Week 10: Learning AF- Cl-r as Rain

     [The blog formatting is a bit off this week. I think I know why. Either way, sorry for the random paragraph breaks. I've to go back in and edit it but to no avail.]

Welcome to Week 10 of Learning Anime Fighters (AF). This is an ongoing blog about me picking up anime fighting games.

This week is actually a big achievement because this is our 10th week of this ongoing blog and even I am surprised how much time I have dedicated to it. The good news is I do not see me stopping it anytime soon so we will keep going as I hope to get better at these games.

We had a pretty big week too because we picked up a new (old) game which pretty much took up all my time but we will come back to that. On that note; lets go.

Monday

- I doubt myself again. I was thinking because certain combos were once easier with my Hori Marvel 3 stick due to its weight, I hooked it back up. Turns out I am so familiar with Eclipse (my new Qanba stick) that my old stick felt foreign to me and I was not able to have any success despite the change back. I have decided to just focus on Eclipse since it'll be my main 'stick' going forward.

- Finally got Seth's 5-2 done a whole week later and my first expert combo with him. Can only go up from here lol.

- It looks like Millic (a Korean artist who I now I understand does lo-fi hip hop) helps me concentrate. Able to pull off Seth's 5-1. I realize the secret to getting 214[C] is ignore the delay and just hold it down as soon as the aerial 214A hits. Thanks demo assist as always.

- From 5-1 to 5-13. I knew I could do it because it was a variation of 5-1 but with a EX move attached. Getting the FF Kick (aka aerial 2AB,6A) is slowly becoming more ingrained.

- Linne's 5-9 is done. I have no idea but my hands keep doing other things after the jump C. I had to train it to go immediately into 214A,mash B. One more to go for her.

- Got Vatista's easier trials done, now I have 8 out of 9 advance and 13 out of 13 expert left.

- Wow. Maybe it is doable? Just finished all of Vatista's advance combos in one session.

- Watched all the demos for her expert combos and now I have lost all confidence. So much plinking and reverse charges. This is going to be a pain.

- Almost done. We now have 12 Seths, 1 Linne, 3 Carmine, 15 Yuzu, 13 for Vat, 3 for Bya, 7 for Chaos and 2 for Mika left to go. All Expert trials and sitting at 94.5% clear overall.

Tuesday

- Bya's 5-7 done. Really need helped with the timing for the descending C, here came in 'demo assist'and I got it after practicing just the ender.

- Back to Rising and the final 3.

- Anre done. LOL little girls are not my cup of tea and little guys are even less. However it does surprise me how much easier one of his combos with his install super is in this one. In the previous version that combo had me pulling my hair out.

- Zooey done. First I love her Link (from Zelda) inspired color and it matches so well. Her last combo was nice with using her dragon and aerial U's into a juggle. Her and Dragon Knight from DNF Duel seem like long lost sisters too.

- Seox (who's name sounds nothing like I thought it would) is done and that's the whole GBVR cast for now. I'm low key happy he didn't have a similar trial like in the original where you need to get over 15 and 25 hits to get a pass. His combos were actually pretty straight forward.

- Now all combo trials are done I think I'll start doing story content. I do enjoy the game but UNI 2 is getting all my focus.

- Hardest combos belonged to Vasaraga, Narmaya and surprisingly that one Gran combo.

- SPOILERS FOR UNI2: Wagner's ending was surprisingly bittersweet. After being so cocky and looking down on folks, she really just wanted to protect her people and sacrificed herself for the greater good.

- Chaos' 5-5 makes sense to me now and I figured out why I need to hold the B in the air. Now if I can actually get the delay 214B,623[B] to connect. Holding B keeps Arzi close to Chaos so the combo does not push the opponent out further.

- I spent a good portion of an hour trying to do 5-5 and got close a couple times but no cigar. I practice 5-7 for 2 mins at the most and got it. WTF.

Wednesday

- As I've been going through everyone's combos I forgot just how much fun Kuon is to play. Boy has a tool kit for days.

- No surprise that as the final boss Kuon has a conversation with everyone in story mode. Some deep lore was dropped for sure.

- WOOT my Under Night In-Birth: Exe: Late [Cl-r] hereby called UNICLR collecter's edition for the PS4 has arrived and boy did it come packed with some goodies.

- Included as you see above is the game itself for the PS4, a Londreicka keychain, a rather nice art book with some sweet illustrations and the music of UNICLR. Irony is the CD does not work on my computer nor my PS4 because neither have CD drives. I guess I'll keep listening to the tunes on the internet.

- Also new game = more combo trials. This could be a good thing or a bad thing lol.

- Started Wagner's trials. So far she has some unique routes the new one does not use.

- All done with Wagner's trials. Some unique concepts but they felt a bit easier than UNI2 ones.

E.G only two trials that include using her dashing C in the middle of her air combos.

- Also; have to get used to the 'tactics' section being at the end and not the beginning and using

the touch pad on the PS4 to reset the neutral. I typically use the 'share' button on my Steam deck

but it turns out hitting that will just cause the PS share menu.

- Note to self; change Steam deck to R3 since I do not use it as much on my PS4 so accidentally

pushes won't constant bring up the share menu.

- Merkava feels similar but at the same time different. His combos are not as hard with almost

no 66B,66C combos and only one combo involving his air fireball.

- A lot of combos teaching you how to set up his 22C super tho, interesting.

- Looks like none of Seth's combos have his TK 623x move. Does not make him any easier to use

tho. Still messing up aerial 6C

Thursday

- I think I might honestly try to main Seth and Chaos. I am never scared of execution barriers (I main Akira in Virtua Figher for example) and I like boths game plan. Plus Chaos might be the first puppet character I actually want to use.

- Tonight was my 16th wedding anniversary so no gaming for me.

Friday

- Working through Waldstein's combo trials in UNICL. His 4-15 requires almost perfect usage of his

meter or his ABC super just does not come out.

- All Waldstein's combos done. This time around, I had to get used to dashing B and timing aerial

assault after his aerial 6C wall bounces. Waldstein still is so much fun to play no matter the edition.

- I've noticed a lot of combos in UNCLR involved wall bouncing into Veil Off (VO) no follow up. Wonder if that used to be a tactic. I am used to VO being used like a cancel into other combos ala UNI2.

- Chaos is combo trials are much easier in UNICLR. Actually cleared a lot of his combos in one night.

Only thing that throws me off are the classic 22x cancels and a concept I've never done in terms of

aerial 214B,623B,2C as a combo ender.

- He only has one combo which forces a switch side where UNI2 has tons of those combos. I bet Chaos'

mains had to adjust to that concept when they first picked him in UNI2.

- Watching JP Seths plays in EVO Japan and they pilot him so well it makes me envious. He is such a beast.

- I only have 5 combos left before I complete all of Chaos' trials. LOL if I could have this success

in UNI2 where I want to use him.

- 2 more to go. I think I can do it next time I try.

- Speaking of EVO Japan; no UNI2 announcements but they are working on a new balance patch for Melty Blood: Type Lumina? Need to check that out so I can see if I can main 2 anime games. Also thankfully I did not dive too deep into MBTL so I won't be too affected by nerfs to characters I use.

