Huggly snuggly booties worth
Between 1&2 💞 Album Review
2023.06.03 22:56 smolcrackheadenergy Between 1&2 💞 Album Review
And yes, this is 9 months late 😭 I'm not sorry — when I find an album review online it's always around a paragraph per song or even shorter. It makes sense from a journalistic perspective, but I want to do this album justice, hence taking 7 months to write out all my thoughts.
This shit is comprehensive and definitely overanalyzed, especially in Talk that Talk and Trouble. Each song review will compose of my commentary going over the song, noting the details I noticed through months of listening, then a conclusion. Also, mild swearing warning, I like implementing a touch of "French" when I'm very emotional about something. Anyway, onto the review!
TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT
TELL ME WHAT YOU NEED
One of the most perfect TWICE songs.
I think this is one of TWICE’s best-sounding title tracks. Warm modulated synths, a thrumming bass line, distant bells, shimmering synths — the purpose of this song is to be fun and my god is it excellent at it, like… Sana and Chaeyoung are saying knock-knock-knock and beep-beep-beep as if they’re some kind of car. So much fun.
Further along in the verse, Dahyun’s voice sounds so full and smooth with that layered harmony. Tzuyu coming with the Yes or Yes, Push & Pull, and 1 to 10 references — these are 5 years of song references. And Jeongyeon closes the pre-chorus accompanied by a rising synth to drop into chorus one. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
The drums accelerate, the synths start blasting, and Jihyo opens to that party of a chorus with her godly vocals,
During Sana's Talk that Talk~ lines there’s this gentle ascending synth bell that rings with the descending melody and it sounds absolutely gorgeous. And the choreography during that part of the chorus is so so so so fun: the talking hands bit, spelling L-O-V-E, concluding with the deullyeojweo ooh! Oh my Jihyo the deullyeojweo ooh…
Have I mentioned this song is fun?
Speeding through verse 2; Chaeyoung’s part with the cat ears popping in the music video is adorable; Momo her stretching her arms out looks so damn cool; and Dahyun with her replay part sounds so lovely — although I think it sonically sounds a touch random, it makes sense thematically.
And now for this pre-chorus. Mina and Jihyo leading into it sound great BUT JEONGYEON… Now, she is my ult bias, and this pre-chorus sounds almost identical to the first one, but the way she holds that final note, enunciating and holding that now~ for one more beat before the chorus drops sounds so perfect — the song teeters on a cliff edge. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
Dropping into the second chorus and man, Jihyo powered through that first chorus, but the way Nayeon delivers it just hits different. She has this indescribable “pop” voice (I promise this wasn't on purpose) that stands out and shouts this is THE chorus. I think this is especially apparent in how both lead their choruses where Jihyo starts at 120% power while Nayeon waits until [Tell me] WHAT YOU WANT to full-send it. She also highlights “malhaebwa” in a similar way later in the chorus.
Another deullyeojweo ooh! Nayeon travels to Narnia, and Mina the engineer strikes again in this heavenly, underwater-esque bridge,
The word “love” is said for the first time in the song. There’s a funky keyboard instrument behind Chaeyoung’s part. Jihyo, Chaeyoung, and Nayeon take the initiative in their lyrics, professing their love before closing the bridge.
And now for the pièce-de-résistance: this final double chorus is exceptional — 40 seconds of crack-laced euphoria; Jihyo switches up the chorus and the choreo, Dahyun chimes in with her fluttery “Talk that Talk”, Momo comes out of nowhere with “oh yeah it sounds so good!” — you’re damn right it does, and this is where the song SOARS.
Nayeon outright shouts “Tell me what you need” and then Jeongyeon sings the above lines in such an ethereal, warm way where the first line ascends while the second line descends, causing a lull in the song before the finale with Nayeon, finishing off the song with the final deullyeojweo ooh! What a party. What a song.
THE GOOD
Lyrics and theme-wise, if this were to have been TWICE’s last comeback, they’ve once again built upon the theme they've been doing since debut: a Bildungsroman, a coming-of-age story.
This song’s chorus is honest yet simple; it asks the listener, in this case, the other half of the relationship, to be more upfront and open with their love (never be scared of love), that before the relationship can continue and flourish there has to be a foundation and commitment of love between each other.
TWICE debuted with a song about making your crush go ooh ahh. Years later, they started pondering “What is love?” and imagining their crush responding with “yes” when asking them out — and now concluding with the phrase “Talk that talk, [talk that] L-O-V-E”, being upfront with the relationship, wishing their partner to also be happy, to commit to them, to feel the love that they want to impart on them. From gawking like ooh-ahh to talking out your shared love like adults — to having a true relationship between (one and) two.
And can I just say before finishing off Talk that Talk's review that this is such a fun and repeatable song with many little intricacies hidden in the nonet’s vocals and the production. This is the third draft I’m writing about Talk that Talk and its original word count pretty much quadrupled.
Harkening back to TWICE’s roots by combining mature thinking with youthful character, an incredible ending to look forward to, and just simply being a club-banger that’s easy to listen to, TTT is an easy 10/10.
WATCH ME GO WATCH ME GO
RULE THE WORLD
If there was one B-side to promote in a live clip, this was a solid choice.
Helmed by LDN Noise going headlong into the Western boy-group rock-band aesthetic, Queen of Hearts is a boom-boom-clap song through and through. The drums are very prominent throughout the song, only giving room to riffs of electric guitar in the chorus to drive and continue the momentum of the music.
And speaking of the chorus, vocal line each got a chorus to flex and they did not fuck around,
Cymbals crashing, drums booming, and 3MIX belting all just so sound so good.
These long, held-out notes performed by Jihyo and Nayeon are simply exquisite. Along with the shredding guitar, the drum set coming in full, and the interludes by Dahyun, Momo, and Chaeyoung, this is the part of the song that always, always, gives me goosebumps — it sounds so visceral, so energetic, so fun, so triumphant. Boom-boom-clap songs can be hit or miss with people, but there's no denying the payoff from the first part of the chorus to the second part is worth the wait.
The theme of the song so far has been kind of spread around the song. The chorus alludes to it with the line "And it’s all because of you." But Mina shows more sides of it in the second verse, especially with the phrase,
It sounds really lovely — in a very cheesy and affectionate kind of way, as it rightfully should — the song is about the girls and their fans. But the bridge is where the song indeed shows its colours
This is a song CONCEIVED TO BE PERFORMED FOR THE FANS. It’s meant to be loud. It’s meant to be unapologetic. It’s meant to be sappy. And it’s all the more wonderful for it.
This is the TWICEiest shit ever.
Like Talk that Talk, Queen of Hearts also has a killer closer. The production already started to grow from the bridge, but now the guitarist finally went Super Saiyan and instead of supporting the drums, they both take the centrepiece in tandem.
Then finally, the closing moments of the song even manage to squeeze in some more sappiness.
I still can’t believe that this banger is a FAN SONG out of all things. Truly, the TWICEiest shit ever.
THE GOOD
I love these types of rock songs with how grunge and head-bang-able they are, there is just a certain nostalgic and cheesy quality to them that feels so cozy. I don’t love putting them on repeat, because in this case, I do believe there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Perhaps more shredding, maybe a guitar solo to rock out to, or an accompaniment(!) of ad-libs from 3MIX to support Jihyo’s final chorus? A ONCE can dream of a truly bombastic rock song from TWICE. But then again that distracts from the core of what this song is: a fan song disguised as a rock song.
Queen of Hearts has so much sweetness in its lyrics and message that it's overflowing. The drums, guitar, and vocals can be as loud and intricate as they can, but the theme of this song is what makes it special from TWICE’s other rock songs — it’s a 9/10 for me.
I WANNA WANNA WANNA
TAKE YOU TO THE BASICS
Quite possibly the jammiest (pun intended) song of the album.
A song written by the Strawberry Princess herself — an event similar in frequency to other artists' releases with her last song being 2020’s silky Handle It — Basics first starts with an understated and dreamy delivery. After the first stanza, however, a bouncy Miami bass line emerges, revealing the true nature of the song: this is a classic summer bop! Especially in the first rap,
Syllables are pronounced in a relaxed nature, bars often starting with an "ah" sound, flirty lines in English — this rap features a production full of pop with R&B flourishes and, in my opinion, this is Chaeyoung’s bag. Also, the line "rainbow bubblegum" is so adorable and so Chaeyoung.
That chorus is pure pop with a Miami bass backing; you better be bopping your head to the melody, if not booty poppin' to the bassline. Chaeyoung loves rhyming in the first half of the chorus to enhance its catchiness and it's damn incredible: the “wanna”, “weonhae”, and “ppeonhae” all create these imperfect rhymes that continue momentum without feeling repetitive.
After the very Boy With Luv-sounding “ah yeah ah yeah, ah yeah ah yeah” comes an 8-bar split half and half between Chaeyoung and Momo. Coming from the chorus, the production completely cuts out for the first 2 bars. This adds tension; the song yearns to have that bass beat thumping again and all we have in the audio space in those 2 bars is Chaeyoung spittin' and she delivered.
Translating to:
The rap feels slick, effortless, and confident. Her diction remains sharp when enunciating each syllable but she doesn’t let the flow of her rap waver or build as her 4 bars go by, it’s just smooth consistency throughout. Even the lyrics possess an aura of laid-back collectedness that is just so her. The things Chaeyoung can do when given her pen.
THE GOOD
This song is summer bliss distilled into 2:56. It’s dreamy, the raps are satisfying, and the ending is charming. I will say that although the second half of the song adds the stunning “spaceship” post-choruses and a floaty bridge with an incredible drumbeat drop into the final chorus, the raps of the song make it feel a bit front-loaded. And in an album stacked with awesome finishers, it feels more apparent.
With that said, it’s an 8/10 bop for me. This song is so easy to put on and it feels exactly what Chaeyoung would make if given the reins to produce a pop song all on her own. The lyrics are nonchalant but full of conviction, the wordplay is intricate, and the production playful but not too bombastic — it's just a nice vibe. Songs like Basics are the standard for good, simple, repeatable pop music and I’m happy that Chaeyoung got to test her pen in this genre.
BABY WE’RE IN
TROUBLE TROUBLE
Background vocals: Jihyo
Lead composer credit: Jihyo
Vocal director credit: Jihyo (an assumption given her contributions in First Time)
One of the most enjoyable songs I’ve heard in a while.
There is an underlying tension within the first 4 bars of the song, Jihyo and Nayeon confidently open it to a nondescript array of synths and then the stanza ends, Momo announces “Let’s go”, the beat drops and it hits you: this is a club song.
Dahyun's relaxed delivery contrasted with Jeongyeon's staccato flow, the wobbly synth beat with sprinkle of house piano, Sana dramatically slowing down the song only for Tzuyu to build it back up until the chorus drops,
This chorus is perfect. Toronto’s residential market needs this song injected into its veins because god damn this song has SO much house in it. And then, ANOTHER KILLING PART: this rap fucking slaps.
During the first 2 bars, Chaeyoung is keeping it calm because that trip of a chorus just ended and the song needs a breather, but I don't think anyone expected her to SNAP this hard afterwards:
Below is the structure of her this portion of the rap, I’m not that well versed in this technical aspect of music theory but I digress, this is all in the span of around 5 seconds where it’s:
Now, 25/5 = 5 syllables per second isn’t groundbreaking, but goddamn it these 2 bars sound so nice — if there is one part in this album that I always repeat, it’s this. The addition of that first quadruplet for “cannot miss this” in the midst of the triplets sticks out and accelerates the flow of the rap while the following doublets and quadruplets destabilize and slow the rap down as the verse closes. And can I just point out:
THE MAIN VOCALIST WROTE, DIRECTED, AND COMPOSED THIS SONG ‼
Chaeyoung of course delivered the fuck out of her verse but THIS is what you get when you have a member not only write the words they’re saying but also the melody and flow with which they sing it, when that member knows the others so well that when they write a song they know how to make the group exceed. This is what you get when the artists you stan love doing artist shit.
And. AND. That's not all — with how much I mentioned I love a good outro to close a song, this outro slaps as well:
Like, come on, Nayeon’s imitating a police siren for crying out loud. And this is all after her ad-libs in the final post-chorus; after the pianist going full tilt and playing that piano as if it was their last chance to ever play; after that final T W I C E chant by all the members come these blissful 20 seconds at the very end. What a song.
THE GOOD
Need I say more, easy 9/10. The only reason I place Talk that Talk above Trouble is because of what that song represents but besides that, this is one of the best “international” sounds they’ve put out. Actually, I haven’t listened to Eyes wide open in a while but this song is up there with one of the most sonically pleasing pieces of work they’ve done.
Clubbing TWICE has always been a thing since TT was birthed in 2016, and has been a staple of their discography since 2019’s Fancy You and Feel Special mini albums, but Trouble unapologetically dives into and fits the house genre so well you’d think that this is TWICE’s bread and butter sound.
Trouble is Jihyo’s magnum opus. What a song.
BRAVE BRAVE BRAVE
FOR YOU
I first thought this was just a good song, then I read the lyrics.
Gentle guitar plucks, shimmering synths, a distant keyboard in the right ear, in the left a glockenspiel, the melodic oohs from the members — this song is PRETTY.
Mina and Chaeyoung open the song with how they feel lonely and that it's hard to breathe and now suddenly the song feels bittersweet — I was not expecting the song to be this emotional. Brave describes a situation where the singer is in a darker place in life and it isn't until another person gives them hope by calling them 'brave' that they find the drive to keep going.
Once the chorus hits, the melodies pick up, more guitars get added — there’s even an electric guitar hidden in the mix somewhere, and the song drops the emotional front to reveal a mid-tempo pop song to dance to while crying in the club. The song as a whole still carries this melancholy feeling, but now with the added support of this chorus acting as a light amongst the gloom.
Continuing on in the second verse there's this gorgeous, well-placed break in the song that just lets it settle after that chorus. Only a seasoned producer would risk this much empty space in a song and Slow Rabbit went to fill those shoes.
Back to the chorus, I'll take this moment to once again commend Slow Rabbit with the mixing of the song, because 4MIX undoubtedly sounds good in the chorus, and the interludes from Dahyun, Chaeyoung, and Mina also sound really good, but the clear highlight of the choruses are these lines:
Momo, Sana, and Tzuyu form this beautiful, surprisingly catchy, second half of the chorus accompanied by a guitar drop. It should not turn out this well with how conflicting the "na"s are with the guitar melody but it creates this gentle bopping ebb and flow that feels so lush and mellow.
Diving into the bridge reveals that the listener of the song is revealed not only capable of supporting the singer through direct words but also through their thoughts and dreams. As can be discerned, this can be a song interpreted to be about ONCEs, about how they push TWICE to be their best selves despite the breathless hardships they face. It's a very sweet and touching song.
THE GOOD
I’m actually spoiled with the TWICE members’ easy-to-understand songwriting that when a song like this pops up where it's not written by a member and the thematic bits are mostly in Korean, I tend to put it aside in favour of the other songs on the album. And, especially for a song focusing on a theme like this where the English phrases don’t do the Korean lyrics enough justice, it does place a bit of a barrier on the listening experience, dropping it down to a 7/10 from an 8/10.
With that anecdote out of the way, this song is just such a vibe, man. I know that sounds super hippy to say but Brave is so mellow and smooth that I can’t help but sway a little when that chorus hits. And then I remember what the lyrics say and I tear up a bit on the inside. This song is so pure, raw, and full of heart — we need more songs like these where they just reminisce about life while putting up an upbeat front. Don't mind me just crying while dancing the night away.
With that said, this isn't the first time this theme has been sung by TWICE either, they've long trodden this path of supportive, confiding, up-lifting songs with Young & Wild, Rainbow, Queen, Go Hard, Depend on You, even this album's Queen of Hearts, and, of course, Feel Special. Brave just adds another on top of an already stacked lineup, unique with its mellow somberness.
Also now feels like a good time to get into my rating system:
I SEE THE LIES
ON THE TIP OF YOUR TONGUE
Who the fuck pissed off Dubu this time??
It’s getting quite rare to see TWICE pull off brand new sounds because, with now 190 original songs under their belt, they’ve done so many genres and sub-genres varying from hyper pop, to bossa nova, to whatever 2020’s Go Hard is. So it’s surprising to see they’ve still got tricks up their sleeves and Gone is one of them.
The song starts with strings swinging back and forth and vocal chops dancing from ear to ear, teasing what’s yet to come. Jihyo enters the song with a whisper and the song sets its pace. A stagnant drum pad moves the song along and typical song progression would have Mina continue the build but — it doesn’t. The song simmers, adding a hint of high hat to the pot. And then, Sana and Tzuyu come on and surely the buildup must boil over right?
Silence, until…
The strings emerge again on full blast, the simmer rolls to a boil, and the anger of the song is revealed,
The singer is so scorned and burned from this relationship that they reminisce about all the effort they’ve put in since the beginning, but their “partner” is so unconcerned that they’ve just about had enough of the relationship altogether.
This has been Dahyun’s thing since 2020’s Bring It Back, 2021’s Cruel, 2022’s That’s all I’m saying, and even 2023's Don't Blame It On Me — emotionally charged breakup songs that make you feel as if she’s gone through a dozen bad relationships. Dispatch, do your job better, or don't.
Another highlight of the song is the post-chorus going into the bridge. This segment reiterates the structure from the first post-chorus — a barrage of drums supported by the rhythmic strumming of a bass guitar along with a consistent synth filling out the soundscape. But this time, it’s Dahyun and Chaeyoung on the rap:
Continuing the disrespected theme of the song, Dahyun notes that she’s finally had enough with Chaeyoung adding that there’s no point salvaging what was once there for all of it is long gone. Momo and Dahyun round it off by telling the listener that there’s no point trying to reason with them or playing naive, they fucked up and there’s no coming back.
Can I just say, it's a bit of a shame that Chaeyoung’s rapping popped off in this album while Dahyun only has this one verse that she shares with Chaeyoung, but it just sounds so good how Dahyun eases in after the chorus with her light rapping tone transitioning into her singing. She even holds the “gone” in a little crescendo for some added pizzazz.
And, there’s no way I’m not going to talk about Momo’s vocals in this bridge. Damned if she only got 1 line to use it in, her lower register is incredible. She sounds so smooth singing in this tone. All of TWICE do in particular and there is nary a weak vocal performance in this album.
To close the song off, a wash of synths gets to have their shine in the spotlight, showered with Nayeon’s belting, signifying the dramatic and drawn-out conclusion of this partnership.
THE GOOD
Going back to that point about the first post-chorus as a whole; songs that have the production continue unchanged into the post-chorus/2nd verse are very hit or miss for me — see TWICE's Don't Call Me Again for an overbearing example. The post-chorus going into the bridge contrasts Dahyun’s light tone nicely with the hard-hitting production, continuing the energy until it slowly fades into silence at the end of the bridge.
Back to the song as a whole, as much as TWICE has been experimenting with their sound for the past 4 years now, I’m happy they’re still finding new ways to explore what they’re capable of. And for that alone, even though I’m not a big fan of songs like these where they rely on sounding “big”, Dahyun’s lyricism and the thrill I receive every time I indulge myself in this song when I listen to it for the first time in a while elevates it to an 8/10. Keep on breaking hearts, Dubu.
INVINCIBLE
SUPERHEROES
Press play to reminisce, pull up lyrics to cry.
This song is so beautiful. I’m totally not writing this song review, crying on the bus reminiscing about my childhood, while just having turned 21. I don’t know if these are happy or sad tears but this song is so beautiful either way.
Warm synths, muted piano, a gentle high hat, the younger members starting off the song — this has to be up there for one of the softest TWICE songs ever. And as it should, it’s one of the TWICEiest songs ever. And then Nayeon comes in,
The chords start swelling, the high hat keeps pace, and the harmonies come in,
Jihyo takes up the second half of the chorus as it drops, trading the strings for an almost R&B synth production — if choir R&B takes off, this song started it. The song relishes in this cacophony of warm sounds until returning to its sparse and peaceful verses.
This time, the hints of piano are louder, little twinkling synths begin to shimmer, the drum buildup comes and Jeongyeon drives the song straight into the chorus. No time for the strings to build like in Nayeon’s — this song loves its chorus so much.
And I'll just take this time to appreciate the amount of Jeongyeon vocals in this album. Her voice is so clean, stable, and projected — but also more tender and soft compared to the more pronounced tones of Nayeon and Jihyo.
The bridge comes in, repeating the phrase:
Giving the song time to rest, before building back up to the last chorus — this time led by Jihyo, completing the 3MIX trifecta. And interestingly enough, Chaeyoung follows up in the second half of the chorus, rather than another member of the vocal line. She really did pop off in this album.
As the last chorus begins to close, the percussion at its strongest, the harmonies on blast, the background vocals cranked up to their Sunday best, is the song going to end? Of course not! This is an album full of banger endings as if the songs don’t want to end, and When We Were Kids being the album closer very much indulges in that feeling.
After a brief refrain, accented by Nayeon’s high note with a touch of vibrato, the song almost dives back into a fourth chorus. Nayeon and Jeongyeon harmonize — a rare and heavenly moment. And the song repeats the bridge, reiterating that they want to meet their younger selves, this time with the lush chorus production before closing with silence, a few piano notes, and Tzuyu singing the last line of the song:
Reflection, acceptance, hope. What a song.
THE GOOD
I wrote the first part of this review in November 2022. Then university, life, and other things got in the way of my headspace for me to feel confident about wrapping all of this up. In a way, I felt like I just didn’t want this review to end because of the joy that writing gives me — I didn’t want the happiness to end. And then it hit me, after watching a YouTuber rank animated movies and them placing Spirited Away at the top and explaining 'why' reminded me of just how important growing up is, and by extension this song.
This theme is important for both the rookie TWICE members in 2015 and the teenagers who would follow their journey and grow up with them, facing life’s obstacles along the way. Hardships that used to only involve family, crushes, and social media, evolve into work, commitments and all the struggles that adult life brings. Being a kid and enjoying the simple things in life is one of the most sought-after moments we want to relive because we took growing up for granted. The only thing we can do now is look back on ourselves with fondness and rose-tinted lenses.
TWICE’s original marketing was to resonate with people through their senses and their hearts. That was during their debut, and I think it still holds up today. In my opinion, touching people through their emotions is what TWICE does best and makes them one of K-pop’s all-time greats. It was never about having the best numbers — it was always about being the best idols. And to think that this journey of maturation and growth would occur from 2015 all the way to this song, being a fitting nod to TWICE’s 7th anniversary, I don’t think anyone at the company nor the group would ever imagine that they would get this far. It’s these nine women or none — 9/10.
This song honestly deserves a 10/10 with how much I noticed other people reminiscing their childhoods after I heard this song, it is such a widely-relatable message, but I am determined to limit myself to one 10/10 song per album and if I were to pick between TTT and WWWK, I'd give it to the one's that's more repeatable — Talk that Talk just has this electric energy about it.
I love this album. It got me through some important parts of my life, both good and bad, and it's just a wonderful listen throughout. Reliving this album again before finally completing the review has been an exciting journey. Brave hit me harder this time, after being overshadowed by the other gems of this album, and WWWK finally got me to tear up and not just be emotionally satisfied.
I feel like there's something for everyone on this album. From the exhilarating thrills of TTT to the anthemic euphoria of QoH, the clubbing dichotomy of Trouble and Brave to the blissful glee of Basics, and the sweet reminiscence of WWWK to the thundering anger that is Gone. Like Eyes wide open, I liken Between 1&2 to a pop music taste platter — there's such an eclectic mix of pop, music in this album that there's bound to be a song that someone will love, like, and dislike.
Is this album perfect? I don't think so, but it's close — it was certainly my 2022 AOTY. Was this review biased? Absolutely. I've been a fan since 2019 and with the themes in this album, I also feel like it was biased towards me as a ONCE. And how would I rank the album in TWICE's catalogue? It's honestly at the top, at least with EPs — I also felt that way towards Feel Special but then this album was birthed so I'm excited for TWICE's future.
Ready To Be was also a stunning album and Eyes wide open frankly also deserved the spotlight that Formula of Love received so I might hit those next but no promises; this album took long enough to bake.
As for the performances, I've only seen Twitter clips (no fancams to not spoil myself) and I am SO EXCITED to finally see them in July. QoH was as glorious as expected, Brave was a delightful surprise, and WWWK, while not being the concert closer everyone expected it to be, paired up nicely with Crazy Stupid Love. And of course the bombastic addition of the dance break to TTT. But, this is not a concert review, and this is where this album review ends.
Feel free to comment with any thoughts regarding the album, other TWICE albums, and any suggestions for my writing in general. Congrats again on making it this far!
God, I love this album.
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Intro
To preface this review, I just need to say that this is going to be a very, long read. Going through it myself just for the fun of it takes around 30 minutes — it's almost 7k words of text, including lyrical references. So for the best experience, listen to the album beforehand to understand what the hell I was thinking when I wrote this review, play the album while reading, and set a good amount of time aside.And yes, this is 9 months late 😭 I'm not sorry — when I find an album review online it's always around a paragraph per song or even shorter. It makes sense from a journalistic perspective, but I want to do this album justice, hence taking 7 months to write out all my thoughts.
This shit is comprehensive and definitely overanalyzed, especially in Talk that Talk and Trouble. Each song review will compose of my commentary going over the song, noting the details I noticed through months of listening, then a conclusion. Also, mild swearing warning, I like implementing a touch of "French" when I'm very emotional about something. Anyway, onto the review!
Between 1&2 💞
Album Review
TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT
TELL ME WHAT YOU NEED
Talk that Talk 🎙
Lead producer: collapsedone
One of the most perfect TWICE songs.
I think this is one of TWICE’s best-sounding title tracks. Warm modulated synths, a thrumming bass line, distant bells, shimmering synths — the purpose of this song is to be fun and my god is it excellent at it, like… Sana and Chaeyoung are saying knock-knock-knock and beep-beep-beep as if they’re some kind of car. So much fun.
Further along in the verse, Dahyun’s voice sounds so full and smooth with that layered harmony. Tzuyu coming with the Yes or Yes, Push & Pull, and 1 to 10 references — these are 5 years of song references. And Jeongyeon closes the pre-chorus accompanied by a rising synth to drop into chorus one. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
The drums accelerate, the synths start blasting, and Jihyo opens to that party of a chorus with her godly vocals,
Tell me what you want
Tell me what you need
A to Z da malhaebwa
But shijageun ireoke have
Talk that talk ttak han madi
Talk that talk L-O-V-E
deullyeojweo ooh
Now now now now now yeah~
During Sana's Talk that Talk~ lines there’s this gentle ascending synth bell that rings with the descending melody and it sounds absolutely gorgeous. And the choreography during that part of the chorus is so so so so fun: the talking hands bit, spelling L-O-V-E, concluding with the deullyeojweo ooh! Oh my Jihyo the deullyeojweo ooh…
Have I mentioned this song is fun?
Speeding through verse 2; Chaeyoung’s part with the cat ears popping in the music video is adorable; Momo her stretching her arms out looks so damn cool; and Dahyun with her replay part sounds so lovely — although I think it sonically sounds a touch random, it makes sense thematically.
And now for this pre-chorus. Mina and Jihyo leading into it sound great BUT JEONGYEON… Now, she is my ult bias, and this pre-chorus sounds almost identical to the first one, but the way she holds that final note, enunciating and holding that now~ for one more beat before the chorus drops sounds so perfect — the song teeters on a cliff edge. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
Dropping into the second chorus and man, Jihyo powered through that first chorus, but the way Nayeon delivers it just hits different. She has this indescribable “pop” voice (I promise this wasn't on purpose) that stands out and shouts this is THE chorus. I think this is especially apparent in how both lead their choruses where Jihyo starts at 120% power while Nayeon waits until [Tell me] WHAT YOU WANT to full-send it. She also highlights “malhaebwa” in a similar way later in the chorus.
Another deullyeojweo ooh! Nayeon travels to Narnia, and Mina the engineer strikes again in this heavenly, underwater-esque bridge,
The simple words “I love you”
That’s all I wanna hear
Without hesitation, I’ll go up to you
I’ll make it simple
And just tell you I love you
The word “love” is said for the first time in the song. There’s a funky keyboard instrument behind Chaeyoung’s part. Jihyo, Chaeyoung, and Nayeon take the initiative in their lyrics, professing their love before closing the bridge.
And now for the pièce-de-résistance: this final double chorus is exceptional — 40 seconds of crack-laced euphoria; Jihyo switches up the chorus and the choreo, Dahyun chimes in with her fluttery “Talk that Talk”, Momo comes out of nowhere with “oh yeah it sounds so good!” — you’re damn right it does, and this is where the song SOARS.
han beon deo~ haejweo
geurae banggeum geu mal~
Nayeon outright shouts “Tell me what you need” and then Jeongyeon sings the above lines in such an ethereal, warm way where the first line ascends while the second line descends, causing a lull in the song before the finale with Nayeon, finishing off the song with the final deullyeojweo ooh! What a party. What a song.
THE GOOD
- The synths of all time
- The chimes during Talk-that-talk~
- Jeongyeon’s pre-chorus going into Nayeon’s chorus
- The entirety of that magical, final chorus and outro
- The opening hook (Tell me what you want) and accompanying choreography could be “catchier”
- Singing (and dancing) my heart out when this song played at a K-pop club
Lyrics and theme-wise, if this were to have been TWICE’s last comeback, they’ve once again built upon the theme they've been doing since debut: a Bildungsroman, a coming-of-age story.
This song’s chorus is honest yet simple; it asks the listener, in this case, the other half of the relationship, to be more upfront and open with their love (never be scared of love), that before the relationship can continue and flourish there has to be a foundation and commitment of love between each other.
TWICE debuted with a song about making your crush go ooh ahh. Years later, they started pondering “What is love?” and imagining their crush responding with “yes” when asking them out — and now concluding with the phrase “Talk that talk, [talk that] L-O-V-E”, being upfront with the relationship, wishing their partner to also be happy, to commit to them, to feel the love that they want to impart on them. From gawking like ooh-ahh to talking out your shared love like adults — to having a true relationship between (one and) two.
And can I just say before finishing off Talk that Talk's review that this is such a fun and repeatable song with many little intricacies hidden in the nonet’s vocals and the production. This is the third draft I’m writing about Talk that Talk and its original word count pretty much quadrupled.
Harkening back to TWICE’s roots by combining mature thinking with youthful character, an incredible ending to look forward to, and just simply being a club-banger that’s easy to listen to, TTT is an easy 10/10.
WATCH ME GO WATCH ME GO
RULE THE WORLD
Queen of Hearts 👑
Lead producer: LDN Noise of SM
If there was one B-side to promote in a live clip, this was a solid choice.
Helmed by LDN Noise going headlong into the Western boy-group rock-band aesthetic, Queen of Hearts is a boom-boom-clap song through and through. The drums are very prominent throughout the song, only giving room to riffs of electric guitar in the chorus to drive and continue the momentum of the music.
And speaking of the chorus, vocal line each got a chorus to flex and they did not fuck around,
You ain’t ready for it
Watch me go~ watch me go~
Rule the world
Know you never doubted baby
I’mma go run the whole universe~
Cymbals crashing, drums booming, and 3MIX belting all just so sound so good.
Baby I was born to rule~~
Yeah I’m the queen, I’m the queen
And it’s all because of you~~
That I’m the Queen of Hearts
These long, held-out notes performed by Jihyo and Nayeon are simply exquisite. Along with the shredding guitar, the drum set coming in full, and the interludes by Dahyun, Momo, and Chaeyoung, this is the part of the song that always, always, gives me goosebumps — it sounds so visceral, so energetic, so fun, so triumphant. Boom-boom-clap songs can be hit or miss with people, but there's no denying the payoff from the first part of the chorus to the second part is worth the wait.
The theme of the song so far has been kind of spread around the song. The chorus alludes to it with the line "And it’s all because of you." But Mina shows more sides of it in the second verse, especially with the phrase,
And now that I’m surrounded by all my girls
We be shining bright like diamonds and pearls
It sounds really lovely — in a very cheesy and affectionate kind of way, as it rightfully should — the song is about the girls and their fans. But the bridge is where the song indeed shows its colours
Screaming out my name
See it in the stage lights
Feel so lucky just to have ya
Cause I know deep down I was meant for something bigger! Greater!
I know you’re seeing what I see
Yeah I’ll be everything you need
I know I’m gonna walk the walk
And talk the talk to be~ [the Queen of Hearts]
This is a song CONCEIVED TO BE PERFORMED FOR THE FANS. It’s meant to be loud. It’s meant to be unapologetic. It’s meant to be sappy. And it’s all the more wonderful for it.
This is the TWICEiest shit ever.
Like Talk that Talk, Queen of Hearts also has a killer closer. The production already started to grow from the bridge, but now the guitarist finally went Super Saiyan and instead of supporting the drums, they both take the centrepiece in tandem.
Then finally, the closing moments of the song even manage to squeeze in some more sappiness.
So thank you for the memories
You’re all the ones who made me~
So thank you for the memories
That I’m the Queen of Hearts
I still can’t believe that this banger is a FAN SONG out of all things. Truly, the TWICEiest shit ever.
THE GOOD
- Adorable fucking lyrics
- Unrelenting, roaring chorus
- English and vocal flex
- Addicting guitar riffs
- Chaeyoung rapping in English in their Korean songs somehow slaps harder than her English rapping in their English songs, nonetheless, in QoH, it fits with the sound of the song
- Walking home from a K-pop festival with this song playing, felt like a Queen of Hearts
I love these types of rock songs with how grunge and head-bang-able they are, there is just a certain nostalgic and cheesy quality to them that feels so cozy. I don’t love putting them on repeat, because in this case, I do believe there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Perhaps more shredding, maybe a guitar solo to rock out to, or an accompaniment(!) of ad-libs from 3MIX to support Jihyo’s final chorus? A ONCE can dream of a truly bombastic rock song from TWICE. But then again that distracts from the core of what this song is: a fan song disguised as a rock song.
Queen of Hearts has so much sweetness in its lyrics and message that it's overflowing. The drums, guitar, and vocals can be as loud and intricate as they can, but the theme of this song is what makes it special from TWICE’s other rock songs — it’s a 9/10 for me.
I WANNA WANNA WANNA
TAKE YOU TO THE BASICS
Basics 🌈
Sole lyricist credit: Chaeyoung
Quite possibly the jammiest (pun intended) song of the album.
