Who are you, again?

I recently attended a presentation by author, Sue Harrison, where she talked about her journey to becoming a writer. She genuinely seems like a delightful person, and her personal story was an uplifting one. But when she mentioned that she has difficulty remembering faces–to the extent that the first draft of one of her books had virtually no facial descriptions of the characters–I realized I knew the technical term for that. Which brings us to today’s word.

prosopagnosia, noun – face blindness

Learned from: Rogue Legacy (Playstation 4, Mac, mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, Playstation 3, XBox One)

Developed by Cellar Door Games

Published by Cellar Door Games (2013)

Rogue Legacy is, as the title might suggest, a roguelike platformer. The gimmick in this one is that when your character dies, he or she is replaced by an heir you select from a few possible options. Some of the options are pretty straightforward, like the character’s class, but the cool part is that each one has a selection from a vast variety of traits they can be born with. From the innocuous (being bald), to the mildly inconvenient (colorblindness), to things like prosopagnosia, which made it so you couldn’t see any of the traits of the next generation. Not horrible, compared to something like schizophrenia (which I think showed enemies and platforms that aren’t there, while sometimes not showing ones that are), but it meant you’d have no idea what to expect on the next run.

And really, that’s what kept Rogue Legacy fun. The actual platforming and combat isn’t bad, but without the quirky results of genetic chance, the repetitive runs probably would have gotten boring before the end. It’s still a fun little game, easily worth the $15 it’ll set you back on most platforms.

Go, my balding, vampiric dwarf with ADHD! You are the hero we deserve!

When you boil it down

If you’ve been on the Internet at all this week, I think it’s statistically impossible that you haven’t heard about the Oblivion remaster. I have mixed feelings on it, but the original did teach me some words, so let’s get that out of the way first.

alembic, noun – an obsolete device used in distillation

Learned from: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PC, XBox 360, Playstation 3, Playstation 5, XBox Series X/S)

Developed by Bethesda Game Studios

Published by Bethesda Softworks (2006, 2025 for the remaster)

Alchemy can be a big part of Elder Scrolls games if you want it to be. You can start with stuffing random toadstools in your mouth, and end up with an entire collection of beakers and tubes to distill more potent tinctures.

There, I’ve got the word out of the way. Now I want to talk about this remaster, starting with the good: It’s more or less an entire remake from the ground up, and it looks fantastic…and it costs $50. In an age where Nintendo is selling remakes of 8 year old games for $80+, this game that’s old enough to vote looks better than the shinier versions of Zelda, undoubtedly took more work, and is selling for at least thirty bucks less. That’s admirable, and I think more people should be talking about it, because it’s selling like hotcakes and it blows Nintendo’s bullshit pricing out of the water.

Unfortunately…it’s selling like hotcakes. Look, the industry is positively drowning in remakes of games we’ve already played. And the hotcakes sales of Oblivion Remastered is only adding weight to that trend. Plus, there are other games coming out–including some very, very good ones this very week–from indie developers who could really use the sales.

Want another RPG? Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has been incredible, just in the few hours I’ve gotten to play of it. Gorgeous world. Likeable and well-written characters. Engaging combat. Surprising emotional notes. Also $50.

Is horror more your jam? Post Trauma looks to be a decent stab at the Silent Hill formula, and came out the same damn day as Oblivion Remastered. I’ve seen no one talking about it–and yes it’s a different genre, but that doesn’t stop all the attention on the Internet from being on Oblivion. Oh, and it’s only $15, and I’m sure the developers would love to make another sale or two.

Hell, one of the creators behind Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy, a mix of visual novel and turn-based tactical RPG from the minds behind Danganronpa and Zero Escape, has reportedly sunk his life savings into this project. And here comes Oblivion Remastered to possibly drive him into poverty. This is the most expensive, at $60, but also potentially the most distinctive of the three I mentioned.