Saturday

- Listening to the UNI2 Evo Japan commentary; I heard VO is faster in UNI2 compared to UNICLR.

Maybe that is why UNICLR focuses on wall bounce into VO combos?

- Completed ALL of Chaos' combo trials in UNICLR. Now if I could only do that in UNI2. Some of the

last combos required some specific timing but nothing as crazy as UNI2's stuff.

- Eltum feels similar but also different. She has combos that require a whiff aerial A after her aerial [C]. Taking time to get used to it.

- Eltnum feels much easier much like everyone else. Being used to her combo structure from UNI2

helps a lot of course.

- Elt-done all over again. She had one very unique combo which involved OTG with a delayed charge

[C] but most of her combos were much easier. Thankfully no [B+C] 1 hit cancel cause that drove me

nuts in UNI2. With Kaguya being a UNI2 addition, I might main Eltnum along with Wagner.

- Seth of course and Merkava are only combo trials I have not completed after picking them up.

Overall I think the UNICLR combos are a bit easier then UNI2.

Sunday

- Even tho Sunday is normally break night, I felt like getting some more UNCLR in.

- LOL ever since getting UNICLR on my PS4 I have rarely played my Steam Deck. Never thought I would see the day. Eclipse is of course compatible with my PS4 which is nice as well.

- Looks like I am finally understanding Merkava's dash 2C after his 66C timing again. Since I completed all his trials in UNI2 I figured I could do them in UNICLR too.

- 2 more to go and one of them is a classic got to count the hits before you hit A+B+C combo which drives me nuts. Right now I am getting no success even mashing it out.

- Seth requires so much hard work but I am remembering what folks have said previously about him not being a character you can pick up even after practicing for weeks on end so I'll keep at it. I eventually got some expert combos in UNI2 so I know I can get some in UNCLR as well.

WHAT'S NEXT

Well this week got overtaken by UNCLR did it not? I looked back on my plans for this week and I did next to none of them. Heck I even started ignoring my UNI2 game plan and I actually have a my first tournament for it this weekend. Speaking of, you know we will definitely discuss that in next weeks blog.

I will definitely not let the new shiny thing distract me too much this week and keep my eye on the prize. I know I will probably go 0-2 in the tournament but I least want to feel like I did the best I could. I also hope to find some like minded UNI players to pick their brains. I am seeing this tournament more of a learning experience than anything.

I also fully intend on starting Darkest Dungeon 2 before it falls into my backlog of look at but never played which has happened to a couple of the games I have bought over the years.

AV

RANT & LIST: Worst Comic book Artists

     For something different, I have decided to combine a LIST with a RANT. Now normally I do not do RANTS these days, I normally prefer to do RAVES but when it warrants it somethings I just want to talk about what I do not like. For the people not in the know, my blog 'RANTS & RAVES' is basically my thoughts and opinions about anything and everything. I mainly do RAVES aka stuff I really enjoy, be it a tv show, music artists and mostly video games. I also recently started doing LISTs which is what the name implies, a LIST. I have done my favorite From software games the makers of Dark Souls and Elden Ring and my favorite video game characters.

    However when something really upsets me, it really gets in my brain and I need to talk about it and right now the thing that upsets me the most is how bad comic book artists somehow still get work. Comic books are a visual medium and bad art can really take you out of the experience. Bad writing is also not good of course but I'll admit I'll keep reading a bad story if the art was still good and the artist was a good storyteller. This LIST maybe controversial to some (especially the 3 and 4) but as I mentioned it is how I feel. With the preamble done, lets talk about some the worst comic book artists.

4. Frank Miller

    

    As mentioned above, the backend might be a bit controversial but I personally feel Frank Miller of Sin City/ Daredevil/ Dark Knight Returns fame has really gone down hill in his later years. Mr. Miller's art used to be very stylized but at the same time striking and eye catching. Minimalism but highly detailed was his calling card. His legendary The Dark Knight Returns cover for example. The above art however displays all my issues with his current work. His once detailed line work now looks rushed, all his character faces look messy, look at Batman's right foot and just how out of proportion it is and none of it appeals to me.

    Mr. Miller is at the back of the LIST because he has not always been a bad artist but much like Chris Jericho in AEW wrestling way past his prime and being deaf to the feedback of his peers and fans, I think he should consider retiring before he tarnishes his legacy even more.

3. John Romita Jr.

    This might be slightly controversial too but I believe it needs to be said that I have no idea why John Romita Jr. still gets work and not just that, work with big creations like Spider-man, Bat-man and Super-man as you see above. Mr. Romita Jr's art is not horrible, parse, it just lacks impact for me. His faces lack detail, his backgrounds are non existent and if he does draw backgrounds it just lots of lines. His anatomy is thankfully good especially compared to the people below him but at the same time, he does have anything distinctive about it. Mr. Romita Jr art is just plain and it has not 'fire' to it.

    It odd because his father John Romita Sr is an amazing artist and has had inspired generations of artists including his son of course but comparing the too just seem unfair. Mr. Romita Sr's work embodies comic books and makes me nostalgic for the good ol' days. Junior's art work just seems safe. I heard one of the reasons why he still gets a lot of work is because he is very consistent with his deadlines and the stress of a drawing a monthly book does not get to him but if the by-product is a lack luster art he delivers I would rather have guest artists fill in for him. Despite his almost clinical/ lack-luster art style, his work is still light years ahead of the next artist.

2. Rob Liefeld

    Even through there is only one spot between John Romita Jr. and Rob Liefeld, there is a much bigger gap in how much I do not enjoy their art. This one should not be controversial and I had so many bad art to choose from including his infamous Captain America picture but I feel the above image also shows everything that is wrong with his art 'style'.

    Let us start with the elephant in the room. Mr. Liefeld lack of control when it comes to anatomy. His obsession with putting more muscles than a person needs, his inability to draw feet (which he always hides in the smoke or dust) and one of my least favorite thing, his faces and the constipated look his characters always have. The fact that in the early 90's everyone was trying to draw like Liefeld and he had a whole art studio following in his foot-steps is a real dark period in comic books. The fact no-one recognized to much later that his artwork is not only bad but that he made a career out of it is amazing. Yes, he has a legacy too and he helped created one of the most popular characters of all time, Deadpool but we are a audience need to recognize, he is not a good artist and he has never been one. Unlike Frank Miller who has got worst over time, Mr. Liefield has just been bad always. I have heard he is aiming to retire soon and thank goodness for that. Now despite this low hanging fruit, there is actually someone much worse then Mr. Liefeld in my opinion.

1. Greg Land

    Here we are at the crux of the matter, the previous 3 entries were artists at least, even Mr. Liefield but Greg Land is just a tracer and the thing that really offends me is the fact that he still gets work and not only that, he gets work regularly and it simple makes no sense how a hack like this can keep getting paying gigs. In all honesty, this whole RANT is because of Land and how much his 'art' offends me. It is also sad because being the big Marvel fan I am I can not avoid him and I end up buying books with his tracings. My most recent purchase 'Predator vs Wolverine' had Land's art in it but his name was not listed on the cover. Thankfully he only really drew partial one chapter but just seeing his 'art' made me nauseous. It is just so bad y'all. Is it the un-natural faces which he probably borrowed from his porn collection where he traces all his female faces from or the fact that when he is not tracing his own previous art he is stealing from established well known artists and people and editors just let him get away with it. Is the fact that all his action scenes look tilted and artificial. It is maddening.