A song written by the Strawberry Princess herself — an event similar in frequency to other artists' releases with her last song being 2020’s silky Handle It — Basics first starts with an understated and dreamy delivery. After the first stanza, however, a bouncy Miami bass line emerges, revealing the true nature of the song: this is a classic summer bop! Especially in the first rap,
dareun aedeulgwaneun dalla
Ain’t beggin’ for love
nappeun geon anijana ige naraseo
eodiro twilji molla
Like rainbow bubble gum
geureoni nal kkwak butjabadweo
Syllables are pronounced in a relaxed nature, bars often starting with an "ah" sound, flirty lines in English — this rap features a production full of pop with R&B flourishes and, in my opinion, this is Chaeyoung’s bag. Also, the line "rainbow bubblegum" is so adorable and so Chaeyoung.
I wanna wanna wanna take it to the basics
da weonhae weonhae weonhae? seodureuji ma Baby
ppeonhae ppeonhae malhae mweohae da al tende
Ah yeah ah yeah ah yeah ah yeah
That chorus is pure pop with a Miami bass backing; you better be bopping your head to the melody, if not booty poppin' to the bassline. Chaeyoung loves rhyming in the first half of the chorus to enhance its catchiness and it's damn incredible: the “wanna”, “weonhae”, and “ppeonhae” all create these imperfect rhymes that continue momentum without feeling repetitive.
After the very Boy With Luv-sounding “ah yeah ah yeah, ah yeah ah yeah” comes an 8-bar split half and half between Chaeyoung and Momo. Coming from the chorus, the production completely cuts out for the first 2 bars. This adds tension; the song yearns to have that bass beat thumping again and all we have in the audio space in those 2 bars is Chaeyoung spittin' and she delivered.
taneun deut tteugeoun samak wie
yeppeuge pieonan jangmi gata
joshimseure naege dagaol ttae
nado moreuge jjilleobeoril tende
Translating to:
Above the hot, burning desert
It’s like a rose that bloomed beautifully
When you come to me slowly
I will prick you unconsciously
The rap feels slick, effortless, and confident. Her diction remains sharp when enunciating each syllable but she doesn’t let the flow of her rap waver or build as her 4 bars go by, it’s just smooth consistency throughout. Even the lyrics possess an aura of laid-back collectedness that is just so her. The things Chaeyoung can do when given her pen.
THE GOOD
- That sweet summer vibe of a chorus
- The “spaceship” post-chorus is killer
- Chaeyoung devoured this song
- Sure-footed, confident lyrics
- Perhaps an alteration of that ah yeah ah yeah line
- The way Jihyo did her pre-chorus line is good, but Mina’s is great
- After donating my hair, walking down the rainbow-coloured areas of downtown Toronto with this song playing was very… fitting
This song is summer bliss distilled into 2:56. It’s dreamy, the raps are satisfying, and the ending is charming. I will say that although the second half of the song adds the stunning “spaceship” post-choruses and a floaty bridge with an incredible drumbeat drop into the final chorus, the raps of the song make it feel a bit front-loaded. And in an album stacked with awesome finishers, it feels more apparent.
With that said, it’s an 8/10 bop for me. This song is so easy to put on and it feels exactly what Chaeyoung would make if given the reins to produce a pop song all on her own. The lyrics are nonchalant but full of conviction, the wordplay is intricate, and the production playful but not too bombastic — it's just a nice vibe. Songs like Basics are the standard for good, simple, repeatable pop music and I’m happy that Chaeyoung got to test her pen in this genre.
BABY WE’RE IN
TROUBLE TROUBLE
Trouble 💃
Sole lyricist credit: JihyoBackground vocals: Jihyo
Lead composer credit: Jihyo
Vocal director credit: Jihyo (an assumption given her contributions in First Time)
One of the most enjoyable songs I’ve heard in a while.
There is an underlying tension within the first 4 bars of the song, Jihyo and Nayeon confidently open it to a nondescript array of synths and then the stanza ends, Momo announces “Let’s go”, the beat drops and it hits you: this is a club song.
Dahyun's relaxed delivery contrasted with Jeongyeon's staccato flow, the wobbly synth beat with sprinkle of house piano, Sana dramatically slowing down the song only for Tzuyu to build it back up until the chorus drops,
- Nayeon opens it using a breathy tone, with vocal chops serving as harmonies
- The blooming of the house piano takes centre stage and the song ascends into euphoria
- A random drum roll capped off by a cymbal crash
- Jeongyeon’s pronunciation of the word “trouble” almost being a growl
- Chaeyoung slyly admitting “I like this trouble”
- The entirety of Tzuyu’s tro~oh~oh~ouble yeah~
- Sana using her deep voice for the na~na~na~na
- Jihyo leading the vocals during the synchronized T W I C E chant
This chorus is perfect. Toronto’s residential market needs this song injected into its veins because god damn this song has SO much house in it. And then, ANOTHER KILLING PART: this rap fucking slaps.
gamchweo bwatja geugeon Fake
ppajin hamjeongeun Sweet cake
During the first 2 bars, Chaeyoung is keeping it calm because that trip of a chorus just ended and the song needs a breather, but I don't think anyone expected her to SNAP this hard afterwards:
You cannot resist this
Cannot miss this, such a bliss
Ima put it down down
Oh yeah, better kiss kiss
Below is the structure of her this portion of the rap, I’m not that well versed in this technical aspect of music theory but I digress, this is all in the span of around 5 seconds where it’s:
Triplet-triplet
Quadruplet-triplet
Quadruplet-doublet
Doublet-quadruplet
Now, 25/5 = 5 syllables per second isn’t groundbreaking, but goddamn it these 2 bars sound so nice — if there is one part in this album that I always repeat, it’s this. The addition of that first quadruplet for “cannot miss this” in the midst of the triplets sticks out and accelerates the flow of the rap while the following doublets and quadruplets destabilize and slow the rap down as the verse closes. And can I just point out:
THE MAIN VOCALIST WROTE, DIRECTED, AND COMPOSED THIS SONG ‼
Chaeyoung of course delivered the fuck out of her verse but THIS is what you get when you have a member not only write the words they’re saying but also the melody and flow with which they sing it, when that member knows the others so well that when they write a song they know how to make the group exceed. This is what you get when the artists you stan love doing artist shit.
And. AND. That's not all — with how much I mentioned I love a good outro to close a song, this outro slaps as well:
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trouble be-be
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trouble bay-be
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trouble bay-beh
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trou-ble
Like, come on, Nayeon’s imitating a police siren for crying out loud. And this is all after her ad-libs in the final post-chorus; after the pianist going full tilt and playing that piano as if it was their last chance to ever play; after that final T W I C E chant by all the members come these blissful 20 seconds at the very end. What a song.
THE GOOD
- The theme of relishing in an uncontrolled love
- Sana and Mina’s melody in the pre-chorus
- Chorus
- Rap
- Outro
- Wees and woos
- Mina’s line of “falling down, falling down, falling down low” in verse 2 feels a bit too abrupt of a change
- While writing Trouble's review I had this song on repeat for my whole subway commute and I must've been so distracting, just head-bopping and being so invested in enjoying a song
Need I say more, easy 9/10. The only reason I place Talk that Talk above Trouble is because of what that song represents but besides that, this is one of the best “international” sounds they’ve put out. Actually, I haven’t listened to Eyes wide open in a while but this song is up there with one of the most sonically pleasing pieces of work they’ve done.
Clubbing TWICE has always been a thing since TT was birthed in 2016, and has been a staple of their discography since 2019’s Fancy You and Feel Special mini albums, but Trouble unapologetically dives into and fits the house genre so well you’d think that this is TWICE’s bread and butter sound.
Trouble is Jihyo’s magnum opus. What a song.
BRAVE BRAVE BRAVE
FOR YOU
Brave 💖
Main producer: Slow Rabbit of HYBE
I first thought this was just a good song, then I read the lyrics.
Gentle guitar plucks, shimmering synths, a distant keyboard in the right ear, in the left a glockenspiel, the melodic oohs from the members — this song is PRETTY.
The night that was unusually dark
Above this terrifying world, felt so lonely
The world has grown in the time of wandering
So hard to breathe
Mina and Chaeyoung open the song with how they feel lonely and that it's hard to breathe and now suddenly the song feels bittersweet — I was not expecting the song to be this emotional. Brave describes a situation where the singer is in a darker place in life and it isn't until another person gives them hope by calling them 'brave' that they find the drive to keep going.
Once the chorus hits, the melodies pick up, more guitars get added — there’s even an electric guitar hidden in the mix somewhere, and the song drops the emotional front to reveal a mid-tempo pop song to dance to while crying in the club. The song as a whole still carries this melancholy feeling, but now with the added support of this chorus acting as a light amongst the gloom.
Continuing on in the second verse there's this gorgeous, well-placed break in the song that just lets it settle after that chorus. Only a seasoned producer would risk this much empty space in a song and Slow Rabbit went to fill those shoes.
Back to the chorus, I'll take this moment to once again commend Slow Rabbit with the mixing of the song, because 4MIX undoubtedly sounds good in the chorus, and the interludes from Dahyun, Chaeyoung, and Mina also sound really good, but the clear highlight of the choruses are these lines:
Oh na na na neon nal naige hae [Momo, then Tzuyu, then Momo]
On and on and on
Brave brave brave for ya [Dahyun, then Chaeyoung, then Mina]
Oh na na na neon nal sum shwige hae [Sana, then Momo, then Sana]
On and on and on oh trust me babe
Momo, Sana, and Tzuyu form this beautiful, surprisingly catchy, second half of the chorus accompanied by a guitar drop. It should not turn out this well with how conflicting the "na"s are with the guitar melody but it creates this gentle bopping ebb and flow that feels so lush and mellow.
Diving into the bridge reveals that the listener of the song is revealed not only capable of supporting the singer through direct words but also through their thoughts and dreams. As can be discerned, this can be a song interpreted to be about ONCEs, about how they push TWICE to be their best selves despite the breathless hardships they face. It's a very sweet and touching song.
THE GOOD
- Special lyrics
- Pleasant sound to vibe out to
- That gentle break after the first chorus
- Jihyo’s high note at the end
- A Nayeon Jeongyeon joint high note ⁉️
- Just pretty vocals throughout
- Potentially hard to comprehend without translating the Korean lyrics
- Form of Therapy’s life motto revolves around the word “brave”. I don’t know where I got that from, but I remembered it right before watching his album reaction
I’m actually spoiled with the TWICE members’ easy-to-understand songwriting that when a song like this pops up where it's not written by a member and the thematic bits are mostly in Korean, I tend to put it aside in favour of the other songs on the album. And, especially for a song focusing on a theme like this where the English phrases don’t do the Korean lyrics enough justice, it does place a bit of a barrier on the listening experience, dropping it down to a 7/10 from an 8/10.
With that anecdote out of the way, this song is just such a vibe, man. I know that sounds super hippy to say but Brave is so mellow and smooth that I can’t help but sway a little when that chorus hits. And then I remember what the lyrics say and I tear up a bit on the inside. This song is so pure, raw, and full of heart — we need more songs like these where they just reminisce about life while putting up an upbeat front. Don't mind me just crying while dancing the night away.
With that said, this isn't the first time this theme has been sung by TWICE either, they've long trodden this path of supportive, confiding, up-lifting songs with Young & Wild, Rainbow, Queen, Go Hard, Depend on You, even this album's Queen of Hearts, and, of course, Feel Special. Brave just adds another on top of an already stacked lineup, unique with its mellow somberness.
Also now feels like a good time to get into my rating system:
- 7/10s are songs are ones that are simply good throughout or great songs with apparent flaws
- 8/10s are great songs with standout characteristics
- 9/10s are borderline perfect songs where I sometimes can't comprehend how great they are
- And 10/10s are the best of an artist's discography, songs that encapsulate their ethos perfectly or expand upon them in a meaningful way
I SEE THE LIES
ON THE TIP OF YOUR TONGUE
Gone 💨
Sole lyricist credit: Dahyun
Who the fuck pissed off Dubu this time??
It’s getting quite rare to see TWICE pull off brand new sounds because, with now 190 original songs under their belt, they’ve done so many genres and sub-genres varying from hyper pop, to bossa nova, to whatever 2020’s Go Hard is. So it’s surprising to see they’ve still got tricks up their sleeves and Gone is one of them.
The song starts with strings swinging back and forth and vocal chops dancing from ear to ear, teasing what’s yet to come. Jihyo enters the song with a whisper and the song sets its pace. A stagnant drum pad moves the song along and typical song progression would have Mina continue the build but — it doesn’t. The song simmers, adding a hint of high hat to the pot. And then, Sana and Tzuyu come on and surely the buildup must boil over right?
Silence, until…
I see the LIES on the top of your tongue
The strings emerge again on full blast, the simmer rolls to a boil, and the anger of the song is revealed,
All the fate I had towards you
Fades like a fog, gone, gone
Your flipping mind of doing this and that
I’m tired of it, it’s meaningless
In the beginning, it was hard to believe
With that, hatred increases
The singer is so scorned and burned from this relationship that they reminisce about all the effort they’ve put in since the beginning, but their “partner” is so unconcerned that they’ve just about had enough of the relationship altogether.
This has been Dahyun’s thing since 2020’s Bring It Back, 2021’s Cruel, 2022’s That’s all I’m saying, and even 2023's Don't Blame It On Me — emotionally charged breakup songs that make you feel as if she’s gone through a dozen bad relationships. Dispatch, do your job better, or don't.
Another highlight of the song is the post-chorus going into the bridge. This segment reiterates the structure from the first post-chorus — a barrage of drums supported by the rhythmic strumming of a bass guitar along with a consistent synth filling out the soundscape. But this time, it’s Dahyun and Chaeyoung on the rap:
I can’t stand it anymore [Dahyun]
My patience, invisible
I can’t find it, it’s all gone
Even if I try to turn back, it’s too late [Chaeyoung]
There’s no use anymore
It has left, it’s long gone
You, with flipping mind, you are out [Momo]
I know that you know what I’m talking about [Dahyun]
Nothing you could say that could turn this around
I’m gone
Continuing the disrespected theme of the song, Dahyun notes that she’s finally had enough with Chaeyoung adding that there’s no point salvaging what was once there for all of it is long gone. Momo and Dahyun round it off by telling the listener that there’s no point trying to reason with them or playing naive, they fucked up and there’s no coming back.
Can I just say, it's a bit of a shame that Chaeyoung’s rapping popped off in this album while Dahyun only has this one verse that she shares with Chaeyoung, but it just sounds so good how Dahyun eases in after the chorus with her light rapping tone transitioning into her singing. She even holds the “gone” in a little crescendo for some added pizzazz.
And, there’s no way I’m not going to talk about Momo’s vocals in this bridge. Damned if she only got 1 line to use it in, her lower register is incredible. She sounds so smooth singing in this tone. All of TWICE do in particular and there is nary a weak vocal performance in this album.
To close the song off, a wash of synths gets to have their shine in the spotlight, showered with Nayeon’s belting, signifying the dramatic and drawn-out conclusion of this partnership.
THE GOOD
- They’ve still got their surprises
- Thundering chorus
- 2nd rap and bridge combo
- A bitter, crumbling relationship theme
- I’m not a huge fan of the mixing during the first post-chorus, where Momo's vocals were fighting with the production, which is disappointing because Momo is capable of an insane flow
- The post-chorus in general, specifically the first one, can be a bit tiring on repeat listens
- Actually, I think this song sounds like a mix between GOT7's Not By The Moon, BLACKPINK’s Love To Hate Me, and Dahyun’s Bring It Back. I don’t know where I got this thought came from, but it stuck
Going back to that point about the first post-chorus as a whole; songs that have the production continue unchanged into the post-chorus/2nd verse are very hit or miss for me — see TWICE's Don't Call Me Again for an overbearing example. The post-chorus going into the bridge contrasts Dahyun’s light tone nicely with the hard-hitting production, continuing the energy until it slowly fades into silence at the end of the bridge.
Back to the song as a whole, as much as TWICE has been experimenting with their sound for the past 4 years now, I’m happy they’re still finding new ways to explore what they’re capable of. And for that alone, even though I’m not a big fan of songs like these where they rely on sounding “big”, Dahyun’s lyricism and the thrill I receive every time I indulge myself in this song when I listen to it for the first time in a while elevates it to an 8/10. Keep on breaking hearts, Dubu.
INVINCIBLE
SUPERHEROES
When We Were Kids 🧸
Sole lyricist credit: Dahyun
Press play to reminisce, pull up lyrics to cry.
This song is so beautiful. I’m totally not writing this song review, crying on the bus reminiscing about my childhood, while just having turned 21. I don’t know if these are happy or sad tears but this song is so beautiful either way.
Warm synths, muted piano, a gentle high hat, the younger members starting off the song — this has to be up there for one of the softest TWICE songs ever. And as it should, it’s one of the TWICEiest songs ever. And then Nayeon comes in,
Invincible superheroes, we wanted to be adults
To the higher, clearer world
The chords start swelling, the high hat keeps pace, and the harmonies come in,
Remember when we were kids
When we were kids, we didn’t know
If we could go back
I will love it even more
Remember when we were kids
Jihyo takes up the second half of the chorus as it drops, trading the strings for an almost R&B synth production — if choir R&B takes off, this song started it. The song relishes in this cacophony of warm sounds until returning to its sparse and peaceful verses.
This time, the hints of piano are louder, little twinkling synths begin to shimmer, the drum buildup comes and Jeongyeon drives the song straight into the chorus. No time for the strings to build like in Nayeon’s — this song loves its chorus so much.
And I'll just take this time to appreciate the amount of Jeongyeon vocals in this album. Her voice is so clean, stable, and projected — but also more tender and soft compared to the more pronounced tones of Nayeon and Jihyo.
The bridge comes in, repeating the phrase:
I wish that I could meet
Could meet the younger me
Giving the song time to rest, before building back up to the last chorus — this time led by Jihyo, completing the 3MIX trifecta. And interestingly enough, Chaeyoung follows up in the second half of the chorus, rather than another member of the vocal line. She really did pop off in this album.
As the last chorus begins to close, the percussion at its strongest, the harmonies on blast, the background vocals cranked up to their Sunday best, is the song going to end? Of course not! This is an album full of banger endings as if the songs don’t want to end, and When We Were Kids being the album closer very much indulges in that feeling.
After a brief refrain, accented by Nayeon’s high note with a touch of vibrato, the song almost dives back into a fourth chorus. Nayeon and Jeongyeon harmonize — a rare and heavenly moment. And the song repeats the bridge, reiterating that they want to meet their younger selves, this time with the lush chorus production before closing with silence, a few piano notes, and Tzuyu singing the last line of the song:
Oh, we were kids
Reflection, acceptance, hope. What a song.
THE GOOD
- Heavenly vocals throughout
- Relatable, heartfelt lyrics
- Euphoric chorus
- Great closer to the album
- Refrain after the last chorus, "Back when we were kids," could’ve been executed better
- For an album titled Between 1&2, I don’t think anything hits harder than finishing the song reviews, with this song in particular, during your 21st birthday
I wrote the first part of this review in November 2022. Then university, life, and other things got in the way of my headspace for me to feel confident about wrapping all of this up. In a way, I felt like I just didn’t want this review to end because of the joy that writing gives me — I didn’t want the happiness to end. And then it hit me, after watching a YouTuber rank animated movies and them placing Spirited Away at the top and explaining 'why' reminded me of just how important growing up is, and by extension this song.
This theme is important for both the rookie TWICE members in 2015 and the teenagers who would follow their journey and grow up with them, facing life’s obstacles along the way. Hardships that used to only involve family, crushes, and social media, evolve into work, commitments and all the struggles that adult life brings. Being a kid and enjoying the simple things in life is one of the most sought-after moments we want to relive because we took growing up for granted. The only thing we can do now is look back on ourselves with fondness and rose-tinted lenses.
TWICE’s original marketing was to resonate with people through their senses and their hearts. That was during their debut, and I think it still holds up today. In my opinion, touching people through their emotions is what TWICE does best and makes them one of K-pop’s all-time greats. It was never about having the best numbers — it was always about being the best idols. And to think that this journey of maturation and growth would occur from 2015 all the way to this song, being a fitting nod to TWICE’s 7th anniversary, I don’t think anyone at the company nor the group would ever imagine that they would get this far. It’s these nine women or none — 9/10.
This song honestly deserves a 10/10 with how much I noticed other people reminiscing their childhoods after I heard this song, it is such a widely-relatable message, but I am determined to limit myself to one 10/10 song per album and if I were to pick between TTT and WWWK, I'd give it to the one's that's more repeatable — Talk that Talk just has this electric energy about it.
Epilogue
And finally here is the end. If you made it in one sitting then I commend you, because I could not write this mess in one sitting. As alluded to, I started writing this album review sometime in October, after a series of edits the first draft was finished in March, and now here's the final draft in June.I love this album. It got me through some important parts of my life, both good and bad, and it's just a wonderful listen throughout. Reliving this album again before finally completing the review has been an exciting journey. Brave hit me harder this time, after being overshadowed by the other gems of this album, and WWWK finally got me to tear up and not just be emotionally satisfied.
I feel like there's something for everyone on this album. From the exhilarating thrills of TTT to the anthemic euphoria of QoH, the clubbing dichotomy of Trouble and Brave to the blissful glee of Basics, and the sweet reminiscence of WWWK to the thundering anger that is Gone. Like Eyes wide open, I liken Between 1&2 to a pop music taste platter — there's such an eclectic mix of pop, music in this album that there's bound to be a song that someone will love, like, and dislike.
Is this album perfect? I don't think so, but it's close — it was certainly my 2022 AOTY. Was this review biased? Absolutely. I've been a fan since 2019 and with the themes in this album, I also feel like it was biased towards me as a ONCE. And how would I rank the album in TWICE's catalogue? It's honestly at the top, at least with EPs — I also felt that way towards Feel Special but then this album was birthed so I'm excited for TWICE's future.
Ready To Be was also a stunning album and Eyes wide open frankly also deserved the spotlight that Formula of Love received so I might hit those next but no promises; this album took long enough to bake.
As for the performances, I've only seen Twitter clips (no fancams to not spoil myself) and I am SO EXCITED to finally see them in July. QoH was as glorious as expected, Brave was a delightful surprise, and WWWK, while not being the concert closer everyone expected it to be, paired up nicely with Crazy Stupid Love. And of course the bombastic addition of the dance break to TTT. But, this is not a concert review, and this is where this album review ends.
Feel free to comment with any thoughts regarding the album, other TWICE albums, and any suggestions for my writing in general. Congrats again on making it this far!
God, I love this album.
2023.06.03 09:57 tatebrown Re:SET + Schedule 39 - a review + warning…or endorsement. Depends on your perspective.
 | This was my first experience seeing music at Frost amphitheater. What a treat kids going to Stanford are getting. You get a glimpse of many of them doing tours of the school looking forward to a bright future as me (35m) and my two degen friends(35m) and future wifey (33f) stumbled passed them with a solid buzz. Two opposite ends of the spectrum ships passing in the night. submitted by tatebrown to Coachella [link] [comments] For the purposes of this post- I’ll refer to Friend 1 as: Tuna Friend 2 as: Dan Future wifey: Savior Getting into the venue, you couldn’t ask for a more fairytale setup. Similar to Berkeley’s amphitheater setup that holds 8,000, frost amphitheater holds 6,900 so a slightly smaller feel and instead of the pure concrete steps stadium seating going up, you get grass sprinkled all over the place with trees sprinkled everywhere surrounding you. It had a very outside lands Berkeley hybrid venue feel. Starting the day off you got kicked into gear with Big Freedia to start the day off in the 4:00 slot. When I asked my buddy Dan what to expect, he said, ”bunch of energy and booty popping.” I can honestly say I’ve never seen more booty popping at a show. The sheer athleticism and stamina was impressive. Tuna had gotten us VIP tickets so there was plenty of room. We are normally in GA with our fellow peasants laughing at the gaudy VIPs wasting their shillings. All jokes aside, vip for the entrance and the standing area was worth it and would do again. Next up was IDLES at 5:00. I love me some Joe Talbot and his band of merry men. If you’ve never seen them before, it’s a great live act. The angst and energy of Joe as he spits on the stage pounding his chest as you can feel his energy surge through you. With some of my favorites of ‘mother’ which really expands on our favorite phrase ‘mother fucker’ in its literal and metaphorical meaning. Colossus to start, never fight a man with a perm and Danny Nedelko to end, it’s impossible to not be moving for the entire set. As we were getting ready to end idles, we wanted to turn up our boogey juice vibes. Me, my future wifey and Dan are all fans of mushrooms 🍄🤪. We’ve done em in small doses tried raw shrooms, chocolate bars and smoothies previously. Our friend Tuna brought a bar of 5 grams of chocolate mushrooms. Conventional wisdom would say based on previous history, one gram aka 3 chocolate pieces from this candy bar should be fine, which is what we did. This is a glowingly positive review/warning for product schedule 39. I mean goddamn slap my balls, what the actual fuck, they sent this in the mail to Tuna, good for you scientists- can’t figure out cancer - but they sure as shit figured out mushrooms motha fuckas. We had 30 minutes until jamie xx and the normal things started happening. A little queasy in the stomach. My future wifey gets excited when this happens. People ask her why? And she goes, “because I’ve Pavlov dogged myself to get excited because I’m about to go on my trip.” I too now get excited when I get my queasy stomach feeling with mushrooms. I have done mushrooms 20 + times and never had a ‘bad trip’. What ensued next was some goddamn interstellar shit. As we were into the first two songs of Jamie xx award winning hits, things started to get fuzzy. I slowly stopped being able to hear properly and images started to all look like a kaleidoscope. Huh. Well this is new. I joked with Dan, “uh yooooo- this is a lot. I can’t hear, I’m going deaf.” I’m a 250lb dude. Dan weighs 145 on a good day. Fear struck Dan in the face like Joe Talbot’s ‘Car crash’ as the shroom wave started to hit him too. I inevitably had to lay down and time travel. Tuna had only taken a small amount so he was doing okay. I learned a lot about my future wife tonight. She undoubtedly saved Dan and i’s life as I laid on the ground time traveling and helping Dan talk him through his drooling stupor. She later described it as a balloon and she was holding the string (our hands) which could not be more accurate. It felt like if she didn’t have my hand held, I would float off into a different space. I struggled to breathe, hear, and saw different worlds. Because of my experience with shrooms- I knew it would pass, but goddamn that was a lot schedule 39. The only thing that snapped me out of it was James Murphy and LCD Opening with get innocuous! He literally brought me out of that dimension. Dan was about 30 minutes behind me on his journey so he had to buckle up that seatbelt Dorothy and enjoy the ride. I’ve seen lcd 7 times. I truly think they might be the best live band I’ve ever seen- and every other time I’ve seen them Ive had 0 mushrooms. I praised savior and sweet baby Jesus I could just say words again and hear. Dan tuna and future wifey all had the same sentiments. I danced ferociously straight for the next 60 mins as lcd doesn’t really let you relax (in a good way). I’ll never forget ‘all my friends’ and dancing with my best friends and future wifey as we shouted from the top of my lungs with pure ecstasy in our hearts, “WHERE ARE YOU FRIENDS TONIGHT, IF I COULD SEE MG FRIENDS TONIGHT!!!” Thankfully, I was more grateful than I’ve ever been to be able to see, and hear my friends thanks to schedule 39.
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2023.06.02 23:47 smolcrackheadenergy TWICE Between 1&2 Album Review
And yes, this is 9 months late 😭 I'm not sorry — when I find an album review online it's always around a paragraph per song or even shorter. It makes sense from a journalistic perspective, but I want to do this album justice, hence taking 7 months to write out all my thoughts.
This shit is comprehensive and definitely overanalyzed, especially in Talk that Talk and Trouble. Each song review will compose of my commentary going over the song, noting the details I noticed through months of listening, then a conclusion. Also, mild swearing warning, I like implementing a touch of "French" when I'm very emotional about something. Anyway, onto the review!
TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT
TELL ME WHAT YOU NEED
One of the most perfect TWICE songs.
I think this is one of TWICE’s best-sounding title tracks. Warm modulated synths, a thrumming bass line, distant bells, shimmering synths — the purpose of this song is to be fun and my god is it excellent at it, like… Sana and Chaeyoung are saying knock-knock-knock and beep-beep-beep as if they’re some kind of car. So much fun.
Further along in the verse, Dahyun’s voice sounds so full and smooth with that layered harmony. Tzuyu coming with the Yes or Yes, Push & Pull, and 1 to 10 references — these are 5 years of song references. And Jeongyeon closes the pre-chorus accompanied by a rising synth to drop into chorus one. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
The drums accelerate, the synths start blasting, and Jihyo opens to that party of a chorus with her godly vocals,
During Sana's Talk that Talk~ lines there’s this gentle ascending synth bell that rings with the descending melody and it sounds absolutely gorgeous. And the choreography during that part of the chorus is so so so so fun: the talking hands bit, spelling L-O-V-E, concluding with the deullyeojweo ooh! Oh my Jihyo the deullyeojweo ooh…
Have I mentioned this song is fun?
Speeding through verse 2; Chaeyoung’s part with the cat ears popping in the music video is adorable; Momo her stretching her arms out looks so damn cool; and Dahyun with her replay part sounds so lovely — although I think it sonically sounds a touch random, it makes sense thematically.
And now for this pre-chorus. Mina and Jihyo leading into it sound great BUT JEONGYEON… Now, she is my ult bias, and this pre-chorus sounds almost identical to the first one, but the way she holds that final note, enunciating and holding that now~ for one more beat before the chorus drops sounds so perfect — the song teeters on a cliff edge. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
Dropping into the second chorus and man, Jihyo powered through that first chorus, but the way Nayeon delivers it just hits different. She has this indescribable “pop” voice (I promise this wasn't on purpose) that stands out and shouts this is THE chorus. I think this is especially apparent in how both lead their choruses where Jihyo starts at 120% power while Nayeon waits until [Tell me] WHAT YOU WANT to full-send it. She also highlights “malhaebwa” in a similar way later in the chorus.
Another deullyeojweo ooh! Nayeon travels to Narnia, and Mina the engineer strikes again in this heavenly, underwater-esque bridge,
The word “love” is said for the first time in the song. There’s a funky keyboard instrument behind Chaeyoung’s part. Jihyo, Chaeyoung, and Nayeon take the initiative in their lyrics, professing their love before closing the bridge.
And now for the pièce-de-résistance: this final double chorus is exceptional — 40 seconds of crack-laced euphoria; Jihyo switches up the chorus and the choreo, Dahyun chimes in with her fluttery “Talk that Talk”, Momo comes out of nowhere with “oh yeah it sounds so good!” — you’re damn right it does, and this is where the song SOARS.
Nayeon outright shouts “Tell me what you need” and then Jeongyeon sings the above lines in such an ethereal, warm way where the first line ascends while the second line descends, causing a lull in the song before the finale with Nayeon, finishing off the song with the final deullyeojweo ooh! What a party. What a song.
THE GOOD
Lyrics and theme-wise, if this were to have been TWICE’s last comeback, they’ve once again built upon the theme they've been doing since debut: a Bildungsroman, a coming-of-age story.
This song’s chorus is honest yet simple; it asks the listener, in this case, the other half of the relationship, to be more upfront and open with their love (never be scared of love), that before the relationship can continue and flourish there has to be a foundation and commitment of love between each other.
TWICE debuted with a song about making your crush go ooh ahh. Years later, they started pondering “What is love?” and imagining their crush responding with “yes” when asking them out — and now concluding with the phrase “Talk that talk, [talk that] L-O-V-E”, being upfront with the relationship, wishing their partner to also be happy, to commit to them, to feel the love that they want to impart on them. From gawking like ooh-ahh to talking out your shared love like adults — to having a true relationship between (one and) two.
And can I just say before finishing off Talk that Talk's review that this is such a fun and repeatable song with many little intricacies hidden in the nonet’s vocals and the production. This is the third draft I’m writing about Talk that Talk and its original word count pretty much quadrupled.
Harkening back to TWICE’s roots by combining mature thinking with youthful character, an incredible ending to look forward to, and just simply being a club-banger that’s easy to listen to, TTT is an easy 10/10.
WATCH ME GO WATCH ME GO
RULE THE WORLD
If there was one B-side to promote in a live clip, this was a solid choice.
Helmed by LDN Noise going headlong into the Western boy-group rock-band aesthetic, Queen of Hearts is a boom-boom-clap song through and through. The drums are very prominent throughout the song, only giving room to riffs of electric guitar in the chorus to drive and continue the momentum of the music.
And speaking of the chorus, vocal line each got a chorus to flex and they did not fuck around,
Cymbals crashing, drums booming, and 3MIX belting all just so sound so good.
These long, held-out notes performed by Jihyo and Nayeon are simply exquisite. Along with the shredding guitar, the drum set coming in full, and the interludes by Dahyun, Momo, and Chaeyoung, this is the part of the song that always, always, gives me goosebumps — it sounds so visceral, so energetic, so fun, so triumphant. Boom-boom-clap songs can be hit or miss with people, but there's no denying the payoff from the first part of the chorus to the second part is worth the wait.
The theme of the song so far has been kind of spread around the song. The chorus alludes to it with the line "And it’s all because of you." But Mina shows more sides of it in the second verse, especially with the phrase,
It sounds really lovely — in a very cheesy and affectionate kind of way, as it rightfully should — the song is about the girls and their fans. But the bridge is where the song indeed shows its colours
This is a song CONCEIVED TO BE PERFORMED FOR THE FANS. It’s meant to be loud. It’s meant to be unapologetic. It’s meant to be sappy. And it’s all the more wonderful for it.
This is the TWICEiest shit ever.
Like Talk that Talk, Queen of Hearts also has a killer closer. The production already started to grow from the bridge, but now the guitarist finally went Super Saiyan and instead of supporting the drums, they both take the centrepiece in tandem.
Then finally, the closing moments of the song even manage to squeeze in some more sappiness.
I still can’t believe that this banger is a FAN SONG out of all things. Truly, the TWICEiest shit ever.