Look, I’m glad people are enjoying revisiting a game they grew up with, or discovering it for the first time, and I’d never tell them to stop having fun. But I really feel like I need to highlight that other games do exist, that actually have original concepts and fresh ideas. Just…look around at what else is out there? Please? Bethesda doesn’t need your money as much as some of these smaller developers.

The times, they are a-changing.

So, it’s been a pretty momentous week. But one of the least-seismic, and perhaps best developments is the mass exodus of users from Twitter. Sorry, Elon, nobody is going to call it X. That platform has been a cesspool for awhile now, and I don’t think I’ve used it since WordPress removed their auto-post integration, but the recent TOS change, saying anything you post can be used to train AI…well, that’s actually been kind of great, because it’s made people realize there are other options out there.

All of this is to say, I’m now on Bluesky Social: brainrotblog.bsky.social

Also, this brings us to today’s word.

climacteric, adj. – constituting or related to a major event or critical period

Learned from: Mass Effect 2 (Playstation 3, PC, XBox 360)

Developed by Bioware

Published by Electronic Arts (2010)

The Mass Effect games fall into the same category of RPGs as your Fallouts, your Elder Scrolls, and even your Genshin Impacts, in that there is a metric boatload of in-game lore to read through, if you’re so inclined. You could easily just ignore the plot for an hour or two, kick back, and read through piles of data logs about anything from the Reapers, to the complex interrelations between the Hanar and the Drell, to the centuries-long life cycles of the Asari. I think it was the latter where I first saw climacteric, in relation to when Asari reach adulthood, or something. (It’s been quite a long time since I’ve played this series; I should fix that.)

Fun bonus fact: Climacteric is also a noun, meaning a major event or critical period. This also makes it one of my least-favorite words, right up there with “chiropractic.” Some people hate the word “moist.” I hate nouns that end in -ic. It’s like saying, “I’m going to study scientific.” There’s nothing about that that sounds right.

“Liara is aesthetic.” You see what I mean? It’s just wrong!

I’d think up a clever title, but I’m getting over a cold

Though, in a roundabout way, that’s fitting for the word I’ve chosen today. In ages past (and depressingly, probably still today in certain regions of the world), people thought disease was caused by black magic. Predictably, a variety of protective charms and incantations were invented to try and keep people healthy. And, while not an exact correlation, it does bring us to today’s word.

apotropaism, noun - the use of magical incantations to ward off evil

Learned from: Dragon’s Dogma (PC, Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Nintendo Switch, XBox 360, XBox One)

Developed by Capcom

Published by Capcom (2012)

Dragon’s Dogma is a gloriously janky game. Combat can be a confusing mess of slow motion camera pans, characters being grappled into the ground, enemies launching 20 feet into the air from a single explosive arrow, etc. It’s like Skyrim, if all the rough edges and bizarre physics were intentional. And the fact that it embraces its weirdness with such madcap abandon actually ends up being quite endearing. I just hope the upcoming (as of this writing) sequel doesn’t try to iron out what made the original so distinct–even if it was completely overshadowed by Dark Souls when it first came out, despite being a very different sort of game.

One of those main differences is that you always have a party of up to two companions.* And these friends, called Pawns, have some of the better AI I’ve seen in a game like this. Depending on their vocation, they’ll try to restrain enemies, grab useful things from the environment to utilize in combat (e.g. explosive barrels), and if they’re a mage, they seem to have a decent grasp of when to shoot lightning, when to enchant your weapon for you, when to heal the group, etc. It’s really quite impressive.

Speaking of mages, one of the passive skills you can get for them is apotropaism, which is a mouthful that boils down to: They take reduced magic damage. No special rituals or preparations, as the word itself would have you believe; you buy it, and it’s there forever. If only warding off evil in the real world were as straightforward.

*It’s been pointed out to me that you can actually have three pawns accompanying you: two, plus your personal pawn. Just throw it on the pile of things this game doesn’t adequately explain to you, like why the backspace key is the default “save changes” button on the PC version…except when it’s the button that exits the entire game. Go figure.

