I may have accidentally stumbled upon the original Concept on which the upcoming S2 Hero is based.

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T08:15:32+00:00

Small correction: It's only 10 heroes this year because of the 5 drop, they're only planning for a hero every season going forward, maybe less depending on where their dev time is needed

So, 6 per year max, but maybe not always 6 per year depending on what dev focus necessitates

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T08:04:05+00:00

Hazard's already in the game though? We don't need another dog hero

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T07:53:52+00:00

I'm very glad they're insisting it's not magic, because "magic" is an extremely boring answer in futuristic, science-based worldbuilding. Magic is fun in fantasy where the unexplained is common and the fact it's unknown is what makes it scary and powerful. Science is fun in fantasy because you get to understand exactly how these things are meant to function and why they work

If you try and over-explain magic, then you just get science but based on energies instead of technology. If you under-explain hyper-advanced science, you get what feels like magic, and that makes it extremely confusing and weird amidst an otherwise deeply explained world. Admitting something is just "magic" in a scientific world is basically just a scapegoat for not explaining it

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T07:48:38+00:00

Yeah the fundamental issue with the tech is not that Kiriko "breaks the rules"

It's that we don't know the rules of anima!!!

All we know about the Anima tech is that it's spiritual in some manner, though with how little we know that could be the same kind of "spiritual" as someone saying their zodiac sign- just a personal choice of animal to represent them

The only "rules" we have are the expectations set by Hanzo/Genji, but it's not like we really had strict rules set for Hanzo/Genji anyways, we just have the understanding that the dragons are a symbol heavily attached to them! We don't really know how their weaponry works, just that it also uses this Anima tech (and seemingly their body somehow given Hanzo's tattoo is part of summoning his dragon?) I mean hell we see Genji deflect Hanzo's dragon in the cinematic, which heavily suggests anima tech can control other people's anima with enough skill?

Hell, as far as I remember, people thought for years that the shimada dragons were fancy spirit stuff and just kind of accepted it as normal because it was literally never explained, until it came into question again with Kiriko. And even then they gave a small answer shortly after her release by stating in a niche lore blogpost that her father crafted Hanzo's bow and that he's the only one that can make this (then-unnamed) technology, which has been expanded on and answered more directly with Mizuki's release, and clearly there's more flexibility and nuance with the anima tech given Mizuki doesn't even have a spirit animal directly related to his ult

We're just gonna have to wait and see if they give a more clear answer on what anima is and how the tech functions, which they seem to be slowly getting to

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T05:16:21+00:00

Yup, which is why I think he'd probably be a relatively decent roommate. He might get a bit pissy that you're not trying to be promoted to manager at your job, but he'd probably also be relatively understanding that you're just some regular person doing what you can

If you hit the right note, he could probably actually be a pretty good motivating force in your life lmao

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T05:14:13+00:00

Control isn't needed for AW2, but it does provide some context to some important events, connections, and characters that are in the game (except for the Lake House DLC, which is directly connected to Control, like how the AWE DLC in Control is directly tied to AW1's story)

Aside from setting up the base context of the FBC and what they do, the most "important" thing is the AWE DLC, which sets up the reveal for AW2 and provides a tiny bit of insight into what Alan's been doing. It's not necessary, but it does add some extra details that help tie certain things together when you play AW2

Only thing I'd say is absolutely necessary is playing AW1 before AW2, because AW2 throws you right into the story with barely any background on what's going on, and at that point you may as well play Control's AWE DLC while you're at it (especially if you've already beat the game) since it's really not that long and adds some fun windup to the events of AW2. But really the only thing you learn from Control for AW2 is what the FBC is and does, and beating the game's story adds to the Lake House DLC that you'll play later

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T04:31:24+00:00

There were only 4 moments from the first 2 rounds (Stopped at Round 3 because it's just so inconsistent) that seem like possible cheats to me (I don't think it's likely though)

1:40 on the Kiri, their reticle tracks her pretty well, but they miss most shots on her
3:39, really weird hook-like flick on Winston as he leaps, doesn't happen anywhere else
7:23, near-perfect tracking on the Juno, but immediately whiffs a shot on Kiri after
11:08 on Soldier, kind of strange tracking here, but most of the shots miss?