THE GOOD
I love these types of rock songs with how grunge and head-bang-able they are, there is just a certain nostalgic and cheesy quality to them that feels so cozy. I don’t love putting them on repeat, because in this case, I do believe there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Perhaps more shredding, maybe a guitar solo to rock out to, or an accompaniment(!) of ad-libs from 3MIX to support Jihyo’s final chorus? A ONCE can dream of a truly bombastic rock song from TWICE. But then again that distracts from the core of what this song is: a fan song disguised as a rock song.
Queen of Hearts has so much sweetness in its lyrics and message that it's overflowing. The drums, guitar, and vocals can be as loud and intricate as they can, but the theme of this song is what makes it special from TWICE’s other rock songs — it’s a 9/10 for me.
I WANNA WANNA WANNA
TAKE YOU TO THE BASICS
Quite possibly the jammiest (pun intended) song of the album.
A song written by the Strawberry Princess herself — an event similar in frequency to other artists' releases with her last song being 2020’s silky Handle It — Basics first starts with an understated and dreamy delivery. After the first stanza, however, a bouncy Miami bass line emerges, revealing the true nature of the song: this is a classic summer bop! Especially in the first rap,
Syllables are pronounced in a relaxed nature, bars often starting with an "ah" sound, flirty lines in English — this rap features a production full of pop with R&B flourishes and, in my opinion, this is Chaeyoung’s bag. Also, the line "rainbow bubblegum" is so adorable and so Chaeyoung.
That chorus is pure pop with a Miami bass backing; you better be bopping your head to the melody, if not booty poppin' to the bassline. Chaeyoung loves rhyming in the first half of the chorus to enhance its catchiness and it's damn incredible: the “wanna”, “weonhae”, and “ppeonhae” all create these imperfect rhymes that continue momentum without feeling repetitive.
After the very Boy With Luv-sounding “ah yeah ah yeah, ah yeah ah yeah” comes an 8-bar split half and half between Chaeyoung and Momo. Coming from the chorus, the production completely cuts out for the first 2 bars. This adds tension; the song yearns to have that bass beat thumping again and all we have in the audio space in those 2 bars is Chaeyoung spittin' and she delivered.
Translating to:
The rap feels slick, effortless, and confident. Her diction remains sharp when enunciating each syllable but she doesn’t let the flow of her rap waver or build as her 4 bars go by, it’s just smooth consistency throughout. Even the lyrics possess an aura of laid-back collectedness that is just so her. The things Chaeyoung can do when given her pen.
THE GOOD
This song is summer bliss distilled into 2:56. It’s dreamy, the raps are satisfying, and the ending is charming. I will say that although the second half of the song adds the stunning “spaceship” post-choruses and a floaty bridge with an incredible drumbeat drop into the final chorus, the raps of the song make it feel a bit front-loaded. And in an album stacked with awesome finishers, it feels more apparent.
With that said, it’s an 8/10 bop for me. This song is so easy to put on and it feels exactly what Chaeyoung would make if given the reins to produce a pop song all on her own. The lyrics are nonchalant but full of conviction, the wordplay is intricate, and the production playful but not too bombastic — it's just a nice vibe. Songs like Basics are the standard for good, simple, repeatable pop music and I’m happy that Chaeyoung got to test her pen in this genre.
BABY WE’RE IN
TROUBLE TROUBLE
Background vocals: Jihyo
Lead composer credit: Jihyo
Vocal director credit: Jihyo (an assumption given her contributions in First Time)
One of the most enjoyable songs I’ve heard in a while.
There is an underlying tension within the first 4 bars of the song, Jihyo and Nayeon confidently open it to a nondescript array of synths and then the stanza ends, Momo announces “Let’s go”, the beat drops and it hits you: this is a club song.
Dahyun's relaxed delivery contrasted with Jeongyeon's staccato flow, the wobbly synth beat with sprinkle of house piano, Sana dramatically slowing down the song only for Tzuyu to build it back up until the chorus drops,
This chorus is perfect. Toronto’s residential market needs this song injected into its veins because god damn this song has SO much house in it. And then, ANOTHER KILLING PART: this rap fucking slaps.
During the first 2 bars, Chaeyoung is keeping it calm because that trip of a chorus just ended and the song needs a breather, but I don't think anyone expected her to SNAP this hard afterwards:
Below is the structure of her this portion of the rap, I’m not that well versed in this technical aspect of music theory but I digress, this is all in the span of around 5 seconds where it’s:
Now, 25/5 = 5 syllables per second isn’t groundbreaking, but goddamn it these 2 bars sound so nice — if there is one part in this album that I always repeat, it’s this. The addition of that first quadruplet for “cannot miss this” in the midst of the triplets sticks out and accelerates the flow of the rap while the following doublets and quadruplets destabilize and slow the rap down as the verse closes. And can I just point out:
THE MAIN VOCALIST WROTE, DIRECTED, AND COMPOSED THIS SONG ‼
Chaeyoung of course delivered the fuck out of her verse but THIS is what you get when you have a member not only write the words they’re saying but also the melody and flow with which they sing it, when that member knows the others so well that when they write a song they know how to make the group exceed. This is what you get when the artists you stan love doing artist shit.
And. AND. That's not all — with how much I mentioned I love a good outro to close a song, this outro slaps as well:
Like, come on, Nayeon’s imitating a police siren for crying out loud. And this is all after her ad-libs in the final post-chorus; after the pianist going full tilt and playing that piano as if it was their last chance to ever play; after that final T W I C E chant by all the members come these blissful 20 seconds at the very end. What a song.
THE GOOD
Need I say more, easy 9/10. The only reason I place Talk that Talk above Trouble is because of what that song represents but besides that, this is one of the best “international” sounds they’ve put out. Actually, I haven’t listened to Eyes wide open in a while but this song is up there with one of the most sonically pleasing pieces of work they’ve done.
Clubbing TWICE has always been a thing since TT was birthed in 2016, and has been a staple of their discography since 2019’s Fancy You and Feel Special mini albums, but Trouble unapologetically dives into and fits the house genre so well you’d think that this is TWICE’s bread and butter sound.
Trouble is Jihyo’s magnum opus. What a song.
BRAVE BRAVE BRAVE
FOR YOU
I first thought this was just a good song, then I read the lyrics.
Gentle guitar plucks, shimmering synths, a distant keyboard in the right ear, in the left a glockenspiel, the melodic oohs from the members — this song is PRETTY.
Mina and Chaeyoung open the song with how they feel lonely and that it's hard to breathe and now suddenly the song feels bittersweet — I was not expecting the song to be this emotional. Brave describes a situation where the singer is in a darker place in life and it isn't until another person gives them hope by calling them 'brave' that they find the drive to keep going.
Once the chorus hits, the melodies pick up, more guitars get added — there’s even an electric guitar hidden in the mix somewhere, and the song drops the emotional front to reveal a mid-tempo pop song to dance to while crying in the club. The song as a whole still carries this melancholy feeling, but now with the added support of this chorus acting as a light amongst the gloom.
Continuing on in the second verse there's this gorgeous, well-placed break in the song that just lets it settle after that chorus. Only a seasoned producer would risk this much empty space in a song and Slow Rabbit went to fill those shoes.
Back to the chorus, I'll take this moment to once again commend Slow Rabbit with the mixing of the song, because 4MIX undoubtedly sounds good in the chorus, and the interludes from Dahyun, Chaeyoung, and Mina also sound really good, but the clear highlight of the choruses are these lines:
Momo, Sana, and Tzuyu form this beautiful, surprisingly catchy, second half of the chorus accompanied by a guitar drop. It should not turn out this well with how conflicting the "na"s are with the guitar melody but it creates this gentle bopping ebb and flow that feels so lush and mellow.
Diving into the bridge reveals that the listener of the song is revealed not only capable of supporting the singer through direct words but also through their thoughts and dreams. As can be discerned, this can be a song interpreted to be about ONCEs, about how they push TWICE to be their best selves despite the breathless hardships they face. It's a very sweet and touching song.
THE GOOD
I’m actually spoiled with the TWICE members’ easy-to-understand songwriting that when a song like this pops up where it's not written by a member and the thematic bits are mostly in Korean, I tend to put it aside in favour of the other songs on the album. And, especially for a song focusing on a theme like this where the English phrases don’t do the Korean lyrics enough justice, it does place a bit of a barrier on the listening experience, dropping it down to a 7/10 from an 8/10.
With that anecdote out of the way, this song is just such a vibe, man. I know that sounds super hippy to say but Brave is so mellow and smooth that I can’t help but sway a little when that chorus hits. And then I remember what the lyrics say and I tear up a bit on the inside. This song is so pure, raw, and full of heart — we need more songs like these where they just reminisce about life while putting up an upbeat front. Don't mind me just crying while dancing the night away.
With that said, this isn't the first time this theme has been sung by TWICE either, they've long trodden this path of supportive, confiding, up-lifting songs with Young & Wild, Rainbow, Queen, Go Hard, Depend on You, even this album's Queen of Hearts, and, of course, Feel Special. Brave just adds another on top of an already stacked lineup, unique with its mellow somberness.
Also now feels like a good time to get into my rating system:
I SEE THE LIES
ON THE TIP OF YOUR TONGUE
Who the fuck pissed off Dubu this time??
It’s getting quite rare to see TWICE pull off brand new sounds because, with now 190 original songs under their belt, they’ve done so many genres and sub-genres varying from hyper pop, to bossa nova, to whatever 2020’s Go Hard is. So it’s surprising to see they’ve still got tricks up their sleeves and Gone is one of them.
The song starts with strings swinging back and forth and vocal chops dancing from ear to ear, teasing what’s yet to come. Jihyo enters the song with a whisper and the song sets its pace. A stagnant drum pad moves the song along and typical song progression would have Mina continue the build but — it doesn’t. The song simmers, adding a hint of high hat to the pot. And then, Sana and Tzuyu come on and surely the buildup must boil over right?
Silence, until…
The strings emerge again on full blast, the simmer rolls to a boil, and the anger of the song is revealed,
The singer is so scorned and burned from this relationship that they reminisce about all the effort they’ve put in since the beginning, but their “partner” is so unconcerned that they’ve just about had enough of the relationship altogether.
This has been Dahyun’s thing since 2020’s Bring It Back, 2021’s Cruel, 2022’s That’s all I’m saying, and even 2023's Don't Blame It On Me — emotionally charged breakup songs that make you feel as if she’s gone through a dozen bad relationships. Dispatch, do your job better, or don't.
Another highlight of the song is the post-chorus going into the bridge. This segment reiterates the structure from the first post-chorus — a barrage of drums supported by the rhythmic strumming of a bass guitar along with a consistent synth filling out the soundscape. But this time, it’s Dahyun and Chaeyoung on the rap:
Continuing the disrespected theme of the song, Dahyun notes that she’s finally had enough with Chaeyoung adding that there’s no point salvaging what was once there for all of it is long gone. Momo and Dahyun round it off by telling the listener that there’s no point trying to reason with them or playing naive, they fucked up and there’s no coming back.
Can I just say, it's a bit of a shame that Chaeyoung’s rapping popped off in this album while Dahyun only has this one verse that she shares with Chaeyoung, but it just sounds so good how Dahyun eases in after the chorus with her light rapping tone transitioning into her singing. She even holds the “gone” in a little crescendo for some added pizzazz.
And, there’s no way I’m not going to talk about Momo’s vocals in this bridge. Damned if she only got 1 line to use it in, her lower register is incredible. She sounds so smooth singing in this tone. All of TWICE do in particular and there is nary a weak vocal performance in this album.
To close the song off, a wash of synths gets to have their shine in the spotlight, showered with Nayeon’s belting, signifying the dramatic and drawn-out conclusion of this partnership.
THE GOOD
Going back to that point about the first post-chorus as a whole; songs that have the production continue unchanged into the post-chorus/2nd verse are very hit or miss for me — see TWICE's Don't Call Me Again for an overbearing example. The post-chorus going into the bridge contrasts Dahyun’s light tone nicely with the hard-hitting production, continuing the energy until it slowly fades into silence at the end of the bridge.
Back to the song as a whole, as much as TWICE has been experimenting with their sound for the past 4 years now, I’m happy they’re still finding new ways to explore what they’re capable of. And for that alone, even though I’m not a big fan of songs like these where they rely on sounding “big”, Dahyun’s lyricism and the thrill I receive every time I indulge myself in this song when I listen to it for the first time in a while elevates it to an 8/10. Keep on breaking hearts, Dubu.
INVINCIBLE
SUPERHEROES
Press play to reminisce, pull up lyrics to cry.
This song is so beautiful. I’m totally not writing this song review, crying on the bus reminiscing about my childhood, while just having turned 21. I don’t know if these are happy or sad tears but this song is so beautiful either way.
Warm synths, muted piano, a gentle high hat, the younger members starting off the song — this has to be up there for one of the softest TWICE songs ever. And as it should, it’s one of the TWICEiest songs ever. And then Nayeon comes in,
The chords start swelling, the high hat keeps pace, and the harmonies come in,
Jihyo takes up the second half of the chorus as it drops, trading the strings for an almost R&B synth production — if choir R&B takes off, this song started it. The song relishes in this cacophony of warm sounds until returning to its sparse and peaceful verses.
This time, the hints of piano are louder, little twinkling synths begin to shimmer, the drum buildup comes and Jeongyeon drives the song straight into the chorus. No time for the strings to build like in Nayeon’s — this song loves its chorus so much.
And I'll just take this time to appreciate the amount of Jeongyeon vocals in this album. Her voice is so clean, stable, and projected — but also more tender and soft compared to the more pronounced tones of Nayeon and Jihyo.
The bridge comes in, repeating the phrase:
Giving the song time to rest, before building back up to the last chorus — this time led by Jihyo, completing the 3MIX trifecta. And interestingly enough, Chaeyoung follows up in the second half of the chorus, rather than another member of the vocal line. She really did pop off in this album.
As the last chorus begins to close, the percussion at its strongest, the harmonies on blast, the background vocals cranked up to their Sunday best, is the song going to end? Of course not! This is an album full of banger endings as if the songs don’t want to end, and When We Were Kids being the album closer very much indulges in that feeling.
After a brief refrain, accented by Nayeon’s high note with a touch of vibrato, the song almost dives back into a fourth chorus. Nayeon and Jeongyeon harmonize — a rare and heavenly moment. And the song repeats the bridge, reiterating that they want to meet their younger selves, this time with the lush chorus production before closing with silence, a few piano notes, and Tzuyu singing the last line of the song:
Reflection, acceptance, hope. What a song.
THE GOOD
I wrote the first part of this review in November 2022. Then university, life, and other things got in the way of my headspace for me to feel confident about wrapping all of this up. In a way, I felt like I just didn’t want this review to end because of the joy that writing gives me — I didn’t want the happiness to end. And then it hit me, after watching a YouTuber rank animated movies and them placing Spirited Away at the top and explaining 'why' reminded me of just how important growing up is, and by extension this song.
This theme is important for both the rookie TWICE members in 2015 and the teenagers who would follow their journey and grow up with them, facing life’s obstacles along the way. Hardships that used to only involve family, crushes, and social media, evolve into work, commitments and all the struggles that adult life brings. Being a kid and enjoying the simple things in life is one of the most sought-after moments we want to relive because we took growing up for granted. The only thing we can do now is look back on ourselves with fondness and rose-tinted lenses.
TWICE’s original marketing was to resonate with people through their senses and their hearts. That was during their debut, and I think it still holds up today. In my opinion, touching people through their emotions is what TWICE does best and makes them one of K-pop’s all-time greats. It was never about having the best numbers — it was always about being the best idols. And to think that this journey of maturation and growth would occur from 2015 all the way to this song, being a fitting nod to TWICE’s 7th anniversary, I don’t think anyone at the company nor the group would ever imagine that they would get this far. It’s these nine women or none — 9/10.
This song honestly deserves a 10/10 with how much I noticed other people reminiscing their childhoods after I heard this song, it is such a widely-relatable message, but I am determined to limit myself to one 10/10 song per album and if I were to pick between TTT and WWWK, I'd give it to the one's that's more repeatable — Talk that Talk just has this electric energy about it.
I love this album. It got me through some important parts of my life, both good and bad, and it's just a wonderful listen throughout. Reliving this album again before finally completing the review has been an exciting journey. Brave hit me harder this time, after being overshadowed by the other gems of this album, and WWWK finally got me to tear up and not just be emotionally satisfied.
I feel like there's something for everyone on this album. From the exhilarating thrills of TTT to the anthemic euphoria of QoH, the clubbing dichotomy of Trouble and Brave to the blissful glee of Basics, and the sweet reminiscence of WWWK to the thundering anger that is Gone. Like Eyes wide open, I liken Between 1&2 to a pop music taste platter — there's such an eclectic mix of pop, music in this album that there's bound to be a song that someone will love, like, and dislike.
Is this album perfect? I don't think so, but it's close — it was certainly my 2022 AOTY. Was this review biased? Absolutely. I've been a fan since 2019 and with the themes in this album, I also feel like it was biased towards me as a ONCE. And how would I rank the album in TWICE's catalogue? It's honestly at the top, at least with EPs — I also felt that way towards Feel Special but then this album was birthed so I'm excited for TWICE's future.
Ready To Be was also a stunning album and Eyes wide open frankly also deserved the spotlight that Formula of Love received so I might hit those next but no promises; this album took long enough to bake.
As for the performances, I've only seen Twitter clips (no fancams to not spoil myself) and I am SO EXCITED to finally see them in July. QoH was as glorious as expected, Brave was a delightful surprise, and WWWK, while not being the concert closer everyone expected it to be, paired up nicely with Crazy Stupid Love. And of course the bombastic addition of the dance break to TTT. But, this is not a concert review, and this is where this album review ends.
Feel free to comment with any thoughts regarding the album, other TWICE albums, and any suggestions for my writing in general. Congrats again on making it this far!
God, I love this album.
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Intro
To preface this review, I just need to say that this is going to be a very, long read. Going through it myself just for the fun of it takes around 30 minutes — it's almost 7k words of text, including lyrical references. So for the best experience, listen to the album beforehand to understand what the hell I was thinking when I wrote this review, play the album while reading, and set a good amount of time aside.And yes, this is 9 months late 😭 I'm not sorry — when I find an album review online it's always around a paragraph per song or even shorter. It makes sense from a journalistic perspective, but I want to do this album justice, hence taking 7 months to write out all my thoughts.
This shit is comprehensive and definitely overanalyzed, especially in Talk that Talk and Trouble. Each song review will compose of my commentary going over the song, noting the details I noticed through months of listening, then a conclusion. Also, mild swearing warning, I like implementing a touch of "French" when I'm very emotional about something. Anyway, onto the review!
Between 1&2 💞
Album Review
TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT
TELL ME WHAT YOU NEED
Talk that Talk 🎙
Lead producer: collapsedone
One of the most perfect TWICE songs.
I think this is one of TWICE’s best-sounding title tracks. Warm modulated synths, a thrumming bass line, distant bells, shimmering synths — the purpose of this song is to be fun and my god is it excellent at it, like… Sana and Chaeyoung are saying knock-knock-knock and beep-beep-beep as if they’re some kind of car. So much fun.
Further along in the verse, Dahyun’s voice sounds so full and smooth with that layered harmony. Tzuyu coming with the Yes or Yes, Push & Pull, and 1 to 10 references — these are 5 years of song references. And Jeongyeon closes the pre-chorus accompanied by a rising synth to drop into chorus one. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
The drums accelerate, the synths start blasting, and Jihyo opens to that party of a chorus with her godly vocals,
Tell me what you want
Tell me what you need
A to Z da malhaebwa
But shijageun ireoke have
Talk that talk ttak han madi
Talk that talk L-O-V-E
deullyeojweo ooh
Now now now now now yeah~
During Sana's Talk that Talk~ lines there’s this gentle ascending synth bell that rings with the descending melody and it sounds absolutely gorgeous. And the choreography during that part of the chorus is so so so so fun: the talking hands bit, spelling L-O-V-E, concluding with the deullyeojweo ooh! Oh my Jihyo the deullyeojweo ooh…
Have I mentioned this song is fun?
Speeding through verse 2; Chaeyoung’s part with the cat ears popping in the music video is adorable; Momo her stretching her arms out looks so damn cool; and Dahyun with her replay part sounds so lovely — although I think it sonically sounds a touch random, it makes sense thematically.
And now for this pre-chorus. Mina and Jihyo leading into it sound great BUT JEONGYEON… Now, she is my ult bias, and this pre-chorus sounds almost identical to the first one, but the way she holds that final note, enunciating and holding that now~ for one more beat before the chorus drops sounds so perfect — the song teeters on a cliff edge. Jeongyeon slays pre-choruses.
Dropping into the second chorus and man, Jihyo powered through that first chorus, but the way Nayeon delivers it just hits different. She has this indescribable “pop” voice (I promise this wasn't on purpose) that stands out and shouts this is THE chorus. I think this is especially apparent in how both lead their choruses where Jihyo starts at 120% power while Nayeon waits until [Tell me] WHAT YOU WANT to full-send it. She also highlights “malhaebwa” in a similar way later in the chorus.
Another deullyeojweo ooh! Nayeon travels to Narnia, and Mina the engineer strikes again in this heavenly, underwater-esque bridge,
The simple words “I love you”
That’s all I wanna hear
Without hesitation, I’ll go up to you
I’ll make it simple
And just tell you I love you
The word “love” is said for the first time in the song. There’s a funky keyboard instrument behind Chaeyoung’s part. Jihyo, Chaeyoung, and Nayeon take the initiative in their lyrics, professing their love before closing the bridge.
And now for the pièce-de-résistance: this final double chorus is exceptional — 40 seconds of crack-laced euphoria; Jihyo switches up the chorus and the choreo, Dahyun chimes in with her fluttery “Talk that Talk”, Momo comes out of nowhere with “oh yeah it sounds so good!” — you’re damn right it does, and this is where the song SOARS.
han beon deo~ haejweo
geurae banggeum geu mal~
Nayeon outright shouts “Tell me what you need” and then Jeongyeon sings the above lines in such an ethereal, warm way where the first line ascends while the second line descends, causing a lull in the song before the finale with Nayeon, finishing off the song with the final deullyeojweo ooh! What a party. What a song.
THE GOOD
- The synths of all time
- The chimes during Talk-that-talk~
- Jeongyeon’s pre-chorus going into Nayeon’s chorus
- The entirety of that magical, final chorus and outro
- The opening hook (Tell me what you want) and accompanying choreography could be “catchier”
- Singing (and dancing) my heart out when this song played at a K-pop club
Lyrics and theme-wise, if this were to have been TWICE’s last comeback, they’ve once again built upon the theme they've been doing since debut: a Bildungsroman, a coming-of-age story.
This song’s chorus is honest yet simple; it asks the listener, in this case, the other half of the relationship, to be more upfront and open with their love (never be scared of love), that before the relationship can continue and flourish there has to be a foundation and commitment of love between each other.
TWICE debuted with a song about making your crush go ooh ahh. Years later, they started pondering “What is love?” and imagining their crush responding with “yes” when asking them out — and now concluding with the phrase “Talk that talk, [talk that] L-O-V-E”, being upfront with the relationship, wishing their partner to also be happy, to commit to them, to feel the love that they want to impart on them. From gawking like ooh-ahh to talking out your shared love like adults — to having a true relationship between (one and) two.
And can I just say before finishing off Talk that Talk's review that this is such a fun and repeatable song with many little intricacies hidden in the nonet’s vocals and the production. This is the third draft I’m writing about Talk that Talk and its original word count pretty much quadrupled.
Harkening back to TWICE’s roots by combining mature thinking with youthful character, an incredible ending to look forward to, and just simply being a club-banger that’s easy to listen to, TTT is an easy 10/10.
WATCH ME GO WATCH ME GO
RULE THE WORLD
Queen of Hearts 👑
Lead producer: LDN Noise of SM
If there was one B-side to promote in a live clip, this was a solid choice.
Helmed by LDN Noise going headlong into the Western boy-group rock-band aesthetic, Queen of Hearts is a boom-boom-clap song through and through. The drums are very prominent throughout the song, only giving room to riffs of electric guitar in the chorus to drive and continue the momentum of the music.
And speaking of the chorus, vocal line each got a chorus to flex and they did not fuck around,
You ain’t ready for it
Watch me go~ watch me go~
Rule the world
Know you never doubted baby
I’mma go run the whole universe~
Cymbals crashing, drums booming, and 3MIX belting all just so sound so good.
Baby I was born to rule~~
Yeah I’m the queen, I’m the queen
And it’s all because of you~~
That I’m the Queen of Hearts
These long, held-out notes performed by Jihyo and Nayeon are simply exquisite. Along with the shredding guitar, the drum set coming in full, and the interludes by Dahyun, Momo, and Chaeyoung, this is the part of the song that always, always, gives me goosebumps — it sounds so visceral, so energetic, so fun, so triumphant. Boom-boom-clap songs can be hit or miss with people, but there's no denying the payoff from the first part of the chorus to the second part is worth the wait.
The theme of the song so far has been kind of spread around the song. The chorus alludes to it with the line "And it’s all because of you." But Mina shows more sides of it in the second verse, especially with the phrase,
And now that I’m surrounded by all my girls
We be shining bright like diamonds and pearls
It sounds really lovely — in a very cheesy and affectionate kind of way, as it rightfully should — the song is about the girls and their fans. But the bridge is where the song indeed shows its colours
Screaming out my name
See it in the stage lights
Feel so lucky just to have ya
Cause I know deep down I was meant for something bigger! Greater!
I know you’re seeing what I see
Yeah I’ll be everything you need
I know I’m gonna walk the walk
And talk the talk to be~ [the Queen of Hearts]
This is a song CONCEIVED TO BE PERFORMED FOR THE FANS. It’s meant to be loud. It’s meant to be unapologetic. It’s meant to be sappy. And it’s all the more wonderful for it.
This is the TWICEiest shit ever.
Like Talk that Talk, Queen of Hearts also has a killer closer. The production already started to grow from the bridge, but now the guitarist finally went Super Saiyan and instead of supporting the drums, they both take the centrepiece in tandem.
Then finally, the closing moments of the song even manage to squeeze in some more sappiness.
So thank you for the memories
You’re all the ones who made me~
So thank you for the memories
That I’m the Queen of Hearts
I still can’t believe that this banger is a FAN SONG out of all things. Truly, the TWICEiest shit ever.
THE GOOD
- Adorable fucking lyrics
- Unrelenting, roaring chorus
- English and vocal flex
- Addicting guitar riffs
- Chaeyoung rapping in English in their Korean songs somehow slaps harder than her English rapping in their English songs, nonetheless, in QoH, it fits with the sound of the song
- Walking home from a K-pop festival with this song playing, felt like a Queen of Hearts
I love these types of rock songs with how grunge and head-bang-able they are, there is just a certain nostalgic and cheesy quality to them that feels so cozy. I don’t love putting them on repeat, because in this case, I do believe there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Perhaps more shredding, maybe a guitar solo to rock out to, or an accompaniment(!) of ad-libs from 3MIX to support Jihyo’s final chorus? A ONCE can dream of a truly bombastic rock song from TWICE. But then again that distracts from the core of what this song is: a fan song disguised as a rock song.
Queen of Hearts has so much sweetness in its lyrics and message that it's overflowing. The drums, guitar, and vocals can be as loud and intricate as they can, but the theme of this song is what makes it special from TWICE’s other rock songs — it’s a 9/10 for me.
I WANNA WANNA WANNA
TAKE YOU TO THE BASICS
Basics 🌈
Sole lyricist credit: Chaeyoung
Quite possibly the jammiest (pun intended) song of the album.
A song written by the Strawberry Princess herself — an event similar in frequency to other artists' releases with her last song being 2020’s silky Handle It — Basics first starts with an understated and dreamy delivery. After the first stanza, however, a bouncy Miami bass line emerges, revealing the true nature of the song: this is a classic summer bop! Especially in the first rap,
dareun aedeulgwaneun dalla
Ain’t beggin’ for love
nappeun geon anijana ige naraseo
eodiro twilji molla
Like rainbow bubble gum
geureoni nal kkwak butjabadweo
Syllables are pronounced in a relaxed nature, bars often starting with an "ah" sound, flirty lines in English — this rap features a production full of pop with R&B flourishes and, in my opinion, this is Chaeyoung’s bag. Also, the line "rainbow bubblegum" is so adorable and so Chaeyoung.
I wanna wanna wanna take it to the basics
da weonhae weonhae weonhae? seodureuji ma Baby
ppeonhae ppeonhae malhae mweohae da al tende
Ah yeah ah yeah ah yeah ah yeah
That chorus is pure pop with a Miami bass backing; you better be bopping your head to the melody, if not booty poppin' to the bassline. Chaeyoung loves rhyming in the first half of the chorus to enhance its catchiness and it's damn incredible: the “wanna”, “weonhae”, and “ppeonhae” all create these imperfect rhymes that continue momentum without feeling repetitive.
After the very Boy With Luv-sounding “ah yeah ah yeah, ah yeah ah yeah” comes an 8-bar split half and half between Chaeyoung and Momo. Coming from the chorus, the production completely cuts out for the first 2 bars. This adds tension; the song yearns to have that bass beat thumping again and all we have in the audio space in those 2 bars is Chaeyoung spittin' and she delivered.
taneun deut tteugeoun samak wie
yeppeuge pieonan jangmi gata
joshimseure naege dagaol ttae
nado moreuge jjilleobeoril tende
Translating to:
Above the hot, burning desert
It’s like a rose that bloomed beautifully
When you come to me slowly
I will prick you unconsciously
The rap feels slick, effortless, and confident. Her diction remains sharp when enunciating each syllable but she doesn’t let the flow of her rap waver or build as her 4 bars go by, it’s just smooth consistency throughout. Even the lyrics possess an aura of laid-back collectedness that is just so her. The things Chaeyoung can do when given her pen.
THE GOOD
- That sweet summer vibe of a chorus
- The “spaceship” post-chorus is killer
- Chaeyoung devoured this song
- Sure-footed, confident lyrics
- Perhaps an alteration of that ah yeah ah yeah line
- The way Jihyo did her pre-chorus line is good, but Mina’s is great
- After donating my hair, walking down the rainbow-coloured areas of downtown Toronto with this song playing was very… fitting
This song is summer bliss distilled into 2:56. It’s dreamy, the raps are satisfying, and the ending is charming. I will say that although the second half of the song adds the stunning “spaceship” post-choruses and a floaty bridge with an incredible drumbeat drop into the final chorus, the raps of the song make it feel a bit front-loaded. And in an album stacked with awesome finishers, it feels more apparent.
With that said, it’s an 8/10 bop for me. This song is so easy to put on and it feels exactly what Chaeyoung would make if given the reins to produce a pop song all on her own. The lyrics are nonchalant but full of conviction, the wordplay is intricate, and the production playful but not too bombastic — it's just a nice vibe. Songs like Basics are the standard for good, simple, repeatable pop music and I’m happy that Chaeyoung got to test her pen in this genre.
BABY WE’RE IN
TROUBLE TROUBLE
Trouble 💃
Sole lyricist credit: JihyoBackground vocals: Jihyo
Lead composer credit: Jihyo
Vocal director credit: Jihyo (an assumption given her contributions in First Time)
One of the most enjoyable songs I’ve heard in a while.
There is an underlying tension within the first 4 bars of the song, Jihyo and Nayeon confidently open it to a nondescript array of synths and then the stanza ends, Momo announces “Let’s go”, the beat drops and it hits you: this is a club song.
Dahyun's relaxed delivery contrasted with Jeongyeon's staccato flow, the wobbly synth beat with sprinkle of house piano, Sana dramatically slowing down the song only for Tzuyu to build it back up until the chorus drops,
- Nayeon opens it using a breathy tone, with vocal chops serving as harmonies
- The blooming of the house piano takes centre stage and the song ascends into euphoria
- A random drum roll capped off by a cymbal crash
- Jeongyeon’s pronunciation of the word “trouble” almost being a growl
- Chaeyoung slyly admitting “I like this trouble”
- The entirety of Tzuyu’s tro~oh~oh~ouble yeah~
- Sana using her deep voice for the na~na~na~na
- Jihyo leading the vocals during the synchronized T W I C E chant
This chorus is perfect. Toronto’s residential market needs this song injected into its veins because god damn this song has SO much house in it. And then, ANOTHER KILLING PART: this rap fucking slaps.
gamchweo bwatja geugeon Fake
ppajin hamjeongeun Sweet cake
During the first 2 bars, Chaeyoung is keeping it calm because that trip of a chorus just ended and the song needs a breather, but I don't think anyone expected her to SNAP this hard afterwards:
You cannot resist this
Cannot miss this, such a bliss
Ima put it down down
Oh yeah, better kiss kiss
Below is the structure of her this portion of the rap, I’m not that well versed in this technical aspect of music theory but I digress, this is all in the span of around 5 seconds where it’s:
Triplet-triplet
Quadruplet-triplet
Quadruplet-doublet
Doublet-quadruplet
Now, 25/5 = 5 syllables per second isn’t groundbreaking, but goddamn it these 2 bars sound so nice — if there is one part in this album that I always repeat, it’s this. The addition of that first quadruplet for “cannot miss this” in the midst of the triplets sticks out and accelerates the flow of the rap while the following doublets and quadruplets destabilize and slow the rap down as the verse closes. And can I just point out:
THE MAIN VOCALIST WROTE, DIRECTED, AND COMPOSED THIS SONG ‼
Chaeyoung of course delivered the fuck out of her verse but THIS is what you get when you have a member not only write the words they’re saying but also the melody and flow with which they sing it, when that member knows the others so well that when they write a song they know how to make the group exceed. This is what you get when the artists you stan love doing artist shit.
And. AND. That's not all — with how much I mentioned I love a good outro to close a song, this outro slaps as well:
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trouble be-be
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trouble bay-be
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trouble bay-beh
Woo wee woo wee woo
I like this trou-ble
Like, come on, Nayeon’s imitating a police siren for crying out loud. And this is all after her ad-libs in the final post-chorus; after the pianist going full tilt and playing that piano as if it was their last chance to ever play; after that final T W I C E chant by all the members come these blissful 20 seconds at the very end. What a song.
