The things I most want to discuss are Master Mode, what makes a good/bad shrine, best/worst shrines, the design of eventide idle, dlc difficulty/pacing, the great fairy armor system, rain, whether shrines obsolete certain things in the Overworld, the lack of traditional dungeons, and whether some modes of transportation are kind of pointless.

Don’t have the time to do the whole wall of text thing until tonight; but there’s a starting point for anyone interested.

As a Homestuck, that doesn't faze me as it probably should. That comic (and its fandom) are a crash course in both awesomeness and absurdity, not infrequently both at the same time.

Breath of the Wild has a lot of things that are just not really worth doing/using?

A good example is horses. I just did 124 shrines in 10 days. I only road an animal for 2 missions. The rest of the time, a mixture of climbing/gliding/sprinting is just as fast if not faster. It feels like the game is just too vertical and the paraglider is just too good for horses to be useful. This means that I also completely ignored the horse armor system. I frankly don’t even know what it does or if horses can take damage. I don’t even understand how the basic functionality of the horse whistle works, bc I’ve whistled for more Gorons than quadrupeds.

The motorcycle ends up in a similar boat. It requires fuel and doesn’t seem more useful than fast travel -> revali’s -> straight line.


Another system that feels mostly useless is armor upgrading for most armor sets. It is trivially easy to get Amber Earrings to 4, Soldier’s Armor/Boots to 3, and basic weather gear to 2. Once you’ve done that, better armor does exist; but it’s completely unnecessary and such a painful grind to get that it’s not at all worth doing. I have 28 hearts, the most damage I take is 2-3 hearts per hit, and weather elixirs are negligible to get. I’m not hunting down 24 dragons for an extra bit of defense I in no way need.

Lynels really suffer from the above. They are necessary for so many 4th upgrades, but the only reason you’d even care would be to make it slightly easier to F with Lynels. None of them are really worth engaging with for any meaningful reason beyond messing w them. I think the guardian lasers are the only non Lynel thing that even does more than a quarter heart atm? Yes it’s fun to fight a few of them; but after that the resource consumption required just makes it extremely painful.

Is this about the "anime was a mistake" quote? Because wasn't that taken massively out of context? I would think Ano would have a lot choicer words against the anime fandom as a whole considering he seemed to attract some of the worst in it.

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Just talking about games, I only just broke out of a month-long streak of playing Isaac again (with some Slay the Spire mixed in) by buying two games on my Switch: R-Type and Golf Story.

I am abysmal at R-Type but absolutely love it. It's been so many years since I played it on emulator that I forgot how good it is.

I'm sad I didn't get Golf Story sooner. It's a really light RPG that doesn't take itself seriously and uses what's normally the golf mini-game from other games and turns that into its core mechanic, so even the main gameplay loop is just silly, non-stressful fun.

I don't have anything to say about Breath of the Wild, because what little I played on a friend's console convinced me it's not my game (unless the only thing I ever did on it was speedrun to the final boss, which is what I tried and failed at multiple times). Also I really want to learn to just shut my mouth about games that I haven't played, because I offer my opinion on games far too frequently. I did just learn about a game so similar-looking to BotW that it has the fanboys in a tizzy, so I'm waiting for Genshin Impact to come out to try it, almost out of spite. It doesn't look like the kind of game that I'd like, but AFAIK it's going to be a freemium game, so I think it's worth at least checking out.

I think the proper context for the "Anime was a mistake" quote was still a pretty heavy condemnation of the fandom, as it was essentially against pandering or appealing to the "otaku" crowd? It'd sting to hear "No one ever should have listened to you" from your one great unbesmirched idol.

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Oh man, R-Type.

R-Type is a game that I have never gotten into, but I feel that I would love if I did touch. I love space-shooters, even though I kind of suck at them and have fairly rarely gotten the chance to really play one out. Now, I was always more into the top-down ones, rather than the sidescrollers (which has often made me consider getting into Touhou Project bullet hells, but see again being TERRIBLE at these games) but the side-scrollers like Parodious and R-Type are also pretty great.

Makes me remember something else... have we ever talked on here about RPG Shooter Starwish? Because if not that's an R-Type/Parodious style game that deserves mentioning

The name rings a bell, but I can't place it. I'm not discounting the idea that I'm getting it confused with Twinkle Star: Sprites, though.

You mentioning Touhou makes me consider that maybe the reason I love R-Type and a lot of its contemporaries is that I can SEE my hitbox. One big problem I've always had with most bullet hells is that you only take damage at the few pixels of your core instead of your entire sprite, which leaves me in one of two situations: focus on my sprite so I can correctly dodge bullets (particularly in those that increase your combo meter from grazing bullets) at the expense of shooting what I want, or focus on accurately shooting the enemies at the expense of knowing where I'm safe. R-Type is a little bit frustrating in its cramped quarters since hitting a wall (or, I guess, floor/ceiling?) is instant death, but I never, ever feel like I don't know exactly where I am or how close I am to death.

