My Worth

My Worth

A mediocre man will take all

Of your kindness

Of your passion

Of your beauty

Without returning a fraction of your love.

Only talk to men who become intoxicated by your essence and compliment your being.

Remembering what was Lost: My Dragalia Lost Experience

My time with Dragalia Lost wasn't as long as I wished it could be. I knew about the game since its launch, but my low quality phone at the time made it almost impossible to play. It felt like a tragedy since the concept of forging bonds with dragons pulled me in like everyone else. It wasn't until the fall of last year I played the game consistently after upgrading my phone. For a while, it seemed like I found my daily routine. I'd login every day for daily challenges, linger on the main menu to hear my units chat it up, fall in love with adventurer stories, and bob my head to epic boss music. All was going well until news of the end of service struck the community.

To say we were all shocked is a huge understatement. An important part of our lives was about to join the graveyard of forever lost video games. With news of Dl's impending doom, I was forced to reflect on my experience with the title and came to a surprising conclusion: Dragalia Lost is easily one of my favourite games of all time.

I don't usually talk about video games on this blog, but Dragalia Lost holds a special place in my heart for being the most fun I've had with a mobile game. It hit all of that boxes that other gacha games struggle to keep up with.

It's impossible to talk about DL Without mentioning Daoko. Whether players are chilling on the home screen, slaying a deadly boss or summoning beloved units, Daoko's pop vocals are bound to be heard. Even some of the instrumental tracks are remixes of her other songs. Her songs fit the game perfectly as they invoke the feeling of a light-hearted and fun-filled adventure. The pop score helps DL stand out from other games which usually use European orchestral music. It gives the game an oddly fitting contemporary atmosphere. Ryusei Toshi and CRASHER remain iconic tunes that gets players into the thrill of a good ol' boss battle.

While on the topic of the sound department, the English voice acting deserves special mention. Ocean Productions was in charge of the voices and that makes DL an incredibly rare case of a Canadian dubbed anime game. Each voice was a breath of fresh air that fit the characters like a glove. Special mention goes to Brian Drummond as Zhu Baije, Tabitha St Germain as Althemia, Richard Ian cox as Ranzal, and Mark Oliver as Hawk.

My only complaint is that the English audio lacks fully voiced dialogue. That could've gone a long way to making the game more immersive.

Pokemon TCG artist Naoki Saito brought his A game with the art design. Most of the characters have highly rememberable designs done in a vibrant pop art style. Character portraits were always a delight to look at due to how much they popped out on the screen. Each adventurer has a unique appearance highly distinct from each other and full of personality. The fun expressive style really added to the Saturday morning cartoon feel of the game. The user interface also has a nice sleek look to it that made navigating menus anything but a chore. While the chibi graphics can seem overly minimalistic at first, that simplicity prevents the game from feeling dated and instead gave it everlasting appeal.

It may seem disingenuous to review a game without mentioning gameplay but there's not much I can say in that department. DL's isometric action RPG style made it stand out from other games on the market even with its very limited attack system. It wasn't the most immersive combat system I've experienced, but it always kept me back for more and never left me bored.

The implementation of skip tickets and auto-loop was a godsend for grinding and made it overall stress-free. I didn't have to waste hours of time just to upgrade a single character. Just hit the auto button and step away from the phone for a while. Seriously, more games need to follow this method instead of making maxing out units so tiresome. The Co-op raid battles also deserve special mention since it was so fun seeing strangers come together to beat a particularly arduous boss. There were several times I relied on Co-op to clear stages because the difficulty is no joke at times. This was especially true for the MARVELOUS final boss Xenos which can easily last half an hour. Now that's how you go out with a bang.

Last but certainly not least is the story. It starts off simple enough with Euden performing his princely duty of forming a dragonpact; the main draw of the game. Then the game added layers of complexity with Zethia's dark doppelganger and the King's sudden evil disposition. The carefree prince now has to save his kingdom from his treacherous family with an even greater threat looming in the background. The beginning of rbe story was a bit slow at first, but there were enough plot twists and burning questions to keep me fully invested. I so was not prepared for the time travel shenanigans and social commentary on classism/privilege the mid-game story brought.