THE GOOD
- The theme of relishing in an uncontrolled love
- Sana and Mina’s melody in the pre-chorus
- Chorus
- Rap
- Outro
- Wees and woos
- Mina’s line of “falling down, falling down, falling down low” in verse 2 feels a bit too abrupt of a change
- While writing Trouble's review I had this song on repeat for my whole subway commute and I must've been so distracting, just head-bopping and being so invested in enjoying a song
Need I say more, easy 9/10. The only reason I place Talk that Talk above Trouble is because of what that song represents but besides that, this is one of the best “international” sounds they’ve put out. Actually, I haven’t listened to Eyes wide open in a while but this song is up there with one of the most sonically pleasing pieces of work they’ve done.
Clubbing TWICE has always been a thing since TT was birthed in 2016, and has been a staple of their discography since 2019’s Fancy You and Feel Special mini albums, but Trouble unapologetically dives into and fits the house genre so well you’d think that this is TWICE’s bread and butter sound.
Trouble is Jihyo’s magnum opus. What a song.
BRAVE BRAVE BRAVE
FOR YOU
Brave 💖
Main producer: Slow Rabbit of HYBE
I first thought this was just a good song, then I read the lyrics.
Gentle guitar plucks, shimmering synths, a distant keyboard in the right ear, in the left a glockenspiel, the melodic oohs from the members — this song is PRETTY.
The night that was unusually dark
Above this terrifying world, felt so lonely
The world has grown in the time of wandering
So hard to breathe
Mina and Chaeyoung open the song with how they feel lonely and that it's hard to breathe and now suddenly the song feels bittersweet — I was not expecting the song to be this emotional. Brave describes a situation where the singer is in a darker place in life and it isn't until another person gives them hope by calling them 'brave' that they find the drive to keep going.
Once the chorus hits, the melodies pick up, more guitars get added — there’s even an electric guitar hidden in the mix somewhere, and the song drops the emotional front to reveal a mid-tempo pop song to dance to while crying in the club. The song as a whole still carries this melancholy feeling, but now with the added support of this chorus acting as a light amongst the gloom.
Continuing on in the second verse there's this gorgeous, well-placed break in the song that just lets it settle after that chorus. Only a seasoned producer would risk this much empty space in a song and Slow Rabbit went to fill those shoes.
Back to the chorus, I'll take this moment to once again commend Slow Rabbit with the mixing of the song, because 4MIX undoubtedly sounds good in the chorus, and the interludes from Dahyun, Chaeyoung, and Mina also sound really good, but the clear highlight of the choruses are these lines:
Oh na na na neon nal naige hae [Momo, then Tzuyu, then Momo]
On and on and on
Brave brave brave for ya [Dahyun, then Chaeyoung, then Mina]
Oh na na na neon nal sum shwige hae [Sana, then Momo, then Sana]
On and on and on oh trust me babe
Momo, Sana, and Tzuyu form this beautiful, surprisingly catchy, second half of the chorus accompanied by a guitar drop. It should not turn out this well with how conflicting the "na"s are with the guitar melody but it creates this gentle bopping ebb and flow that feels so lush and mellow.
Diving into the bridge reveals that the listener of the song is revealed not only capable of supporting the singer through direct words but also through their thoughts and dreams. As can be discerned, this can be a song interpreted to be about ONCEs, about how they push TWICE to be their best selves despite the breathless hardships they face. It's a very sweet and touching song.
THE GOOD
- Special lyrics
- Pleasant sound to vibe out to
- That gentle break after the first chorus
- Jihyo’s high note at the end
- A Nayeon Jeongyeon joint high note ⁉️
- Just pretty vocals throughout
- Potentially hard to comprehend without translating the Korean lyrics
- Form of Therapy’s life motto revolves around the word “brave”. I don’t know where I got that from, but I remembered it right before watching his album reaction
I’m actually spoiled with the TWICE members’ easy-to-understand songwriting that when a song like this pops up where it's not written by a member and the thematic bits are mostly in Korean, I tend to put it aside in favour of the other songs on the album. And, especially for a song focusing on a theme like this where the English phrases don’t do the Korean lyrics enough justice, it does place a bit of a barrier on the listening experience, dropping it down to a 7/10 from an 8/10.
With that anecdote out of the way, this song is just such a vibe, man. I know that sounds super hippy to say but Brave is so mellow and smooth that I can’t help but sway a little when that chorus hits. And then I remember what the lyrics say and I tear up a bit on the inside. This song is so pure, raw, and full of heart — we need more songs like these where they just reminisce about life while putting up an upbeat front. Don't mind me just crying while dancing the night away.
With that said, this isn't the first time this theme has been sung by TWICE either, they've long trodden this path of supportive, confiding, up-lifting songs with Young & Wild, Rainbow, Queen, Go Hard, Depend on You, even this album's Queen of Hearts, and, of course, Feel Special. Brave just adds another on top of an already stacked lineup, unique with its mellow somberness.
Also now feels like a good time to get into my rating system:
- 7/10s are songs are ones that are simply good throughout or great songs with apparent flaws
- 8/10s are great songs with standout characteristics
- 9/10s are borderline perfect songs where I sometimes can't comprehend how great they are
- And 10/10s are the best of an artist's discography, songs that encapsulate their ethos perfectly or expand upon them in a meaningful way
I SEE THE LIES
ON THE TIP OF YOUR TONGUE
Gone 💨
Sole lyricist credit: Dahyun
Who the fuck pissed off Dubu this time??
It’s getting quite rare to see TWICE pull off brand new sounds because, with now 190 original songs under their belt, they’ve done so many genres and sub-genres varying from hyper pop, to bossa nova, to whatever 2020’s Go Hard is. So it’s surprising to see they’ve still got tricks up their sleeves and Gone is one of them.
The song starts with strings swinging back and forth and vocal chops dancing from ear to ear, teasing what’s yet to come. Jihyo enters the song with a whisper and the song sets its pace. A stagnant drum pad moves the song along and typical song progression would have Mina continue the build but — it doesn’t. The song simmers, adding a hint of high hat to the pot. And then, Sana and Tzuyu come on and surely the buildup must boil over right?
Silence, until…
I see the LIES on the top of your tongue
The strings emerge again on full blast, the simmer rolls to a boil, and the anger of the song is revealed,
All the fate I had towards you
Fades like a fog, gone, gone
Your flipping mind of doing this and that
I’m tired of it, it’s meaningless
In the beginning, it was hard to believe
With that, hatred increases
The singer is so scorned and burned from this relationship that they reminisce about all the effort they’ve put in since the beginning, but their “partner” is so unconcerned that they’ve just about had enough of the relationship altogether.
This has been Dahyun’s thing since 2020’s Bring It Back, 2021’s Cruel, 2022’s That’s all I’m saying, and even 2023's Don't Blame It On Me — emotionally charged breakup songs that make you feel as if she’s gone through a dozen bad relationships. Dispatch, do your job better, or don't.
Another highlight of the song is the post-chorus going into the bridge. This segment reiterates the structure from the first post-chorus — a barrage of drums supported by the rhythmic strumming of a bass guitar along with a consistent synth filling out the soundscape. But this time, it’s Dahyun and Chaeyoung on the rap:
I can’t stand it anymore [Dahyun]
My patience, invisible
I can’t find it, it’s all gone
Even if I try to turn back, it’s too late [Chaeyoung]
There’s no use anymore
It has left, it’s long gone
You, with flipping mind, you are out [Momo]
I know that you know what I’m talking about [Dahyun]
Nothing you could say that could turn this around
I’m gone
Continuing the disrespected theme of the song, Dahyun notes that she’s finally had enough with Chaeyoung adding that there’s no point salvaging what was once there for all of it is long gone. Momo and Dahyun round it off by telling the listener that there’s no point trying to reason with them or playing naive, they fucked up and there’s no coming back.
Can I just say, it's a bit of a shame that Chaeyoung’s rapping popped off in this album while Dahyun only has this one verse that she shares with Chaeyoung, but it just sounds so good how Dahyun eases in after the chorus with her light rapping tone transitioning into her singing. She even holds the “gone” in a little crescendo for some added pizzazz.
And, there’s no way I’m not going to talk about Momo’s vocals in this bridge. Damned if she only got 1 line to use it in, her lower register is incredible. She sounds so smooth singing in this tone. All of TWICE do in particular and there is nary a weak vocal performance in this album.
To close the song off, a wash of synths gets to have their shine in the spotlight, showered with Nayeon’s belting, signifying the dramatic and drawn-out conclusion of this partnership.
THE GOOD
- They’ve still got their surprises
- Thundering chorus
- 2nd rap and bridge combo
- A bitter, crumbling relationship theme
- I’m not a huge fan of the mixing during the first post-chorus, where Momo's vocals were fighting with the production, which is disappointing because Momo is capable of an insane flow
- The post-chorus in general, specifically the first one, can be a bit tiring on repeat listens
- Actually, I think this song sounds like a mix between GOT7's Not By The Moon, BLACKPINK’s Love To Hate Me, and Dahyun’s Bring It Back. I don’t know where I got this thought came from, but it stuck
Going back to that point about the first post-chorus as a whole; songs that have the production continue unchanged into the post-chorus/2nd verse are very hit or miss for me — see TWICE's Don't Call Me Again for an overbearing example. The post-chorus going into the bridge contrasts Dahyun’s light tone nicely with the hard-hitting production, continuing the energy until it slowly fades into silence at the end of the bridge.
Back to the song as a whole, as much as TWICE has been experimenting with their sound for the past 4 years now, I’m happy they’re still finding new ways to explore what they’re capable of. And for that alone, even though I’m not a big fan of songs like these where they rely on sounding “big”, Dahyun’s lyricism and the thrill I receive every time I indulge myself in this song when I listen to it for the first time in a while elevates it to an 8/10. Keep on breaking hearts, Dubu.
INVINCIBLE
SUPERHEROES
When We Were Kids 🧸
Sole lyricist credit: Dahyun
Press play to reminisce, pull up lyrics to cry.
This song is so beautiful. I’m totally not writing this song review, crying on the bus reminiscing about my childhood, while just having turned 21. I don’t know if these are happy or sad tears but this song is so beautiful either way.
Warm synths, muted piano, a gentle high hat, the younger members starting off the song — this has to be up there for one of the softest TWICE songs ever. And as it should, it’s one of the TWICEiest songs ever. And then Nayeon comes in,
Invincible superheroes, we wanted to be adults
To the higher, clearer world
The chords start swelling, the high hat keeps pace, and the harmonies come in,
Remember when we were kids
When we were kids, we didn’t know
If we could go back
I will love it even more
Remember when we were kids
Jihyo takes up the second half of the chorus as it drops, trading the strings for an almost R&B synth production — if choir R&B takes off, this song started it. The song relishes in this cacophony of warm sounds until returning to its sparse and peaceful verses.
This time, the hints of piano are louder, little twinkling synths begin to shimmer, the drum buildup comes and Jeongyeon drives the song straight into the chorus. No time for the strings to build like in Nayeon’s — this song loves its chorus so much.
And I'll just take this time to appreciate the amount of Jeongyeon vocals in this album. Her voice is so clean, stable, and projected — but also more tender and soft compared to the more pronounced tones of Nayeon and Jihyo.
The bridge comes in, repeating the phrase:
I wish that I could meet
Could meet the younger me
Giving the song time to rest, before building back up to the last chorus — this time led by Jihyo, completing the 3MIX trifecta. And interestingly enough, Chaeyoung follows up in the second half of the chorus, rather than another member of the vocal line. She really did pop off in this album.
As the last chorus begins to close, the percussion at its strongest, the harmonies on blast, the background vocals cranked up to their Sunday best, is the song going to end? Of course not! This is an album full of banger endings as if the songs don’t want to end, and When We Were Kids being the album closer very much indulges in that feeling.
After a brief refrain, accented by Nayeon’s high note with a touch of vibrato, the song almost dives back into a fourth chorus. Nayeon and Jeongyeon harmonize — a rare and heavenly moment. And the song repeats the bridge, reiterating that they want to meet their younger selves, this time with the lush chorus production before closing with silence, a few piano notes, and Tzuyu singing the last line of the song:
Oh, we were kids
Reflection, acceptance, hope. What a song.
THE GOOD
- Heavenly vocals throughout
- Relatable, heartfelt lyrics
- Euphoric chorus
- Great closer to the album
- Refrain after the last chorus, "Back when we were kids," could’ve been executed better
- For an album titled Between 1&2, I don’t think anything hits harder than finishing the song reviews, with this song in particular, during your 21st birthday
I wrote the first part of this review in November 2022. Then university, life, and other things got in the way of my headspace for me to feel confident about wrapping all of this up. In a way, I felt like I just didn’t want this review to end because of the joy that writing gives me — I didn’t want the happiness to end. And then it hit me, after watching a YouTuber rank animated movies and them placing Spirited Away at the top and explaining 'why' reminded me of just how important growing up is, and by extension this song.
This theme is important for both the rookie TWICE members in 2015 and the teenagers who would follow their journey and grow up with them, facing life’s obstacles along the way. Hardships that used to only involve family, crushes, and social media, evolve into work, commitments and all the struggles that adult life brings. Being a kid and enjoying the simple things in life is one of the most sought-after moments we want to relive because we took growing up for granted. The only thing we can do now is look back on ourselves with fondness and rose-tinted lenses.
TWICE’s original marketing was to resonate with people through their senses and their hearts. That was during their debut, and I think it still holds up today. In my opinion, touching people through their emotions is what TWICE does best and makes them one of K-pop’s all-time greats. It was never about having the best numbers — it was always about being the best idols. And to think that this journey of maturation and growth would occur from 2015 all the way to this song, being a fitting nod to TWICE’s 7th anniversary, I don’t think anyone at the company nor the group would ever imagine that they would get this far. It’s these nine women or none — 9/10.
This song honestly deserves a 10/10 with how much I noticed other people reminiscing their childhoods after I heard this song, it is such a widely-relatable message, but I am determined to limit myself to one 10/10 song per album and if I were to pick between TTT and WWWK, I'd give it to the one's that's more repeatable — Talk that Talk just has this electric energy about it.
Epilogue
And finally here is the end. If you made it in one sitting then I commend you, because I could not write this mess in one sitting. As alluded to, I started writing this album review sometime in October, after a series of edits the first draft was finished in March, and now here's the final draft in June.I love this album. It got me through some important parts of my life, both good and bad, and it's just a wonderful listen throughout. Reliving this album again before finally completing the review has been an exciting journey. Brave hit me harder this time, after being overshadowed by the other gems of this album, and WWWK finally got me to tear up and not just be emotionally satisfied.
I feel like there's something for everyone on this album. From the exhilarating thrills of TTT to the anthemic euphoria of QoH, the clubbing dichotomy of Trouble and Brave to the blissful glee of Basics, and the sweet reminiscence of WWWK to the thundering anger that is Gone. Like Eyes wide open, I liken Between 1&2 to a pop music taste platter — there's such an eclectic mix of pop, music in this album that there's bound to be a song that someone will love, like, and dislike.
Is this album perfect? I don't think so, but it's close — it was certainly my 2022 AOTY. Was this review biased? Absolutely. I've been a fan since 2019 and with the themes in this album, I also feel like it was biased towards me as a ONCE. And how would I rank the album in TWICE's catalogue? It's honestly at the top, at least with EPs — I also felt that way towards Feel Special but then this album was birthed so I'm excited for TWICE's future.
Ready To Be was also a stunning album and Eyes wide open frankly also deserved the spotlight that Formula of Love received so I might hit those next but no promises; this album took long enough to bake.
As for the performances, I've only seen Twitter clips (no fancams to not spoil myself) and I am SO EXCITED to finally see them in July. QoH was as glorious as expected, Brave was a delightful surprise, and WWWK, while not being the concert closer everyone expected it to be, paired up nicely with Crazy Stupid Love. And of course the bombastic addition of the dance break to TTT. But, this is not a concert review, and this is where this album review ends.
Feel free to comment with any thoughts regarding the album, other TWICE albums, and any suggestions for my writing in general. Congrats again on making it this far!
God, I love this album.
2023.06.02 23:31 Sock-Of-Rocks [Self] Smaug's gold vs math
![[Self] Smaug's gold vs math](https://preview.redd.it/7ekoezz7dh3b1.png?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=42192afc7e28366704facf21a2daa9e5740714ac "[Self] Smaug's gold vs math") | submitted by Sock-Of-Rocks to u/Sock-Of-Rocks [link] [comments] |
2023.06.02 21:45 BandicootDesperate96 [Self] Smaug's gold vs math
| | submitted by BandicootDesperate96 to u/BandicootDesperate96 [link] [comments] |
2023.06.02 20:53 Purtle [PIL] #959 6/2/2023
Purtle's Internet Lineup for June 2nd, 2023 2:54pm
Pics:
submitted by Purtle to Purtle [link] [comments]
Pics:
- me in sf6 https://twitter.com/SoundestOfBois/status/1664187522124075009
- So I bought a computer from goodwill for 10 dollars to see if I could revive it, and I did. It’s filled with HUNDREDS of written reviews for gay pornography. I can’t stop laughing [thread] https://twitter.com/CaseyJPod/status/1664311026458808320
- Law & Order: Boston https://twitter.com/Thomas_Carrieri/status/1664657759671926785
- To all my small content creator homies https://twitter.com/Win98Tech/status/1664234209244790787
- Barbie movie used so much pink paint it caused a shortage https://twitter.com/UltimaShadowX/status/1664595874163351553
- Crabmeat isn’t worth the hassle it takes to eat crab. https://twitter.com/theemare/status/1664311124718919680
- Street Fighter 6 Stuff
- A special message to the community from the voice of Luke https://twitter.com/StreetFightestatus/1664361451153408001
- Street Fighter 6 has just SMASHED the All-Time concurrent players of every Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, or Tekken game on Steam https://twitter.com/BenjiSales/status/1664502543320334336
- it's zangiefs birthday https://twitter.com/StreetFightestatus/1664286308955738114
- First hit on Marisa is free. (: https://twitter.com/lastrewards/status/1664370962345730050
- chun li taunt does a hit https://twitter.com/ryo_redcyclone/status/1664566524550729728
- Graphic Settings you NEED to fix that the game doesn't tell you about. Start SF6's launch on a good note. https://twitter.com/GhostFrom3S/status/1664010423459274753
- Potato Mod v0.1 is done. Links and instructions on comments https://old.reddit.com/Kappachino/comments/13y7z3k/potato_brethrens_potato_mod_v01_is_done_links_and/
- Marisa just outright told me she'd rather fight completely naked if she could, this is the fucking woman of the year hands down. https://twitter.com/UltimaShadowX/status/1664390985080504322
- nsfw Classic Cammy All Colors Presented by Chipotle and Kotaku https://old.reddit.com/Kappachino/comments/13yc9b2/classic_cammy_all_colors_presented_by_chipotle/
- pink cammy outfit backside https://i.imgur.com/axcK62h.jpg
- more cammy plot. people are going crazy for it lmao https://i.redd.it/lt9gfriz7f3b1.jpg
- they have ripped the model https://old.reddit.com/Kappachino/comments/13y80g3/ssj3_cammy_booty/
- Juri game ovecontinue in arcade mode https://twitter.com/mememenome/status/1664356507230830592
- Li-Fen and Chun-Li https://twitter.com/ssshuckle/status/1664380416231342084
- Street Fighter 6 - All Game Over Animations [6:44] https://youtu.be/KSj48BZ0cWY
- Combos/setups/tech
- Characters with free throwloops in the corner [2min] https://twitter.com/corybellFGC/status/1664309352818442241
- manon v marisa combo https://twitter.com/tkintheglobe/status/1664333352797876224
- You wanna know what happens if you wake up DP vs Marissa? https://twitter.com/Bigbird_fgc/status/1664380179899203586
- honda - I can chip kill from 20% in the corner with one bar, haven't tried to improve this at all because it's a fantasy scenario, but can anyone do better? This is all real if the opponent has no super, no gap is large enough to be challenged :] https://twitter.com/popnquinbee/status/1664390737704935424
- Air Blanka Ball is CRAZY https://twitter.com/HiFightTH/status/1664428187735166976
- JP corner combo https://twitter.com/BESAME_GEN/status/1664335451082330112
- ehonda combo https://twitter.com/Alioune85/status/1664356676856692738
- lily combo https://twitter.com/tkintheglobe/status/1664292802086453249
- jp combo/setup https://twitter.com/kevinsparkz/status/1664412867402301442
- marisa combo https://twitter.com/TENGOKU_HERO/status/1664347600756285440
- Corner Dhalsim setup with Yoga Arc after OD Yoga Fire. Without dash you are +24 after Arc connects https://twitter.com/Narath_FGC/status/1664362979947868160
- anti blanka setup https://twitter.com/Noble_Cathedral/status/1664430026685829120
- cammy combo/setup https://twitter.com/kevinsparkz/status/1664413675988615168
- honda looking scary https://twitter.com/Mr_MadGeastatus/1664277247212294145
- Alioune cammy combo/setup https://twitter.com/Alioune85/status/1664368843362385922
- blanka setup https://twitter.com/lllmokelll/status/1664373842670936064
- blanka combo https://twitter.com/lllmokelll/status/1664350330404962304
- Dee Jay EX fireball corner combo. https://twitter.com/GriffyBones/status/1664365995212046336
- manon v marisa combo/setup https://twitter.com/masat0226/status/1664316890179842048
- blanka combo/setup https://twitter.com/hirasyain77/status/1664344414255468545
- holy manon grapple damage https://twitter.com/AndyLO2_/status/1664443784262811648
- Zangief reversal punish in the corner. Idk if this is optimal but I like how it looks. https://twitter.com/AngelFreak_/status/1664430881866670082
- manon anti fireball combo https://twitter.com/teamspooky/status/1664462791812739073
- another manon anti fireball combo https://twitter.com/Mibeadostatus/1664394001947181056
- JP can safe jump to instant-overhead fuzzy. https://twitter.com/DiNyc3st/status/1664515035064934400
- MAX Marisa combo https://twitter.com/FrostXCVI/status/1664447134182129665
- JP - you want to be +52-55 on oki if you want throw to beat their 4 frame while setting up 214P. 214PP is only 10 frames less so you would need +42-45 for that. https://twitter.com/ShowYouCanSYC/status/1664490564845453312
- JP sequence https://twitter.com/greed4453/status/1664419150511603712
- sonicfox two touch with jp https://twitter.com/SonicFox/status/1664522022083493894
- DJ optimal corner combo https://twitter.com/findyourtechgg/status/1664326396313829376
- DJ hadouken punish https://twitter.com/_elvss/status/1664416769530908673
- DJ side switch https://twitter.com/wideawakeanimal/status/1664601445004455936
- DJ Full punish anywhere on screen with Deejay that does 5.2K+ with 2 bars and full drive gauge, probably not the best combo but a start at least https://twitter.com/TaliosDrakei/status/1664606885411188738
- A simple but painful Zangief DP punish! Maybe someone can squeeze a little more juice out of this https://twitter.com/Jaadooski/status/1664575063385858058
- Dhalsim sequence https://twitter.com/MistahCrimson/status/1664558835820789761
- Blanka sequence https://twitter.com/TqkatenMAY_chan/status/1664344131865575424
- more blanka https://twitter.com/TqkatenMAY_chan/status/1664491585025998848
- JP sequence https://twitter.com/kevinsparkz/status/1664648072125730816
- JP setup + sequence https://twitter.com/KIT_KUN_JP/status/1664491833446240257
- how to win with blanka day 1 https://twitter.com/HiFightTH/status/1664653935360000001
- JP command throw setup. Beats 4F normal and tested against throw also. https://twitter.com/NoMoreMrIceGuy_/status/1664659698627354624
- Biting heads and cashing checks - Blanka https://twitter.com/EvenMoTempest/status/1664655257123844096
- GGs shake my hand - JP https://twitter.com/HUEBERT47/status/1664540278861058048
- cammy mixup https://twitter.com/pero0126/status/1664622578462498816
- JP corner stuff https://twitter.com/greed4453/status/1664374243772219393
- Pokemon news
- They’re just posting DVD extras on YouTube now, for free LOL https://twitter.com/DogasusBackpack/status/1664586423067082753
- what type of gym leader are you quiz https://uquiz.com/quiz/r0lGkB/what-type-gym-leader-are-you
- Diablo 4 opens chat by mouse click mid fight - Streamer doesn't realise https://clips.twitch.tv/GiftedMoistSquirrelNotATK-sL5KAhDUDRM4mY6d
- Primitive Technology: New Brick Kiln Design [13min] https://youtu.be/7SH4irC_xMs
- SF6: Ryu Combo Video - desk [3:48] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMKs1PyQg6k
- The US Air Force tested an AI enabled drone that was tasked to destroy specific targets. A human operator had the power to override the drone—and so the drone decided that the human operator was an obstacle to its mission—and attacked him. https://twitter.com/ArmandDoma/status/1664331870564147200
- The almost thouht to be canceled game is coming out - Everybody 1-2-Switch! just got stealth announced on US eShop. $29.99, out June 30th https://twitter.com/Wario64/status/1664438318682230784
- you know it has to be bad if it comes out on eshop and at $30.
- this was a game that apparently playtested horribly
- rumor froma year ago https://twitter.com/tylermcbride/status/1664440576396210187
- League of Legends players have launched the first-ever strike in pro esports. The professional video gamers are standing up to developer Riot Games, which scrapped a rule that supported up-and-coming talent and is threatening the jobs of dozens of players and coaches. Thread https://twitter.com/MorePerfectUS/status/1664361584569753601
- For anyone who runs a Kaillera server, I just released a brand new server (EmuLinker-K) that I've been working on for almost 2 years. Please give it a try and let me know if you find bugs or have feature requests. https://twitter.com/6kRt62r2zvKp5Rh/status/1664642776326184962
- Fidelity cuts Reddit valuation by 41% https://old.reddit.com/technology/comments/13xumjl/fidelity_cuts_reddit_valuation_by_41/
- ‘Fidelity also slashed the value of its Twitter stake, it disclosed in the filing, valuing Elon Musk’s firm at about $15 billion.’
2023.06.02 18:38 PowerZox Does anyone else think the series suffers massively from short game lengths ever since Tools of Destruction?
I was really excited for the PC release of Rift Apart until I googled the game length out of curiosity... 18 hours for 100%. According to the same website, the other games take this many hours to 100%:
R&C 2016 - 23 hours (IMO it was more like 15 hours though)
Into the Nexus - 13 hours
A Crack in Time - 22 hours
Quest for Booty - 4 hours
Tools of Destruction - 37 hours
Original Trilogy - At least 25 hours per game
To me it feels like that is the biggest flaw. ToD and maybe A Crack in Time were the last games which had enough content to warrant being $60 IMO. I was immensely disappointed by the length of R&C 2016 and it seems that Rift Apart also suffers from it. Apparently it doesn't have any races, arenas or space exploration.
They're still good games and I'm sure quality-wise they're all worth the money but in terms of dollars per hour the series is very, very weak. It's frustrating because we know from the older game that it's possible to get a lot of hours from the Ratchet and Clank formula, they just don't put in the effort anymore.
submitted by PowerZox to RatchetAndClank [link] [comments]
R&C 2016 - 23 hours (IMO it was more like 15 hours though)
Into the Nexus - 13 hours
A Crack in Time - 22 hours
Quest for Booty - 4 hours
Tools of Destruction - 37 hours
Original Trilogy - At least 25 hours per game
To me it feels like that is the biggest flaw. ToD and maybe A Crack in Time were the last games which had enough content to warrant being $60 IMO. I was immensely disappointed by the length of R&C 2016 and it seems that Rift Apart also suffers from it. Apparently it doesn't have any races, arenas or space exploration.
They're still good games and I'm sure quality-wise they're all worth the money but in terms of dollars per hour the series is very, very weak. It's frustrating because we know from the older game that it's possible to get a lot of hours from the Ratchet and Clank formula, they just don't put in the effort anymore.