It's a bit more than that because it's an equivalent to a master artist declaring art not made purely for its own sake to be invalid and those involved worthy of his contempt. It wasn't just a condemnation of the otaku, but rather any thought that anime should exist as more than a filtered expression of the artist's thoughts.* And that INCLUDES the idea that the audience can have any independent thought outside the artist's intent.

Miyazaki would hate the 'death of the author' theory because he has little respect for an audience.

It's all like a much more scathing version of Coppola declaring Marvel movies to be despicable because of how much more niche aand personal anime can be.

*I should add that he's equally strict on what he considers a valid thought too, and is of the opinion that those without talent up to his standards shouldn't bother the world with their works. Which, for the record, included his son, Goro. He later admitted to feeling bad for saying that, but that might equally be because he feels he didn't spend enough time with him as a child.

I know in some of the Touhou-esque games (I think Touhou itself) you can "Focus" which slows your movement somewhat but lets you see the hitbox pixel, boldly lit up. One of the videos I watched when seriously considering getting into Touhou was very clear that you basically always want to focus (even though it also changes your shot pattern in that game) because as well as seeing your hitbox and getting the focus shot pattern, the slower movement is a boon for pulling off pixel perfect dodges.

Then the phrase "pixel perfect dodges" horrifies me and I remember why I haven't yet picked up Touhou.

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So, Starwish is (Was? It's a flash game so it's kind of dead, but I have a .swf of it so I can play it offline if I want to revisit) mostly a side-scrolling space shooter game in the vein of R-Type. I've completed it multiple times, though, so I'd say it's probably way easier than any of the classics. It's a bit different, though, in that it has a big JRPG-style story that's told VN-style between the missions (hugely cheesy as befits an indie flash game, but way better than it has any right to be as the story of an indie flash space shooter from 2011), along with the personal stories of the colorful crew members that you can dive into when you talk to them in downtime (Dating sim element? People are pretty liberal with genre tags these days and there IS a management aspect because you only have time to talk to so many people a round and each person has limited availability so it's hard to see all of everyone's events.). In downtime you also upgrade your ship, your ability to do that being somewhat dependent on your level (See: RPG elements) and somewhat on the contents of a randomized shop where you can get new weapons and mods (Which would probably be called a "roguelike element" these days because that genre label has been watered down to homeopathy) rather than picking these things up as in-stage drops. Your character also has stats, which will effect how well everything performs. I'd have to boot it up again to recall too much more, but I remember it being a weirdly ton of fun.

Hearing all that sounds like the fairly typical but detestable old-guard stuff an in-power Japanese man would say, but I kind of wanted to zero in on this sentence because of what's been happening in video games... well, I was going to say "lately," but it's been happening for decades, it's just becoming ever more blatant in the last few years.

Like, on a base level, I can wrap my head around the notion that you need a lot of money to create these massive works of art like video games or anime or whatever, but I have become utterly disillusioned with the notion that they should exist for the express purpose of making money. Lately I've been wanting to change my critical language to focusing on production -- possibly talking to people involved in it when and where I can -- precisely because of this. There's also the fact that I'm easily won over and wouldn't know where the artist's intent ended and the influence of the market began, and that there's no shortage of corporations willing to take advantage of that [see: the Charging Bull and Fearless Girl statues in New York].

The obvious problem is Miyazaki dismissing everything outside of "pure art" out of hand. It's a very elitist point of view that doesn't really take in the realities of life where the artist needs to make money to live (and consequently glorifies the "starving artist" trope that's been harmful to artists for a long time). As much as I prefer seeing the less-filtered visions of the artists (such as from the indie game scene), you cannot hate your audience simply for them not taking away what you wanted them to. Everyone comes to the table with different life experiences that informs how they view a piece of art, which I believe is what Death of the Author is supposed to mean (I could be wrong since the term itself is vastly overapplied and misinterpreted).

I'm getting rant-y and it's late, so I'm going to cut my ramblings off short here.


See, I was talking about games where the core is always visible (I didn't know that was an "option" in Touhou), and am still meaning the same: I cannot reliably measure where I'm safe if my hitbox is not also my character sprite (this honestly applies to any game I've played in any genre, but it's an active hindrance in bullet hells).


https://bluemaxima.org/flashpoint/

I heard about this around the time the news first broke that Flash was going down, and thought it was going to be a repository of saved flash games and stuff, but glancing through it looks like what it evolved into was a substitute for Flash without the security loopholes. Thought I'd link it in case anyone didn't know about it.

