere doing fetch quests and small stuff and checking for fuel debris. I know WHY I have to, but it feels counter-intuitive. In the second game you knew exactly why you were doing what you were doing at any given moment, and yes, it felt kind of funny to be running around doing arbitrary stuff when the collector threat was looming ahead, but it felt almost like the whole crew wanted to put off the inevitable until they had to because it was a suicide mission. Idk, those are my thoughts so far, but I'll keep you posted as I restart ME3 for the third time jgkld. (I always get to Javik, and then stop. *sigh*)
LET THE WOMEN BE BI HHHHRK. Especially with Tali, where I just— There is no heterosexual explanation for the way she talks to Shepard!!!! And Jack who by all rights is proven to be bi? I literally had to look up to double check that she wasn't romancable by fem!shep. smh and also oh my god if I could romance Thane as a man I think I'd be dying, it would be so good. I'm flustered just thinking about it. THEY'RE ALIENS WHY ARE THEY STRAIGHT BY HUMAN STANDARDS, BIOWARE I JUST WANNA TALK—
Companions I feel indifferent towards... Mmm, I liked Jacob until I read about what his arc would have been in ME3 if you romanced him, and that cooled me on him so fast lol. Tbh I think that's not his fault, it doesn't really make sense to me with how his character felt. Still, I won't be playing through that any time soon because I am all about that soulmate happy ending lmao. I let Ashley die (I say 'let' but I angsted over that choice screen for SO LONG alksjdfh) so I don't feel super attached to her as a companion, although I love her and fem!shep's interactions (since that's all I've seen sjkd). Liara, I never felt super attached to? I think it's because it went straight to romantic with her, and I'm a big sucker for friends to lovers. Also because of the major shift between one and two? I think if I had romanced her, it would have been a really sad move to see Liara not even come along on the mission. So while I like Liara, I get sad at the idea of romancing someone who becomes such a side character later. :( Also, Grunt! I really don't get Grunt. He's funny and I don't dislike him or anything, but I just don't... get him. I think it's because I missed Wrex so much. xD
horror games
Oho, eldritch, you say? Watch me boot up the game Right Now. This the third Amnesia game then, isn't it? I have the first two, and I have Outlast which I think follows that same model and I've played maybe an hour of it. Maybe I'll revisit it one day lmao jkflsdfkjh I wish I wasn't so easily scared, I want to play horror gamessss
naughty dog
ooooof. Yeah, I saw the news about the crunch and at this point it was like, probably should have expected it. All the industry darlings are turning out to abuse their workers. *sigh* I saw Skill Up's review of tlou2 and it was pretty in line with my own thoughts. Such a depressing and bleak and pessimistic game, which is weird in a sequel that went out of it's way to paint not only Ellie but parts of the world itself (the giraffe scene near the end, ahh) as hopeful. Also, I feel like it fell flat because the characters worked in the first one bc of how multifaceted they all were. Tess, Joel, Bill, Ellie - everyone felt human. In the sequel, people are just shitty for no reason, or at least reasons I can't bring myself to believe at all lol.
Honestly, I think if I did want to see a sequel, personally I'd have wanted it to be about actually bringing about a cure, and following that storyline. I know it's cliche and it might feel like it's 'undoing' what TLOU did, but I don't think I would feel that way. I'd love to have seen that. See more difficult decisions, and Ellie to have grown - and yes, because of Joel and his influence - to be able to make the choice that Joel couldn't bring himself to.
recently played
!!!! I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE PLAYING IT and that you're enjoying!! Ugh, how sexy is the bad guy, he has No Right. I still think about it, I think I'm going to have to write Eshe/Shining Trapezohedron fic lmao. I've had my eye on Kentuky Route Zero for years, I just haven't picked it up yet! If you end up enjoying it please let me know <3
I wanted to play Dead Space but my friend rainchecked, so I might try do that alone or reschedule with them if I can. I've recently started Ghost of a Tale, and I'm really enjoying it! It's a ton of fetch quests with really great stealth mechanics thrown it, but honestly I think I'm still playing it for the lore of all things? The world is so charming and intriguing and has just completely drawn me in. After I finish this, I'm going to stop stalling and finally start on that ME3 restart. *sigh*
no subject
Date: 2020-08-02 05:34 am (UTC)dragon age
I have a harder time with DA than ME because the latter's gameplay style is more my thing, but the actual RPG element of the DA series is vastly superior imo. I also liked getting to take the same Shepard through everything, versus having to make a succession of characters, but that's just personal preferences again.
game logging
I did indeed have fun with the logging, so thank you for the template~ Now I just have to remember to keep it up to date, lol. I also contemplated counting hours, but it gets fiddly.
games of mutual interest
Scratching my chin over good AI games. You already know Soma and Primordia... Maybe The Fall would appeal? It's a puzzle-based game about an AI in a protective suit that's trying to get their unconscious pilot to safety.
Did you end up giving Warframe a try? Was it worthwhile? I wouldn't say no to giving it a go now and then c:
mass effect
A lawful good Shep bounces WONDERFULLY off Garrus, especially since they both suffer so much for their ideals. And they argue about it, but never without understanding that each is trying wholeheartedly to just make things right; and they support each other even when mistakes are made, because they've been there, they get it... Because I played ME2 first I didn't have that personal connection, alas, but they wrote it in so well that I glommed onto him anyway as what seemed to be one of very few characters that was there for Shepard, who'd known her in the past and understood she wouldn't be working with Cerberus for kicks.
Lmao yeah it's hard in ME3 to juggle the sense of "aaaaaa" with the actual structure of the game. It also felt fair in ME2 because of the suicide nature of things, as you say, but also the goal is to raise and train a team capable of handling it, basically? So the side bits and pieces feel a little more like prep work, not faffing around while entire planets burn.
That said, you must, at minimum you MUST complete the Citadel DLC for ME3. Please. It's the pinnacle.
M!Shep/Thane... hmm... yes. Yes, good.
I choose to ignore what happens with Jacob's romance arc in ME3 because that's just bad writing :| I can't blame the character for that level of bullshittery. It's a little funny too, because obviously when I ran into that moment as a Platonic Pal it was very "aww"! Good for you, Jacob! And then it turned out they didn't change it for a romance and it got less aww.
horror games
Big mood on wanting to be able to play 'em T-T A friend of mine has been blazing through Soma in normal mode and God I Wish That Was Me.
...And despite this I still bought Darkwood during the latest Steam sale. As if I will be able to play it successfully. Someone stop me.
sundered
This has become my Bloodborne Lite, I swear. The goal is to just charge back in repeatedly until I succeed, and there is something strangely educational about that. I'm up to fighting Legion & Salvation now! WHY WON'T THEY STAND STILL D8<
Oh pluh-heeze do let me know if you ever write Sundered fic :eyes: I confess, I looked up the endings just cuz I know it's going to take me a while yet to get there, and WOW. Just wow. The art is so beautiful for one thing, and then the endings themselves were great. I am well on track to go Full Eldritch, because Shiny Triangle is the only one who's nice to me down here and also I really like turning into a gargoyle.
other bits and bobs
May have flaked out and just watched a video for the last chapter of KRZ. It's a very pretty game, but it's just...so slow... I kept zoning out >>
Have now cycled into playing Where the Water Tastes Like Wine, which has an excellent aesthetic and concept but does not justify it's full pricetag imo; and mucking around again with A House of Many Doors, which is likely to be fun if you like Sunless Sea.