2023.06.02 05:23 Historic_cheese [P&P 2] Lower Valley Industries Merzal-M1 Recon Vehicle
![[P&P 2] Lower Valley Industries Merzal-M1 Recon Vehicle](https://b.thumbs.redditmedia.com/4wGkXgljSzuNrR7uwef13unGC3Ha1LEERANVE-KiZgA.jpg "[P&P 2] Lower Valley Industries Merzal-M1 Recon Vehicle") | (WARNING, This pitch is also a soggy attempt at telling a story, try and understand at your own risk-) submitted by Historic_cheese to SprocketTankDesign [link] [comments] "hmm..hmm, hm hmm.. try to see it my wa-' "Ebir.. what are you doing? The human asked the warforged driver, who only shrugged as a response. the humming continued to the indifference of the human. The two were from LVA, a regional military arms company which had had found itself in another competition for _____________. Somehow, someway, the two impromptu engineers had found themselves driving the prototype 'M1' Recon Vehicle to the assessing grounds. This would be all fine and dandy if the train that was supposed to drop them 20 kilometers from the base, had broken down 200 kilometers away. Both Chet and Ebir were going just wait for the train to get fixed, but 'Carl' convinced (or rather, forced) them to drive the rest of the way. 'It would show the officers how reliable i- i mean the tank is' he said. although phrased like one, he didn't mean it as a question he DID run the tank. And while he couldn't stop them from just waiting, he had a way with words (yelling through the intercom). It took the trio a few hours, a few canisters of fuel, a track repair or two, but finally they could see a paved road leading to the grounds. "Seriously, whats up?" Chet tried reiterating, ducking down into the hull of the tank to give Ebir a look. "A song I've been thinking up since the drive." "A song?" Chet seemed surprised, waiting for him to continue. Ebir tried keep his eyes on the road, but couldn't help but turn his head to meet the humans gaze, "Yeah, don't know what I'm calling it just yet.. why do you look so spooked?" He raised an eyebrow. Chet shook his head, "No no, just uh.. never took you for a bard, hah." "Well I've always liked music, no offense to the company but being a artificer engineer was supposed to be a temporary thing." The warforged sighed, letting his knee control the steering wheel to gesture with his hands. "I wanted to travel the world, y'know? see things, sing songs to audiences. Turns out that costs money and wasn't exactly stable.. So I did the next best thing, fast forward a few years and now-" He unceremoniously knocked on the metal, "I find myself in a prototype tin box, driving to who knows where, all while there's a war going on. Just tried of all of it." Chet frowned before nodding, he was about to say something before the engine spoke. "Im sure when this is all over you'll be able to become a musician, Ebir!" That made both of the men hit their heads in surprise. Ebir was fine, Chet not so much. "For the love of all things holy- Warn me when you chime in randomly and without warning.." Chet rubbed his head. "Kinda Oxymoronic" "Yeah yeah.. so what's up now? you blow a piston or something-" Chet picked up the receiver to his left, pressing the button next to the console. Carl took a minute to respond "No, nothing like that. Ren just wanted to tell you the left track is looking a bit loose" "Oh, well alrigh- wait whos Ren?" "The Moth!.. hey, you there? Chet?" ".." Ebir stared at the utterly gobsmacked man behind him, "You uh.. you alright man?" Chet didn't say anything. "Chet? Cheeeet, did the phone break? Chet!" The engines words fell on deaf ears as Chet muted the phone. When he finally turned to Ebir he simply said. "Its sentient..." "what's sentient?" "The Mo-" "SHIT-" CRASH-The tank barreled through the gates of the proving ground entrence gate before Ebir could step on the breaks in time. The breaks screeched as they slid for a 40 or so feet, finally coming to a stop directly infront of a well dressed Tabaxi.There was a tense few seconds where Ebir and the Tabaxi stared at each other silently, both equally shook. "Are we here? i cant see past the vent slits-" -------Uh.. Pitch here?------- The Tabaxi was the first to speak, coughing uncomfortably before putting up a smile. "uh. Hello there! you must be the...LVA folks!" He concluded. His fur was tinged a slight lilac color, while his eyes were a deep magenta. Chet was the first to reply, opening the commanders top hatch awkwardly. "Uh- y-yeah! that's us alright, sorry about the.. gate." "Oh, dont worry about that, its just some wooden stick that a gnome gets paid to lift up and down with a button" One of the gnomes frowned at the comment. "anyways, im more interested in how the hell you stopped while going so fast! one foot more and i would have broken something" The Tabaxi chuckled, although Chet could sense a hidden threat laced in his words. it was around this time that Ebir opened the drivers hatch, sticking his head out, "The Merzals outfitted with some pretty strong breaks, wouldn't want someone getting run over- uh, nevermind that, moving on-" The snow leopard laughed in a similar manner to before, waving his paw dismissively. "No no its fine, all in good spirit. Anyways, while i would love to keep talking, this is still a proving grounds. it'll also give us a excuse to fix that gate later" He whispered to Ebir, casting a side glance to the shatter checkpoint gate. "Right, just give us a second to tighten everything up, it was a bumpy journey." "No worries, although i was told you'd arrive on rail for the most part, did something become loose on the way?" It was the humans turn to answer, "The train broke down one, maybe two hundred kilometers away, we would have waited but the engine insisted." Chet rolled his eyes as if it were a normal occurrence. "Thats quite impressive, we can talk more after i see this thing in action" The officer concluded, turning on his heel before walking towards the actual testing grounds, alright?" "Oh, and before i forget, its Nabe, Nabe Sonatra" ------ACTUAL-Pitch-here------- Despite turning away from the tank, the officer waited for the tank crew to tighten the treads of the vehicle, walking next to it while it drove to the platform. His optimistic expression soured as he inspected the side, running a paw over the rivet heads and tugging at the spare track links. he made sure not to get his tail run over as he slowed down to the reaside near the engine. Why couldn't he hear it running? the tank was moving, and when he leaned in closer he could clearly hear gears moving and exhaust spewing out of the exhaust pipe. Nabe made sure to make a mental note of the oddity. One the tank parked itself in on the metal platform that marked the entrance to the course, the two engineers got out and leaned on the right fender of the tank. Nabe still wore that weary look as he waited for their pitch. Ebir started, https://preview.redd.it/cfz55546si3b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a5189f0ce7e685d59153d909db983fb484ffae0b "Right, so what you see here is the Merzal 'M-1' Recon Vehicle. It weighs just under 9 tons, has frontal protection around 60 to 84 millimeters of rivetted armour as you can clearly see" "We also have a welded and bolted turret face option-" "Why rivets." The officers hand was now scratching his chin, "Not to be rude, but the bureau's been getting some very impressive designs gentlemen." He pulled out a pocket sized notebook, flipping through pages as he spoke. "Angled plates, Cast turrets, we've gotten submissions by ship builders. So what makes your.. M-1 stand out?" "i-" "Well first off. The rivets are enchanted in bulk to act as bolts when being disassembled if you needed to take them off for any real reason. Welding was a risky choice as the side armour is relatively thin, and seeing that these are going to be exported en mass, LVA wanted to keep things simple and cheap" Carl started talking, nobody interrupted. "They're significantly stronger than normal rivets, but just as simple when installing them, they create their own drilled hole when pressed into the metal during installation. And if hit with enough force, and i mean A LOT of force, they will pop off in the opposite direction of the force acting on it. The armour will fail before the armour. This all sums up to a tank that any train builder or crew member in the field worth their weight in salt can build and repair armour wise, no heavy Oxy torch needed." https://preview.redd.it/hsb3wi79si3b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1adad9153bbbc78053909914068ebe4bdbbb8aad "..Well, go on." Nabe was completely engulfed in the engines ramblings, along with the two engineers. "Oh, sure! ill just pick up where Ebir left off, \ahem*: Being powered by me(Dorn V10), the Merzal will reach speeds of around 45 miles per hour on road, and 25 to 30 cross country depending on how bumpy it is."* https://preview.redd.it/5qy2e0u7si3b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=604c55db8980d17c34b2f656ea49c2389533e0fe "You'll be able to almost shear 90. slopes, but id advise you to only go as steep as 60 or 70. The M-1 can also comfortably go up a 40+ degree slope in reverse. The Dorn engine is easily accessible for repairs as well." "Did you teach him this?-" "Armament consists of the 38mm VM2 with 96 rounds in the hull, a coaxial and hull mounted 8mm Samiel machine gun, and a 14mm Samiel Machine gun mounted in a AA mount." https://preview.redd.it/9tt5rttbsi3b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9a97cb810dd96a11e229b1cf9a4acdc77382e4a1 https://preview.redd.it/yxdsbwtbsi3b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5e9435c2e52bd7aeeb3a9e603d7994079291f969 "Vision was a area of focus LVA didn't slouch on, i think? anyways- The driver has wide 'FOV' vision port to his or her disposal, while the commander has a 360 rectangular cupola. Depending on the height of the commander, the vision ports can either be slits or episcopes, the former being able to open via a hinge when not buttoned up. That large Periscope box and gunsight have both 'Truesight' and 'Zoom' spells housed in Arcane crystals to aid the commander-" "Wait, wait wait, slow down there." The officer pleaded, trying to wrap his head around the new information, "Arcane Crystal?" Ebir spoke up rather quickly, pulling out a assortment of glowing blue and white crystals from a cloth pouch, "Y-Yes, they're a alternative to runes. Runes, need to be etched into a solid material, Arcane Crystals don't. Glass, slag, amber, and gemstones all work; you just need to use a Purify cantrip, or any non necrotic spell to embow it with arcana." Ebir handed a piece of glowing white piece of slag no bigger than his thumb to Nabe, who inspected it with great interest. "I.. does it hold more arcane energy than a rune? wouldn't this be more fragile?" "gemstones and clear glass can hold more arcane energy than runes etched in stone or metal, and they are more fragile. That's the point, try smashing it on the ground." Ebir asked. The officer stared at the ground, shrugging before throwing the crystal on the ground. As soon as the crystal hit the ground, it exploded in a familiar flushing wave. "..Counter spell." Nabe concluded, a small smile forming on his face at the dissipating wave of energy. "Mhm, Arcane crystals shatter instead of crumbling or snapping; Thus it releases all its energy at once instead of fizzling out. Making them perfect for-" The warforged climbed onto the fender of the Merzal, pointing at the 5 launcher barrels affixed to the sides of the tank. https://preview.redd.it/okyb93idsi3b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=60f9ad1d5084158b9660f8be463543f63bf24d6a "Launcher ammunition. If a spellcaster decides to try and launch Fireball, the commander can depress a button to launch arcane crystals with a timed explosive charge, watch-" Ebir scrambled onto the roof of the tank this time, reaching into the commanders hatch and pressing a button. The 4th right barrel shot out a flurry of slag and amber bomblets, exploding in a perception warping wave of 'Counterspell'. Nabe clapped enthusiastically at the explosion. "And thats the basis for the magic in the Merzal" Chet finally chimed in, opening the cylinder like turret on the front of the tanks armour. It was a launcher, holding space for one large crystal, and multiple others. The large slot already housed a deep purple gemstone, "Detect magic." The officer guessed. "Its like having a anti magic field, while still being able to use magic. huh." "Theres a few spots all dotted around the tank, capsules to put arcance crystals in. You can customize the crystals if you have a spellcaster on hand, or just use the factory 'settings'. Normally that means: -Counterspell/Dispel magic in the turret launchers -Deafen in engine bay containers, -Dispel magic and Detect magic in the side hull turret bustles. -'Smoke' in the rear containers, -Truesight and 'Zoom' in the periscope -'Shield in various containers in and on the exterior of the tank. "But again, any spellcaster can configure the Arcane crystals how they see fit. Arcane crystals just give more customizability compared to using etched runes." "I.. see, that's.. that's quite interesting.." Nabe concluded. Chet and Ebir exchanged glances before walking to the rear of the tank. "Back here's a telephone to communicate to the crew from outside the tank, nothing special..." The two hadn't noticed Nabe trail behind, snatching the shinier, stronger gemstone based arcane crystal from the hull-turret bustle. He speed walked back besides them after stuffing it in his coat pocket. https://preview.redd.it/t8c0c9kesi3b1.jpg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b455b59413de852b351c867dfdfaa06501591a5c Chet was still talking to what he presumed was Nabe by the time the feline had walked back to them. "You've already heard Carl- I mean, the Dorn engine. I'm surprised there were more models lying around than we first thought, who wouldn't want a talking engine? like- Hey, Carl" *Chet opened the engine deck, exposing the large construct engine. He reached down and blindly untightened a bolt. "What did I just do?" "You loosened the 6th bolt around my fuel hose" He responded curtly. "See? Self diagnosing engin-" "Whats... whats that?" (The moth, its the moth guys!!) "Oh... uh. Thats the LVA Moth mascot." Chet shrugged his shoulders in defeat, clearly having told a similar story about the picture one time too many. "Oh, wait, i remember now. you guys adopted it as a mascot?-" "Yes. Yes we did, moving on." "all you need to do is befriend and train the Dorn engine and you've got yourself a 4th crewmember. And for the record, they can run on low octane fuel, don't listen to the models that say they'll blow up just because a number is below 80. But if push comes to shove you can install a solid 'purify' stone in the fuel tank. "About that, You'll still be able to use runes and sigils in these containers if need be, yes?" "We've tried them out with Protection sigils, no hiccups." Sufficiently impressed, Nabe took out the notebook again, jotting down a slew of notes, he occasionally glanced a look at the tank and the engineers. "Simple design, cost effective design, above average mobility, im guessing minimum fuel requirement.. Arcane crystals able to be customized by any spellcaster.. A very universal template Lower valleys made." The two engineers exchanged looks again, "Thats what it called for, its easy to jam a tank with specific spells and what not, but there's always the risk a rune breaks or a sigils scratched off. Arcane crystals are more universally accessible, with field repairs being significantly easier. Everything about the tanks made to be as simple as simple to understand, no matter where they're being shipped." Chet concluded, Nabe put his notebook back snuggly into his coat pocket. "All very good, but it is getting quite late. We can proceed with actual testing tomorrow, ill just need any other information about the tank now so i can send it to the higher ups." Ebir stepped forward, producing a small set of papers, specifications and a.. Dorn training manual. A quick flip through revealed to Nabe that he was much top mentally exhausted to try and tackle it. "Well then, i think thats it for the day, you two rest up in the bunks, im sure the trip was exhausting enough. Dinners served at 7:00pm, ill be sure to see you then. I want to hear the full story about that picture!" The mentioning of dinner made Chets stomach growl, "That sounds good, see you then." And with that, the men went their separate ways. SEE ATTACHED FOR EXTRA PHOTOS (Middle) Examples of arcane containers/hatches. Rear most hull piece. Ren is visible Side hull/'Turret bustle', able to detect and rotate its barrel towards magic threats 40ft in front of itself. Can fire off arcane crystal bomblets Tow hooks (upper) and transport hooks (lower). Dozerblade attachment points also visible (4 points) "Yeah.. Yeah i got the crystal... ill send the sample in about a week, pretty simple stuff really.. too simple. When i get my hands on their training manual ill send that too." |
2023.06.01 13:17 LordChozo Chronicles of a Prolific Gamer - May 2023
May was a busy, busy month for me with a number of pressing obligations both personally and professionally. It was so busy, in fact, that I pretty much had to abandon the PC as a gaming platform altogether. Oh sure, there's one PC game on the list this month, but that's a 6 hour game that took me two weeks to finish, and I'd started it in April. Once that was done, PC gaming went away for me entirely, and to be honest I'm not exactly sure how quickly it can come back. There are a lot of moving pieces with this, such that while last month I was eagerly anticipating my next big AAA adventure on the platform, now I've got my sights set on another very small title just to have a shot of knocking something out.
That said, I was my usual productive self elsewhere, such that I still have 7 games to report for the month of May. I anticipate June to be lighter than this for multiple reasons, but I should still be able to hit my self-imposed floor of three titles without too much trouble, and I often surprise myself by clearing more anyhow, so we'll see!
(Games are presented in chronological completion order; the numerical indicator represents the YTD count.)
#30 - Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda - Switch - 7/10 (Good)
Like, come on. We don't need that many words in the title, do we? Especially because - bewilderingly - you don't even really get to play as Cadence in this game! After the tutorial you're asked to help either Link or Zelda, which I figured was like a kind of "you have to do two quests so pick which one to do first," but actually it was "choose which character to play as for the whole game," so there I am in a game called Cadence of Hyrule featuring Cadence on the cover, playing beginning to end as Princess Zelda. You can technically unlock everyone eventually, but it takes a lot of time. What a bizarre decision.
Beyond that, I have to say the game surprised me. I bounced off Crypt of the NecroDancer after only a few hours. As much as I wanted to like it I just couldn't get the hang of the game's core mechanics. Cadence of Hyrule by contrast is far more accessible, largely because it doesn't toss you straight into a confined dungeon. The bulk of the game has you just exploring Hyrule from screen to screen, NES style, finding permanent treasures and upgrades. It's a very low pressure learning environment and by the time you do go into a real dungeon you're equipped to the gills with plenty of extra health and a weapon you feel comfortable using: it was the long-reaching spear for me that finally made everything click and I never went back to anything else.
The rhythm-based gameplay is fine, aided by the fact that the soundtrack is really strong. I mean, of course it's strong: it's Zelda music! That said, I think the roguelite nature of the gameplay just doesn't work at all. It's there basically to provide a stronger tie to the NecroDancer name, but with so many save/spawn points all over the map and so many permanent items, all death really does is set your keys and rupees back to zero, forcing you to pointlessly grind for several minutes and pick up where you left off. Better to strip that idea out entirely and just let players retry from the last checkpoint upon death. Still, it's a reasonably good time overall and worth playing on the cheap.
#31 - Elden Ring - PS5 - 9.5/10 (Superlative)
Here are the three things I didn't like about Elden Ring:
Frankly, the game is staggering when you look at it in totality, but Elden Ring's greatest accomplishment is that it doesn't buckle under its own massive weight. The map, for example, scales with the player's own ambition. At the outset it feels like there's no shortage of places to explore, but each time you push the boundaries of the visible map you'll find that it expands to accommodate you, always revealing yet more to do. But by populating this enormous world with carefully crafted encounters and discoveries, the developers ensure that there's no typical open world "dead time." I was dozens of hours into the game before the true size of it really began to dawn on me, and even then I underestimated it. Yet that wasn't a problem, because through it all burned a driving desire to just see. I put just over 100 hours into Horizon Forbidden West and it felt twice as long as the 139 I put into Elden Ring.
And of course, the core gameplay itself is strong, a further refinement of the tried and true Souls formula with extensive options for any kind of character build you might want to make, as well as a friendly respec system that gives you the flexibility to completely change your mind along the way. Finally, though the endings didn't really do anything for me, I felt the story threads themselves were the best of the "Soulsborne" meta-franchise to date. There's a running theme through the game that would spoil it to describe, but it builds within you a prevailing sense of purpose beyond simply "beat the final boss to say I beat it," and that extra motivation really helped propel me through the last stages of the game. Elden Ring isn't quite a perfect game, but all its accolades are completely merited. It's a masterpiece through and through.
#32 - Jotun - PC - 2.5/10 (Baffling)
Jotun features pretty good art design, using stylistic hand-drawn art for all its backgrounds and sprites. While some areas are nicer to look at than others - you're wandering through a handful of the Norse nine realms and they're not all thematically attractive - all the art is well made and the game is crafted in such a way that it really allows you to appreciate it.
Everything else about this game is straight donkey balls. Your character is the slowest protagonist I've ever seen, and Jotun is an action game focused on boss battles. Moving like you're perpetually stuck in a swamp isn't a great match for the genre! You get a weak attack that takes ten minutes to come out, a strong attack that takes ten years, and most everything is immune to your weak attack anyway. Between bosses you spend agonizing, interminable amounts of time wandering mostly empty stages with the camera zoomed in so close you can't get a sense of where to go, and a map that doesn't actually show your location on it. You do this to unlock powers, which suck, and to collect runes that grant access to boss fights. During these boss fights you spam your atrocious attacks to shave pixels off giant health bars while unavoidable, randomized hazards slowly kill you. You have a dodge roll, but it has no invincibility properties and doesn't even move you any further than just walking would.
In summary, Jotun feels like some untalented designer went, "I should make a Souls game!" without ever actually playing a Souls game or understanding the first thing about what makes Souls games - or any games - fun to play. I even hate the voiceovers. It's a total disaster. But, you know...a disaster with some pretty good artwork.
#33 - Mega Man ZX Advent - DS - 4/10 (Unsatisfying)
ZX Advent's core problem is pretty simple to diagnose: it's a sequel to Mega Man ZX, and that game is straight dog booty. Once again this game features a whole bunch of awful, tedious quests with mostly awful, insulting rewards. But sometimes the quest has a really important reward, and there's no rhyme or reason to which is which, so you're stuck doing them all. And the fast travel system continues to be maddening, a series of one way warps that you have to pay to use, conveniently placing you near where you want to go, but forcing you to retread entire stages to be able to warp back. It's asinine.
To Advent's credit, it scraps the failed Metroidvania concept of ZX even as it provides the player with a functional map (which is to say, any map at all). Boss powers are significantly more interesting and far less limited. It's also a pretty big game, with 13 major bosses to clear before you even start the final gauntlet, and the levels are slightly better designed than the last title - a brutal first hour and idiotic penultimate stage notwithstanding. But you can't ever really appreciate the levels for what they are because everything's mired in these stupid quest and travel systems, and it's all presented with quite possibly the worst combination of writing and voice acting I've ever seen. So yes, it's better than ZX by a hair. But please, don't try to find out for yourself.
#34 - Resident Evil 3 (2020) - PS4 - 7/10 (Good)
This was the first time I'd ever played Resident Evil 3 in any form, but while I may not be able to gauge RE3's remake against its original release, I can gauge it against the Resident Evil 2 remake a year earlier. Frankly, it's hard not to: RE3 is clearly built upon the bones of RE2 to the point that it almost feels like a DLC campaign for that game. It's a fun prequel that never quite feels like a full package, much of its content like a lesser copy of what came before. Downtown Raccoon City isn't a bad locale per se, but it's nothing like the magic of the police station from RE2. I guess Capcom felt the same way because there's an entire mission in RE3 that sends you back to that same police station, identical assets and all, exploring a gated segment of it as if to say "remember how good this was last year?" The other locations you visit are even less memorable. Then of course I've got to call out Nemesis, who opens the game feeling absolutely terrifying but gets less and less impactful even as he continues to come back bigger and stronger. After the first couple hours there's no "Oh no!" feeling like Tyrant gave you in spades in RE2...just a limp sort of "This guy again? Really?" response.
Yet it's a testament to how successful the RE2 remake was that even its pale imitation ends up being a pretty good time. The mechanics are so solid that there's very little to complain about in that regard, especially because RE3 seems more generous than ever with giving the player powerful armaments with plenty of ammunition and even more healing. There are also new enemy types, some more interesting than others, but all keeping RE3 just novel enough to want to stick with. And of course, the game looks great, is reasonably well acted, and has an interesting story to tell (as far as the classic Resident Evil story goes, at any rate). So, while I can easily understand why this game was criticized and quickly forgotten by the masses, I would argue that it's not even close to being bad. It's simply not special, and hey: maybe that's OK.
#35 - Darksiders III - PS4 - 5.5/10 (Semi-Competent)
If you're on your third game of a series and you still haven't figured out what you want your core gameplay experience to be, that might be a sign that you need to throw in the towel. The first Darksiders wasn't perfect but it had a pretty clear design philosophy: take Devil May Cry and Ocarina of Time and blend them together with an apocalyptic, Heaven vs. Hell vs. Horsemen story. It was pretty good, all things considered, and carried a lot of promise for the future. Then for whatever reason Darksiders II went "What if instead of Zelda we mixed DMC with World of Warcraft?" and the results were predictably disappointing. I had hoped that this third installment would right the wrongs of the past and return the series to its roots.
Instead they just made Lazy Dark Souls. Everyone wants to make Soulslike games and think they can recapture that secret sauce. Then they all fall short because they all get it wrong: the real driving force behind the Souls games isn't the combat but the level design. It's the impeccable planning that goes into every room, corridor, and general location. So while it might not seem like a problem that in Darksiders III the combat was dumbed down even further into nearly mindless button mashing, the level design also isn't there, nor any of the other typical trappings that people love about the genre. It's a game that strives to copy the smart kid's homework but in "making it look a little different" loses all the right answers. What I can say in its favor is that the game looks nice, it's got some Metroidvania-lite exploration elements that work better than expected, and the theming of it all is still pretty good. Pretty faint praise.
#36 - West of Loathing - Switch - 7/10 (Good)
At first blush this was everything I was looking for in a turn-based RPG. For one thing I knew I'd like the humor, having played quite a bit of the preceding browser game Kingdom of Loathing, and seeing as humor is the primary goal of the game, that was important. What worked better than I thought it would was the streamlined combat and leveling system. There are strictly speaking no raw attributes in West of Loathing, just discrete skills with either active or passive effects. Every level gives you one skill point, and the game itself starts by auto-assigning those in a balanced way as you go. So you'll get points in the passive skills that increase your raw numbers, points in the class skills that give you new combat options, and points in secondary skills that open up new non-combat interactions and effects. After the tutorial the game prompts you on whether you want to keep auto-leveling or if you want to manually assign your point each time, and I've got to say I found the auto-level such a revelation of efficiency that I stuck with it, even knowing I was missing out on some min-maxing by doing so. It just feels so good to get a big chunk of XP, suddenly have a new/improved skill, and keep moving on without messing about in a menu.
Unfortunately the back half of the game didn't quite deliver on all its promise, mainly because the story is never an object of focus. At the game's outset the idea seems to be to investigate this dangerous phenomenon and put a stop to it, and along the way you uncover more information about other big threat types of things as well, but none of it ever really gets resolved in a satisfying way. You can beat the mad wizard or seal the evil entity, sure, but you have to really go out of your way to do it, and the rewards are just more gear that at that point you don't need. Even the ending is a very meta cutscene as if to say "this is just a silly game and nothing matters, and you would do well to remember that." And like, sure, that's why I bought it! I like that silliness and the gameplay has been fun, but when you actively design your game to just fizzle out at the end I can't help but feel like something's missing. Still, it's cheap, it's refreshingly brief, and it's got a lot of fun little secrets to find, so as long as you go in knowing that there's absolutely no payoff, it's an easy game to recommend.
Coming in June:
submitted by LordChozo to patientgamers [link] [comments]
That said, I was my usual productive self elsewhere, such that I still have 7 games to report for the month of May. I anticipate June to be lighter than this for multiple reasons, but I should still be able to hit my self-imposed floor of three titles without too much trouble, and I often surprise myself by clearing more anyhow, so we'll see!
(Games are presented in chronological completion order; the numerical indicator represents the YTD count.)
#30 - Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda - Switch - 7/10 (Good)
Like, come on. We don't need that many words in the title, do we? Especially because - bewilderingly - you don't even really get to play as Cadence in this game! After the tutorial you're asked to help either Link or Zelda, which I figured was like a kind of "you have to do two quests so pick which one to do first," but actually it was "choose which character to play as for the whole game," so there I am in a game called Cadence of Hyrule featuring Cadence on the cover, playing beginning to end as Princess Zelda. You can technically unlock everyone eventually, but it takes a lot of time. What a bizarre decision.
Beyond that, I have to say the game surprised me. I bounced off Crypt of the NecroDancer after only a few hours. As much as I wanted to like it I just couldn't get the hang of the game's core mechanics. Cadence of Hyrule by contrast is far more accessible, largely because it doesn't toss you straight into a confined dungeon. The bulk of the game has you just exploring Hyrule from screen to screen, NES style, finding permanent treasures and upgrades. It's a very low pressure learning environment and by the time you do go into a real dungeon you're equipped to the gills with plenty of extra health and a weapon you feel comfortable using: it was the long-reaching spear for me that finally made everything click and I never went back to anything else.
The rhythm-based gameplay is fine, aided by the fact that the soundtrack is really strong. I mean, of course it's strong: it's Zelda music! That said, I think the roguelite nature of the gameplay just doesn't work at all. It's there basically to provide a stronger tie to the NecroDancer name, but with so many save/spawn points all over the map and so many permanent items, all death really does is set your keys and rupees back to zero, forcing you to pointlessly grind for several minutes and pick up where you left off. Better to strip that idea out entirely and just let players retry from the last checkpoint upon death. Still, it's a reasonably good time overall and worth playing on the cheap.
#31 - Elden Ring - PS5 - 9.5/10 (Superlative)
Here are the three things I didn't like about Elden Ring:
- The quests are still too obtuse - sometimes to an absurd, guide-only degree.
- I thought the ending was really unsatisfying and anticlimactic. That's true for all the endings, by the way, because I looked up the other ones I didn't choose. They're universally just disappointing notes to end on.
- Runebears.
- Absolutely everything else.
Frankly, the game is staggering when you look at it in totality, but Elden Ring's greatest accomplishment is that it doesn't buckle under its own massive weight. The map, for example, scales with the player's own ambition. At the outset it feels like there's no shortage of places to explore, but each time you push the boundaries of the visible map you'll find that it expands to accommodate you, always revealing yet more to do. But by populating this enormous world with carefully crafted encounters and discoveries, the developers ensure that there's no typical open world "dead time." I was dozens of hours into the game before the true size of it really began to dawn on me, and even then I underestimated it. Yet that wasn't a problem, because through it all burned a driving desire to just see. I put just over 100 hours into Horizon Forbidden West and it felt twice as long as the 139 I put into Elden Ring.
And of course, the core gameplay itself is strong, a further refinement of the tried and true Souls formula with extensive options for any kind of character build you might want to make, as well as a friendly respec system that gives you the flexibility to completely change your mind along the way. Finally, though the endings didn't really do anything for me, I felt the story threads themselves were the best of the "Soulsborne" meta-franchise to date. There's a running theme through the game that would spoil it to describe, but it builds within you a prevailing sense of purpose beyond simply "beat the final boss to say I beat it," and that extra motivation really helped propel me through the last stages of the game. Elden Ring isn't quite a perfect game, but all its accolades are completely merited. It's a masterpiece through and through.
#32 - Jotun - PC - 2.5/10 (Baffling)
Jotun features pretty good art design, using stylistic hand-drawn art for all its backgrounds and sprites. While some areas are nicer to look at than others - you're wandering through a handful of the Norse nine realms and they're not all thematically attractive - all the art is well made and the game is crafted in such a way that it really allows you to appreciate it.
Everything else about this game is straight donkey balls. Your character is the slowest protagonist I've ever seen, and Jotun is an action game focused on boss battles. Moving like you're perpetually stuck in a swamp isn't a great match for the genre! You get a weak attack that takes ten minutes to come out, a strong attack that takes ten years, and most everything is immune to your weak attack anyway. Between bosses you spend agonizing, interminable amounts of time wandering mostly empty stages with the camera zoomed in so close you can't get a sense of where to go, and a map that doesn't actually show your location on it. You do this to unlock powers, which suck, and to collect runes that grant access to boss fights. During these boss fights you spam your atrocious attacks to shave pixels off giant health bars while unavoidable, randomized hazards slowly kill you. You have a dodge roll, but it has no invincibility properties and doesn't even move you any further than just walking would.
In summary, Jotun feels like some untalented designer went, "I should make a Souls game!" without ever actually playing a Souls game or understanding the first thing about what makes Souls games - or any games - fun to play. I even hate the voiceovers. It's a total disaster. But, you know...a disaster with some pretty good artwork.
#33 - Mega Man ZX Advent - DS - 4/10 (Unsatisfying)
ZX Advent's core problem is pretty simple to diagnose: it's a sequel to Mega Man ZX, and that game is straight dog booty. Once again this game features a whole bunch of awful, tedious quests with mostly awful, insulting rewards. But sometimes the quest has a really important reward, and there's no rhyme or reason to which is which, so you're stuck doing them all. And the fast travel system continues to be maddening, a series of one way warps that you have to pay to use, conveniently placing you near where you want to go, but forcing you to retread entire stages to be able to warp back. It's asinine.
To Advent's credit, it scraps the failed Metroidvania concept of ZX even as it provides the player with a functional map (which is to say, any map at all). Boss powers are significantly more interesting and far less limited. It's also a pretty big game, with 13 major bosses to clear before you even start the final gauntlet, and the levels are slightly better designed than the last title - a brutal first hour and idiotic penultimate stage notwithstanding. But you can't ever really appreciate the levels for what they are because everything's mired in these stupid quest and travel systems, and it's all presented with quite possibly the worst combination of writing and voice acting I've ever seen. So yes, it's better than ZX by a hair. But please, don't try to find out for yourself.
#34 - Resident Evil 3 (2020) - PS4 - 7/10 (Good)
This was the first time I'd ever played Resident Evil 3 in any form, but while I may not be able to gauge RE3's remake against its original release, I can gauge it against the Resident Evil 2 remake a year earlier. Frankly, it's hard not to: RE3 is clearly built upon the bones of RE2 to the point that it almost feels like a DLC campaign for that game. It's a fun prequel that never quite feels like a full package, much of its content like a lesser copy of what came before. Downtown Raccoon City isn't a bad locale per se, but it's nothing like the magic of the police station from RE2. I guess Capcom felt the same way because there's an entire mission in RE3 that sends you back to that same police station, identical assets and all, exploring a gated segment of it as if to say "remember how good this was last year?" The other locations you visit are even less memorable. Then of course I've got to call out Nemesis, who opens the game feeling absolutely terrifying but gets less and less impactful even as he continues to come back bigger and stronger. After the first couple hours there's no "Oh no!" feeling like Tyrant gave you in spades in RE2...just a limp sort of "This guy again? Really?" response.
Yet it's a testament to how successful the RE2 remake was that even its pale imitation ends up being a pretty good time. The mechanics are so solid that there's very little to complain about in that regard, especially because RE3 seems more generous than ever with giving the player powerful armaments with plenty of ammunition and even more healing. There are also new enemy types, some more interesting than others, but all keeping RE3 just novel enough to want to stick with. And of course, the game looks great, is reasonably well acted, and has an interesting story to tell (as far as the classic Resident Evil story goes, at any rate). So, while I can easily understand why this game was criticized and quickly forgotten by the masses, I would argue that it's not even close to being bad. It's simply not special, and hey: maybe that's OK.
#35 - Darksiders III - PS4 - 5.5/10 (Semi-Competent)
If you're on your third game of a series and you still haven't figured out what you want your core gameplay experience to be, that might be a sign that you need to throw in the towel. The first Darksiders wasn't perfect but it had a pretty clear design philosophy: take Devil May Cry and Ocarina of Time and blend them together with an apocalyptic, Heaven vs. Hell vs. Horsemen story. It was pretty good, all things considered, and carried a lot of promise for the future. Then for whatever reason Darksiders II went "What if instead of Zelda we mixed DMC with World of Warcraft?" and the results were predictably disappointing. I had hoped that this third installment would right the wrongs of the past and return the series to its roots.
Instead they just made Lazy Dark Souls. Everyone wants to make Soulslike games and think they can recapture that secret sauce. Then they all fall short because they all get it wrong: the real driving force behind the Souls games isn't the combat but the level design. It's the impeccable planning that goes into every room, corridor, and general location. So while it might not seem like a problem that in Darksiders III the combat was dumbed down even further into nearly mindless button mashing, the level design also isn't there, nor any of the other typical trappings that people love about the genre. It's a game that strives to copy the smart kid's homework but in "making it look a little different" loses all the right answers. What I can say in its favor is that the game looks nice, it's got some Metroidvania-lite exploration elements that work better than expected, and the theming of it all is still pretty good. Pretty faint praise.
#36 - West of Loathing - Switch - 7/10 (Good)
At first blush this was everything I was looking for in a turn-based RPG. For one thing I knew I'd like the humor, having played quite a bit of the preceding browser game Kingdom of Loathing, and seeing as humor is the primary goal of the game, that was important. What worked better than I thought it would was the streamlined combat and leveling system. There are strictly speaking no raw attributes in West of Loathing, just discrete skills with either active or passive effects. Every level gives you one skill point, and the game itself starts by auto-assigning those in a balanced way as you go. So you'll get points in the passive skills that increase your raw numbers, points in the class skills that give you new combat options, and points in secondary skills that open up new non-combat interactions and effects. After the tutorial the game prompts you on whether you want to keep auto-leveling or if you want to manually assign your point each time, and I've got to say I found the auto-level such a revelation of efficiency that I stuck with it, even knowing I was missing out on some min-maxing by doing so. It just feels so good to get a big chunk of XP, suddenly have a new/improved skill, and keep moving on without messing about in a menu.
Unfortunately the back half of the game didn't quite deliver on all its promise, mainly because the story is never an object of focus. At the game's outset the idea seems to be to investigate this dangerous phenomenon and put a stop to it, and along the way you uncover more information about other big threat types of things as well, but none of it ever really gets resolved in a satisfying way. You can beat the mad wizard or seal the evil entity, sure, but you have to really go out of your way to do it, and the rewards are just more gear that at that point you don't need. Even the ending is a very meta cutscene as if to say "this is just a silly game and nothing matters, and you would do well to remember that." And like, sure, that's why I bought it! I like that silliness and the gameplay has been fun, but when you actively design your game to just fizzle out at the end I can't help but feel like something's missing. Still, it's cheap, it's refreshingly brief, and it's got a lot of fun little secrets to find, so as long as you go in knowing that there's absolutely no payoff, it's an easy game to recommend.
- I mentioned another attempt at PC gaming was on the way, and what better way to embrace the platform than with a game that's too difficult to play anywhere else? I have no idea if Epistory: Typing Chronicles will be even remotely good, but I like a good typing game from time to time and it's not the kind of game that will take over my life, so why not?
- On the console front I've got a few different AAA games staring at me, but I'm still "recovering" from the grandness of Elden Ring so these small-to-midsize games continue to be the order of the day for at least a little while longer. Alas, though I don't seek them out Soulslikes continue to find me. I didn't realize Darksiders III or Jotun were various flavors of Souls knock-offs until I started them, and now here I am a few hours into Tails of Iron realizing that it's very much in that vein as well. At least this one has some key differences, and I'm optimistic it'll translate into a stronger overall experience than the usual indie genre clone.
- Meanwhile, it's hard to ignore the way Zeldamania has been sweeping over the world. Breath of the Wild is one of my favorite games ever, and every time I boot up my Switch I see one friend or another diving into adventure. So I figured I might as well stop fighting it and grab the next Zelda game they released on Switch myself. Come on down, The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (2019)! What, were you expecting something different?
- And more...
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2023.05.31 18:23 k819799amvrhtcom Self-Imposed Videogame Challenge: Trans Ally Edition!
TL;DR (spoilers): You, and anyone who wants to try the challenge with you if it's a multiplayer game, are a trans ally, and your job is to collect $25,000 or the equivalent thereof in in-game money (rounded up to the next smallest divisible part) for your transgender friend's transition in less than 31 in-game years. Everything is allowed. You do not have to finish the game.
Want a new and interesting way to play your favorite videogame? I got one with a transgender theme that is interesting, challenging, easy to implement, and compatible with almost any videogame, so it's a Mario challenge, a Pokémon challenge, a Minecraft challenge, and so on and so forth, all at the same time!
Rule #2: If the in-game currency is fictional then you'll have to convert it (rounded up to the next smallest divisible part). It's easy if you can buy in-game money with real money, even if that feature doesn't work because of a glitch or something. Otherwise, you'll have to do some research. If you can't find any direct information on the internet, I would suggest starting here to get a basic idea on how to calculate that. If there are multiple in-game currencies you are allowed to split the price of the transition among them in any way you want, provided you know the value of all of them. If there is no in-game currency then you are allowed to use points instead. If the game doesn't have points either then you can try to invent a substitute currency but it has to be something that would actually work as a substitute currency in the world you're in. If that's not possible either then the only way for you to win this challenge is to raise real money by doing a let's play of the game. But then you'll have to actually pay for a real trans person's transition (yourself included) or donate the money to transgender-related causes to actually win the challenge. Here's a website that lets you donate for transgender causes. If the amount of in-game money you can hold at once is less or you were unable to find out how much you need then you are also allowed to simply collect the maximum possible amount instead because games will never ask you for more money than you can hold for a single product, meaning that this would have to be the in-game prize of a transition, as transitions are always for only a single person. This only applies to videogame currencies.
Rule #3: You do not need to finish the game. All you need to do to win this challenge is to get the money somehow. Please keep in mind that the exchange rate isn't constant. The exact amount you need to win the challenge has to be enough in the moment when you have the amount. You automatically win the challenge the moment this is the case.