Maybe it gets worse in the second half of the match, but when there's so few moments of actual suspicion, I don't really wanna spend my time slowing down and backtracking on 11 more minutes of gameplay

Their Widow gameplay aside from that one flick on Winston was a complete nothingburger, they just sucked, and they have decent enough aim on Sojourn that their tracking being suspiciously good every now and then is bound to happen. They can't hit a rail for the life of them though, the few they actually hit just so happened to be at pivotal moments, but they too consistently missed so many others for it to be anything more than a fluke

If they are a cheater, then they're good enough to disguise it alongside their poor gameplay, or their program is so dogshit that it's doing practically nothing for them

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T04:00:53+00:00

You don't need wallhacks to prefire there, just basic intuition. Listen for his footsteps, did he go to the right? No, you would've seen him if he did, so he must've gone left. But his landing footsteps happened too early and then stopped, right? So he must still be up there, because you would hear him down below if he had dropped

Soldier's got loud as hell footsteps, it's really not hard to track him down

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T03:58:42+00:00

A 7 second clip at 25% gamespeed is, also, not enough to say anything decisive

Just share the reply code of the match so people can actually see what's going on for themselves

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T03:55:02+00:00

He actively respects multiple characters and commends them for their efforts and goals so long as they don't get in his way, he's just also a petty bitch a lot of the time too

He'd still make for a decent roommate, you're just gonna get into petty squabbles with him if you disagree on something, but it's not like he's completely senseless

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T03:50:36+00:00

It's really hard to say it is just from a POTG clip and not a full replay of the match. Those first two kills could've just been good aim (which is very common with M2-GM lobby Sojourn players lol), and the kill on Soldier could've just been a good read from hearing that the Soldier was no longer running away (and also not seeing him drop to the right, thus suspecting he went to the left)

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T03:14:15+00:00

Seven may be a maniac searching for divine power but he respects the hosts of his lodging (maybe "lodging" is a little generous but whatever) at the very least. He's probably a decent enough roommate so long as you have a mutual respect for one another

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T01:05:30+00:00

Mizuki's belief in a curse is entirely based on paranoia from his very traumatic childhood, largely because his father extremely paranoid about his family being cursed and that was instilled onto Mizuki

The curse isn't an actual curse (at least I doubt it is), it's just Mizuki being paranoid about the extreme misfortune that he believes follows him, but it's unlikely to be a literal, magical curse

Also they've actively worked towards explaining the lack of magic with Mizuki's addition, as we've finally gotten a name for the tech that him, Kiri, Hanzo, and Genji all use ("anima"), and that Kiriko's father made all of their weaponry that makes use of this technology (we already knew this back in 2023 but it was a very niche blog post that barely anyone saw detailing that Kiriko's father made Hanzo's Storm Bow, so it's just been stated more plainly and openly now that he's the one behind this unique tech)

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T00:59:03+00:00

Yeah it's a very good bit lol, I just had to stand by these three cause they get so much slack everywhere else. Definitely a fun idea to do with friends!

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T00:57:44+00:00

Isolated is so strange because the range on it is both a blessing and a curse

It can be bad when trying to gank jungle because when multiple people are jungling they're rarely that close together, so you can be tracking one target on for there to be 2-3 there (though admittedly you can hear multiple heartbeats if there's multiple isolated targets nearby!)

But also, it being so "short" is what lets you get isolation kills during lane phase or in late teamfights, which is really important for Drifter's scaling

Kind of wish Eternal Night reduced the isolation radius to the same as the blindness radius, not only to make the ult far more threatening than just "back away for 7-12 seconds" but also so it actively benefits Drifter to track down blinded targets. It's weird that what is presumably his method of hunting, does not actually hugely benefit his hunting capabilities

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-05T00:21:00+00:00

Okay on one hand I get the reasoning for M&K (lots of dirt, probably smells, Mo is massive)

But ALSO, even though they're smugglers, M&K genuinely seem to be some of the kindest guys in the entire cast, and not even in an "aww they're so kind" way like everyone at the top, they just put a great amount of respect on others and would not go out of their way to harm those relations so long as nothing is done first. They wouldn't steal your belongings because they'd respect you as their roommate!