And that's only what the main campaign brings to the table. Dragalia has several event stories that heavily build on the robust lore and characterization players love so much. Certain events like Faith Forsaken, Fractured Futures and Advent of the Origin even serve as epilogues to plot points made in the main story. I will admit that there were FAR too many beach themed events for my liking. This game had great slice-of-life moments but it'll be too soon if I ever see another beach adventure in a mobile game.

Finally, it would be irremissible of me not to mention the vocabularian localization provided by 8-4. Character dialogue is stuffed to the gills with personality and colloquialisms you wouldn't expect from this game at first glance. It's guaranteed you learned a few new vocab words after playing the game. Seriously, some of these characters talk like they eat thesaurus' for breakfast. That's when they're too busy spouting meme worthy dialogue at least.

Dragalia may be lost, but I'll never forget the incredible memories I made along the way.

I wanted to be Hurt by Love Manga Review

This is a manga I found increasingly hard to write a review for the more I thought about it. While the initial few chapters and overall quality of the story is indeed above average, this manga includes a scene that has completely soured my enjoyment of the series and all potential readers should be warned before reading this: The protagonist hires a group of men to rape her bully. More of that will be discussed later in the review.

Kanae has it rough. The harsh treatment she receives from her "friends" reminds her of her severe bullying history and Kanae's mother talks down to her like garbage for not being an exemplary student. Even her brother hates her because he feels that his mom forces him to study extensively to make up for Kanae's mediocrity.

The only light of hope in her life comes in the form of Hiroshi, a cute baseball player she develops a crush on after meeting him at a mixer. This crush on him turns into a domino effect of drama and degradation.

This manga is in many ways a spiritual successor to Metamorphasis by ShindoL. Both featured troubled socially awkward girls plagued by abuse and bullying. The problem is that Kanae becomes less sympathetic as the story progresses. The first chapter already establishes her being a teen prostitute and getting angry at Hiroshi when he becomes concerned for her. It's implied she chose this lifestyle on her own rather than getting roped into the profession like Saki from Metamorphasis.

The manga keeps showing vignettes of how bad Kanae's life is, but readers are never given the full details. We aren't shown enough of her backstory to understand why she is the way she is. We know that her current friends are fake as hell and her family hates her, but it feels like more bark than bite.

Seeing the mental breakdowns of the characters as they confront their own trauma is certainly a highlight. Even Ichika, the previously mentioned bully, gets her sympathy points. Speaking of which, let's talk about her and the downfall of the manga.

Ichika got into a messy love triangle with Kanae because she also had a crush on Hiroshi. Ichika bullied Kanae into backing off from Hiroshi and that infuriated Kanae. She used her connections to get a group of men to abduct and rape Ichika while Kanae watched the whole thing with sadistic joy. That scene was godawful. Ichika may have been a horrible person, but nobody deserves to be raped. Kanae becomes much more morally repulsive than her own bully. Because of that one scene, I can't give this manga a high review.

Kanae somehow become the worst character in the story with her constant self victimization and sociopathic tendencies. She doesn't care who she hurts as long as she gets her happiness.

It was such a shame the manga ruined itself by going down that route because it was a compelling teen drama before that infamous scene. Kanae is far too much a two faced detestable character to care for and I'm not even sure if I went to continue reading this manga. It is because of this vileness that the manga indulged in, I cannot recommend this manga. It is simply too sickening.

Juni Taisen Novel Mini Review

Like many Nisioisin series that aren't Monogatari, Juni Taisen is often overlooked by the public. There was a little fanfare when the anime came out a few years back before it was quickly forgotten. Is it even a story that deserves to stand the test of time?