It's something that, as I was reflecting on it, stems from the fact both he and Anno worked extremely hard to get where they were. But in the case of each, it's staggeringly clear that there was serious work/life balance issues. They clearly cared a LOT about putting themselves into their work, but it cost them too much. Add in that they likely both worked at the behest of others that got to weigh in on what they wanted, and you get an image of two men who slaved themselves to their craft at the cost of their own happiness. Once they rose to positions to have more freedom to do as they pleased, the landscape had become something that fomented their frustrations. A lot of Miyazaki's work focuses on idealism and he has a lot of trouble grappling with the idea of compromise because he's an artist and really doesn't know how to deal with businessmen. So all this idealism, these ideas he wants to put on paper, they turned sour as he looked at the landscape and because he had such an emphasis on the 'purity' of his art, he projected all those frustrations outward, including the very personal ones.

I would rather make a game people want to play then a game I want to make. Art serves no purpose if no one appreciates it.

But my taste is dreadful. I’m still playing BOTW in 2020.

Eh~ I can definitely appreciate that point of view, but part of the reason I wouldn't do the same is that I'm intensely aware that with 7+b people on the planet, chances are fairly high that whatever game I want to make for me, will be enjoyable by a fair number of people.

I'd also agree with the second half of that statement, that art should serve somewhat of a purpose toward the people experiencing it, even if that experience isn't exactly pleasant. I mean, I'm not trying to knock games (or insert your preferred medium) that exist just for the purpose of being fun entertainment, but I also want to lift up art (especially games, since there are comparatively few that do this) that actively comment on heavier subjects. As an example, while I absolutely cannot point to any specific military shooter because I haven't played any of them, I still feel confident saying that a decent number of games like Call of Duty don't actually comment on the war they use as a setting and instead just use it the same way kids might play "cops and robbers" on a playground. Again, not to say directly that these games are bad just because of that, but recognizing the games that go further than that and try to get the audience to think in some way about the war(s) the game is using as set dressing is important.

Also I guess I should throw out that I think "everything is political" in the sense that art cannot exist in a vacuum and will always be subtly influenced by the creators even if they don't realize it. Art doesn't need to be directly political as a purpose, but it can't be completely divorced from the environment which spawned it. I don't want to get anyone in a furor over this, but I felt it worth saying since I was skirting close to it with my last paragraph.

Regarding that statement, I'll just point to the post Szat made in the Storyline forum.

Today is the single worst day I’ve had in two years
that did not involve a medical incident.

After my experience with other people today following the event, I just have to wonder when common empathy died.

Sorry to hear that. I am starting to feel like pretty much no one is handling the current state of the world very well, and people are just hurting each other more and more because of it. Happens everywhere all the time, but it still sucks to be on the receiving end of it. I hope things get better soon.

I haven't quite finished up season 2, but I must be close and it is excellent.


So Miyazaki is basically the anti-Hideaki Anno? Two insane extremes of opinion from two of anime's greatest directors.

I wouldn't call the anime fandom "incestuous" so much as "masturbatory". I think it's a function of Japanese society's extreme conservatism mashed into a niche subculture. I think I may have an unhealthy interest in the failings of Japanese society. They just fascinate me with their unique culture and keep grabbing my attention with the media they put out. But many of the things fundamental to Japanese culture are things I consider moral and intellectual failings. It's like watching somebody craft unique, intricate glass sculptures and throw them at a wall. I'm just left staring with my mouth agape.

I had to go digging, since I don't visit the AF&S anymore. I assume this is the post in question?


I'm sorry to hear that. Did you want to vent about it to someone? You can message me, if it will help.

IMO "common empathy" is a bit of a myth because humankind has always been tribalistic; HOWEVER, mass communication (and especially with social media in the last 10 years or so) has allowed people to become even more trabalistic.

It's something I could get into a long rant about, and it's why I always say that I am incredibly grateful for finding this community. Yes, we all share a lot of the same interests and ideas, but because of how small and personal this group always has been in comparison to more public and/or anonymous sites, it's necessitated calling each other out for bad behavior and watching ourselves for not becoming too offensive.


I think it depends on what aspect of anime and the fandom community you're looking at.

I call it "incestuous" because I focus on the (lack of) critical discourse in the anime fandom, which is filled with people who don't look beyond their little bubbles of anime. This is generally the "otaku" crowd, who are so incredibly easy to please with "waifus" and "NEET jokes" and the like.

People used to not openly be dicks to strangers tearing up over the loss of a pet. In a situation where they knew most of the context and it is their **** job to help the person (ie a veterinarian).

Maybe empathy is the wrong word. I should have said minimal human decency.

Oh damn. That's pretty horrible. My sympathies.

Oh. I'm so very sorry. That's an awful thing to go through, and I'll shut up there instead of going on my philosophizing.