    I wish I could avoid him the black plague but I can not. Mr. Miller's art especially his earlier work I can buy, Mr. Romita Jr's work if its in a book from a library I borrowed, I can work with it. I flat out refuse to buy anything with Mr. Liefield's name attached to it and thankfully everything he draws outside of Deadpool does not appeal to me but Greg Land? Marvel has forced him on me over the years and I have had enough. I have no idea what blackmail papers he has on the executives at Marvel comics but enough is enough. I also know I am not alone in losing my patience with Land's 'art' because I have seen numerous posts which are saying the same thing. Greg Land is not a penciller, Greg Land is not a artist. Greg Land is a tracer and the worst comic book artist I am forced to buy.

    Conclusion: I know this might seem out of pocket and believe it or not, my regular blog readers will know I normally do not do RANTs these days but I needed to get this out of my system. As a medium I love and have invested a lot of time into collecting, reading and appreciating, the art in a comic book matters a lot to me even as a non artist. So the fact that their is artists out there whom a getting work and not just work, high profile work whilst other smaller artist struggle really drives me mad.

    Now I have gotten this off my chest I think I can move on but not before my final dig. MARVEL STOP GIVING GREG LAND WORK!

AV

Learning AF: Week 9- Storytime

 Welcome to Week 9 of Learning Anime Fighters (AF). This is an ongoing blog about me picking up anime fighters.

    This blog is done chronologically so follow along as we explore Anime Fighters and more.

Monday

- This week we get started with Seth as promised.

- I've actually always had an interest in Seth even going back to BBTAG, he is even my current 3D avatar for the 'arena' sections.

- Seth is tough tho, I am getting stuck doing his advance combos. Not a good sign lol.

- I think I might have to switch back to my Hori. With Eclipse, my current 'main' stick I've noticed I have issues doing 236 into 214 motions. I originally noticed that when I using Kaguya previously.

- I figured it out, unlike Kaguya, there is a slight delay with Seth's 236 into his 214. I am thankfully because switching from stick to leverless between games is okay but switching sticks in the same game might be a bit much.

- Okeeeey the expert combos for Seth are ridiculous. I've never had a character where I could not do any of their expert combos. His skill ceiling is really high it seems.

- I seem to have a lot of issues but the key one is getting confused when he switches side, the timing for 2A+B into 6A and the jump cancel into 6C window.

Tuesday

- There is no visual aids for Seth's combo structure which is wild because how complex it is. Something this complex is normally great material for Youtube videos, like how to Korean Backdash in Tekken. I have found nothing tho.

- Finally able to get Hyde's 5-15 combo on the 2p side aka the side where I get less accidentally DPs. Hyde as a main character is funny cause he is not Akira from Virtua Fighter complex but he sure is not Ken from Street Fighter easy to pick up either.

- Add 5-16. I knew once I got focused I could do the 236B,6A dash C, 236A,6B combos if I swapped sides. I do not understand the need for delay 236B,6A, I just do at my normal timing at it works.

- 5-11 done. Its is looking likely we might finally finish Hyde today.

- Spending so much time in the trials I wish there was a button to automatically go back to the 'Challenge Select Screen' like hit RB to go back to that menu OR the cursor stayed on its last selected option. Just a quality of life thing.

- Hyde's 5-6 is soo dumb and it is not even optimal but I finally got it. I had to move the opponent closer to the wall so the dash B would connect sooner. All Hyde's combos are done and it is pretty good because I started with 14 out of 18. Feeling accomplished. I do not see myself main-ing Hyde, getting his 214 series delay down takes work and I rarely main protagonist.

- Bought Darkest Dungeon 2 as I promised myself I would in my Triple I blog. It'll be a fun game to play on nights when I am taking breaks from AFs.

- Finished Blazblue story chapter in BBTAG. I keep forgetting to mention I do enjoy that this story mode is fully voiced and the UNI cast even gets English voice overs which they have never had. I am also knowledgeable on BB lore so it was cool all the references that showed up during it aka Hazama not being reliable, Ragna, Jin and Noel's complex relationship and more.

- We will be doing its Story mode for the rest of the week, so the next chapter will be the Persona cast.

Wednesday

- Spent a lot of time working on Seth's combos. Made zero progress. This feels like my first execution wall I have hit in this game.

- Found out you can change the color you character has on by default in a menu which is pretty dang cool. Nice work UNI2.

- Completed the Persona chapter of BBTAG story mode, a unique one where the character actually did not split up for once and stayed as one big party. My own critique is it would have been nice to had the option to choose whom you could team up with when the time came up instead of being thrown into default teams. Also I have never played a Persona game before but I feel I'll like to give Persona 4 Golden or Ultimax (the fighting game) a try.

- Nakayama is the most white bread of protagonists tho. Hopefully he has some rizz in the RPG.

- RWBY story mode is next

- I can complete Seth's combos in BBTAG. I know BBTAG Seth is 'easy mode' but hey its something. I do like the concept of Seth, if only he was not so hard to use.

- UNI2: Mika's 5-10 actually was not hard, it really came down to timing her 2B, delay 2C, 3B to make her push Orie over her head into the rest of the combo. Interesting concept and different enough to change up her combo trials.

- Carmine's 5-12 combo completed. Really need to get the hang of the timing for his 2C,jc,6B and jump [C],B,3B,2C combo ender but they feel doable. His one combo with multiple plinking gives me Hilda PTSD tho.

Thursday

- Interesting Knee, a Tekken legend, has spoken up about Tekken 8 and saying it is not fun to play. I already made up my mind about it ages ago but it is nice to see other people have issues with it and its identity as well.

- Granblue Rising tonight. Started with Siegfield and I can see why people like him and gravitate towards him. Strong attacks, good buttons. If Gran was not the protagonist of this game I could see Siegfield filling that spot. Completed all his combos too which was nice especially after the struggles I have had with Seth the last couple nights.

- Speaking of Gran, completed most of his combos but his last one has some weird timing to it. I can not seem to get it so I decided to skip it for now.

- I have found a small, feisty female character I do not dislike. Cagliostro is actually pretty cool and I love her Super Skybound Art where she turns folks into a statue of herself. Her combos require a bit of patience especially with her multi hitting close H to get more hit stun for them but she is done.

- Lancelot feels like Rising's version of Seth. Quick, multi hitting moves, ninja like stealth. Only difference is his combos are much easier LOL.

- Charlotta is another small character with a feisty attitude. I do not mind her tho, definitely would not main her. Most of her combos relies on her multi hitting 'Sword of Lumiel' and understanding the timing of when you can attack again. All complete.

- Yuel's combo were not that difficult but I feel as 'stance' character she might have more sauce. Overall, I like her design and she hits hard.

- I must say, I do like Rising's sound design. The epic clash when you do a Guard Break into a Raging Strike is pretty nice.

- Finally got Gran's last combo. I realized after watching the demo you need to wait for the last hit of fireball to hit before you can combo them for more height. It is a pretty technical combo for a beginner character.

