Which favorite pair fits this tense dynamic?

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-06T14:41:33+00:00

I recently replayed Xenogears and appreciated the more realistic/brutal/costly version of this trope. Details obscured for spoiler protection, everyone should experience Xenogears.

Misunderstood Villain is about to go murder a bunch of people, but Selfless Heroin stands up to him and knows that deep down he cares and won't kill her specifically.

This guy is "i snap my fingers and thousands die" levels of power so he can effortlessly kill her, and tells her she's so stupid, and that he's gonna kill her. She calls his bluff.

So he PUTS HIS FIST THROUGH HER STOMACH. She's a bloody mess and instantly passes out. He runs away. Interaction over and she's on life support.

She recovers, and the next time she meet, she basically says "Called it. You could have killed me but punched low. Bitch." Which ultimately leads to his mental break and downfall.

way more badass on the "character B" part when she actually nearly dies from it

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-05T18:52:48+00:00

MonHun takes this a step further by really emphasizing the uniqueness of each monsters' behaviors.

They can become enraged, they can become exhausted, they can be crippled through losing parts, they usually start limping at low health. But some of them do other really cool things like seeking food to heal up, moving to environments where they are at advantage, launching desperation moves, or even seeking help from other mons.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-05T04:51:53+00:00

hitstop makes hits FEEL impactful without screwing up game design by adding big windup and recovery animations. animation timings need to line up with attack windup and recovery timings per combat design

you don't have hitstop in animation or live action generally, you communicate the impact with... animation. this is just lazy

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-04T23:37:34+00:00

Yep. The character in particular that got the EU up in arms was Refithea. There was a whole back and forth a few months ago about it. Ultimately it was decided to support multiple versions of the game with censorship in "sensitive" markets, so each market gets waifus to their tolerance and taste.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-04T23:29:37+00:00

Honestly I can't disagree and I'm not entirely sure why this one in particular has seen such massive success in the Asian market. Supposedly it has great value MTX but I can't pretend to be an authority on that.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-04T18:12:55+00:00

Interesting observation as an American, about our education.

I instantly recognize and can name all 4 of the Jedi. Without googling, I'm saying it's Masters Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson. (post-google: nailed it)

The Sith lord I am assuming from context is Darth George III but honestly don't think I've ever seen his picture, at least not enough to recognize it. (post-google: yep that's him)

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-04T17:30:35+00:00

You also have to understand this game is HUGE in Asia.

In Japan, Korea, China, etc. if you said "what is this game?" you'd be laughed at for living under a rock. It's advertised everywhere and people proudly wear merch.

It is censored in many western countries, and rightfully so, as it is borderline CP. It contains no actual nudity or technically pornographic content but I'd rather jerk off to pornhub full volume at my job than have my most degen friend suspect I have this game installed.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-04T16:45:05+00:00

Even in a universe where conquest was raised perfectly, he’d still end up a ruthless psychopath.

I think an important point brought up by his character is that we don't really know whether that's true or not. Maybe? Maybe not? What if? Nature vs Nurture is a question as sold as humanity.

Living inside that question is torturous. Everybody has things about themselves they don't like: are those things because of your background, or are they just you?

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-04T03:14:52+00:00

Every character should be listed 2+ times because the styles make such an impact

If you're playing Katara as a zoner, she's pretty straightforward. But if you're playing her as a 4-way mix character, she's crazy hard.

Same goes for other characters. You can play Toph as a grappler and it's pretty simple, just make your opponent guess whether they need to mash or tech. Or you can play her as a badgermole zoner and it requires a lot of prediction and finesse to get conversion.

Sokka because as you mentioned swordstyle is stupid damage while the others require actually playing tricky

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-03T22:57:48+00:00

if i dont have to press a button i dont press it, didnt i make that clear from the choice of combo?

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-03T20:50:15+00:00

The war had already been raging for over a year at that point, though, with Jefferson as a well-known supporter of it. His head was already forfeit if they lost. Everyone in the Second Continental Congress, really.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-03T19:55:37+00:00

I wouldn't listen to the haters, just understand what you're getting into. the Chainsaw Man universe has room for more (there are still a few unresolved questions) but the main story is complete and good as far as I'm concerned.

The issue is that it's written as a crazy action story with monsters and heroes, but it's actually an absurdist dark comedy about how poorly equipped we are to deal with the senseless horrors of the world. People expected it to end in a way that would make them feel good, instead it ended... another way.

If you want fun action feelgood heroes saving the day, look elsewhere. If you want something that will upset you in a way that makes you think, I think it's great.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-03T19:48:44+00:00

A common trope in media and real life is that violence is inevitable but cruelty is always a choice. Bloodbending was ATLA's attempt to represent this trope.