Rule #4: You need to get the money in less than 31 in-game years. This number was calculated by subtracting the age at which children begin to have an innate sense of their own gender (4 years) from the average lifespan of a trans person (35 years). If the game has time-travelling elements, you are allowed to use those to extend the time limit. However, it only counts if this actually involves time itself and not just the timer. The same also goes the other way around: Travelling into the future or even moving in relativistic speeds will decrease the time limit. If the time limit runs out, I hope you have a way to return back to the past later!
Rule #5: If you can choose between multiple difficulty settings, you are allowed to choose the easiest one. In fact, you are expected to. Trans people are already on hard mode and the idea of being an ally is to specifically use the possibilities given to you to help those with fewer possibilities than you. If you have the option to select an easier difficulty setting which would make it easier for you to win this challenge, use it. Even if you're already used to playing on a higher difficulty mode. Not doing so would be considered bad strategy on your part. You are allowed to choose a higher difficulty setting, but please only do so if this actually gives you some advantages, like more rewards, more levels, or faster gameplay. This challenge gives you no bonus points for selecting a higher difficulty setting.
Rule #6: Emulation, and all tricks that come with it, are explicitly allowed. Doing so might be against the law but it is explicitly not against the rules of this challenge. The reason for this is because being transgender has been illegal for a long time and still is in many states, forcing many people to break the law in order to live their lives. The police have historically targeted trans and gender non-conforming folks. Stonewall was a riot against police brutality. I am not advocating for doing anything illegal. I am, however, saying that you should never use the law to argue for the morality of anything trans-related, as doing so would be disrespectful towards a huge part of transgender history. Therefore, this rule will remain in effect even if being transgender ever becomes legal worldwide.
In order to make the challenge even less boring for you, I have started researching loads of fictional currencies and how much money you would have to collect there for this challenge so you don't have to.
A Song of Ice and Fire - 19 Gold Dragons and 1 Copper Star or 39 Hands
Albion Online - 4,752,500 Gold
Among Us - 250,000 Stars
Animal Crossing - 2,625,000 Bells
Animal Jam - 69,833 Diamonds
Animal Jam - 2,688,173 Sapphires
Apex Legends - 2,500,000 Apex Coins
Arcaea - 2,550,000 Memories
Archage Unchained - 125,000,000 Coins
Arknights - 30,000 Originium
Ashes of Creation - 3,376,000 Embers
Astroneer - 2,500,000 QBits
Avatar - 166,666.67 Yuan
Azur Lane - 1,531,440 Gems
Baldi's Basics in Education and Learning - 2,500,000 You Thought Points
Banjo-Kazooie - 900 Musical Notes
BattleTech - 2,500 C-Bills
Be Funny Now! - 2,625,000 Gems
Bioshock Infinite - 715 Silver Eagles
Bloons Monkey City - 1,250,000 Bloonstones
Bloons TD Battles - 625,000 Medallions
Bloons TD Battles 2 - 13,000,000 Monkey Money
Bloons Tower Defense 5 - 19,318,182 Monkey Money
Bloons Tower Defense 5 - 150,000 Tokens
Bloons Tower Defense 6 - 17,500,000 Monkey Money
Boomlings - 93,750,000 Gold
Brawl Stars - 425,000 Gems
Call of Duty - 2,500,000 Points
Candy Crush Saga - 250,000 Gold Bars
Change - finish the game
Chronicles of Riddick - 150,000 UD
Clash of Clans - 2,500,000 Gems
Clash Royale - 2,500,000 Gems
Cookie Clicker - 300,000 Cookies
Cookie Run Kingdom - 2,500,000 Crystals
Cowboy Bebop - 13,461,539 Woolongs
Cyberpunk - 11,208,707,759 Eurodollars
Dead by Daylight - 2,500,000 Auric Cells
Demolition Man - 25 Credits
DemonCrawl - 3,125,000 Tokens
Destiny 2 - 2,500,000 Silver
Disco Zoo - 375,000 DiscoBux
Discworld - 150.00 Ankh-Morpork Dollar or 40,000 Crowns
Disney Ducks Comic Universe
Volcano Valley - 2,500,000,000 Volcanovian Pezozies
Donald Duck - 1,250 Bajillion Pecos
Diablo Immortal - 1,800,180 Eternal Orbs
Disney Emoji Blitz - 219,298,000 Coins or 1,315,780 Gems
Doctor Who - 784,094 Credits
Donkey Kong - 999 Banana Coins
Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom - 83,334 Whuffie
Dragon Mania Legends - 28,470,070,000 Gold or 950,060 Gems
Dragonball Z - 50,000 Zeni
DragonVale - 500 Trunks, 1 Bag, and 1 Pile
Dune - 15,254 Solari
Dungeons and Dragons - 198 Platinum Pieces, 4 Gold Pieces, 1 Silver Piece, and 3 Copper Pieces
Dys4ia - finish the game
Egg Inc. - 17,000,000 Golden Eggs
Elite Dangerous - 31,250,000 ARX
Exoracer - 400,000 Diamonds
Fallen London - 140,000 Fate
Fallout - 1,605 Bottle Caps
Fate/Grand Order - 42,709 Saint Quartz
Felix the Cat - 12,500,000,000,000 Bakshee
Final Fantasy VII - 1,366,121 Gil
Fishing Planet - 194,159,000 Credits or 1,941,590 Baitcoins
Fortnite - 3,125,000 V-Bucks
Gaia Online - 2,500,000 Gaia Cash or 125,000,000,000,000 Gold or 12,500,000 Platinum or 125,000 Flynn's Booties
Game of Thrones - 25 Gold Dragons
Genshin Impact - 1,500,000 Genesis Crystals
Going Under - 10,000,000,000 Styxcoin
Gorilla Tag - 5,000,000 Shiny Rocks
Growtopia - 875,000,000 Gems
Guardians of the Galaxy - 10,715 Units
Guild Wars 2 - 2,000,000 Gems
GURPS - 140,108,846 Gold, 19 Silver, and 13 Copper
Halo - 57,073.82 Credits
Harry Potter - 3,401 Galleons, 6 Sickles, and 4 Knuts
Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage - 2,916,667 Crystals
High Frontier 4 All - 1 Aqua
HoboWars - 25,000 Points
Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh - 50,283,334 Gleeblos
Honkai: Star Rail - 1,620,180 Stellar Jades or 1,620,180 Oneiric Shards
Hunter × Hunter - 2,916,667 Jenny
Hypixel - 3,375,000 SkyBlock Gems or 2,500,000 Gold or 31,250 Loot Chests
In Time - 3.259 average Gregorian years
Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? - 2,625,000 Vals
Jacksfilms - 138,889 YIAY Tokens
Jetpack Joyride - 250,000,000 Coins
Juego de Tronos - 8,966,966 Gold, 43 Silver, and 1 Copper
Kamen Rider Build - 25,000 Dollark
Keeper of the Lost Cities - 1 Luster
Kingdom Hearts - 18,797 Munny
Kingdom of Loathing - 2,500 Mr. Accessories
Kirby series - 3,125,600 Gem Apples
League of Legends - 3,250,000 Riot Points
LEGO series - 32 Studs
Limbus Company - 1,750,000 Lunacy
Lord of the Rings Online - 2,875,600 LOTRO Points or 359,425 Mithril Coins
Magikarp Jump - 1,250,000 Diamonds
Mario series
exact price - 277,778 Mushroom Coins or 277,778 Koopabits
Dr. Mario World - 277,778 Mushroom Coins or 375,000 Diamonds
Super Mario 3D World - 👑👑👑 Lives and 99 Mushroom Coins
3D Mario games - 99 Lives and 49 Mushroom Coins
2D Mario games - 99 Lives and 99 Mushroom Coins
Super Mario Odyssey - 9,999 Mushroom Coins
Super Mario Land 2 - 999 Mushroom Coins
Bowser's Fury - 99 Mushroom Coins
Mario & Luigi: Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga - play until the part where you win the bet against Prince Peasley
Mario Kart Tour - 37,500 Rubies
Mass Effect - 156250 Credits
Merge Dragons - 625,000 Dragon Gems
Minecraft - 64 Emeralds
Minecraft: Bedrock Edition - 4,250,000 Minecoins
Monster Hunter - 2,625,000 Zeni
Monster Legends - 325,000 Gems
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic - 2,500 Bits
My Singing Monsters - 500,000 Diamonds
Narnia - 100,000 Lions
Neko Atsume - 1,875,000 Gold Fish
Neopets - 2,500,000 Neocash
New World - 25,000,000 Gold Coins
Nineteen Eighty Four - 25,000.00 Oceanian Dollars
Ninja Kiwi - 625,000 NK Coins
Naruto - 262,500 Ryō
Odd Squad - 25,000 Jackalope Dollars
One Piece - 2,625,000 Belly or 26,250,000,000 Extol
Path of Exile - 6,250,000 Chaos Orbs or 100,000 Exalted Orbs
Pixel Gun 3D - 750,000 Gems
Plants vs. Zombies 2 - 50,000,000 Coins or 250,000 Gems
Pluto Nash - 3 Hillaries
Pocket Trains - 3,000,000 Bux
Pokémon series - 999,999 Pokédollars
Pokémon Go - 1,718,750 Pokécoins
Pokémon Sword and Shield - 175,000 Watts
Pokémon UNITE - 1,531,250 Aeos Gems
Progressbar95 - 125,000 Product Keys
Ratchet & Clank - 38,462 Metal Bolts
Rebuild World - 2,625,000 Aurum
Red Dwarf - 1,308 Dollar Pounds and 25 Pennycents
Rick and Morty - 125,000 Flurbos
Roblox - 2,000,000 Robux
Rocket League - 2,500,000 Credits
Roma - 1,685,519,963 Denarius and 4 Sesterius
Sea of Thieves - 2,291,667 Ancient Coins
Second Life - 8,000,000 Linden Dollars
Shadowrun - 11,208,707,759 Nuyen or 33,626,123,276 Rubles
Slow Life in Another World (I Wish!) - 2,625,000 Nohl
Snow White with the Red Hair - 2,625,000 Dill
Sonic series - 4,556,386 Rings
Sonic Forces: Speed Battle - 2,500,000 Red Star Rings
Spaceballs - 82,667 Space Bucks
Sprawl Trilogy - 1,086,957 New Yen
Spy X Family - 8,203 Dalc and 13 Ostanian Pents
Spyro - 166,667 Gems
Star Trek - 516,235 Federation Credits or 250,000 Darsek
Star Trek (Mari) - 675,676 Renn
Star Trek (United Federation of Planets) - 12,500 Federation Credits
Star Trek: The Next Generation - 15 Bars of Gold-pressed Latinum, 15 Strips, and 6 Slips
Star Wars - 500,000 Galactic Credit Standards
Stardew Valley - 500g
Stormbringer - 186,811,795 Gold, 9 Silver, and 8 Copper
Street Fighter - 3,137 Bison Dollars
Subway Surfers - 225,000,000 Coins or 125,000 Keys
Sword Art Online: Gun Gale Online - 262,500,000 Credits
Team Fortress 2 - 10,000 Keys
Temple Run - 250,000,000 Coins
Terraria - 2 Silver Coins
The Ballad of Rika Strong-Arm - 148 Gold Pieces
The Battle Cats - 750,000 Cat Food
The Binding of Isaac - impossible because you can only hold 99¢
The Elder Scrolls - 11,004 Septim
The Flintstones - 7,813 Clams
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - 428,572 Altarian dollars
The Impossible Game 2 - 2,000,000 Blocks
The Number of the Beast - 25 New Dollars
The Office - 250,000,000 Schrute Bucks
The Sims - 19,380 Simoleons
The Witcher - 83,334 Crowns or 63,452 Orens
Tiny Tower - 7,500,000 Bux
Touhou LostWord - 760,000 God Crystals
Trigun - 90,580 Double Dollars
Truxton King - 17,858 Gavvo
War Robots - 3,000,000 Gold
Warframe - 375,000 Platinum
What Mad Universe - 250,000 Credits
Who Framed Roger Rabbit - 2,808,989 Simoleons
World Flipper - 1,000,000 Lodestar Beads
World of Tanks and World of Warplanes - 3,418,997,741,500 Gold
World of Warcraft Classic - 2,375,000 Gold
World of Warcraft The Burning Crusade - 3,500,000 Gold Coins
World of Warships - 9,375,000,000 Credits or 6,250,000 Doubloons
Zelda - 999 Rupees
The values are not guaranteed to be accurate. In fact, I have found many cases of contradictory information on the internet. But you don't care about that anyway, do you? This isn't about the exact value anyway. These are all meant to be rough estimates to give you a sense of scale.
/uj If you donate gold in Gaia Online, the company will donate money to charity. I find this mechanic to be a really good idea and I would like to see it more often because it enables players to support the less fortunate without having to donate their own money. Just imagine if every game on this list gave you the option to donate $25,000 worth of in-game money which would then be donated to transgender causes and unlock the Trans Ally achievement! I know it would be very cumbersome to unlock, but completionists would definitely go for it and also, it would be done for a good cause!
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/rj Did you know you can make it so that every time an amount of money is shown, its value is converted into transgender transitions?
Simply get Universal Automatic Currency Converter, then scroll down to Custom display and enter the following:
Use custom display: ☑
Custom display: ¤ 🏳️⚧️
Custom conversion rate: 0.00004
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/uj The original post was removed by Reddit's spam filters so I uploaded it again without the links in the list. The original list with the links in them will be in the comments.
submitted by k819799amvrhtcom to transgendercirclejerk [link] [comments]
Want a new and interesting way to play your favorite videogame? I got one with a transgender theme that is interesting, challenging, easy to implement, and compatible with almost any videogame, so it's a Mario challenge, a Pokémon challenge, a Minecraft challenge, and so on and so forth, all at the same time!
The Plot
You, and anyone who wants to try the challenge with you if it's a multiplayer game, are a trans ally, and your job is to collect money to pay for your transgender friend's transition. You win by acquiring enough in-game money. You are allowed to consult the internet, use passwords from the internet, commit in-game crimes, purchase microtransactions, abuse glitches, use cheat codes, and even hack the game to reach your goal, but is it really worth the effort? You are kinda expected to use the easiest way to win the challenge that you know of.The Rules
Rule #1: You have to get the money you need for a transition. In order to make the challenge less boring for you, I did the research for you and came to the result of $25,000. However, this value might change if you try out this challenge in the far future, meaning that this challenge technically changes depending on when you attempt it. The value is expected to rise even further with inflation, or perhaps it might be reduced with the invention of more efficient surgery techniques. If the USA ever starts getting the universal healthcare system or a societal breakdown makes these surgeries impossible, this challenge will refer to the cost of the legal name & gender change, instead. And if that also ever becomes free then just choose a different country where it isn't free yet. But this is not going to change anytime soon (When do you think this challenge will become obsolete?) so, for now, you just have to remember to collect $25,000 in in-game money. This applies to every game that uses $ for in-game money. If the game uses £ or ¥ or € or any other real-world value, you'll have to convert it. Here's an online tool for converting currencies, which also supports various cryptocurrencies and custom rate dates. If the maximum amount of in-game money you can hold at once is less then the challenge is simply impossible. This only applies to non-videogame currencies.Rule #2: If the in-game currency is fictional then you'll have to convert it (rounded up to the next smallest divisible part). It's easy if you can buy in-game money with real money, even if that feature doesn't work because of a glitch or something. Otherwise, you'll have to do some research. If you can't find any direct information on the internet, I would suggest starting here to get a basic idea on how to calculate that. If there are multiple in-game currencies you are allowed to split the price of the transition among them in any way you want, provided you know the value of all of them. If there is no in-game currency then you are allowed to use points instead. If the game doesn't have points either then you can try to invent a substitute currency but it has to be something that would actually work as a substitute currency in the world you're in. If that's not possible either then the only way for you to win this challenge is to raise real money by doing a let's play of the game. But then you'll have to actually pay for a real trans person's transition (yourself included) or donate the money to transgender-related causes to actually win the challenge. Here's a website that lets you donate for transgender causes. If the amount of in-game money you can hold at once is less or you were unable to find out how much you need then you are also allowed to simply collect the maximum possible amount instead because games will never ask you for more money than you can hold for a single product, meaning that this would have to be the in-game prize of a transition, as transitions are always for only a single person. This only applies to videogame currencies.
Rule #3: You do not need to finish the game. All you need to do to win this challenge is to get the money somehow. Please keep in mind that the exchange rate isn't constant. The exact amount you need to win the challenge has to be enough in the moment when you have the amount. You automatically win the challenge the moment this is the case.
Rule #4: You need to get the money in less than 31 in-game years. This number was calculated by subtracting the age at which children begin to have an innate sense of their own gender (4 years) from the average lifespan of a trans person (35 years). If the game has time-travelling elements, you are allowed to use those to extend the time limit. However, it only counts if this actually involves time itself and not just the timer. The same also goes the other way around: Travelling into the future or even moving in relativistic speeds will decrease the time limit. If the time limit runs out, I hope you have a way to return back to the past later!
Rule #5: If you can choose between multiple difficulty settings, you are allowed to choose the easiest one. In fact, you are expected to. Trans people are already on hard mode and the idea of being an ally is to specifically use the possibilities given to you to help those with fewer possibilities than you. If you have the option to select an easier difficulty setting which would make it easier for you to win this challenge, use it. Even if you're already used to playing on a higher difficulty mode. Not doing so would be considered bad strategy on your part. You are allowed to choose a higher difficulty setting, but please only do so if this actually gives you some advantages, like more rewards, more levels, or faster gameplay. This challenge gives you no bonus points for selecting a higher difficulty setting.
Rule #6: Emulation, and all tricks that come with it, are explicitly allowed. Doing so might be against the law but it is explicitly not against the rules of this challenge. The reason for this is because being transgender has been illegal for a long time and still is in many states, forcing many people to break the law in order to live their lives. The police have historically targeted trans and gender non-conforming folks. Stonewall was a riot against police brutality. I am not advocating for doing anything illegal. I am, however, saying that you should never use the law to argue for the morality of anything trans-related, as doing so would be disrespectful towards a huge part of transgender history. Therefore, this rule will remain in effect even if being transgender ever becomes legal worldwide.
In order to make the challenge even less boring for you, I have started researching loads of fictional currencies and how much money you would have to collect there for this challenge so you don't have to.
A Song of Ice and Fire - 19 Gold Dragons and 1 Copper Star or 39 Hands
Albion Online - 4,752,500 Gold
Among Us - 250,000 Stars
Animal Crossing - 2,625,000 Bells
Animal Jam - 69,833 Diamonds
Animal Jam - 2,688,173 Sapphires
Apex Legends - 2,500,000 Apex Coins
Arcaea - 2,550,000 Memories
Archage Unchained - 125,000,000 Coins
Arknights - 30,000 Originium
Ashes of Creation - 3,376,000 Embers
Astroneer - 2,500,000 QBits
Avatar - 166,666.67 Yuan
Azur Lane - 1,531,440 Gems
Baldi's Basics in Education and Learning - 2,500,000 You Thought Points
Banjo-Kazooie - 900 Musical Notes
BattleTech - 2,500 C-Bills
Be Funny Now! - 2,625,000 Gems
Bioshock Infinite - 715 Silver Eagles
Bloons Monkey City - 1,250,000 Bloonstones
Bloons TD Battles - 625,000 Medallions
Bloons TD Battles 2 - 13,000,000 Monkey Money
Bloons Tower Defense 5 - 19,318,182 Monkey Money
Bloons Tower Defense 5 - 150,000 Tokens
Bloons Tower Defense 6 - 17,500,000 Monkey Money
Boomlings - 93,750,000 Gold
Brawl Stars - 425,000 Gems
Call of Duty - 2,500,000 Points
Candy Crush Saga - 250,000 Gold Bars
Change - finish the game
Chronicles of Riddick - 150,000 UD
Clash of Clans - 2,500,000 Gems
Clash Royale - 2,500,000 Gems
Cookie Clicker - 300,000 Cookies
Cookie Run Kingdom - 2,500,000 Crystals
Cowboy Bebop - 13,461,539 Woolongs
Cyberpunk - 11,208,707,759 Eurodollars
Dead by Daylight - 2,500,000 Auric Cells
Demolition Man - 25 Credits
DemonCrawl - 3,125,000 Tokens
Destiny 2 - 2,500,000 Silver
Disco Zoo - 375,000 DiscoBux
Discworld - 150.00 Ankh-Morpork Dollar or 40,000 Crowns
Disney Ducks Comic Universe
Volcano Valley - 2,500,000,000 Volcanovian Pezozies
Donald Duck - 1,250 Bajillion Pecos
Diablo Immortal - 1,800,180 Eternal Orbs
Disney Emoji Blitz - 219,298,000 Coins or 1,315,780 Gems
Doctor Who - 784,094 Credits
Donkey Kong - 999 Banana Coins
Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom - 83,334 Whuffie
Dragon Mania Legends - 28,470,070,000 Gold or 950,060 Gems
Dragonball Z - 50,000 Zeni
DragonVale - 500 Trunks, 1 Bag, and 1 Pile
Dune - 15,254 Solari
Dungeons and Dragons - 198 Platinum Pieces, 4 Gold Pieces, 1 Silver Piece, and 3 Copper Pieces
Dys4ia - finish the game
Egg Inc. - 17,000,000 Golden Eggs
Elite Dangerous - 31,250,000 ARX
Exoracer - 400,000 Diamonds
Fallen London - 140,000 Fate
Fallout - 1,605 Bottle Caps
Fate/Grand Order - 42,709 Saint Quartz
Felix the Cat - 12,500,000,000,000 Bakshee
Final Fantasy VII - 1,366,121 Gil
Fishing Planet - 194,159,000 Credits or 1,941,590 Baitcoins
Fortnite - 3,125,000 V-Bucks
Gaia Online - 2,500,000 Gaia Cash or 125,000,000,000,000 Gold or 12,500,000 Platinum or 125,000 Flynn's Booties
Game of Thrones - 25 Gold Dragons
Genshin Impact - 1,500,000 Genesis Crystals
Going Under - 10,000,000,000 Styxcoin
Gorilla Tag - 5,000,000 Shiny Rocks
Growtopia - 875,000,000 Gems
Guardians of the Galaxy - 10,715 Units
Guild Wars 2 - 2,000,000 Gems
GURPS - 140,108,846 Gold, 19 Silver, and 13 Copper
Halo - 57,073.82 Credits
Harry Potter - 3,401 Galleons, 6 Sickles, and 4 Knuts
Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage - 2,916,667 Crystals
High Frontier 4 All - 1 Aqua
HoboWars - 25,000 Points
Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh - 50,283,334 Gleeblos
Honkai: Star Rail - 1,620,180 Stellar Jades or 1,620,180 Oneiric Shards
Hunter × Hunter - 2,916,667 Jenny
Hypixel - 3,375,000 SkyBlock Gems or 2,500,000 Gold or 31,250 Loot Chests
In Time - 3.259 average Gregorian years
Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? - 2,625,000 Vals
Jacksfilms - 138,889 YIAY Tokens
Jetpack Joyride - 250,000,000 Coins
Juego de Tronos - 8,966,966 Gold, 43 Silver, and 1 Copper
Kamen Rider Build - 25,000 Dollark
Keeper of the Lost Cities - 1 Luster
Kingdom Hearts - 18,797 Munny
Kingdom of Loathing - 2,500 Mr. Accessories
Kirby series - 3,125,600 Gem Apples
League of Legends - 3,250,000 Riot Points
LEGO series - 32 Studs
Limbus Company - 1,750,000 Lunacy
Lord of the Rings Online - 2,875,600 LOTRO Points or 359,425 Mithril Coins
Magikarp Jump - 1,250,000 Diamonds
Mario series
exact price - 277,778 Mushroom Coins or 277,778 Koopabits
Dr. Mario World - 277,778 Mushroom Coins or 375,000 Diamonds
Super Mario 3D World - 👑👑👑 Lives and 99 Mushroom Coins
3D Mario games - 99 Lives and 49 Mushroom Coins
2D Mario games - 99 Lives and 99 Mushroom Coins
Super Mario Odyssey - 9,999 Mushroom Coins
Super Mario Land 2 - 999 Mushroom Coins
Bowser's Fury - 99 Mushroom Coins
Mario & Luigi: Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga - play until the part where you win the bet against Prince Peasley
Mario Kart Tour - 37,500 Rubies
Mass Effect - 156250 Credits
Merge Dragons - 625,000 Dragon Gems
Minecraft - 64 Emeralds
Minecraft: Bedrock Edition - 4,250,000 Minecoins
Monster Hunter - 2,625,000 Zeni
Monster Legends - 325,000 Gems
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic - 2,500 Bits
My Singing Monsters - 500,000 Diamonds
Narnia - 100,000 Lions
Neko Atsume - 1,875,000 Gold Fish
Neopets - 2,500,000 Neocash
New World - 25,000,000 Gold Coins
Nineteen Eighty Four - 25,000.00 Oceanian Dollars
Ninja Kiwi - 625,000 NK Coins
Naruto - 262,500 Ryō
Odd Squad - 25,000 Jackalope Dollars
One Piece - 2,625,000 Belly or 26,250,000,000 Extol
Path of Exile - 6,250,000 Chaos Orbs or 100,000 Exalted Orbs
Pixel Gun 3D - 750,000 Gems
Plants vs. Zombies 2 - 50,000,000 Coins or 250,000 Gems
Pluto Nash - 3 Hillaries
Pocket Trains - 3,000,000 Bux
Pokémon series - 999,999 Pokédollars
Pokémon Go - 1,718,750 Pokécoins
Pokémon Sword and Shield - 175,000 Watts
Pokémon UNITE - 1,531,250 Aeos Gems
Progressbar95 - 125,000 Product Keys
Ratchet & Clank - 38,462 Metal Bolts
Rebuild World - 2,625,000 Aurum
Red Dwarf - 1,308 Dollar Pounds and 25 Pennycents
Rick and Morty - 125,000 Flurbos
Roblox - 2,000,000 Robux
Rocket League - 2,500,000 Credits
Roma - 1,685,519,963 Denarius and 4 Sesterius
Sea of Thieves - 2,291,667 Ancient Coins
Second Life - 8,000,000 Linden Dollars
Shadowrun - 11,208,707,759 Nuyen or 33,626,123,276 Rubles
Slow Life in Another World (I Wish!) - 2,625,000 Nohl
Snow White with the Red Hair - 2,625,000 Dill
Sonic series - 4,556,386 Rings
Sonic Forces: Speed Battle - 2,500,000 Red Star Rings
Spaceballs - 82,667 Space Bucks
Sprawl Trilogy - 1,086,957 New Yen
Spy X Family - 8,203 Dalc and 13 Ostanian Pents
Spyro - 166,667 Gems
Star Trek - 516,235 Federation Credits or 250,000 Darsek
Star Trek (Mari) - 675,676 Renn
Star Trek (United Federation of Planets) - 12,500 Federation Credits
Star Trek: The Next Generation - 15 Bars of Gold-pressed Latinum, 15 Strips, and 6 Slips
Star Wars - 500,000 Galactic Credit Standards
Stardew Valley - 500g
Stormbringer - 186,811,795 Gold, 9 Silver, and 8 Copper
Street Fighter - 3,137 Bison Dollars
Subway Surfers - 225,000,000 Coins or 125,000 Keys
Sword Art Online: Gun Gale Online - 262,500,000 Credits
Team Fortress 2 - 10,000 Keys
Temple Run - 250,000,000 Coins
Terraria - 2 Silver Coins
The Ballad of Rika Strong-Arm - 148 Gold Pieces
The Battle Cats - 750,000 Cat Food
The Binding of Isaac - impossible because you can only hold 99¢
The Elder Scrolls - 11,004 Septim
The Flintstones - 7,813 Clams
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - 428,572 Altarian dollars
The Impossible Game 2 - 2,000,000 Blocks
The Number of the Beast - 25 New Dollars
The Office - 250,000,000 Schrute Bucks
The Sims - 19,380 Simoleons
The Witcher - 83,334 Crowns or 63,452 Orens
Tiny Tower - 7,500,000 Bux
Touhou LostWord - 760,000 God Crystals
Trigun - 90,580 Double Dollars
Truxton King - 17,858 Gavvo
War Robots - 3,000,000 Gold
Warframe - 375,000 Platinum
What Mad Universe - 250,000 Credits
Who Framed Roger Rabbit - 2,808,989 Simoleons
World Flipper - 1,000,000 Lodestar Beads
World of Tanks and World of Warplanes - 3,418,997,741,500 Gold
World of Warcraft Classic - 2,375,000 Gold
World of Warcraft The Burning Crusade - 3,500,000 Gold Coins
World of Warships - 9,375,000,000 Credits or 6,250,000 Doubloons
Zelda - 999 Rupees
The values are not guaranteed to be accurate. In fact, I have found many cases of contradictory information on the internet. But you don't care about that anyway, do you? This isn't about the exact value anyway. These are all meant to be rough estimates to give you a sense of scale.
The Motivation
I was inspired by my Pokémon Trans Ally challenge that is about collecting money for a trans person's surgery. If you actually attempt this challenge you'll see that it'll usually be a very long and tedious challenge that will require a lot of experimentation, long-term planning, and doing the same things over and over again for a very long time, especially if you wanna try this as a speedrun. If the challenge bores you out, well, that is the point! The challenge is meant to give people with little or no sense of money an impression of how much money this really is! Now, you could argue that this challenge could theoretically be used to visualize any amount of money, and you would technically be correct, but I still think that a transgender transition is one of the best matches for this challenge because:- A transition is always only for one person. We aren't talking about a company buying another company or a country investing in more infrastructure. This is something within the realm of a single person so it makes sense to have this be a challenge for a single person or a small group.
- This is not a luxury item like a famous painting or a private jet. Overwhelming scientific evidence proves that this is a medical necessity that trans people require in order to live like the majority of people. It is not something you want but something you need. So you can really say that acquiring all this money is really something that they have to go through. Therefore, unless you are transgender yourself, I would really recommend you to actually play the challenge until the end, even if it takes you years to actually do so. Not for your enjoyment but to acknowledge trans people's struggles and maybe also to protest against the gatekeeping system.
- Unlike people who regularly need medications, the transgender transition is a once-in-a-lifetime thing and is therefore compatible with a challenge that you only play through once and then never again.
- Once your transition is over, it cannot be taken from you.
- It is not possible to request the costs to be paid for you if you can prove that you cannot afford it, meaning the only way to get it is to actually get the money.
- Being trans is not an illness or a disability. Trans people never did anything wrong, neither deliberately nor accidentally. They are simply born with a condition that requires them to get the money. Trans people are therefore as guilt-free as a typical videogame hero.
The Fun Facts
- If you collect 1,000,000 coins in Super Mario Bros. 2, you win a golden Mario statue. This is actually more money than required for the trans ally challenge!
- If payment by installments were supported by this challenge then the most cumbersome game to do this challenge in would be The Binding of Isaac, because that would require you to send at least 25,253 installments. You would have to max out your money counter every 10¾ hours on average.
- You immediately win the challenge if you try it on a game where the money you start with is already high enough. For example, in the game The Roll Ahead, you play as either Bill Gates or Steve Jobs and you start out with 35 Billion.
- In the game Anti-Monopoly, you win by losing your money. However, if you try this challenge in this game, you'll still have to gain money. This is kinda the opposite of a coinless challenge because where a coinless challenge makes positive money negative, this challenge makes negative money positive.
- Characters like the monk from Crypt of the NecroDancer, Entity from depict1, and Default Dan from Default Dan die upon touching money. Kinda makes you think, doesn't it?
- The purple coins in the Super Mario Galaxy series, the Butz in Kappa Mikey, the Glotkies in Taxi, the coins in Syobon Action, and the Rasbukniks in Li'l Abner are worth nothing.
- If World of Anime Babes was a real game then this challenge would require 1,250,000,000 tokens. As the narrator said: "Big numbers are better, right?" One way to get this money would be by selling like 1,000 in-game outfits.
- If you are playing a game taking place in the medieval time, the challenge would require you to get 411¼ medieval pennies.
- If you wanna make the monetary values more immersive, you can look at how they are depicted in the menu of microtransactions. For example, Clash of Clans groups predefined values of gems into bags, sacks, boxes, and chests that therefore represent specific amounts of gems and could therefore be regarded as higher currency units. For example, 2,500,000 gems fit into 179 chests. Sure, this won't help you with strategizing, but it will certainly make it more interesting for your audience!
- According to this article, this challenge would require you to get 129,058,751 Simeons. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to determine which franchise Simeons are from.
- The Ztars from Mario Party and the Rupoors from The Legend of Zelda are currencies that actually take money away from you, making their exchange rates negative!
- If Terrance & Phillip: Give Us Your Money was a real game then this challenge would require 10,204,200 Canadian Coins. This value was calculated under the assumption that everyone would realize that the cheapest deal is actually the best deal. One way to get this money would be by not playing the game 2,041 times. Oh good, you're already on it. But will you make it within the time limit?
- The values of LEGO Studs were calculated using the value of a human life. If you applied this logic to every game with currency units that are worth ¹⁄₁₀₀ life each then a single one of those currency units would already be enough to win this challenge and if you applied this logic to every game where 10,000 points give you an extra life then this challenge would require you to earn 32 points, but only if there isn't already an in-game currency.
- The fictional currency with the highest inflation rate I could find was in Elbonia, the rate being 1,000,000,000% daily. Despite the high time limit, I would recommend you to hurry with getting enough money there if you even can.
- The average age at the time the RTS Rise of Nations takes place in was roughly 31 years, which would reduce this challenge's time limit to 27 in-game years at most. Which would be about 2.08 real-time seconds according to estimations made by PeanutButterGamer, according to which the time limit for Diablo would be 6 in-game years and the challenge would be impossible for SimAnt.
- For obvious reasons, a society can only survive if its maximum lifespan is at least the minimum age of fertility. Due to precocious puberty, the world records for the youngest biological parents are 9 years for microgametic parents and 5 years and 7 months for macrogametic parents, meaning that the maximum lifespan of any human society must always be at least 9 years. Since 9 years are more than 4 years, it therefore follows that transgender healthcare benefits all possible human societies. Remember this if you ever attempt this challenge on a game that takes place in a society where these values are different for whatever reason, like a society of anthropomorphic animals for example.
- If the average lifespan was less than 4 years then the average lifespan of a trans person would actually be higher than the average lifespan as a whole. This is because trans people who die before the age of 4 would not be included in the statistic, due to being undetectable. If that happens, you'll have to recalculate what the statistic would be.