- On that note, 3 more character and I am done with all recommend combos in Rising. I am calling them recommend combos because they actually do not feel like combo trials at all. I also notice you get no reward for doing them.

- Will probably be starting the Story mode for Rising soon as well, it seems to be a big one so it'll be a over time investment.

- Finally got Akatsuki's 5-8. The delay window for 2C into C is so precise. It really had me

in fits for days now. One more and its that silly one with the Jump 6[C].

- I have completed all of Akat's trials. This 'easy to pick up character' has some serious

complexities. 5-10 made me depressed for so long. I've been low key working on Akat since Week 3. 

- Lets chat about it. First the delay is 100% required after his C, the 236A needs to hit at the

right spot too. For the jump cancel Jump 6[C] I realize the best way to do it is to just hold 9 until he jumped and then inputted the 6[C]. I do not have it down to a science but I am much more consistent. Finally and this was the part that was killing me when I sometimes fluked the Jump 6[C] is the dash into 2C is a microdash, not a full one. Thanks to 'Demo assist' I was able to work only on it and got the timing down.

Friday

- In what feels like a big accomplishment I finally got Chao's 5-14 down. It takes a lot of precise hand movement and some great timing but it is done. We only getting started tho cause we are still only at 7 out of 15 for his expert trials.

- Hooked up MidNite to finish out some Rising combo trials? Rising was in the middle of maintenance. Since I had it out I played some DNF Duel instead. Man, Monk is so much fun.

- Completed RWBY's Story chapter. Unlike the Persona one, Ruby kept losing her partners but I was at least able to use characters I like, like Hazama, Es and Waldstein. I also cracked up when the game paired RWBY's scythe/ rapier combo vs UNI's Scythe/ rapier team.

- The ending was cool but now I need to figure out why Blazblue's chapter does not have 100% like everyone else? Maybe it ties into Chapter 2? Will continue this Story mode in the new week.

- Small, feisty female fighters seem to be an Anime Fighter trend but surprisingly I do not mind Es. I actually like her a lot. She reminds me of Saber from Melty Blood and she even has moves named after the Round Table (Saber being a alternate King Arthur and all).

- I also like how Es can combo into her command throw into another combo and she can combo into her assault (C) which I think is the only character that can do it. Now I think about it, I did not mind using Ruby during her chapter, her voice can get on my nerves tho.

- I think it is the loud pitch  voices they pick for these female character that throw me off. Linne for example is another small female character I do not mind but its because she has a very low voice.

- Chaos' 5-9 is now done. You really need to be aware to use him properly and timing hits with his 22x Azi attacks isn't easy. Slowly but surely.

- Okay, I thought Seth's trials were hard, Yuzuhira's combo ain't any easier. A lot of fast button presses, changing sides mid combo and more insanity. We have hit the specialists characters and they are not joke which is wild because the regular cast ain't easy to use either lol.

Saturday

- I have told my wife many times and it might even be a meme between us that 'x' character combo trials are the hardest in the game and a couple hours or days later I would master them. However I think I have reached the hardest combo trials and thy name is Vatista.

- When I am having trouble with the easy combos I know I have a problem. The reverse charging is throwing my brain off and I actually use charge characters. Leona from KOF is one of my favorite characters and she is a charge character but this. It wrinkles my brain.

- Thankfully she does not have a loud obnoxious voice because combine that with the difficulty of these combos and it would have been too much.

Sunday

- You know what day it is. Break Night.

- So my normal Sunday goes like this. I wake up early for church, do some running around with my family afterwards, have some lunch and then I take a long nap till the evening.

- Evening, we go to my mother's house for dinner, we watch some tv shows with her and by the time we get home from there I am pretty warn out and I do not think about gaming. Add a typically early day at work the next day I normally like to get a good nights sleep as well.

- I do not see any of these changing anytime soon so Sunday break nights will stay a thing.

WHAT'S NEXT

    So this week is my Anniversary week (16 years!!) and more specifically it is Thursday. We will probably not be doing much gaming on that night.

    We will be starting Darkest Dungeon 2 this coming week, finishing out BBTAG's story mode and probably getting a start in Rising's story mode too. Most of my other games have kind of fallen off due to my focus on UNI 2 so we will bring some of them back. I still need to beat Tainted Grail Conquest and I want to play more Remnant From the Ashes too.

    We however won't be slacking on UNI 2 and with the 3 biggest hurdles ahead of me in terms of Vatista, Yuzuhira and Seth which I'll try to conquer them as well. I will also be preparing for the upcoming tournament Cincy Clash on May 5th where I'll be entering my first UNI 2 tournament. Wish me luck! I also can not believe this upcoming week's blog will be the 10th one as well. Quite an achievement.

AV

Learning AF: Week 8- Eclipsed

    Welcome to Week 8 of Learning Anime Fighters (AF). This is an ongoing blog about me picking up anime fighters and also learning a leverless controller and brand new arcade stick. 

    This blog is done chronologically so follow along as we explore Anime Fighters and more.

Monday

- So it was teased last blog but this week we can discuss it in full. We got a brand new stick baby!! As you can clearly see it is a Qanba Drone 2. I mainly brought this because I need a 'cheaper' stick but I want PS5 compatibility (which most games are played on now) without breaking the bank. I see myself buying a PS5 eventually (because Xbox isn't making any moves) so it can be used on that too.

 - This new stick (tentatively called Eclipse) is already doing wonders. It is named Eclipse because it arrived on the day of the solar eclipse (4/8) and I actually saw it in person.

- During my first day practice with it, some of my Kaguya in UNI2 combos were not connecting at first but after some practice it felt good again. Felt I just need to adjust to it.

- Eclipse is already paying dividends. Sure I was making head room with my old Marvel vs Capcom 3 Hori Stick but I have been doing better with the Qanba. Byakayu's expert combos are now 8/13 and I think I finally understand how he works.

Tuesday

- Mostly a Tainted Grail Conquest night. Doing much better progression-wise until I screwed up during the second boss battle. Still enjoying it and I feel once I've beaten it at least once, I'll put up a full length RAVE for it.

- Londrekia is finally done. I had 2 combos which refused to work but after getting Eclipse, I was able to get both done after a couple tries. I started Londy's trials back in Week 3 when I was getting frustrated with his delay 2C, into 214[A] (The [] meaning hold the button in UNI2 terms) this combo refused to be completed until tonight.

- Smaller success as well, completed a trial for Orie and Carmine.

- Maybe it is not a placebo effect. I do recall my Hori stick which I was using being extra sensitive and causing my cursor to move much faster, down especially. I do not have that issue with Eclipse? More research needed perhaps?

Wednesday

- Making small progress again but completing 2 Eltnum trials which once felt impossible is a good feeling. Also I should know by now when the game says 'delay' it means DELAY it lol.

- On that note; Eltnum is now 12/14 expert trials. Soo close.

- Eltnum? More like Eltdone (I do not know if this joke has diminishing returns). She definitely has some complexity to her, especially with her Force Function aka FF aka B+C cancel and her 2B into 22B combos. Now I think about it, if the Hori's issue was down inputs, could that have interfered with it? I really like her character design but I do not see myself maining her as a starter character because she is pretty taxing on the mental stack.