The “Dark Arisen” subtitle is the “enhanced” version of the game Capcom released shortly after the original. It ruffled a lot of feathers at the time, but if you’re looking to try it out now, this is the only version of the game you’re likely to find, so no need to worry.

A word of caution

On this random Sunday, I’d just like to dispense a bit of advice: you never can really know when something you do or say could have unintended consequences. This might sound like I’m advocating living in a constant state of anxiety, but that’s not exactly the case. That sort of thing tends to be my general state of being, and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. Just, be mindful, because you don’t always know what other people may be going through. Which brings us to today’s word.

chary, adj. – exceptionally wary or cautious

Learned from: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Released on virtually everything that can display graphics, since the PS3 era. I’m not listing it all.)

Developed by Bethesda Game Studios

Published by Bethesda Softworks (originally 2011, with many, many re-releases afterward)

These games are full of books. Books about history, and poetry, and cooking, and travel guides–there’s a lot here for anyone with the patience and interest to seek it out and read through it all. That said, I don’t think I would’ve had the foggiest idea of which book the word “chary” showed up in, if I hadn’t scribbled an extra memo next to it in my notebook. If I was accurate, this word shows up somewhere in volume 2 of The Real Barenziah, in reference to how some townsfolk feel with regards to the titular character.

Now, if you offered me a million dollars to tell you just who Barenziah was, or why your average citizen might be overly wary of him, I would not leave the conversation a rich man. Heck, I can’t even say for certainty that Barenziah as a “him” at all, it’s been so long since I read this particular story-within-a-story. And that’s something I seem to remember from Skyrim as a whole: a lot of the ancillary, background material seemed significantly more detailed and fleshed out than the events taking place during your adventure.

In fairness though, I never finished it. After about 20 hours of primarily fighting the same reskinned “guy with melee weapon,” “guy with ranged weapon,” and “guy with magic” over and over again, I lost interest. If I find a subterranean nest of bug people, fighting them shouldn’t feel essentially the same as fighting a group of bandits. But it did. I guess I just wanted more of a chary feeling, venturing into the unknown, instead of the boredom that settled in.

I couldn’t find a screenshot of that exact page, so enjoy the hexadecimal codes for a bunch of crafting materials, instead.

Happy Bunny Day

Well, it’s Easter, and while I haven’t really done anything to celebrate the holiday since I was ten years old or so, and my job is closed on Sundays already, at least there’s good candy. Seriously, after Halloween, I think Easter has the best holiday candy. (Though, if they worked maple candies into Arbor Day celebrations, I might be tempted to change that ranking.) But the first thing that pops into most people’s minds when you say “Easter” isn’t candy, it’s probably the Easter Bunny. Which brings us to today’s word.

lapin, noun – a castrated male rabbit

Learned from: BlazBlue: Continuum Shift (Playstation 3, Arcade, XBox 360)

Developed by Arc System Works

Published by Aksys Games (2010)

If it sounds like the word of the day took a dark turn, imagine how I felt when I looked it up–especially since it’s a nickname for a female character in the game! Rachel Alucard is a gothic lolita vampire, of the “looks like she’s twelve, but is actually 200” variety. She has some history with another quasi-ageless character named Hakumen: a tall, imposing figure who may or may not be a living suit of armor. (BlazBlue’s weird.)

Anyway, Hakumen sees himself as being above most people, so he rarely refers to anyone by their actual name, assigning most folks a nickname instead (a la “Grimalkin,” which I believe I featured awhile back). He isn’t the only one who calls Rachel some sort of rabbit name, on account of the bow she wears in her hair that resembles bunny ears, but man is his choice the most scathing! I mean, Hakumen is kind of a jerk to everybody, but the more you think about his particular choice of nicknames for Rachel, the more insulting it seems: Castration tends to stunt a person’s growth (Rachel is quite short), prevent the development of sexual characteristics (Rachel is flat as a board), make the person more docile (Rachel speaks quite softly–though she’s entirely capable of dishing out violence), etc. and so on.