JT's biggest pro is also its biggest con: the inner monologues. Readers only have a short time to get attached to the characters before they're abruptly killed by their opponent. This means that the writing is curt instead of the extensive roundabout dialogue Nisioisin is known for. I greatly prefer this writing style and it made for a brisk read. There wasn't any filler and everything was straight to the point. Though some characters were definitely less interesting than others, I felt that each one made a strong impact with the limited time they had.

My favorites are Inounoshishi due to her haughty attitude and Uuma for being a socially awkward beefcake. I just really love muscular guys, especially when they're shy.

The incredibly short battles was the only major flaw besides from the minimal characterization. It's a battle royale story so the fights should be the highlight but in here they're more of an afterthought. They don't even last a page. I'd be more disappointed if I wasn't already familiar with the author's penchant for anti climax. With Medaka Box as proof, Nisio can write inpreessuve battles when he wants to. C'est la vie.

Give this book a read if you enjoy character introspection and don't mind a battle royale without all the cool battles.

Kiznaiver Fanfic- Empty Heart

Katsuhira often stayed up on the fringes of midnight while questioning what it was like to be normal:

To feel pain and emotion just like anyone else.

The ability to empathize with others was robbed from him several years prior by the very girl who often stirred his heart. Though his soul has grown cold, the flames that girl ignited in him never fully dwindled.

He wondered if this was the same feeling that Chidori clung to so desperately. Katsuhira was often confused by her antics, but he even noticed she treated him differently than she did anyone else. Perhaps he held the same place in her heart as "that girl" held in his.

Katsuhira endeavored to understand what semblance of emotion Chidori sparked in him. He yearned to know her pain and experience it as vividly as she did. Pain is what draws people together. Pain is what unites them into an inseparable bond. He would bleed for her just as she bled for him.

LOOKING BACK ON BEYBLADE BURST

Beyblade was never a show I've had much affinity for. I briefly caught a glimpse of the first gen on jetix and would play the metal fusion saga in the background while I relaxed during my middle school summer break. I never thought much about beyblade because ,well, it's a show about spinning tops. A guy like me was too busy watching shows about kids saving the world with the power of mystical monsters and friendship to give beyblade anymore than an afterthought. Who could blame me?

It wasn't until the Burst saga came out that I gave the franchise a genuine chance. It was a brand new season without the 100+ episodes of the other sagas to keep track of. It was the fresh start this seasoned anime watcher needed. Burst instantly caught my attention by being more grounded to reality than the other seasons. Yeah, the guy who loves cheesy over the top campy anime wants realism in his kids show. My problem with the metal saga is that it tool itself way too seriously with how ludicrous the stakes got. Those kids were destroying boulders and crap with those tops! The laughably bad voice acting certainly didn't help matters.

Burst takes in a much more muted approach with it mainly being about kids having fun and the bonds they make. There's still tournaments, but the fate of the world isn't at stake and Ginka's screechy voice isn't grating on my ears. This slice of life approach makes it easier to get invested in the story while making the characters more relatable. The characterization is a bit too flat in some aspects but at least Beyblade treats its characters better than futurecard buddy fight ever did.

I'm currently on the Rise season and I'm still enjoying the burst saga as my comfort show. I will admit the switch to LA-based voice acting starting with Turbo was very disheartening as someone who loves Canadian anime dubs. We seriously get to see those nowadays. I ended up enjoying the seasons so much that I went out to buy five Beyblades of my own, something that would've been unthinkable a few years ago.

What spurred this post on was my late realization that Beyblade burst DB is the final season of the saga. I haven't gotten to watching it yet, but nothing about its promotional material gives off the aura of a final season. This leaves me to believe that burst has been canceled. It's a crying shame if that's the case because corporate apathy is a death sentence for any merchandise-driven product. It's unknown how long it'll be before another beyblade series comes out if at all.

Until then, I'm gonna enjoy the remaining episodes and have fun watching those adorable bladers.

3! 2! 1!

LET IT RIP!!!