- As promised in our previous blog, I started playing Story mode; first up; Melty Blood: Type Lumina. I have actually never did any story content for MB so Story week should start here.

- I settled on Noel as my first character, I like how easy she is to pick up and since my other main Kaguya is a warrior nun, it would be nice synergy.

- MBTL's story mode is cute, a lot of interactions, the ending being only one picture is on brand too. French Bread seems to favor those for endings (UNI2 has one picture endings as well).

Thursday

- Break night; I did even look at my Steam Deck I was so tired lol.

Friday

- Continuing Story mode week; I played BBTAG specifically UNI2's chapter. Turns it out its only part of a bigger story so I need to do all the other ones too. The games difficulty is not hard so I can probably do it when I get some time. Maybe chapter a day in the new week.

- BBTAG continues to surprise how easy it is to pick up. If you want to get into anime fighters it is a good entry point. However it will not prepare you for the complexities of some of the games. I heard BlazBlue is much more complex and UNI2 as I've found out is similar.

- Doing more research, I can confirmed my Hori Xbox360 stick does have a very sensitive down input. I can especially see it when I go to menus. Thankfully Eclipse does not have those issues and it'll be my main controller going forward.

- Bought Slay the Spire. I mentioned in my previous PIT STOP about the Triple I Initiative that I was considering buying it again. It is a good game to play when I am resting my wrist and I just LOVE the game. Nice to have it on a more portable console too.

- Speaking of wrist, its time to discuss my current issue.

Yes that's Kaguya as my wallpaper lol

- Thankfully the finger issues is not as bad. For awhile pressing down hard with my ring handed ring finger hurt a bit but that has gradually gone away. My wrist does hurt when I push down on it through, hence the brace. It helps and I wear it occasionally but not all the time. Most of the time I am fine but when I feel it, I am not ashamed to slap it on. I feel once I am not always doing combo trials and not constantly doing hard motions and pressing down hard to do the charge attacks my pain will lessen even more.

- Back on track, since I completed Eltnum's combo trials I decided I'll use her in Story mode. Boy was it hilarious. She is like the Deadpool of UNI with her constant 4th wall breaks. Beating the game with her also unlocked an achievement which was nice.

Saturday

- Hilda? More like Hildone (this is the last time I'll use this joke I promise). The infamous double plinking 5-12 is completed and I actually had to change how I held my stick to get it. It was some finger gymnastics for sure. For awhile Hilda's trials look insurmountable but we have conquer them. Now Carmine on the other hand.

- Finally got Mika's 5-9. I was delaying the 2B too long. I have to time it with the [C] hit. When I did it without it the the hit stun decay was too much. Thank goodness for the ability to slow the combo trials down to 30% speed to help me see where I was messing up.

- Revisited the advance tutorials tips and again there is too much 'wall of text' instead of giving you a chance to practice the concept or at least show a video of it. I feel if they add either of those options it would be a much better training tool.

- Speaking of tight timing, Orie's 623A needs to be done at the perfect timing so she can juggle after it. I finally got it done for one and now I just need to do her anti-air one.

- Orie's last trial that stumped me had a frame kill 2A, perfect height for her 236[B] and the perfect timing mentioned above. Once it all clicked, we got it and Orie is done.

- Most of Orie's combos were not that hard with the exception of the last 3. Those took me awhile before finally getting it. As a character, she is interesting but I do not see myself maining her.

- Completed 2 combos trials in one day? Feeling good.

- Eclipse is doing very well, my only issue is it is kind of light compared to my other sticks I've own. I did some trials in KOF XV and the stick was flying off my lap during some movements. Might look into adding a steel plate to the bottom to weigh it down a bit.

- Akatsuki's 5-6 or any of his combos that relies on a aerial 6[C] is so weird to me. When I step away from it I can do it during my first couple tries (and I did hence 5-6 being completed now) but if I mess it up and I keep trying it I will eventually get jumping C instead, no charged 6C.

I have beef with this move.

- Subsequently trying it again for the last of 2 combos I am stuck on and it will not come out. Jumping C only. So frustrating because I do not know what I am doing wrong.

Sunday

- Break night.

WHAT'S NEXT

    Eclipse, my next stick, really made this week enjoyable. Completing Eltnum, Hilda and Orie's trials this week was a definite highlight. I can also say this is the first week I did not feel as much strain on my finger or wrist which might be due to more breaks, my new brace or just me not dedicating as much hours to these combo trials.

    However not resting on my laurels, I have a couple goals for the new week. I aim to complete the all chapters in BBTAG story mode, start Granblue story mode and beat DNF Duel with a new character too (probably Monk). This week we are diving into the deep end with some of the hardest combo trials yet in UNI2 starting with Seth.

    We also have a UNI2 tournament coming up on May 5th at Arcade Legacy and since I have a PS5 stick I will actually sign up and play in it this time. It is almost time to leave the lab and see how much I've really learned.

AV

PIT STOP: The Triple I Initiative

  

    On April 10th; a lot of indie developers with big dreams decided to band together and do what I like to call the 'Anti Game Awards'. Thankfully gone are the celebrities who know next to nothing about the games they are presenting, no commercials not pertaining to the games and no down time between presentations. All killer, no fluff.  It was refreshing and it truly showed companies who wanted to buck the existing system. We wanted games, they gave us games.

    Over the course of the last couple years and unironically coinciding with me getting my Steam Deck I have found myself more and more getting into the indie scene. Now I've always enjoyed indie games especially during my Xbox360 era when I had access to their indie store. However the PC indie scene has grown to the point where its no longer even feels like a indie game we are playing. The budget might be smaller but the game still has a 'Triple A' feeling hence I feel why they calling it 'Triple I' I believe.

    Off the top of my head, some of my favorite games of the last couple years are not in the 'Triple A' space. I skipped titles like the 'Final Fantasy' games, 'Starfield', 'God of War Ragnarok' and other games that got a lot of media coverage, good or bad. Sure 'Elden Ring' might have been my favorite game of 2022 and Fromsoft is definitely in the 'Triple A' space but for every ER, I am also loving 'Darkest Dungeon', 'Risk of Rain',  'Inscryption' and 'Dredge' Most of the RAVES on this very blog are indie games and that I think is not by coincidence. These are the games I enjoy playing the most. Heck, something playing a 'Triple A' gets so daunting for me with all I need to do that even if I enjoy playing it, 'Marvel's Avengers' for example, I stop because I find something else more smaller and more enjoyable to me. It is just how I am wired these days.

    So when the guys who makes big indie games like Risk of Rain, Darkest Dungeon, Dead Cells, Slay the Spire and many others decided to band together and do their own presentation I got interested and now I've seen what is coming I am even more interested. Lets chat about some games we will definitely be playing soon. This list is not in order btw.