Bit of an extra lesson today. You’re welcome. 🙂

I was so focused on the hair bows, that I didn’t even mention her fat imp and living cat umbrella…did I mention BlazBlue was weird?

Back from the dead

A lot has happened since my last post–most of it work-related. We’ve had a couple people leave, others have been out sick, so I’ve been picking up extra shifts and training in new hires as a result. It’s not over yet, but things have slowed down for the moment–enough that I was able to get my first round of the Moderna vaccine today. Which brings us to today’s word.

ampoule, noun – a small, hermetically sealed glass or plastic vessel used to store solutions for hypodermic injection

Learned from: Silent Hill 2 (Playstation 2, PC, XBox, Playstation 3, XBox 360)

Developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo

Published by Konami (2001)

Silent Hill‘s equivalent of the first aid spray from Resident Evil, ampoules would bring you back to pretty much full health, no matter how close to death you were. Though, I really don’t know how any of the protagonists actually got the stuff inside into their systems, since you never pick up any syringes. Maybe they just drink it? Seems about as sanitary as anything else in Silent Hill: the town where you can get eye tetanus just by reading the street signs.

On the subject of the COVID vaccine though, it was painless. I got it about an hour and a half ago, and the worst side-effect I have so far is a tiny bit of an ache in my arm. So far, it’s not even as rough as the flu vaccine, which is great. Though, seeing just how many people showed up to get their doses this morning made me almost pine for the deserted streets of Silent Hill. A year of isolation hasn’t exactly helped my social anxiety.

Still, it feels good to be back posting here, so it won’t be long until the next one. Cheers, and sign up to get the vaccine if you haven’t already–it really isn’t bad at all.

It’s enough to drive a man to drink.

To say that it’s a stressful time in my country is a criminal understatement. In under two days, we’re going to be ushering in a new president, and while that’s been little more than a formality every other time it’s happened, so long as I’ve been alive, this year is…different. There have already been acts of violence in the past few weeks, and I’m worried something worse is going to happen on inauguration day. On a more personal level, I’m not even going to be home to see it, if something does happen–my job is opening its doors to the public again, starting tomorrow, in a decision that was made rather suddenly. Beyond the anxiety over being stuck at work and potentially missing historic news as it unfolds, I really wish they’d waited until my coworkers and I had gotten the vaccine. All of this brings us to today’s word.

potation, noun – a dring; particularly: an alcoholic drink

Learned from: Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception (Playstation 4, Playstation 3, Playstation Vita, PC)

Developed by Aquaplus

Published by Atlus USA (2017)

I’m generally not big on visual novels. If they offer you choices in dialog or action that affect the story, that helps a bit. If they offer puzzles or combat, that helps more. The Utawarerumono games do offer Fire Emblem style battles, but they’re few and far between, and the narrative portions that make up the bulk of the game are often tedious and hard to suffer through. There’s always a good story there, but it’s always buried under fanservice, mixed attempts at humor, and side events that often contribute nothing to the plot.

Really, the only reason I’ve played two of these games so far, is because the next Dokapon game is a cross-over with this series (for some reason), and I wanted to be familiar with the characters.

One of these characters is Maroro, a court magician with a very…over the top personality. He’s dressed in garish robes and face paint, his mannerisms are downright foppish, and his speech is positively purple. He’s also kind of a sad sack, who always gets taken advantage of by people around him. Following one of these incidents, Maroro ends up at a bar, drowning his worries in potations he probably can’t afford, and pouring his heart out to you in a litany of flowery prose.

Maroro’s kind of insufferable, but it’s hard not to feel a little bad for him.