- Transgender surgery is older than the discovery of Pluto, modern toilet paper, chicken tikka masala, duct tape, ballpoint pens, ciabatta bread, Velcro, and Tupperware.
- The Wumpa Fruit from Crash Bandicoot are also a form of currency, as was revealed in some games. A Wumpa Fruit is worth exactly the same as a piece of gold in Skylanders. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find out what either of those are worth.
- The most valuable fictional currency that I could find was the Aqua from High Frontier 4 All, which is estimated to be a three-digit million $ amount.
- Team Kirby Clash Deluxe and Super Kirby Clash value Gem Apples differently. I based their value on Super Kirby Clash because Team Kirby Crash Deluxe only lets you purchase a maximum of 3,000 Gem Apples, meaning that Super Kirby Clash would be more practical for purchases over $29.85. Noone would accept a payment of 838 installments if a more practical way of payment is possible.
- This challenge would require 2,500,000 Nuggets in the game PokéHeroes but I didn't add it to the list because it's a fangame and I didn't wanna confuse.
/uj If you donate gold in Gaia Online, the company will donate money to charity. I find this mechanic to be a really good idea and I would like to see it more often because it enables players to support the less fortunate without having to donate their own money. Just imagine if every game on this list gave you the option to donate $25,000 worth of in-game money which would then be donated to transgender causes and unlock the Trans Ally achievement! I know it would be very cumbersome to unlock, but completionists would definitely go for it and also, it would be done for a good cause!
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/rj Did you know you can make it so that every time an amount of money is shown, its value is converted into transgender transitions?
Simply get Universal Automatic Currency Converter, then scroll down to Custom display and enter the following:
Use custom display: ☑
Custom display: ¤ 🏳️⚧️
Custom conversion rate: 0.00004
---
/uj The original post was removed by Reddit's spam filters so I uploaded it again without the links in the list. The original list with the links in them will be in the comments.
2023.05.31 12:13 nOboDy_110811 LOOKING TO BUY THE FOLLOWING ITEMS!!!!!!!!!
- Pleated skirt (1.3k)
- North Pole Presents skirt (2k)
-Sleigh it skirt (1.3k)
-Midnight Popstar skirt (3k)
- Fluttering Butterfly skirt (4.5k)
-Popstar Boots (5.5k)
-Dragging Train rose Dress (7k)
- Royal stroll in the Garden (4.5k)
-Adorable lace ups (5k)
- Pastel High tops (7k)
-Rainbow high tops (8k)
-High School lacey ups (5k)
- Thigh High boots (8k)
-Huggly Snuggly boots (5k)
-Jelly Plats (3k)
-Miss Lady rose bodice (4k)
-Midnight popstar Bodice (4k)
-Fluttering butterfly bodice (5k)
-Worm Bodice (3k)
- Val Cuffs (1k)
-Midnight popstar cuffs (1K)
-Peppermint sleeves (1k)
-Over the rainbow sleeves (1k)
GOING OFF TRADERIE VALUES !!!!!! Will not be able to afford a whole bunch of these at once as I am broke as heck atm!. Let me know in the comments which ones you Have and I will tell you if I can pay right then.
PRICES ARE NEGOTIABLE!!!
submitted by nOboDy_110811 to RoyaleHighTrading [link] [comments]
- North Pole Presents skirt (2k)
-Sleigh it skirt (1.3k)
-Midnight Popstar skirt (3k)
- Fluttering Butterfly skirt (4.5k)
-Popstar Boots (5.5k)
-Dragging Train rose Dress (7k)
- Royal stroll in the Garden (4.5k)
-Adorable lace ups (5k)
- Pastel High tops (7k)
-Rainbow high tops (8k)
-High School lacey ups (5k)
- Thigh High boots (8k)
-Huggly Snuggly boots (5k)
-Jelly Plats (3k)
-Miss Lady rose bodice (4k)
-Midnight popstar Bodice (4k)
-Fluttering butterfly bodice (5k)
-Worm Bodice (3k)
- Val Cuffs (1k)
-Midnight popstar cuffs (1K)
-Peppermint sleeves (1k)
-Over the rainbow sleeves (1k)
GOING OFF TRADERIE VALUES !!!!!! Will not be able to afford a whole bunch of these at once as I am broke as heck atm!. Let me know in the comments which ones you Have and I will tell you if I can pay right then.
PRICES ARE NEGOTIABLE!!!
2023.05.31 06:47 FriendlyMacGoer CARS Diagnostic Passage 12 - I don't understand this at all...
Option D seems supported in the passage. I was skeptical cause it was a bit on the nose with the wording but I went with it since the other options didn't make sense.
For option A I can understand divine being used to describe Greek rage. But how does "all-too-human" represent Archilles egotism??
Are we supposed to know what all-too-human means? 💩
submitted by FriendlyMacGoer to Mcat [link] [comments]
For option A I can understand divine being used to describe Greek rage. But how does "all-too-human" represent Archilles egotism??
Are we supposed to know what all-too-human means? 💩
2023.05.30 05:12 Jaeyellowpost And I wouldn't like me either. A pathological overthinker.
Hindi ko alam kung bakit patuloy akong pumapasok sa sitwasyon na ganito. Yung walang label. Ang hirap. I am already starting to care about you. Pero hindi kita matanong kung okay ka pa ba. Okay pa ba to? Bakit ang cold mo na lately? Di ko alam kung dapat ko bang icommunicate sayo yung thoughts ko. Nakahanap ka na ba ng iba? Nagooverthink lang ba ako? Since last week, pakiramdam ko object nalang ako sayo. Ayoko namang ighost ka. Pero takot akong mareject mo. Hindi ko alam kung marereciprocate mo to kung sabihin ko man sayo. Itigil na ba natin? Gusto ko na ng assurance. Gusto ko na ng something more. Pero natatakot akong tanungin ka kasi hindi ako sigurado na ready na akong mawala ka kung iba yung sagot mo.
I know I should be always willing to walk away. Alam ko naman worth ko. I don't want to be your online booty call. Pero ang hirap pala.
submitted by Jaeyellowpost to OffMyChestPH [link] [comments]
I know I should be always willing to walk away. Alam ko naman worth ko. I don't want to be your online booty call. Pero ang hirap pala.
2023.05.29 19:31 Bordergirl69 35[T4M] Sexy fuckable CD ass ready to be mounted after work. Any studs in need? #SanMateo
Door unlocked walk in find me in bed wearing a sexy slutty outfit with my cute premium ass up, you touch or lick it, I kneel down and give you the best deep head ever, then I will turn around bend over and offer you my sexy butt for you to pound nice and deep, talk dirty to me, spank my cute booty, do me the way you want and you can't have at home, all this while str8 p0rn is playing, you have your pleasure, cum loud, slap my ass as a good job, and go back to your regular life with a big smile. I'm a sexy fem curvy (not fat)CD gurl, 35yo, 5 7', 165lbs, sexy pair of legs, talented deep mouth, and a great fuckable ass, natural smooth soft skin, very clean and healthy, std free, HIV-, Covid and Monkey Pox vaccinated, and tested recently, condoms available. I doll up all the way, great hygiene. I'm pretty, fem, and look like a sexy bitch, but I’m very discreet so I WONT send FACE pic out, but believe me I'm worth it. Are you the stud I'm looking for? Then send full stats and pics, be in shape or at least hwp, DDF, married guys get me going, tall older white and black guys to the front, muscle and hung welcome, but everybody can apply. Hosting now for the rest of the day, but the sooner the better. Very convenient spot, easy to find and plenty of parking. Great for those married, bi str8 studs looking for an uncomplicated in and out safe discreet encounter. Sneak away from home, work, wife, gf, and sneak in my bed. Visiting town and bored at home, lunch time, after work or running errands? Then stop by and let's have sexy adult fun. I'm real, are you? What you see is what you get. No drugs, I do not top, and I do not travel. Only serious people, discretion a must, not into too much back and forth, one liners or sexting !Unlock Pics on my profile!!!
submitted by Bordergirl69 to SFr4r [link] [comments]
2023.05.29 17:58 TallLab1036 An in depth profile of myself.
Hello hello. I hope you enjoy this short introduction of myself.
Some have asked why I've come here to seek this, and really, why are any of us here? We're searching for something that we can't find elsewhere so we've decided to give this a shot.
I've tried other sites without luck and dating is difficult in my area. By that I mean everyone is super country, as in enjoying fishing and listening to country music while complaining about liberals. Or, to phrase it another way - guns, God and Trump. That's a hard pass for me, so this seems like the next step.
A couple of things before I start:
Distance isn't an issue for me. I'm hoping to meet someone and chat to see where things lead, if there's a connection of any sort. If there is, we can move from there. Distance is a relatively small issue if you can find someone who is truly perfect for you, after all.
I should also mention that, for the most part, age isn't an issue. To some extent it will be of course, but I don't mind a bit of an age gap in either direction at all. If it's an issue for you, that's understandable; however, if you think it will be for me, well the only way to really find out is to message me, now isn't it?
I'm open to anyone who sees this and is interested (including those of any experience level) as I don't want to limit myself when I could possibly find chemistry with someone.
Also, while I am in general an emotionally intelligent, nurturing and supportive person, I'm also a massive sadist. To be more specific, I enjoy psychological sadism (although physical sadism is definitely fun too) and that is reflected in my kinks and, to some extent, my personality. While I believe boundaries and limits are to be respected at all times, and I don't enjoy anything if my partner doesn't, I absolutely love teasing, tormenting and torturing my partner in both play and everyday life.
Prepare for a mountain of text! It's a bit long, but I assure you it's worth the read. I decided that since I'm putting myself out there with a post, I want to truly and fully put myself out there and represent myself. I'm hoping that those reading this will recognize the effort that was put into this and get a good feel for who I am as a person. If you feel it's too much, save it for later, skim or even just message me if you would rather get to know me more naturally.
My post is cobbled together from thoughts, beliefs and realizations that I have come upon in my years in the lifestyle (which is why you might see slightly different styles of writing in different parts, this post is taken from my kink profiles and are the sum result of over ten years of experience that I find I still add to every now and then. I try to edit and organize it a bit from time to time, but it's difficult due to the fact that there's so much that I wish to include.)
Long story short, I can be a bit...rambly, sometimes. So apologies in advance for that, although I have recently made great strides in editing my post. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.
While it's certainly a lengthy read, it's not nearly as bad as it seems. I recommend reading the whole thing (obviously since I wrote it), especially if you're interested in getting to know a kinky, geeky and empathetic person.
Now that I've covered that, it's time to get to the part you've been waiting for.
I'm a lighthearted, playful and fairly laid back, yet somewhat serious minded, person who's rather upbeat and probably too curious for his own good. I'm also kind, caring, friendly, sometimes cynical and often sarcastic (although in a lighthearted manner, and never at the expense of others.) There's nothing I love to do more than laugh; I love most things involving humor, although I do believe there's a very fine line between hilarity and stupidity.
Now, for some little bits of trivia about me:
Some bands I enjoy include:
While I enjoy relaxing and watching television, I have trouble watching hour long shows as I can only focus on it for so long before my attention wavers, around that time I start looking at my phone and just waiting for it to be over. It's also why I don't watch too many movies; I need my entertainment bite sized. I'll watch movies every once in a while, but they generally need to be 100 minutes tops (unless it's something I'm super into.).
I have difficulty getting into things that are realistic; they usually need to be fantastical in nature and capture my imagination. My preferred genres are comedy, horror (mainly supernatural, no slashers) and most things involving special powers or abilities, however I can sometimes get into action or drama as well. I also have a love for the world of animation, possibly because they tend to be more creative and aren't limited by reality; it's part of why I'm so partial to anime.
Some shows that I'm fond of are:
Gaming is easily one of my biggest hobbies and has been for many, many years now. I see it as an art form, as a way to tell a story that you can deeply immerse yourself in and get pulled into, something that can captivate you and make you lose all track of time because it's simply so engrossing. It's also a damn good way to have fun and kill time, especially when you're playing with friends. It's a big part of my life and something I have spent quite a bit of time and money on. Some people may be put off by this, but it a part of me that I will not deny or hide; after all, if someone has an issue with that then how compatible could we possibly be?
Some video games that hold a special place in my heart are:
Some board games that I love are:
Bring up video/board/tabletop games, super powers, comics, cartoons, anime, manga, sci-fi, fantasy or technology and I'll happily chat your ear off. I'm quite social and love to talk, however I'm also an introvert so there are plenty of times where the pressure of constant social interactions with others gets to me and I need to take some time to myself to mentally recharge.
As I mentioned, I absolutely adore animals. Seriously, if you want to make me hate a bad guy, have him hurt an animal. Ironically, I'm practically a carnivore. I'm convinced that I would starve if I had to hunt for my own food just because I couldn't bring myself to hurt them.
Speaking of food, I'm a bit of a foodie (I dislike that word, but it's accurate.) I'm all about sauces, seasonings and spices, not to mention a love for anything deep fried. I love experiencing different tastes and textures while trying new things...as long as they're not vegetables. No veggies, except corn and potatoes; those two get a pass as they're amazing. I also enjoy onions and peppers in small quantities in dishes.
I've got a nice guy next door look in that I have no tattoos or piercings, have glasses, stay clean shaven and have a bit of a baby face (as in I look rather young, I often get mistaken for being in my mid 20's). I wouldn't say that with my look I would be called handsome, sexy or hot (however I am often called cute (I've also been called handsome a fair amount, it still feels weird though.) I'm also rather pale due to the fact that I stay indoors most of the time (if you can't tell from that, I'm white.) Because of my appearance, and my friendly and laid back nature, people tend to view me as rather innocent. I suppose that isn't entirely incorrect though, I'll admit that I can be a bit naive at times in regards to people and the world.
As for politics and religion, I tend to try to stay away from both.
While I believe I'm somewhat in the middle for the former, as I have views from both sides, if I had to choose I'd say I definitely lean way more towards the left. I believe in the greater good, the needs of the many over the needs of the few, in advancing science and finding alternative fuels and materials that don't pollute or destroy our environment in the process, in trying to create a brighter future, etc, etc. I'm definitely not on the far left however, and hate social justice and cancel culture. I'm empathetic and all, but people need to stop getting offended by every tiny thIng and creating problems that don't exist. That's definitely not exclusive to the left, the right is very guilty of it as well.
For the latter, I generally just consider myself not religious as I don't think or care about it too much. If I had to classify it though I'd say I'm agnostic. This means that, while I don't believe in any god or gods, I acknowledge that they might exist. While I'm 99.3̅3̅3̅% certain that there is no grand creator or afterlife, there's no real way we can know for certain. We're a very young and ignorant species, there's much about life and the universe that we are unaware of or don't understand yet.
I just try to focus on being a good person and doing right by others, not for some earthly or heavenly reward, or for a smug sense of self satisfaction, but because it's simply what I want to do. It's who I am and what makes me feel good about myself.
I try my best to live by The Golden Rule (also known as treat others you the way you wish to be treated or do unto others as you would have them do unto you), being guided by own moral compass that directs me in how I interact with others. I always do my very best to make others feel wanted, cared for, appreciated and understood, to give them validation; I never want anyone to feel left out or unwanted, for any reason at all. Perhaps it's from my own difficult childhood, since I felt that way when I was young and don't want others to go through the same things that I did. Whatever the reason, whenever I say or do anything I tend to, without even realizing it, think about how it will affect the other person and the different ways that it could be taken. I strive to treat others with the courtesy and respect that I believe that they deserve.
As I mentioned, I have a strong moral compass. The only problem is, this is true North for my compass; I feel that's the correct way to treat and interact with others, and I believe that's what everyone should do. So when other people don't act in the way that I believe they should, even though I know everyone is different and everyone has different thoughts, feelings and experiences that led them to those (we are the product of our environments after all), it can bother me. I've come to realize that this is due to holding myself to extremely high standards, and often holding other people to the same standards to which I hold myself.
Unfortunately, that can lead to conflicts with others, sometimes over things that they might feel to be insignificant. It doesn't happen very often though as I can recognize whether something is actually a big deal or not and put it to the back of my mind; I wouldn't be a very good friend or partner if I nitpicked over every little thing, now would I? Despite being very much driven by my moral compass, I'm also calm, collected, understanding and logical by nature.
I've realized that I used to put a lot of pressure on myself when interacting with others, trying to be funny and entertaining, overall trying to make sure that they were having a good time and enjoying themselves. If, for whatever reason, I felt that they were bored I ended up trying even harder to keep them engaged and joyful. It was somewhat of a bad habit of mine; I suppose I just felt like I had a personal stake in everyone that I interacted with, a responsibility almost, and didn't want to leave them wanting. I still do this to some extent, but not as much as I used to; as I've grown and matured, and my anxiety has lessened, I've learned to pull back a bit and that I don't need to carry everyone's burden on my shoulders. I still wish to keep people engaged and happy, and still take on more responsibility than I probably should, however I imagine that I'll always be that way; it's just in my nature.
I'm an emotionally intelligent and extremely empathetic person who's well aware of his inner workings due to my introspective nature. I'm easily able to see things from multiple perspectives, which I believe is because of how I process empathy. I don't necessarily feel the exact pain of others, but I mirror it; it's second nature for me to put myself in their position which allows me to understand the plethora of ways they can think and feel. This is something that is a core part of who I am and that I take great pride in.
I feel deeply, which can lead to me taking things to heart and sometimes reading too much into things or overanalyzing them. Thankfully, due to my great experience in emotional control and regulation (which I'm about to go into), I'm generally able to take a step back from my emotions and understand the intent and meaning behind words and actions so there's less of a chance of misunderstanding.
Because I feel so deeply, that caused problems for me when I was younger. My emotions were a swirling vortex, out of control and ready to burst out at any second. Puberty certainly didn't make this any easier either.
It's been said that our personal identity is 80% environmental and 20% genetic. While I might be genetically predispositioned to feeling so deeply, a lot of it likely comes from traumas experienced in childhood and my inability to process them properly. They left scars that I'm still dealing with today, and as a result of said scars, growing up I was diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety, depression and OCD, on top of the ADHD that I already had. However, I'm thankfully in a very good place thanks to a combination of past therapy, current medication and constant reflection.
I've done a lot of work to be able to get a handle on my emotions. Because I got used to having them under such control, I've been told that at times I can come across as kind of indifferent or hard to read. That's one of the reasons that I'm such an upfront, open, honest and expressive person; I want people to be able to understand me and I generally tell exactly what I'm thinking or how something makes me feel so that others can do that.
Honestly, one of my biggest fears is that no one will ever be able to understand me like I understand myself. It's right up there with a fear of the unknown (one is the reasons I don't do deep water, I don't want to fuck with any Cthulhu monsters that are down there) and losing my memories, as in the end we're just a sum of our memories and I don't want to lose who I am.
I never claimed to be perfect; I have my flaws as well, and try to work on them every day to improve myself as a person. Since I've already put so much of myself into my profile, I thought that it was only right to put the negative parts in as well.
While some of these things could certainly be considered negative traits, I believe that they help make me the Dom that I am. Because I AM so compassionate, because I AM so empathetic, because I HAVE been through so much and still keep going, I feel that I can give a sub or a slave what she truly needs to thrive in her environment. Feel free to read more about that below.
When you combine that with my nurturing and empathetic nature this type of relationship is the natural choice for me (more on that next). I believe that's also why I find myself naturally drawn to the weak, the helpless and the damaged. I have an overwhelming desire to heal them, to help and protect them while nurturing them and watching them grow into who I know they can be, which goes with what I was saying before.
A sub knows that her Dom loves her unconditionally and only wants what is best for her. While I do certainly enjoy doing this, I primarily do this to help my sub above all else. I'm a nurturing soul who wishes nothing more than to protect his partner. To take care of her and help her when she needs it. To be her support and her life line. To give her the guidance, structure and discipline she needs to feel fulfilled in life. To set rules and guidelines so that she can move freely within those set limits and be happy. To help her decide what is best for her when she herself doesn't know. To provide the security and comfort of knowing that she is being taken care of and that she has someone she can talk to about anything without any sort of judgment or prejudice. I want her to thrive and become the person that she was always meant to be. I enjoy pushing my sub to explore her boundaries and limits, within reason of course. I simply wish to see her flourish and blossom, to help her become what I know she can be and reach higher plateaus.
I realize the previous paragraphs could sound condescending in some ways, however that couldn't be further from the truth. I see my partner as an equal, someone who simply has different needs that I can fulfill so that they can live a fulfilling life themselves, and in turn by fulfilling those needs of theirs, I feel fulfilled as well. We ultimately form a symbiotic relationship of sorts.
Make no mistake, I have no desire to micromanage every tiny detail of my sub's life, nor form a codependent relationship where she's entirely reliant upon me for her mental and emotional needs. The level and extent of the D/s relationship is decided after long discussion and input from both parties.
Some believe that being a Dom is just telling people what to do and getting what you want while getting off, but it's so much more than that. It's not as easy or simple as it appears, you must always keep what is best for your sub in mind, even if it conflicts with your own immediate or future interests. You must constantly be aware of her needs and desires while providing checks and balances to help her live a life worth living. Anyone can simply give a sub what she wants, it takes a true Dom to say no because you feel that is what is best for her.
At least that's how it should be. There are so many "Doms" out there that don't care about their subs at all, only themselves. They don't care if they're suffering physically or emotionally, they simply use them as toys they can play with and then toss aside when they're bored; they abuse them and hurt them simply because they get a kick out of it. A real Dom/sub relationship is a very special and strong bond, much more so than a vanilla relationship in my opinion. So many people seem to have issues understanding that unfortunately, there's a certain stigma associated with this and preconceptions are formed before they even learn anything about it.
Truthfully, I believe the sub holds the power in the relationship in many ways. She is the one that is choosing to submit after all, to give up her power and control to the Dom. Despite that, she is the one that has control over the power of safe words, that can stop an activity with a single utterance. Her subservience is completely voluntary, something that many people don't seem to think about. It's not simply about someone bossing someone around because they can, it's about someone choosing a partner that they feel is worthy to give their all to.
While the following is my ideal, as I said at the beginning, I'm open to talking to anyone that reads this. However, I'm not particularly interested in "littles" or "brats".
Ideally my partner would be what is typically called an adult babygirl, and I'd like to elaborate on that term since some might not be familiar with it. Essentially it's someone who enjoys the nurturing, loving and structured aspect of a Daddy Dom or DD/lg relationship but isn't a little themselves; meaning that they don't have a mental age that they regress to, among other things. (I don't identify as a Daddy myself, however due to my protective and supportive/nurturing nature you could say I'm Daddy leaning.)
Some people have their entire lives revolve around the lifestyle, going to munches, conventions, parties and attempting to reach out to their community and find a place to belong. That might work for them, but it's of no interest to me. While I'm certainly not opposed to chatting and making friends and connections, I have no desire to be a part of a community. I'm simply seeking one whose ideas and beliefs line up with my own for a symbiotic relationship as I mentioned before
If I had to describe such a relationship, it would definitely be on the lighter side of the spectrum in regards to what daily life would be like. I'm seeking a 24/7 TPE, however I also enjoy being casual with my sub. Perhaps in some ways it's more similar to a vanilla relationship with strong Dom/sub undertones than a typical BDSM relationship.
In my perfect situation, we would still be able to joke around, have fun and be very close and romantic; however there is also the constant understanding that I am in charge, and what I say goes. No matter how much fun we may be having or what we might be doing, she should always know her place, even if it's only in the back of her mind. There are rules in place for her benefit, and if she breaks those rules she will be punished.
By what I say goes, I mean I have the final say in subjects because, as a submissive, she has given the reins of power over to me. She trusts me to make her decisions for her and to do what is best for her, to take care of and protect her. I'm never the type to say "this is how it's going to be, I don't care what you want, end of discussion" as discourse is the only way two people can truly understand one another. I always value my submissive's input and always want her to give her opinion and speak her mind if something is bothering her.
My ideal sub would be one that is loyal and devoted above all else, but also one who is looking for a Dom she can actually have a connection with. One that, not necessarily needs, but craves guidance, support, structure and discipline in their life; whose life does not feel complete without this, like there is a void deep inside her that cannot be filled unless she has a Dom to guide and take care of her, that she can in turn make happy and serve to the best of her ability.
Beyond anything else though, I want to like them as a person before I love them as a sub. My perfect partner would be someone who is intelligent, kind-hearted, earnest, funny and a has a fair touch of dorkiness in her. I want her to be someone that actually has personality, that I can laugh with and talk to for hours upon hours on end and still hate the thought of leaving. Someone that will either indulge my love of games and geekery or join me because she's just as much of a fan of those things as I am. Someone who loves how I tease and torment her, keeping her on the edge and revelling in the pleasure I get from watching her squirm.
One thing to note is that just because I am very friendly (sometimes people are surprised when I begin acting more Dominant, others aren't as they say they can "sense it in the way I present myself", even while being friendly and joking around) doesn't mean that I'm not strict when I have to be. I have no problem at all with enforcing rules and giving out punishments, although it's certainly not my favorite aspect of the relationship. I would prefer to reward, encourage and nurture my sub, however there are times when discipline is necessary; if one feels the need to act up, one must be ready accept the consequences after all.
If I had to describe my style of dominance, or what makes me dominant, I suppose that would be a little tricky. I don't feel the need to control everything, nor do I attempt to, and I have no problem with kicking back and letting others take the reigns in everyday situations if I feel they're more qualified or I just plain don't feel like it. Nor am I the type that "oozes" dominance, I don't care for confrontation and am a very easy going, go with the flow person. What I believe it boils down to is I simply feel comfortable with power and, quite frankly, enjoy it. I bear the burden of leadership well, it comes naturally to me and I thrive when I have the weight of another's life on my shoulders; I have little trouble making hard decisions when I need to. It also helps that my sexual inclinations line up with this nicely. If it doesn't last quite some time and doesn't end with both parties panting and soaked in sweat, I'm not particularly interested in it.
On that note, I have quite the kinky side despite my friendly and charming exterior. I suppose I should list it here because, while certainly not the primary focus of my interest in this, sexual compatibility does factor in to some extent.
My kinks are:
I also believe very strongly in aftercare and safe words as the mental and emotional well being of my partner is very important.
I realize there's no one way to live this lifestyle, but I feel like a lot of what I said should be obvious and general knowledge in regards to this; however from my experience it doesn't seem to be that way too often (not referring to the that are inexperienced in this, more those that do this for the wrong reason), which is why I wanted to share my views in such detail.
I feel like I've rambled on enough already and am dangerously close to having a TL;DR (yeah, I hit that ages ago), so I'll just say that if you're interested in learning more about me and getting to know me, you can give me a message and we'll see where things go. I like to get to know people naturally, just talk with them and see where things lead, whether that be a short chat, a simple friendship or something more. It seems silly to have expectations when you don't even know the person or how you'll get along.
Even if you're nervous or anxious, you think you might not be good enough, doubt my intentions or anything along those lines, still give me a message. After all, what do you have to lose?
Thanks for taking the time to read my little novella, I hope to hear from you soon. So long, and thanks for reading!
submitted by TallLab1036 to u/TallLab1036 [link] [comments]
Some have asked why I've come here to seek this, and really, why are any of us here? We're searching for something that we can't find elsewhere so we've decided to give this a shot.
I've tried other sites without luck and dating is difficult in my area. By that I mean everyone is super country, as in enjoying fishing and listening to country music while complaining about liberals. Or, to phrase it another way - guns, God and Trump. That's a hard pass for me, so this seems like the next step.
Distance isn't an issue for me. I'm hoping to meet someone and chat to see where things lead, if there's a connection of any sort. If there is, we can move from there. Distance is a relatively small issue if you can find someone who is truly perfect for you, after all.
I should also mention that, for the most part, age isn't an issue. To some extent it will be of course, but I don't mind a bit of an age gap in either direction at all. If it's an issue for you, that's understandable; however, if you think it will be for me, well the only way to really find out is to message me, now isn't it?
I'm open to anyone who sees this and is interested (including those of any experience level) as I don't want to limit myself when I could possibly find chemistry with someone.
Also, while I am in general an emotionally intelligent, nurturing and supportive person, I'm also a massive sadist. To be more specific, I enjoy psychological sadism (although physical sadism is definitely fun too) and that is reflected in my kinks and, to some extent, my personality. While I believe boundaries and limits are to be respected at all times, and I don't enjoy anything if my partner doesn't, I absolutely love teasing, tormenting and torturing my partner in both play and everyday life.
My post is cobbled together from thoughts, beliefs and realizations that I have come upon in my years in the lifestyle (which is why you might see slightly different styles of writing in different parts, this post is taken from my kink profiles and are the sum result of over ten years of experience that I find I still add to every now and then. I try to edit and organize it a bit from time to time, but it's difficult due to the fact that there's so much that I wish to include.)
Long story short, I can be a bit...rambly, sometimes. So apologies in advance for that, although I have recently made great strides in editing my post. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.
While it's certainly a lengthy read, it's not nearly as bad as it seems. I recommend reading the whole thing (obviously since I wrote it), especially if you're interested in getting to know a kinky, geeky and empathetic person.
Now that I've covered that, it's time to get to the part you've been waiting for.
About me:
I decided to put this part first because I believe that, above all else, the people involved should connect on a personal level and "click", if you will. This tells about who I am and my hobbies and such. If someone can't accept this part of me, how could we possibly get along?I'm a lighthearted, playful and fairly laid back, yet somewhat serious minded, person who's rather upbeat and probably too curious for his own good. I'm also kind, caring, friendly, sometimes cynical and often sarcastic (although in a lighthearted manner, and never at the expense of others.) There's nothing I love to do more than laugh; I love most things involving humor, although I do believe there's a very fine line between hilarity and stupidity.
Now, for some little bits of trivia about me:
- According to the Myers-Briggs system, I'm an INFP. Online tests can give you an idea of where to start, but they're not that reliable and the results can change depending on your mood that day. To truly discover your type requires self-reflection to learn about your cognitive functions, and while doing so I learned a lot about myself. I don't follow it religiously, but I believe there are some elements of truth to it.
- I'm definitely a Type B Personality.
- I'm a hopeless romantic, an old soul who's young at heart, a cynical optimist and a realistic dreamer.
- I'm definitely that type that believes in better safe than sorry, and one of my mottos is "Hope for the best, prepare for the worst." I also tend to do copious amounts of research before any big decision.
- I consider myself to be a very grounded, down to earth and genuine person.
- I'm extremely friendly and believe in treating others with the same respect that you would like to receive and generally try to do what I feel is "right" by others (more on that in a bit.)
- I like to believe in the best of human nature, although I seem to be let down a fair bit. Even so, I don't want to let that stop me.
- I have very strong values and ideals, and an even stronger moral compass.
- I believe people are free to do and believe what they want, so long as they don't harm themselves, harm, cause trouble for or inconvenience others, or attempt to force those beliefs on others.
- I believe that a life lived for others is the only life worth living.
- I believe that there's no point in worrying about things that you can't change. If you let yourself get dragged down by it and obsess over it, you'll find yourself crushed under the weight of all the injustices in the world.
- I've been told (rather often actually) that I have a very nice voice, frequently being told that I should go into radio or be an announcer of some kind. I'm very expressive and my voice reflects that, having lots of highs and lows. Truthfully, I believe it's one of my better features.
- I much prefer talking to typing in general, especially when first getting to know someone as you get a much better idea of their personality. Also, I feel like I come across kind of...stiff in my writing style when that's very much not me, so voice allows me to showcase my truest self.
- I tend to be a confidant of sorts; due to my open and genuine nature and what I've been told is a welcoming...aura, I suppose, people tend to find me easy to talk to and trust, coming to me to confide things and seek out advice. This is something that brings me great happiness and pride as having the trust of others is important to me.
- Promises are very important to me; once I give my word in regards to something I'll keep it, even if I don't particularly want to. As cheesy as it might sound, to me my word is my bond.
- Admittedly, subtlety is not one of my strong points. I'm a very open, upfront and honest person. I'm terrible at lying (I hate doing it and I just give away that I am) and can't keep a straight face to save my life. If I were an actor, I would probably be Jimmy Fallon.
- I welcome people to give me constructive criticism and feedback as I'm constantly looking to improve myself. Yes, that even includes those that message me saying my post is far too long.
- I can't fake a smile to save my life, it has to be genuine for me. One of the many reasons I hate having photos taken of me.
- I find intelligence, humor and kindness to be the most desirable traits in a partner (although being easy on the eyes doesn't hurt.)
- My senses are all very sensitive, and can sometimes overwhelm me when I'm introduced to new stimuli.
- I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to too. Wait, I'm just kidding, just wanted to throw a little Mitch Hedberg in here. I don't drink, smoke or do drugs. While I have no issue with those who drink, I do tend to avoid smokers and hardcore drug users.
- Despite what the length of my post may say about me, I absolutely hate writing.
- I enjoy visiting places but hate the actual traveling (which is one of the reasons why if I could have one power it would be teleportation [actually if I could have one power it would be the ability to manipulate space and time, however for simplicity's sake I'm just going to say teleportation for now {not Star Trek teleportation though, fuck that.}])
- I hate waiting and I hate making others wait.
- I love the symbolism of trees and what they represent: strength, vitality, protection.
- If I had to rank the seven deadly sins in the order that I'm guilty of from most to least, it would go: Gluttony, Pride, Sloth, Lust, Envy, Greed and Wrath.
- If I were to list the Magic the Gathering colors that I most identify with from most to least, it would go: White, Blue, Green, Red and then Black.
- Growing up I was all about DBZ, Dinosaurs, Gargoyles, Ghostbusters, Ninja Turtles, Pokémon, Power Rangers, Spider-Man & X-Men.
- I absolutely love animals and have two cats of my own, Ivy and Jasmine (there are wonderful stories behind both names), that I love to death. I probably talk to them like people a bit too much.
- I spend far more time living in my head than I should.
- I firmly believe that breakfast offers the best food. I could eat waffles everyday.
- I call Gatorade by their flavors as opposed to their colors.
- I absolutely love when I'm thirsty and soda burns my throat.
- You won't catch me running unless something is chasing me. Partially because I have asthma, but mostly because running is awful.