    Darkest Dungeon 2: The Kingdoms update- Right off the bat, lets talk about one of the big names who was a part of putting this all together. Red Hook studios, the sickos behind 'Darkest Dungeon' has being promoting 'Darkest Dungeon 2' for awhile now. First as a Epic Store Exclusive but it had recently came to Steam and with it, it has steadily added new content like new characters (or returning characters like The Crusader class) and patch updates. Their next big update appears to the The Kingdoms, which is a free new mode that changes the game slightly. This might be a good idea because a lot of feedback for Darkest Dungeon 2 was how they changed it a lot from how the original Darkest Dungeon played. This new mode seems more like a return to their roots which might be what the game needs to turn some of the naysayers. Also as a new mode, it does not erase the original concept with the heroes riding the stagecoach but it does give people the option to play DD 2 a different way.

    Personally, I've been on the fence with getting DD 2. A bit of trepidation was from the negative word of mouth and reviews and how much it changed the core of the game but some of it is because I am so busy playing other games and 'Learning Anime Fighter' (shameless plug I know). However it has always been on my wishlist and I really wanted to try it out for myself. Right now it is actually on sale and I can pick up the game and its DLC for less than $30 so I think the price combined with the new update coming has convinced its time to dive back into the darkness. I will probably do an impression of Darkest Dungeon 2 after I pick it up and put in some hours.

    A sequel I have no qualms picking up tho is 'Slay the Spire 2'. After revolutionizing the deck builder roguelike genre in a way that every other game similar to it since then are called Slay the Spire-likes. The team at Mega Crit have taken their time but I feel it'll be worth the wait. Speaking of waiting, we are going to have to wait till 2025 for this one but the fact that they are making a sequel is reason to celebrate. 'Slay the Spire' was one of the first games that really got me into not only the roguelike genre but the deck-building sub-genre (which happens to be my favorite sub-genre). No gameplay but it is early days but we can already see some familiar faces and some new ones (the sassy skeleton) as well. It will not be here for awhile but I am definitely putting it on my radar and I think I might bite the bullet and just buy the original again but this time for my Steam Deck. I've been seriously thinking of doing it every time its on sale and now it just feels right especially since I barely get on my PS4 (which has my original copy) anymore.

    Speaking of Dead Cells, of course you know I am super pumped for the 'Risk of Rain 2' expansion 'Seekers of the Storm'. However to give us a peek into what they have cooking, they are dropping a free update called the 'Devotion update'. This update comes with a Prisoner/ Dead Cells skin for Mercenary (yay), a brand new stage (yay!) and more artifacts (depending on what they do... yay?) and to top it off its coming for all platforms not just PC first which I know the console army is happy about. On one hand this is great news because more Risk of Rain 2 content is always good but this will be the first time RoR2 updates will be completely handled by Gearbox's team and not Hopoo whom has passed the reigns onto them. Sure the Gearbox team helped out a lot with the 'Survivors of the Void' expansion but this is the first time they are doing it all on their own so it'll be interesting if we keep the RoR flavor or if it'll feel different. I optimistically hope for the former. There is no date for this one but I have a feeling it'll be soon so I think its time to jump back into RoR 2 when it drops.

    So those are the big ones, however some other games did catch my eye like Kill Knight, Dino Lords and Hyper Light Breaker. All in all, the Initiative really did what it was supposed to do, let us know some big indies were coming and got us all hyped. Stay turned to this space because I know a lot of these games will get the focus once they drop.

* This blog previous mentioned The Rogue Prince of Persia but due to Ubisoft anti-consumer practices, I will no longer talk about nor purchase it. I have not played any Prince of Persia games before and it looks like I never will especially if they stay under Ubisoft.

AV

Learning AF: Week 7- Seeing the Matrix

     Welcome to Week 7 of Learning Anime Fighters (AF). This is an ongoing blog about me picking up anime fighters and also learning a leverless controller. This weeks blog is slightly delayed but we will be discussing that at the end.

This week was the first week I truly embraced the help of 'demo assist' in UNI2. For those not in the know, 'demo assist' helps you by doing the combo up until a certain point based on your preference and you take over and complete the combo if you can. This concept is amazing because lets say you just want to practice an ender or a specific part in the middle you keep dropping you can do that. It really helped me with consistency and getting the timing down for certain combos.

    This blog is done chronologically as well with a what's next section at the end. With that said lets kick off week 7.

Monday

- Chaos take you! (Elden Ring reference for those who don't know)... or not. These combos are hard LOL

- Switched to his buddy Gordoau instead and doing much better. I am beginning to under when to delay his aerial B (2 hit) move for his combos.

- Gordeau? More like Gordone. It really came down to understanding the timing for his rekka enders and the aerial B timing mentioned above. The partial charge which had me worried actually was not hard at all and even better we kicked off a week on a all complete. Good start.

Tuesday

-  Hoping back into Granblue Rising; I'll probably try to play it at least once a week.

- Tried Vane, the new DLC character and he really fits the powerhouse/ bruiser archetype. He even has an attack where he absorbs the incoming attacks and does damage according to how much damage he took. Pretty interesting. He can also put up shields to block incoming attacks or restrict movements of enemies.

- None of his combos felt particularly hard, just had to get used to his 6SM juggle window. Speaking of, one of his combos has a jump cancel which I felt was a bit strange for such a grounded character.

- I'm surprised none of his combos incorporated he is 'All for One' 2SU shield technique which has a hitbox and you can combo into it.

- One of the theme songs has lyrics? It kind of rocks. I need to find out what it is cause I had the music on 'Random' which I normally do.

- Since I used one DLC, I decided to use the other one and play Lucilius which I found out is pronounced as 'Lucifer'.

- Even with his uniquely pronounced name, I do find it funny both Arc System Works (Rising's producer) and French Bread both have a floating half naked pretty boy with floating swords as their first DLC. I wonder who came first?

- It seems Lucilius has a theme, he has a move named Isacriot (like Judas) and Iblis the leader of the devils in Islam.

- Combo trial wise, he has a unique combo linked to his U button, which puts him in a stance. He hardest combo was his last one but it was too bad.

- Because the combos in Rising are so short and not that hard (most of the time) I find myself doing them at least 3 times in a row for each combo. Building that muscle memory.

- Katalina has some of the easiest combo trials in a game with easy combo trials. Cleared her trials in record time.

- I do like her as a character through, if Djeeta did not exist, she would have been my secondary.

- Because I love to hate myself, I decided to give Hilda another chance and this time I did much better. Her hitboxes have such weird animations but the more I use her the more I understand.

- Back to Rising; definitely want to focus on it this week.

- Beelzebub is a strange one, definitely more visceral than Lucilius and I had to get used to letting all his multi hit moves connect before some of his combos worked.

- Metera's practical close range combo actually requires her opponent to fall to their knees before you continue the combo because the falling to the knees cause a different hit stun animation. Cool.

- Metera's combos encourage her set-play (aka knocking opponent down and setting up bad oki situations for them) with her putting out butterflies which when triggered causes different properties. Pretty cool but I do not do well with zoners.

- Now grapplers are much more up my alley. I am still blown away you can do Ladiva's command throws with one button and get no drawback. She also have a very generous hit box on her anti-air grab (2SH) as well. Completed her combos without a hitch

 - I feel Rising's combo trials are way easier compared to the original Granblue. Vaseraga had some really hard combos in  the original that involved quick cancels of his 2SH,H

- Nice to see some of the complexity is kept either that or Vaseraga needs it to do certain combos. Either way he is done as well.