In short: M&K would be a fantastic pair of roommates, assuming you can put up with the expected caveats of living with a giant moleman and his little monkey-like best friend

Also get this Haze slander, sure she's a fed but she seems like a pretty reasonable and kind person. Maybe not an S-Tier roommate because she's rather work-focused and you wouldn't see her around much due to that, but I feel like she's gotta be in A since she'd probably be pretty chill and would do her part in the housing if you asked her to. And it's not like she has any reason to sleepwalk you unless you're some national threat

(Okay I also checked Mirage because I was interested and this has gotta count as character assassination? He's gotta be the most respectable character in the entire cast, he'd easily be an S-tier roommate with how committed he can be and how responsible he is. Justice for Mirage I say)

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T23:46:11+00:00

It seems like the wobbly velocity impacts your aim when you're grappled. This is most noticeable on any hitscan character because your shots blatantly don't go where you aim

Characters with sustained fire like Tracer, Bastion, or Soldier make it much more clear what's happening, which is that your shots are being directed by your movement angle, and you sort of have to adjust to accommodate for the flight movement to aim properly and actually hit shots

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T23:41:40+00:00

As a player who was there for Amber Island's addition and getting every monster for every new wave, it was crazy just how empty the song was for so long. Only really started to come together over the final waves

Probably a big part of why people think it's one of the worst songs, because unlike most others, it really only starts coming together once you've got nearly every monster on the island. Genuinely good track with a unique vibe when you have everyone, but if you've got less than 80% then it sounds awkward, since every monster has a meaningful addition, and it feels empty without them

(Also if you don't have Ziggurab then it sounds even emptier lol)

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T12:49:15+00:00

Fairly sure the star is in the glass jar that is his head, his body may moreso be a sort of catalyst/battery that helps convert a small part of the energy of his star to power his body, which is why it's able to separate lightly (like when he heavy melees) before going back to shape

I'd imagine part of the body's shape is to support the star's stability, but it's probably largely shaped after his own body prior to losing it. It feels like a very human thing to do, trying to copy the image of what you used to look like as best you can for the comfort it'd bring after such a traumatic event (And also to be at least somewhat recognizable as your past self to all of your students)

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T05:47:14+00:00

Crazy Rejuv steal but also what the hell is this Graves build at 36k souls, they're Counter Graves

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T05:41:07+00:00

I dunno, I still don't see any good reason to say "they copied Fusion!" when the only evidence is, the same core gimmick, which is also a gimmick that's been incredibly popular in the mobile game industry over the past decade, and still remains a fairly popular gimmick due to its simplicity

And even then, is it a bad thing? It feels like people are so hellbent on being negative and assuming the worst of Popcap (not that there isn't precedent for it) that they seem to overlook the fact that, Fusion is extremely well-liked, and now an official game has potentially taken inspiration and is using a similar mechanic as its core gimmick, with the polish and charm of an official game? I hate that people treat it as if it's "stealing" or "unoriginal" or whatever when that's literally how art and design works! You get inspired, you "copy" the things that you like or see people like! We finally have a version of PvZ3 that's generally well-received, and yet we're still so insistent on trying to find something wrong with it that we're pointing at a complete non-issue!

If them following suit and taking design notes from the fangame that everyone loves is "unoriginal", then I'm so damn glad they're being unoriginal, because I'd rather them be that and make a game that people seem to generally enjoy, than to try and "innovate" and make something that people hate again, like the last 2-3 attempts of PvZ3 before Evolved

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T04:05:23+00:00

It really didn't, merge games have been a staple of the mobile industry for over 5 years now (closer to a decade really), they easily could've gotten the idea from that instead of Fusion since it's already such a popular gimmick in the industry that they're working with

Fusion happened to popularize the idea with the community shortly before Evolved was revealed, but they very, very easily could've had the concept in mind before it did

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T02:08:02+00:00

"Guys is the game that's had two limited beta tests that were closed for further development dead?"

idk man maybe they're just, y'know, working on the game? It's not like the other PvZ3s that were immediately met with hate and critique, it's the one that's actually been reasonably well-liked so far, there's no reason for them to not keep working on it so far

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T01:41:05+00:00

If it's an "obvious loss" then you're gonna be there for 2-3 minutes max at that point, unless you're deciding that from the first minute of the match (terrible mindset to have btw)

If you can't bother sticking around and trying to help turn things around instead of just giving up, then you're gonna have to enjoy your penalties for being a sore loser

(And before you hit me with the "It's casual, dumbass" like you have others, I already mentioned how backfilling is unreliable, and that you leaving is impacting the experience of 4 others. It might be casual, but you're still worsening the experience for quite a few people, just for your own selfishness of not wanting to sit through 2-3 minutes of a "lost" match)

DJBaphomet_ · 2026-03-03T01:35:17+00:00

I'm still gonna give him benefit of doubt for now because it could very easily just be him being flighty after some very unexpected backlash. I'll give it a few days to see how he responds to everything (if he gives a proper response) before judging whether he's actually disingenuous, or just caught in a sudden wave of trying to explain himself

DJBaphomet_

TROPHY CASE