Some bands I enjoy include:
Adelitas Way, Amaranthe, Breaking Benjamin, Disturbed, Evans Blue, Five Finger Death Punch, Gemini Syndrome, Otherwise, Pop Evil, Sevendust, Shinedown, Shaman's Harvest, State of Mine, Theory of a Deadman, Three Days Grace (before Adam Gontier left)I enjoy other types of music as well, for example another band I like is Bowling for Soup as I love their sense of humor; it's great to see people not taking music so seriously. I'm also a fan of big band music, which I actually have Fallout 3 to thank for. I enjoy classical musical as well and, despite having no real knowledge of it and most of it sounding the same, I find it incredibly relaxing and peaceful.
While I enjoy relaxing and watching television, I have trouble watching hour long shows as I can only focus on it for so long before my attention wavers, around that time I start looking at my phone and just waiting for it to be over. It's also why I don't watch too many movies; I need my entertainment bite sized. I'll watch movies every once in a while, but they generally need to be 100 minutes tops (unless it's something I'm super into.).
I have difficulty getting into things that are realistic; they usually need to be fantastical in nature and capture my imagination. My preferred genres are comedy, horror (mainly supernatural, no slashers) and most things involving special powers or abilities, however I can sometimes get into action or drama as well. I also have a love for the world of animation, possibly because they tend to be more creative and aren't limited by reality; it's part of why I'm so partial to anime.
Some shows that I'm fond of are:
Animation: Adventure Time, American Dad, Archer, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Bob's Burgers, Bojack Horseman, [China, IL], Disenchantment, Futurama, HarmonQuest, Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law, King of the Hill, Metalocalypse, Mike Tyson Mysteries, Mr. Pickles, Rick and Morty, Robot Chicken, South Park, Superjail, Ugly Americans, Venture Bros.I definitely binge my shows, I like to wait for a season (or preferably an entire series) to be done before I jump into it. I'm also the type that's fine watching something just once. If I ever feel the need to watch it again it will be many, many years later. This extends to games as well, I generally need things with replayability such as MOBA's or Rogue-likes.
Live-action: Arrested Development, Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad, Carnivàle, Dexter, Eureka, Friends, Game of Thrones, The Good Place, House, The Lost Room, Monk, The Muppets (2015 series), The Office, Parks and Rec, Psych, Stargate, Stranger Things, Walking Dead, Warehouse 13, Wilfred
Gaming is easily one of my biggest hobbies and has been for many, many years now. I see it as an art form, as a way to tell a story that you can deeply immerse yourself in and get pulled into, something that can captivate you and make you lose all track of time because it's simply so engrossing. It's also a damn good way to have fun and kill time, especially when you're playing with friends. It's a big part of my life and something I have spent quite a bit of time and money on. Some people may be put off by this, but it a part of me that I will not deny or hide; after all, if someone has an issue with that then how compatible could we possibly be?
Some video games that hold a special place in my heart are:
Action/Adventure: Alan Wake, Assassin's Creed, Bastion, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Bayonetta, Brütal Legend, Bully, Darksiders, Dark Souls (first one), Deadly Premonition, Dead Space, Devil May Cry (3 & 5), Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, Heavy Rain, Hellblade, Infamous, Last of Us, Legend of Zelda (A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Wind Waker), Luigi's Mansion, Metal Gear Solid (Twin Snakes, 3, 4 & 5), Ninja Gaiden (2004), Overlord, Phantom Crash, Resident Evil 2 remake, Saint's Row 2, The Saboteur, TMNT: Turtles in TimeNot only that, but I've also gotten into tabletop gaming, including both board and pen and paper games (such as Dungeons and Dragons.) I initially got into the latter as an exercise to strengthen my creative muscles but found it was a fun way to goof off with friends. For the former, it's almost gotten to the point that I enjoy them more than most video games as it provides an experience that you don't get anymore; friends gathered around and competing against one another or cooperating against a common foe, something that's disappeared with the advent of the internet.
Fighting: Anarchy Reigns, Blazblue (series), DBZ: Budokai, Dragon Ball Fighterz, Marvel vs Capcom (2 & 3), Mortal Kombat (9 & 11), Soul Calibur 3, Super Smash Bros. Melee
MOBA: Dota 2, Guardians of Middle Earth, Heroes of the Storm
Rogue-like: Binding of Isaac, Crypt of the Necrodancer, Darkest Dungeon, Dead Cells, Don't Starve, FTL, Monster Train, Slay the Spire
RPG: Bravely Default, Dragon Age (Origins and Inquisition), Dragon's Dogma, Elder Scrolls (Oblivion and Skyrim), Fable (1 & 2), Fallout (3 & New Vegas), Final Fantasy (IX, X & Tactics Advance), Grim Dawn, Mass Effect 2, Pillars of Eternity (series), Pokémon (Red, Blue, Yellow, Gold, Silver & Stadium), Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Suikoden 2, Tyranny, The Witcher (2 & 3)
Shooter: Bioshock (series), Battlefield Bad Company (1 & 2), The Darkness, Deep Rock Galactic, Gears of War (1 & 3), Left 4 Dead, Shadowrun (2007 FPS), Team Fortress 2 (when it first came out, it's a little much now), Vanquish
Simulation: Animal Crossing (first one), Doki Doki Literature Club, Harvest Moon, Life is Strange, Pokémon Snap, Tabletop Simulator
Strategy: Civilization (3 & 4), Endless Legend, Magic the Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers (2012 & 2013), Portal, Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds, Warcraft 3
Some board games that I love are:
BANG! The Dice Game, Dead of Winter, Dice Throne, Epic Spell Wars, King of New York, Lords of Waterdeep, Munchkin, Pandemic, Red Dragon InnI enjoy reading as well, although I find it difficult to find a book that can keep my focus and really draw me in like I crave. I'm constantly on the prowl for new material, and my favorite genres would probably be apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic, dystopian, horror and dark fantasy/grimdark, although I'm certainly in the market for something that has a good element of humor to it as well. If you have any recommendations, I'd absolutely love to hear them!
Bring up video/board/tabletop games, super powers, comics, cartoons, anime, manga, sci-fi, fantasy or technology and I'll happily chat your ear off. I'm quite social and love to talk, however I'm also an introvert so there are plenty of times where the pressure of constant social interactions with others gets to me and I need to take some time to myself to mentally recharge.
As I mentioned, I absolutely adore animals. Seriously, if you want to make me hate a bad guy, have him hurt an animal. Ironically, I'm practically a carnivore. I'm convinced that I would starve if I had to hunt for my own food just because I couldn't bring myself to hurt them.
Speaking of food, I'm a bit of a foodie (I dislike that word, but it's accurate.) I'm all about sauces, seasonings and spices, not to mention a love for anything deep fried. I love experiencing different tastes and textures while trying new things...as long as they're not vegetables. No veggies, except corn and potatoes; those two get a pass as they're amazing. I also enjoy onions and peppers in small quantities in dishes.
I've got a nice guy next door look in that I have no tattoos or piercings, have glasses, stay clean shaven and have a bit of a baby face (as in I look rather young, I often get mistaken for being in my mid 20's). I wouldn't say that with my look I would be called handsome, sexy or hot (however I am often called cute (I've also been called handsome a fair amount, it still feels weird though.) I'm also rather pale due to the fact that I stay indoors most of the time (if you can't tell from that, I'm white.) Because of my appearance, and my friendly and laid back nature, people tend to view me as rather innocent. I suppose that isn't entirely incorrect though, I'll admit that I can be a bit naive at times in regards to people and the world.
As for politics and religion, I tend to try to stay away from both.
While I believe I'm somewhat in the middle for the former, as I have views from both sides, if I had to choose I'd say I definitely lean way more towards the left. I believe in the greater good, the needs of the many over the needs of the few, in advancing science and finding alternative fuels and materials that don't pollute or destroy our environment in the process, in trying to create a brighter future, etc, etc. I'm definitely not on the far left however, and hate social justice and cancel culture. I'm empathetic and all, but people need to stop getting offended by every tiny thIng and creating problems that don't exist. That's definitely not exclusive to the left, the right is very guilty of it as well.
For the latter, I generally just consider myself not religious as I don't think or care about it too much. If I had to classify it though I'd say I'm agnostic. This means that, while I don't believe in any god or gods, I acknowledge that they might exist. While I'm 99.3̅3̅3̅% certain that there is no grand creator or afterlife, there's no real way we can know for certain. We're a very young and ignorant species, there's much about life and the universe that we are unaware of or don't understand yet.
I just try to focus on being a good person and doing right by others, not for some earthly or heavenly reward, or for a smug sense of self satisfaction, but because it's simply what I want to do. It's who I am and what makes me feel good about myself.
I try my best to live by The Golden Rule (also known as treat others you the way you wish to be treated or do unto others as you would have them do unto you), being guided by own moral compass that directs me in how I interact with others. I always do my very best to make others feel wanted, cared for, appreciated and understood, to give them validation; I never want anyone to feel left out or unwanted, for any reason at all. Perhaps it's from my own difficult childhood, since I felt that way when I was young and don't want others to go through the same things that I did. Whatever the reason, whenever I say or do anything I tend to, without even realizing it, think about how it will affect the other person and the different ways that it could be taken. I strive to treat others with the courtesy and respect that I believe that they deserve.
As I mentioned, I have a strong moral compass. The only problem is, this is true North for my compass; I feel that's the correct way to treat and interact with others, and I believe that's what everyone should do. So when other people don't act in the way that I believe they should, even though I know everyone is different and everyone has different thoughts, feelings and experiences that led them to those (we are the product of our environments after all), it can bother me. I've come to realize that this is due to holding myself to extremely high standards, and often holding other people to the same standards to which I hold myself.
Unfortunately, that can lead to conflicts with others, sometimes over things that they might feel to be insignificant. It doesn't happen very often though as I can recognize whether something is actually a big deal or not and put it to the back of my mind; I wouldn't be a very good friend or partner if I nitpicked over every little thing, now would I? Despite being very much driven by my moral compass, I'm also calm, collected, understanding and logical by nature.
I've realized that I used to put a lot of pressure on myself when interacting with others, trying to be funny and entertaining, overall trying to make sure that they were having a good time and enjoying themselves. If, for whatever reason, I felt that they were bored I ended up trying even harder to keep them engaged and joyful. It was somewhat of a bad habit of mine; I suppose I just felt like I had a personal stake in everyone that I interacted with, a responsibility almost, and didn't want to leave them wanting. I still do this to some extent, but not as much as I used to; as I've grown and matured, and my anxiety has lessened, I've learned to pull back a bit and that I don't need to carry everyone's burden on my shoulders. I still wish to keep people engaged and happy, and still take on more responsibility than I probably should, however I imagine that I'll always be that way; it's just in my nature.
I'm an emotionally intelligent and extremely empathetic person who's well aware of his inner workings due to my introspective nature. I'm easily able to see things from multiple perspectives, which I believe is because of how I process empathy. I don't necessarily feel the exact pain of others, but I mirror it; it's second nature for me to put myself in their position which allows me to understand the plethora of ways they can think and feel. This is something that is a core part of who I am and that I take great pride in.
I feel deeply, which can lead to me taking things to heart and sometimes reading too much into things or overanalyzing them. Thankfully, due to my great experience in emotional control and regulation (which I'm about to go into), I'm generally able to take a step back from my emotions and understand the intent and meaning behind words and actions so there's less of a chance of misunderstanding.
Because I feel so deeply, that caused problems for me when I was younger. My emotions were a swirling vortex, out of control and ready to burst out at any second. Puberty certainly didn't make this any easier either.
It's been said that our personal identity is 80% environmental and 20% genetic. While I might be genetically predispositioned to feeling so deeply, a lot of it likely comes from traumas experienced in childhood and my inability to process them properly. They left scars that I'm still dealing with today, and as a result of said scars, growing up I was diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety, depression and OCD, on top of the ADHD that I already had. However, I'm thankfully in a very good place thanks to a combination of past therapy, current medication and constant reflection.
I've done a lot of work to be able to get a handle on my emotions. Because I got used to having them under such control, I've been told that at times I can come across as kind of indifferent or hard to read. That's one of the reasons that I'm such an upfront, open, honest and expressive person; I want people to be able to understand me and I generally tell exactly what I'm thinking or how something makes me feel so that others can do that.
Honestly, one of my biggest fears is that no one will ever be able to understand me like I understand myself. It's right up there with a fear of the unknown (one is the reasons I don't do deep water, I don't want to fuck with any Cthulhu monsters that are down there) and losing my memories, as in the end we're just a sum of our memories and I don't want to lose who I am.
I never claimed to be perfect; I have my flaws as well, and try to work on them every day to improve myself as a person. Since I've already put so much of myself into my profile, I thought that it was only right to put the negative parts in as well.
While some of these things could certainly be considered negative traits, I believe that they help make me the Dom that I am. Because I AM so compassionate, because I AM so empathetic, because I HAVE been through so much and still keep going, I feel that I can give a sub or a slave what she truly needs to thrive in her environment. Feel free to read more about that below.
My Beliefs:
If I had to break down why this all appeals to me to one reason, to put it simply, I'd have to say that I'm the kind of person who wants to be needed. I find that, overall, I feel more driven and fulfilled if I know that I have someone that depends on me. If I have someone whose best interests I must keep in mind, who I need to protect and care for, I feel a greater sense of purpose than the humdrum rumblings of everyday life.When you combine that with my nurturing and empathetic nature this type of relationship is the natural choice for me (more on that next). I believe that's also why I find myself naturally drawn to the weak, the helpless and the damaged. I have an overwhelming desire to heal them, to help and protect them while nurturing them and watching them grow into who I know they can be, which goes with what I was saying before.
A sub knows that her Dom loves her unconditionally and only wants what is best for her. While I do certainly enjoy doing this, I primarily do this to help my sub above all else. I'm a nurturing soul who wishes nothing more than to protect his partner. To take care of her and help her when she needs it. To be her support and her life line. To give her the guidance, structure and discipline she needs to feel fulfilled in life. To set rules and guidelines so that she can move freely within those set limits and be happy. To help her decide what is best for her when she herself doesn't know. To provide the security and comfort of knowing that she is being taken care of and that she has someone she can talk to about anything without any sort of judgment or prejudice. I want her to thrive and become the person that she was always meant to be. I enjoy pushing my sub to explore her boundaries and limits, within reason of course. I simply wish to see her flourish and blossom, to help her become what I know she can be and reach higher plateaus.
I realize the previous paragraphs could sound condescending in some ways, however that couldn't be further from the truth. I see my partner as an equal, someone who simply has different needs that I can fulfill so that they can live a fulfilling life themselves, and in turn by fulfilling those needs of theirs, I feel fulfilled as well. We ultimately form a symbiotic relationship of sorts.
Make no mistake, I have no desire to micromanage every tiny detail of my sub's life, nor form a codependent relationship where she's entirely reliant upon me for her mental and emotional needs. The level and extent of the D/s relationship is decided after long discussion and input from both parties.
Some believe that being a Dom is just telling people what to do and getting what you want while getting off, but it's so much more than that. It's not as easy or simple as it appears, you must always keep what is best for your sub in mind, even if it conflicts with your own immediate or future interests. You must constantly be aware of her needs and desires while providing checks and balances to help her live a life worth living. Anyone can simply give a sub what she wants, it takes a true Dom to say no because you feel that is what is best for her.
At least that's how it should be. There are so many "Doms" out there that don't care about their subs at all, only themselves. They don't care if they're suffering physically or emotionally, they simply use them as toys they can play with and then toss aside when they're bored; they abuse them and hurt them simply because they get a kick out of it. A real Dom/sub relationship is a very special and strong bond, much more so than a vanilla relationship in my opinion. So many people seem to have issues understanding that unfortunately, there's a certain stigma associated with this and preconceptions are formed before they even learn anything about it.
Truthfully, I believe the sub holds the power in the relationship in many ways. She is the one that is choosing to submit after all, to give up her power and control to the Dom. Despite that, she is the one that has control over the power of safe words, that can stop an activity with a single utterance. Her subservience is completely voluntary, something that many people don't seem to think about. It's not simply about someone bossing someone around because they can, it's about someone choosing a partner that they feel is worthy to give their all to.
What I'm looking for:
I'm not here looking for a booty call or one night stand, but to find a potential partner in crime, possibly for life if a connection is made. More than anything, I simply wish to find someone who looks at me the way this girl looks at her prom date.While the following is my ideal, as I said at the beginning, I'm open to talking to anyone that reads this. However, I'm not particularly interested in "littles" or "brats".
Ideally my partner would be what is typically called an adult babygirl, and I'd like to elaborate on that term since some might not be familiar with it. Essentially it's someone who enjoys the nurturing, loving and structured aspect of a Daddy Dom or DD/lg relationship but isn't a little themselves; meaning that they don't have a mental age that they regress to, among other things. (I don't identify as a Daddy myself, however due to my protective and supportive/nurturing nature you could say I'm Daddy leaning.)
Some people have their entire lives revolve around the lifestyle, going to munches, conventions, parties and attempting to reach out to their community and find a place to belong. That might work for them, but it's of no interest to me. While I'm certainly not opposed to chatting and making friends and connections, I have no desire to be a part of a community. I'm simply seeking one whose ideas and beliefs line up with my own for a symbiotic relationship as I mentioned before
If I had to describe such a relationship, it would definitely be on the lighter side of the spectrum in regards to what daily life would be like. I'm seeking a 24/7 TPE, however I also enjoy being casual with my sub. Perhaps in some ways it's more similar to a vanilla relationship with strong Dom/sub undertones than a typical BDSM relationship.
In my perfect situation, we would still be able to joke around, have fun and be very close and romantic; however there is also the constant understanding that I am in charge, and what I say goes. No matter how much fun we may be having or what we might be doing, she should always know her place, even if it's only in the back of her mind. There are rules in place for her benefit, and if she breaks those rules she will be punished.
By what I say goes, I mean I have the final say in subjects because, as a submissive, she has given the reins of power over to me. She trusts me to make her decisions for her and to do what is best for her, to take care of and protect her. I'm never the type to say "this is how it's going to be, I don't care what you want, end of discussion" as discourse is the only way two people can truly understand one another. I always value my submissive's input and always want her to give her opinion and speak her mind if something is bothering her.
My ideal sub would be one that is loyal and devoted above all else, but also one who is looking for a Dom she can actually have a connection with. One that, not necessarily needs, but craves guidance, support, structure and discipline in their life; whose life does not feel complete without this, like there is a void deep inside her that cannot be filled unless she has a Dom to guide and take care of her, that she can in turn make happy and serve to the best of her ability.
Beyond anything else though, I want to like them as a person before I love them as a sub. My perfect partner would be someone who is intelligent, kind-hearted, earnest, funny and a has a fair touch of dorkiness in her. I want her to be someone that actually has personality, that I can laugh with and talk to for hours upon hours on end and still hate the thought of leaving. Someone that will either indulge my love of games and geekery or join me because she's just as much of a fan of those things as I am. Someone who loves how I tease and torment her, keeping her on the edge and revelling in the pleasure I get from watching her squirm.
One thing to note is that just because I am very friendly (sometimes people are surprised when I begin acting more Dominant, others aren't as they say they can "sense it in the way I present myself", even while being friendly and joking around) doesn't mean that I'm not strict when I have to be. I have no problem at all with enforcing rules and giving out punishments, although it's certainly not my favorite aspect of the relationship. I would prefer to reward, encourage and nurture my sub, however there are times when discipline is necessary; if one feels the need to act up, one must be ready accept the consequences after all.
If I had to describe my style of dominance, or what makes me dominant, I suppose that would be a little tricky. I don't feel the need to control everything, nor do I attempt to, and I have no problem with kicking back and letting others take the reigns in everyday situations if I feel they're more qualified or I just plain don't feel like it. Nor am I the type that "oozes" dominance, I don't care for confrontation and am a very easy going, go with the flow person. What I believe it boils down to is I simply feel comfortable with power and, quite frankly, enjoy it. I bear the burden of leadership well, it comes naturally to me and I thrive when I have the weight of another's life on my shoulders; I have little trouble making hard decisions when I need to. It also helps that my sexual inclinations line up with this nicely. If it doesn't last quite some time and doesn't end with both parties panting and soaked in sweat, I'm not particularly interested in it.
On that note, I have quite the kinky side despite my friendly and charming exterior. I suppose I should list it here because, while certainly not the primary focus of my interest in this, sexual compatibility does factor in to some extent.
My kinks are:
Anal, begging, biting, blowjobs, body worship, bondage, choking, cock worship, consensual non-consent, creampies, crying (the good kind), cumplay, deepthroating, degradation, desperation, dirty talking, face fucking, facials, free use, hair pulling, hole stretching (basically pushing my partner to her limits), humiliation, hypnosis, name calling, objectification, orgasm control (which includes edging, forced orgasms, orgasm denial and ruined orgasms), public play (in a discreet manner), slapping, spanking, spitting and teasing.One thing I feel I should mention is that the acts of degradation and humilation are limited to play time and only sexual in nature, never attacking my partner in any way.
I also believe very strongly in aftercare and safe words as the mental and emotional well being of my partner is very important.
I realize there's no one way to live this lifestyle, but I feel like a lot of what I said should be obvious and general knowledge in regards to this; however from my experience it doesn't seem to be that way too often (not referring to the that are inexperienced in this, more those that do this for the wrong reason), which is why I wanted to share my views in such detail.
Even if you're nervous or anxious, you think you might not be good enough, doubt my intentions or anything along those lines, still give me a message. After all, what do you have to lose?
Thanks for taking the time to read my little novella, I hope to hear from you soon. So long, and thanks for reading!
2023.05.29 14:58 SunkenCrayon AOW that dives yearly about 6 times. Is it worth buying your own equipment?
I've been doing fun dives yearly (except for the last 2 years due to COVID and stuff). I always rent all the equipment from the dive center I'm visiting. Is it worth buying any equipment for someone who dives around 6 times a year (all dives in a single vacation)?
I was considering basic stuff like a wetsuit or mask/fins/booties and maybe a dive computer but I wanted some opinions before I spend money on something without knowing if it's worth it. Regs and BCDs are not something I'm interested in buying yet since they're expensive and I've not done enough dives to justify that expense.
submitted by SunkenCrayon to scuba [link] [comments]
I was considering basic stuff like a wetsuit or mask/fins/booties and maybe a dive computer but I wanted some opinions before I spend money on something without knowing if it's worth it. Regs and BCDs are not something I'm interested in buying yet since they're expensive and I've not done enough dives to justify that expense.
2023.05.28 18:09 Mountain_String_1544 Hachinosu fodder>>>>>beast pirates fodder
 | submitted by Mountain_String_1544 to Piratefolk [link] [comments] |
2023.05.28 00:32 Deuteranomamist Feedback post
Im a player who plays solo and with various crew sizes, IE duos, triple stack or a full four. Ive played since the game released and have over 100 hours of play time, I both rat around/away from gunfire or run at it to add to it.
submitted by Deuteranomamist to MaraudersGame [link] [comments]
- Airlocks need some love, being trapped in one is awful and the fact that you simply cant close the door when your inside it without leaving is very detrimental to actually having fun. The game will always have people fighting in and around an airlock that’s understandable but firing at multiple people and looking death in the eyes because teehee this console just dosent work now kills alot of fun. Ive read that the team is working on it so I wanted to stress the wish for this to be added sooner then later.
- Some form of identification. Playing as a team its massively unfun to not have any identification, I noted on another post that this dosent need to be immersive breaking or down right cartoonish but simply a range based that shows the text of the players name, if im a few feet from my own crew their name should appear as in the lobby when you hover your mouse cursor, small and simple, if they go to far then the name wont come up. Without one has clearly shown crews ignoring the cool customization the game offers, why look cool when your banana themed crew mows you down for looking different?
- gun balance, one of my only issues is how much 7.62 over preforms over everything. The guns that chamber this round are easily controlled as medium and long range, I shouldnt be able to mag dump on people so easily with such pinpoint accuracy because then why would I run anything 5.56? Maybe ALITTLE more recoil emphasis on alittle please to make it more of a reason to consider a 5.56 rifle. My second issue is shotguns, in the days of old when the game 1st came out the shotguns in the game were really broken #trenchgun. But as of now, they are honestly awful. The terminator in my experience is not even viable vs the computer because your birthday rolls around by the time you can get that single shell cambered but when you finally do, that damage it now offers is really bad. The trench gun, tbh this one made me sad because as soon as the UA update dropped i got 3 from a trade and did my testing, headshots mean nothing as the spread is soooo wide now, we went from a condensed packed shell to what I would consider a sick person sneezing at you. This makes a close range weapon completely useless as at minimum when I tag a dude in his face/neck region he just full autos me down with 25% or more HP, why rush and put pressure if my weapon class puts me at a disadvantage for using it? The jackhammer, using this was hella fun. Balances really well for its fire rate and damage, its spread is nasty like the trench gun but with a 10 round mag and semi auto fire even as a solo team fighting with was awesome, it fits perfectly in its class as a semi auto shotgun. Smgs are great and work fantastic for their class.
- Missions add more engaging missions, i dont mind holding E on things for however long or defending something but maybe require me to bring things somewhere. I love interactive parts in games, you guys gave us the ability to smelt our nickle ore at the furnace, more of that kind of stuff please its cool. Possibly make me take a new item or current one somewhere to activate something for that faction rep and money? I like the ZtH but some missions stop you dead in your tracks sometimes for a day or two, for example a crew member was stuck in limbo because the RNG gods never gave him gunpowder and currently me praying each mission for merchant ship.
- The ai, big issues would be them locking on to a player through walls, not shooting them but a bot crab walking and actively aiming down sights at a player’s direction. Or how they randomly jack knife sprint everywhere. Id really enjoy more enemies, faster respawns, or timed entries (IE commandos coming in mid raid).
- Trade menu, please PLEASE add the ability to sell from my own inventory and gear. Other then that The market that was added to trade items for others is super cool.
- Voice, add the ability to talk to people in a lobby so i can join randoms and not be kicked because of the inability to communicate. My core of friends arnt as die hard about this game because of how much we played so being stuck on being able to join and befriend randoms without posting somewhere kinda eats booty ngl.
- Colony ship, it’s actually cool despite everyone hating on something about it. The biggest downfall is the limited docking, making teams stack at the airlock on accident. I could understand the idea of them being limited because of the breach points but then if I were to come with a upgraded ship I wouldnt see it as worth it if me and my crew dock and have a high chance of being third partied from the airlock we JUST left. The ships layout offers alot of awesome pvp so its a two thumbs up for me, I think more people will enjoy this instance after the smaller mine addition.
- Ships, once the issues with them randomly disappear stop they will be more viable so my experience with them is limited to scouts. They are awesome af, the extra loot slot is super cool although ill admit the small size of the scout variant was underwhelming but understandable. As a solo ship combat is really lame because my inability to repair in any meaningful way, everyones so used to the way ships move and lead that missing once or twice vs a duo or more is very detrimental when your flying around. The addition of the new weapons was awesome. Maybe add thrusters as an add on to pay for to allow better maneuvers?
2023.05.27 03:16 Marooster405 Every mom and dad should know about this product!
The Grovia Magic Stick. It HAS been magic for us! It’s safe for sensitive skin and cloth diapers. We glide the stick everywhere that his diaper might rub or cause irritation, and he has sailed through some difficult changes like a champ. We use the brand Thirsties product Booty Love on any redness or active irritation, and the Grovia Magic Stick to prevent the need as much as possible. These products last because we avoid situations where we have to slather tons on to get him some relief. They are pricey, but worth every penny. We don’t cloth diaper, but both the Magic Stick and Booty Love are safe for cotton and microfiber materials (they won’t build up over time and decrease absorption).
submitted by Marooster405 to NewParents [link] [comments]
2023.05.25 01:04 uplaf Is New Game Plus easier than the regular play through?
I read somewhere that the New Game Plus of Ratchet 1 (PS2) is easier than the standard playthrough, since the enemies will be harder but not enough to put you back at square one let alone be more difficult, considering all the weapons and upgrades you now have.
This is disappointing for me, I thought New Game Plus/Challenge Mode/Hero Mode (for Jak and Daxter) is supposed to be more difficult, not easier. At least the main incentive for me is to add more of a challenge, a harder difficulty all things considered. And this made me reconsider if it's worth playing R&C1 new game plus, or indeed whether I should bother with Rift Apart's challenge mode, either. Apparently the 'New Game Plus' (or Challenge Mode) in other Ratchet games is better and more difficult, than in the first game.
So I'm wondering, which Ratchet games have an easier New Game Plus/Challenge Mode, and which have one that is actually harder?
Wondering about:
R&C1 R&C2 R&C3 Deadlocked Size Matters Secret Agent Clank ToD Quest for Booty ACiT Nexus Rift Apart
submitted by uplaf to ratchet [link] [comments]
This is disappointing for me, I thought New Game Plus/Challenge Mode/Hero Mode (for Jak and Daxter) is supposed to be more difficult, not easier. At least the main incentive for me is to add more of a challenge, a harder difficulty all things considered. And this made me reconsider if it's worth playing R&C1 new game plus, or indeed whether I should bother with Rift Apart's challenge mode, either. Apparently the 'New Game Plus' (or Challenge Mode) in other Ratchet games is better and more difficult, than in the first game.
So I'm wondering, which Ratchet games have an easier New Game Plus/Challenge Mode, and which have one that is actually harder?
Wondering about:
R&C1 R&C2 R&C3 Deadlocked Size Matters Secret Agent Clank ToD Quest for Booty ACiT Nexus Rift Apart
2023.05.24 18:42 Zestyclose_Mail4830 Why does he keep liking my photos out of the blue if he wants nothing to do with me? TLDR included.
So I (27F) worked with this guy (30M) for 3 years. He was the quiet, strong type and I’ll admit I had a crush on him. The entire time, I was in a relationship but eventually found out the guy (J) was into me too because coworkers noticed him flirting. When I got a new job last spring, I coincidentally ended my relationship (for various reasons, dishonesty being the main one).
J and I started texting and within a day confessed he thought I was gorgeous/had liked me for a while. Within a week he was drunk texting me late at night, asking me to come over. One night out of the blue when I rebuffed his booty call, he said “hey I love you”. I basically replied we should talk in the morning and bid him a goodnight.
Afterward, he gaslit me into thinking he didn’t remember what he said (even though it was a text so there’s evidence) and began ghosting me. That really hurt me because we worked together for years, we were friends, and he was suddenly treating me like dirt. I eventually got angry, told him off BAD, and we stopped talking. Luckily, we didn’t have to work together anymore.
Not even a month later we were talking again on and off, and snapping NSFW pics. By the fall, I was getting attached again. I told him that and he said sorry he was leading me on. He said after I went off on him in the spring, he realized I was too much but kept drunk texting me/snapping me anyway. Basically, not only would we never date, he didn’t even want to meet up as friends or as a hook up. I apologized for what I said (I had been dealing with a break up of a long term relationship and losing J as a friend) but that didn’t matter to him. Guess I hurt him bad, starting with when I didn’t reply to his drunk I love you/booty call text (I think).
So we stopped for good. It’s 2023 now. Monday I saw that he liked an old IG photo of mine. When I posted a new one that day, he was one of the first to like it. Last time he did this (in 2022), I’m ashamed to say it baited me into texting him again, even after he had ghosted me the first time. That’s how much I liked him.
I know his trick now. He probably did this late at night while drunk and is hoping I’ll eventually text/snap him, so I’d be the one technically reaching out first. I’ve been in a satisfying relationship since November so he can kick rocks but I’m still wondering.. why?
It’s been months. If he thinks I’m too crazy, if he was hurt by me, if he truly only wanted me for a hookup but then decided to cut me out of his life, why is he doing this? To keep tabs on me in case he decides one day I’m worth a shot? I know I should just block him on everything and will, but still wtf. We never even had sex, why is he still even thinking about me?
TLDR - Ex-coworker I liked and who liked me (for my body or actual affection, not sure) cut me out his life. But he keeps reappearing in little, annoying ways. Why do men do this?
submitted by Zestyclose_Mail4830 to dating_advice [link] [comments]
J and I started texting and within a day confessed he thought I was gorgeous/had liked me for a while. Within a week he was drunk texting me late at night, asking me to come over. One night out of the blue when I rebuffed his booty call, he said “hey I love you”. I basically replied we should talk in the morning and bid him a goodnight.
Afterward, he gaslit me into thinking he didn’t remember what he said (even though it was a text so there’s evidence) and began ghosting me. That really hurt me because we worked together for years, we were friends, and he was suddenly treating me like dirt. I eventually got angry, told him off BAD, and we stopped talking. Luckily, we didn’t have to work together anymore.
Not even a month later we were talking again on and off, and snapping NSFW pics. By the fall, I was getting attached again. I told him that and he said sorry he was leading me on. He said after I went off on him in the spring, he realized I was too much but kept drunk texting me/snapping me anyway. Basically, not only would we never date, he didn’t even want to meet up as friends or as a hook up. I apologized for what I said (I had been dealing with a break up of a long term relationship and losing J as a friend) but that didn’t matter to him. Guess I hurt him bad, starting with when I didn’t reply to his drunk I love you/booty call text (I think).
So we stopped for good. It’s 2023 now. Monday I saw that he liked an old IG photo of mine. When I posted a new one that day, he was one of the first to like it. Last time he did this (in 2022), I’m ashamed to say it baited me into texting him again, even after he had ghosted me the first time. That’s how much I liked him.
I know his trick now. He probably did this late at night while drunk and is hoping I’ll eventually text/snap him, so I’d be the one technically reaching out first. I’ve been in a satisfying relationship since November so he can kick rocks but I’m still wondering.. why?
It’s been months. If he thinks I’m too crazy, if he was hurt by me, if he truly only wanted me for a hookup but then decided to cut me out of his life, why is he doing this? To keep tabs on me in case he decides one day I’m worth a shot? I know I should just block him on everything and will, but still wtf. We never even had sex, why is he still even thinking about me?
TLDR - Ex-coworker I liked and who liked me (for my body or actual affection, not sure) cut me out his life. But he keeps reappearing in little, annoying ways. Why do men do this?
2023.05.24 11:39 Me-Not-Not Did Nami Really Carry A Ton?
 | Gold does weigh a lot so it would be understandable if she was carrying a ton. submitted by Me-Not-Not to OnePiecePowerScaling [link] [comments] |