- Even with the complex ones I am doing all of Rising combo trials on MidNite which is a good feeling and make me feel I am getting something back on my investment.

Wednesday

- So I previously said in this blog series I would not care if I did not get Hilda's combos down? I lied.

- Hilda's combos require serious knowledge and negative edge or want they call 'plinking'. Either way it means to hold the button down and release it at the right time

- As a Swift Master user in DNF Duel, I should be used to this so I thought about it and it became much more easier to understand.

- 9 out of 15 expert combos is wild compared to where I was (5 out of 15) and I've completed her 2 combos with the super cancel. Speaking of, 5-15 (lol) is my favorite combo of hers. Purposely whiffing B+C into 236B+C into super is chef kiss.

- Now I just to figure out how to do her ultra low aerial 6C after 623B in the corner and how to do her instant aerial C after a whiffed aerial A

- So the science for both are understandable now; for the ultra low 623B you need to hit very low after the 6C, aerial charged C requires a double tap/ hold after the whiffed A. 13/15

- 5-12 seems impossible with a double negative edge after a long combo... SHEESH

- I also have no idea why I am investing so much time in a character I won't main LOL.

- Okay, in a moment that feels like I am seeing the Matrix like Neo, everything is just clicking today.

- Merkava's 66B into 66C previously completely eluded me and it is a key component of his combos. Today I worked it out and I was able to do it.

- I think the science behind it is delaying the 66C as much as humanly possible instead of tying to mash it out. A lot Merkava's combos come down to patience and timing.

- I must say I am happy with all the progress I've had in the UNI2 comb trials and I mostly done it all by myself. I use the slow down feature and 'demo assist' (which we discussed earlier).

- We hit 13/15 expert combos when we were previously 4/15. The improvement is immense.

- 100% completed. All Merkava's trials are done and I feel good. As stated before, previously we had almost nothing and now we have a all clear.

- Continuing my hot streak, I got back to Akatsuki and I am completing all his trials too. He went from 76% done to 90% with only 3 expert combos left.

- Thanks to this blog, I can confirm the last time I tried his combos was back in week 3 and now in week 7 we revisit him and kill it.

Thursday

- Turns out the name of the song I liked in Rising was 'Existence' and its Beezelbub's theme song (makes sense cause I was using him). I know what song I am training too now.

- Break night; muck around in all games but nothing serious.

Friday

- It is wacky but I noticed the CPU no longer blocks for long periods of time in training mode which I had a big gripe about in previous blogs. Maybe this was fix in Vane patch? Either way I appreciate it.

- Percvial out of all characters was giving me troubles but I finally got it down. His last combo required some specific timing. He also has a system similar to Namaya where a button+attack = dash and then you hit another button for the move. I am not a fan of this 'system'.

- Monk has it in DNF Duel as well and it took me awhile to get used to it in that game too.

- Ferry's combos were surprisingly easy compared to what was required in previous game. She is a set-play character to which requires setting up her familiar before attacking. I also like the fact she can combo after her Sky Art.

- Lowain is just weird lol. He can not even combo into his Super Skybound Art because its the big Goddess super. Instead he has variations of his Human Pyramid Sky Art comboing.

- I must also say I am not a fan of all his combos ending in 'Awesome Sauce'. I like a bit of variety in my combo enders.

- 9 more characters remain in Rising; I think I'll be done by next week and then I'll start doing some story mode content.

- Heck I think I'll do story content for all my anime games next week, including BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle's UNI storyline. It'll be interesting because BBTAG has full English voice acting for the UNI guys which has never happened before.

Saturday

- Since I am think of competing again, I've decided to add some new accessories. Stay tuned to this space. We aim to step our game up. Sneak peek below.

Sunday

- I decided to focus on Byakuya and I am doing much better with him too. LOL He is a bit creepy and that laugh is chilling but he is fun to use.

Chibi Byakuya justs wants to embrace you.

- I also realized I am better at doing 66 into 236 combos on right side, I get less 66 into 623 errors. A lot of Byakuya's combos end in dashing 66B into his 236 rekka series. 

WHAT'S NEXT

As far as progress goes, this was a good week. I was able to complete a lot of comb trials I previously thought were unobtainable. When I first reviewed Hilda and Merkava's trials I was like there is no way I can do these but over time I've done better. I've left some of the harder UNI2 characters for last; which include Vatista, Yuzuriha and Seth but now I think I can tackle them with renewed confidence.

I am also driven to complete all Granblue Rising's combo trials with all characters and start exploring more of its content as well. I have Granbruise Legends (there mini-game mode) and online matches to try out.

In all honesty, I'll be exploring content in all my anime games and aim to complete story mode for each one of them so that's UNI2, Granblue Rising, Melty Blood and BBTAG.

This was also the week I called it and said to myself I'll no longer say I am going to play Midnight Suns if I can get started again. I'll put it back on the backburner. I am still enjoying Tainted Grail Conquest (check my previous impression videos about that) and I am still aiming to play Remnant from the Ashes on and off too.

Also this is a sneak peek of our next blog but we will also be discussing Learning Anime with my new friend; my Drone 2!

So far so good but we will have more detailed thoughts soon.

AV

Tainted Grail: Conquest (Impressions)

 SHOCKER! This blog talks about stuff that is not Anime Fighting games lol.

Yes, we are actually talking about something different today but also very familiar as well. If you do not know, I am am a massive fan of Roguelites. Specifically, deck building ones. Well last week, Steam in its infinite wisdom decided to do a whole sale dedicated to them and well, I could not resist and I brought a game I've had on my radar for a moment.

The game in question is called Tainted Grail: Conquest. It is based on a tabletop RPG/ board game by Krzysztof Piskorski. LOL you know if I actually said that allowed I would butcher that poor name. Tainted Grail: Conquest is actually a 'companion' piece for the big scale RPG that the studio Questline is making called Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon (which is currently in early access).

Funny story, for the brief time I had PC Xbox Game Pass, I had this in my que but I never got around to playing it so when I got a chance to actually play it and it on a discount I could not turn it down. I mean it has all the elements I enjoy as well. I am a big fan of dark fantasy, Dungeons & Dragons settings and as fan of medieval stuff, I also am interest in Arthurian legends as well. Adding this is a challenging roguelite with perma progression, multiple classes to unlock and a deck-builder, this was entirely up my alley.

So enough with the history, how does it play?

Well, the good news is, its amazing. The atmosphere suits the game, the art style is very dark gothic which I like and pulls no punches. Now Darkest Dungeon and Iratus was also suitably dark but with a animated flair, this game aims more for the realism and its good.

The gameplay format is tried and true, with your deck being filled with different types of attacks, blocks or buffs. Some of the card combos I've found in my short time so far are satisfying to pull off. However the game is also very unforgiving like it should be especially in the early runs. Each runs is not for naught tho as you unlock more cards, characters and more just by playing. A first boss, which I've beaten a couple days ago now was previously a unsurmountable goal until I got the right cards but the game also never feels unfair. Also once a boss is beaten it stays dead and you progress to the next big bad, which is surprising but also a nice change. The game even gives you goals to aim for 'aka save this many NPCs, beat this boss or complete this side quest for to build bonds with people' which nice to have in a game like this. Also if you restart a run as soon as you die, the game even offers you buffs like more health potions and what not or even no buffs if you are a purists which I must say is pretty cool and low-key reminds me of King Of Fighters games when if you continued the game will offer you some buffs like infinite super meter or opponent is at half health for continuing.