Achievement unlocked

This past week has been an absolute nightmare. Not so much for me, specifically, but if you’re from the U.S., you know what I’m talking about. Hell, even if you’re not living here, you probably know, because chances are, your news outlets actually cover international stories. So much is just…wrong, lately, that I wanted to focus on a word from simpler times, before the riots, and hatred, and boastful “leaders” who can’t even show their faces in times of crisis. So, let’s visit a game full of bright colors, cheeky humor, and young girls who announce their plans to conquer the universe by way of an idol concert. All of which brings us to today’s word:

vainglory, noun – disproportionately high pride in one’s accomplishments

Learned from: Mugen Souls (Playstation 3)

Developed by Compile Heart

Published by NIS America (2012)

I initially picked up Mugen Souls more for the fact that I know one of the English voice actors, than anything else. It got fairly mediocre reviews from critics, and I wanted to support her work. And hey, maybe it would end up being an underappreciated gem. Well…the game isn’t bad, but it’s nothing really outstanding, either.

Mugen Souls puts you in the shoes of Chou-Chou a girl who wants to rule the universe through the power of moe. (Moe is a Japanese term that basically refers to things that people find cute, often when they’re not supposed to be.) Essentially, she wants to subjugate everyone by making them become infatuated with her. But not everybody likes bubbly, pink-haired girls, right? Not a problem! Chou-Chou has multiple personalities, each with its own quirk: masochistic, sadistic, ditzy, bipolar, etc. Each has its own attributes, and skills, and effectiveness against different enemies. It’s goofy, and saccharine, and really, really weird (you can make entire continents fall in love with you. Not the people–the landmasses themselves).

One of the passive skills Chou-Chou has is called vainglory (fittingly, in her “Ego” form). It offers various buffs to her attacks, as well as boosts a…certain type of experience/reward you get from battles. It’s kinda hard to explain, because while the game has a silly premise, the actual gameplay is surprisingly complex. There are literally hours‘ worth of tutorials, explaining all the various mechanics. And really, it was this Gordian knot of things to keep straight, along with the death of my original PS3, that kept me from finishing this game.

However, if you have a better stomach for exhaustive tutorials than I do, you might want to dig up a copy of this strange little game. It’s certainly a different sort of experience, and maybe it’ll be just the distraction you need in these trying times.

Chou-Chou

The many faces of Chou-Chou.

Does anybody really know what time it is?

While my Pile of Shame (TM) still has a ton of games in it, I figured the quarantine was a good opportunity to tackle some of the longer ones–JRPGs, and such. Recently, I finished the first Trails in the Sky, and I see why the Legend of Heroes series (which includes the Sky trilogy, the Cold Steel quadrilogy, and two un-localized games in between them) is so highly regarded by fans. The plot is a slow burn until the final chapter, but once it kicks into high gear, it leads to one hell of a cliffhanger. Anyway, today’s word…

tourbillon, noun – a watch mechanism designed to mitigate gravity’s effect on the movement of the gears

Learned from: Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky (PSP, PC, Playstation 3, Playstation Vita)

Developed by Nihon Falcom

Published by XSeed Games (2011)

Literally meaning “whirlwind,” the use of “tourbillon” in Trails in the Sky was in a more mechanical sense. Much of the society in the game is based around technology derived from ancient artifacts (naturally). Called “orbments,” these devices combine clockwork mechanisms and elemental crystals to produce everything from street lights, to airships, to weapons. And as with all steampunk-ish technology, things can always be fine-tuned, hence the inclusion of tourbillons in some tech to make it more stable/accurate.

There’s actually quite a bit more depth behind the history of the orbments, as well as pretty much every aspect of the world in this series. Hell, even most of the individual townsfolk you run across have individual names, agendas, and dialog that’s more than “Welcome to <NAME OF TOWN>!” The sheer amount of text here can weigh things down a bit, but if you’re the sort of person who’d, say, read all the books in Skyrim, you’ll probably love getting immersed in the history of Liberl. Even if you don’t look through all the extra stuff, the tension and interplay between various factions of the military, the Bracer guild (sort of an international police/mercenary force), and the ruling family is plenty intriguing on its own.

tl;dr: If Trails in the Sky is any indication, this series is an underappreciated gem in the West. And all the games that have been translated into English are now available on Steam, so you don’t even have to be a weirdo who owns a PSP, like me, to enjoy them!

trails_in_the_sky

It’s also got quite the colorful cast of characters.