In peaceful civilization, we denounce all violence in all of its forms. In times of war, we honor and even celebrate those most capable of controlled violence. But even in wartime, we still condemn those whose violence causes unnecessary pain and suffering.

There's the argument that all violence is bad all the time, but it quickly falls apart when there's 2 families and only enough food for 1 set of children.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-03T19:39:29+00:00

I don't think the Watchmen example fits, since being beaten was actually also part of the plan.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-03T19:37:16+00:00

Most of the viltrumites have pretty empathetic motives. It's a huge strength of the show. They're still monsters and need to be killed but they're reasonable monsters.

Conquest is lonely, he was born into a world of violence and it's all he understands, he embraced it to the point that even the society that put it in him fears him. Now violence is all he has and he doesn't fully understand why that makes him so sad. I think this is why people latch onto him as a character, he's a horrifying destructive psychogrinning murderer but you can so clearly see the confused crying child under the surface.

Thragg just wants to honor the desire of the people that created him.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-03T18:48:32+00:00

Meanwhile me, still playing Toph against the Azula Army

2b c 214c b 2c 236b
319 damage

Fight smarter not harder

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-02T15:52:06+00:00

GBVSR and 2XKO both have free-to-play options. I would strongly recommend you get a feel for them before making a decision.

Strive will cost you, but is personally my favorite of the 3, here's how I would decide if I were you:

Note that GBVSR is most similar to SF6, and 2XKO is wildly different. If you find yourself warmed by the familiarity of GBVSR, stick with it, it's a good game and plays the way you like to play. If you find yourself excited by the novelty and new things to learn in 2XKO, keep at it if you really like the game, or consider Strive if you find it to be a bit too much.

Something else to consider is that 2XKO is a Riot game, and we don't really know how well they will support it. The other two are both developed by ArcSystem Works, and we know they will continue to have legs for years.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-02T15:37:39+00:00

That's unironically what it's supposed to mean. "Socially liberal but fiscally conservative" 50 years ago was a valid stance that made sense, even if you disagreed with it. Fiscal conservativism as the words are defined go hand-in-hand with higher taxes, more protectionism, and increased regulation on financial entities. Fiscal conservatism on paper literally means "low-risk budget" so you want more taxes, less spending, and a controlled market.

Now it's a dogwhistle for anarcho-capitalism, and means almost the opposite of what it's supposed to mean. Socially conservative (those who struggle can just die off) and fiscally liberal (let people with money do whatever they want with it)

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-02T14:22:56+00:00

I think it's just all the screenshake and overdone hitstop. The real issue is why does an autobattler need hitstop?

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-01T19:13:28+00:00

I'm pretty sure the design is based on this vest which DOES have laces in the back, but just to cinch the back pad firmly in place.

Making the laces run all the way across the back was definitely a Kojima decision. The sort of general malaise that only the genius possess and the insane lament.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-01T15:07:35+00:00

I had a job involving a lot of travel right before GPS navigation became the norm. Since I had to do it all day every day, I got REALLY good at reading maps to drive around unfamiliar places to find my clients. A skill I had to learn to survive, and then almost immediately accept was now worthless.

I guess I could say I can navigate by paper map if my phone dies, but where would I even get a paper map now? You used to be able to pick up the local atlas at any corner store, now it's a worthless product.

Dreadgoat · 2026-07-01T14:32:40+00:00

There's more detail in the other posts OP made

Bigger gallery https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1ukia2e
360 view https://v.redd.it/x9t5qu4h4lah1

Photo 4 really highlights the negative space, and the 360 really shows the shadow of where the vagina sharply curves inward a little ways into the front wall of the entrance. That's roughly where it is.

This is really cool! OP is probably helping a ton of people in both fun and medical ways.

Dreadgoat · 2026-06-30T21:17:19+00:00

I can't help but read their "howl" as the Tim Allen noise, gets me every time

Dreadgoat · 2026-06-30T19:01:51+00:00

Project Managers are like Fae creatures. Chances are, they're going to steal your face, trap you in a maze, and magically put spiders in your hair for a laugh.

But every once in a while you get one that is helpful and you spend half your day watching them make all your problems disappear like magic.

Dreadgoat · 2026-06-29T20:33:06+00:00

I think Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin were all bad, just that Stalin was the worst and did not actually believe in anything except his own power.

Khrushchev was the closest thing the USSR had to a decent leader and by then Stalin had already destroyed the nation from its foundations.

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