The game's soundtrack is surprisingly robust with some heavy rock music and the NPCs are fully voiced which is a nice surprise. This feels like an indie sometimes but it also feels like a Double A (at least) as well. My only real gripe right now is some spotty performance and frame drops but its not bad enough for it to be distracting.

Overall, I am enjoying it and I feel a RAVE coming on depending on how the rest of the game treats me. Enjoying everything about it even made me look up the proper RPG video game Fall of Avalon but its a first person RPG in the vein of Skyrim and I am not a fan of that style of RPG. However I did get a good deck-builder out of it at least. Once I 'conquer' it, I'll be back with more.

AV

Learning AF: Week 6- Sonar Smackdown

    Welcome to Week 6 of Learning Anime Fighters (AF). This is an ongoing blog about me picking up anime fighters and also learning a leverless controller. This week, we are closer to our original format after a deep dive into Melty Blood: Type Lumina last week. We muck around a bit with it but we mainly focus on our main game Under Night In-Birth: Sys: Celes.

    This blog is done chronologically as well with a what's next section at the end. With that said lets kick off week 6. This week will also probably be shorter than previous ones for reasons that will become obviously during the blog.

Monday

- Jumping back into UNI2; the combos trials are so much harder then Melty Blood for sure. I also mostly have character specialist characters left too so some of these will be tough I predict.

- Starting with Phonon, she has a lot of dashing C's in her combos, holding down buttons (yay *sarcasm*) to get a unique hit-stun animation and using her 623B to create a wall during her combos.

- Just like I have done 'refresher' courses with Kaguya, I decided to do one with Wagner as well and surprisingly I did not have as much issues with her trials now I understand her more. I definitely feel comfortable enough with her to consider a secondary.

Tuesday

- Me and Mr. Monk in DNF Duel are getting along much better. His once notorious Combo # 8 is now much more doable and I get it most of the times. Finally understanding the cancel window for 6M,M,4M down which feels good and doing it all with MidNite (my leverless controller) too. 

- I have stated this before but Monk is hella fun to use and realize he has a Garp from One Piece color palatte and is primary a boxer like him. Funny that.

- Delaying attacks in UNI2 has always given me a tough time but I realized one of the best visual ques to use is the opponent's hit-stun status. Using that, I was able to complete more of Phonon's trials esp the one involving her aerial 236 and 22 attacks.

Wednesday

- I have an off day today so you know what that means... more UNI2 of course

- Gordeau is very rekka-centric, ironic similar to his homie Enkidu. He also brings a new mechanic to the game, partial charges. I already know he is going to be a headache cause partial charges are weird to time. 

- Hella cool character design tho and some great color palettes even without the color edit option.

- Hilda has joined Byakaya as the hardest character combo trials I've faced. She has negative edge, multiple hitting moves with one press which I don't like and just weird timing for everything. Its going to take a minute to be even decent with her and I am not going to worry too much if I can't get them.

- Wednesday night became a rest night mainly cause I went in during the day.

Thursday

- So funny story. To use MidNite properly I need to have my hands level with the TV so I always use a small box to raise my feet up (ironically its actually my initial steam deck box). I am actually surprise I did not mention this before.

- This box is literally within arms reach but this day I was feeling particularly lazy I could not bother doing it. I would have just practiced DNF Duel Monk combos anyhow but yeah it hilarious I made it seem like such a chore when it was not.

- Speaking of strain and properly making sure my hands were level with the TV, I am starting to notice my finger pain has been extending to my wrist now and I might need to have more rests nights to stop it getting worst. I realized when I push down a lot for the charge attack it strains both my finger and wrist.

- With the more complex characters coming up soon (going back to Hilda, Vatista and Chaos) I decided more short breaks might be needed so I do not physically burn out.

Friday

- Speaking of; Friday was a break night.

Saturday

Boy Wizard with his Lizard

- Man, you need some Galaxy brain to fully understand Chaos and his concepts. Like creating your own barrier with your puppet as well as reversing your controls when it switches position.

- He also has some hard to understand cancel windows for his 6C and his 22 series. Chaining the 22 attack into a standing or crouching attack is challenging.

- Now I am not normally a person that gravitates towards the 'puppet' archetype but Chaos may be the coolest one I've tried in anime fighters. Mind you my only comparisons are Enchantress in DNF Duel and Mario in Melty and both of them are lil' shits to me lol.

- He is makes more sense to me and more fun to use than Hilda tho and why Chaos requires galaxy brain, Hilda feels like I need a eternity brain for that one.

- The gif above feels even more appropriate because I think I unlocked some galaxy brain stuff and I did it on my own. I think Azhi Dahaka (Azhi) controls are based on the way Chaos is facing not Azhi. If this is true then his controls makes much more sense.

Sunday

- Even through Sunday is normally a rest night, I felt the need to do some Phonon labbing.

- I even surprised myself by completing previously adv trials and now I only 2 more to go before 100% completion. Understanding when to do stuff after her fully charged 236B was important and again understanding the timing for her delays.

- As a character I do not mind Phonon. She is also the inspiration for the name of this blog with her being related to sound and what not. I do not seem myself main-ing her but she is fun to muck around with esp now I am understanding how she works.

- 100% Phonon's combo trials. Ironic since I started the week with her, I also ended the week with her. Conceptual wise, I like how she works, like creating your own wall by doing a delayed 623B after her dashing C. Funny enough I am not a fan of her default colors and the stockings HAVE to go but using the games built in color editor, I made some color palates I really like too.

WHAT'S NEXT:

Another week done and dusted. I just noticed as I typed this out I neglected Granblue Rising this week. I do recall playing some Melty Blood on and off as I continued to search for a character to main tho. This week was not as productive as previous weeks but I do feel I need to focus on my wrist so it does not get any worst. On that note I was actually playing other non-fighting games this week as well.

I am currently playing Tainted Grail: Conquest which is a deck building roguelite (which folks know is entirely up my alley) and I am having a great time with it. I feel a more detailed discussion will be showing up later this week about it.

I have also started a brand new Remnant from the Ashes run but this time on my PC/ Steam Deck not PS4. I must admit, it feels good going back through a game I really enjoyed when I first played it. Sort of reminds me when I replay a Souls game like Dark Souls 3 or Sekiro. This one I am playing on and off especially because I've already beaten it multiple times and this is a nostalgia run.

The final game I keep telling myself to play is Marvel's Midnight Suns and funny story is I complete the tutorial and character creator and I want to play it but I always get distracted by other games. I guess because playing it is a bit more of a under-taking but I think I'll try to hop back into it tonight.

Speaking of tonight. I might stop neglecting Granblue as well because a new character should be available so I want to check him out especially since I have the season pass. I am actually not that excited about them (hence no mentions before today lol) but I still want to see what he is capable of. (EDIT: Vane, the new character isn't available till tomorrow so Tuesday will be Rising day)

AV