To be serious about the Tekken 6 discourse for a moment: I’ve seen a number of tweets about “Japanese FGC” aura loss or how much one’s opinion on the “Japanese FGC” has dropped due to this, and yes the racist language on both sides is ugly, but all of you are saying “Japanese FGC” when you really mean Japanese society. The reason you come visit the country and tweet about how everything is so nice is the same reason you are so upset right now - people following rules, regardless of how nonsensical or outdated they seem. I grew up in America where rules are generally treated like suggestions, so it was incredibly frustrating when I first moved here and couldn’t understand why people wouldn’t make exceptions or bend rules to help me out for things that I thought were minor. It was just me constantly asking “Why??” and getting told, “That’s just how it is,” with no room for discussion. I thought I knew better and things should be changed to be more convenient for me, but after adjusting my thinking and seeing how everyone followed these same rules, it made living here so much more comfortable - it’s why I’ve chosen to stay for 15+ years. Now OBVIOUSLY I am not saying no one in Japan breaks rules, but it’s understood that if you get caught then no one is going to be there defending you. That’s where this whole issue comes from - you are not going to convince anyone on Twitter that “This rule is dumb, I'm going to ignore it.” If you’re gonna do it, then do it - but no amount of justification will make it acceptable in the eyes of most people here. So yes, this is a complex issue, but it is not the “Japanese FGC” you are dealing with, it's Japan’s rule-based society as a whole. It’s been very interesting and pretty nostalgic to watch from the sidelines. As for my stance: No comment 😇

Finally finished Belmont's Curse. I really wanted to love this, but in the end it felt like a game full of potential that just fell short. Probably the biggest issue was the "Castlevania" in the name - if this was just a random title I would have enjoyed it more, but there was a lot I was expecting that just was not there, which left me feeling disappointed. GOOD -Graphics are great. Even if it was a bit colorful for a Castlevania game, it's still very pretty, especially in motion. -Platforming was fun. Not really something I need in my Castlevania, but I enjoy platforming so I didn't mind it. It did feel like 50% of the game though. -Good map size and map progression. World felt big and constantly was discovering and unlocking new areas. Also the puzzles/hint system was a nice touch during exploration. -Weapons/Arcana system were fun. Not necessary because the game was pretty easy, but it was nice being able to mess around with different tools and also having those little missions to unlock. BAD -No Vibes whatsoever. None. Lots of reason for this, like... -No Map variety. Streets, Catacombs, Graveyard, Castle, Library, Clock Tower, etc... all sound good on paper, but playing through the game every area felt the same. Just dark and gloomy with one mechanic unique to the area. Really wish they took more of a risk to make the castle feel more alive. -No Enemy variety. VERY noticeable as you progress and quickly caused the game to feel stale as you just fight the same enemies over and over again. Also where were all the silly guys! Bring back skeletons with rocket launchers. -Music. I didn't hate it, but it also wasn't very good or memorable. Back to the no vibes point. -Movement was so SLOW. Exploring a huge map is the appeal of Metroidvanias, but you need to be able to zoom around quickly. I was halfway through the game before I could even double jump. -And don't get me started on that HORRIBLE fast travel system - I wasted hours using the Ferryman before I discovered the Mirror World. Why hide it? -Combat in general just ended up being mashing and abusing the broken parry + no collision damage. Fans of the system say it's deeper than the combat in the old games, but I don't need deep combat in my exploration game. It's not a bad game, and I would be excited if the team got to try again with a sequel. There are already some great fanmade QOL mods (minimap, quick weapon/arcana swapping, BGM swapping, movement speed increase) that could be added and instantly improve the experience. A lot of people also seem to really love it which is cool - this is just my own take as a SOTN boomer. 7/10.