Josh
@joshmlabelle.bsky.social
Writer & Narrative Designer || Creative Director on Disney Dreamlight Valley ||"Hunter: The Reckoning - Day for Night" coming 2026 || "A Crown of Sorcery & Steel" out from Choice of Games || 1st place IFComp 2020🏆|| Opinions my own || www.joshlabelle.com
Glory's my fav too. Eiger just feels like such a flag being planted though because of how immediately aggro she is with you and how useful it is to read Monika's file on how to deal with her.
November 29, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Glory's my fav too. Eiger just feels like such a flag being planted though because of how immediately aggro she is with you and how useful it is to read Monika's file on how to deal with her.
Eiger in Dragonfall has one of the most satisfying arcs of any game companion: a prickly asshole who absolutely hates your guts at first, who gradually comes to deeply respect and open up to you only if you pick the opposite of the kinds of choices that usually make game companions do that.
November 28, 2025 at 3:35 AM
Eiger in Dragonfall has one of the most satisfying arcs of any game companion: a prickly asshole who absolutely hates your guts at first, who gradually comes to deeply respect and open up to you only if you pick the opposite of the kinds of choices that usually make game companions do that.
Also these are some of the only games I've played where your relationships with all your companions feel as deep, satisfying, and dynamic as Mass Effect, Dragon Age, or Baldur's Gate without having any romances.
November 28, 2025 at 3:27 AM
Also these are some of the only games I've played where your relationships with all your companions feel as deep, satisfying, and dynamic as Mass Effect, Dragon Age, or Baldur's Gate without having any romances.
These games are just very underrated across the board in terms of how they construct quests, set up/pay off choices, and draw out character arcs across many choices. The companion relationships are fantastic. I wish more games were copying these in scope and execution, frankly.
November 28, 2025 at 3:25 AM
These games are just very underrated across the board in terms of how they construct quests, set up/pay off choices, and draw out character arcs across many choices. The companion relationships are fantastic. I wish more games were copying these in scope and execution, frankly.
They're very episodic which I think is actually a plus for a lot of people. They're basically cozy magic hangout stories. I think that's one reason the final book has a much more mixed reception, that "quest" structure it has. I do think the mysteries in them are fairly well constructed.
November 25, 2025 at 5:50 PM
They're very episodic which I think is actually a plus for a lot of people. They're basically cozy magic hangout stories. I think that's one reason the final book has a much more mixed reception, that "quest" structure it has. I do think the mysteries in them are fairly well constructed.
I do hear the Sorting Hat and houses thrown around occasionally in story discussions, but I don't know if it can really be claimed it originated that kinda thing.
November 25, 2025 at 4:58 PM
I do hear the Sorting Hat and houses thrown around occasionally in story discussions, but I don't know if it can really be claimed it originated that kinda thing.
I think its aesthetic and vibes have been more influential than the narrative. More than Star Wars, I think the fantasy of Harry Potter is about being in that common room, buying the treats at the shops, etc. I think that's also why it lends itself to a theme park area better.
November 25, 2025 at 4:57 PM
I think its aesthetic and vibes have been more influential than the narrative. More than Star Wars, I think the fantasy of Harry Potter is about being in that common room, buying the treats at the shops, etc. I think that's also why it lends itself to a theme park area better.
It's interesting to have a male rock singer who is both Good and also Feels Somehow Important again which I don't think was a thing throughout the whole 2010s
November 20, 2025 at 2:31 AM
It's interesting to have a male rock singer who is both Good and also Feels Somehow Important again which I don't think was a thing throughout the whole 2010s
Geese - Getting Killed | From The Basement
YouTube video by From The Basement
music.youtube.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:26 AM
The epic highs and lows of game dev are all worth it to see everybody's custom horse designs
November 20, 2025 at 2:20 AM
The epic highs and lows of game dev are all worth it to see everybody's custom horse designs
I'm playing Yotei having not played Tsushima and it works on its own.
That said, from what I've seen, Yotei is enough of a visual&UI/UX upgrade that I could see playing Tsushima after feeling more like a downgrade than the other way around. If you think you MIGHT play both, maybe do 'em in order.
That said, from what I've seen, Yotei is enough of a visual&UI/UX upgrade that I could see playing Tsushima after feeling more like a downgrade than the other way around. If you think you MIGHT play both, maybe do 'em in order.
November 15, 2025 at 5:06 AM
I'm playing Yotei having not played Tsushima and it works on its own.
That said, from what I've seen, Yotei is enough of a visual&UI/UX upgrade that I could see playing Tsushima after feeling more like a downgrade than the other way around. If you think you MIGHT play both, maybe do 'em in order.
That said, from what I've seen, Yotei is enough of a visual&UI/UX upgrade that I could see playing Tsushima after feeling more like a downgrade than the other way around. If you think you MIGHT play both, maybe do 'em in order.
I feel like the 2010s produced very few male singers with interesting, emotional voices and it's nice to feel like we might finally be on the other side of that.
November 14, 2025 at 4:09 AM
I feel like the 2010s produced very few male singers with interesting, emotional voices and it's nice to feel like we might finally be on the other side of that.
This is why like half of quests in games have a twist where the quest-giver obscured a piece of information that gets revealed 2/3rd of the way through. I'm not sure it's even intentional, but it pretty much instantaneously makes things feel like a story instead of just a buncha stuff that happened
November 9, 2025 at 1:27 AM
This is why like half of quests in games have a twist where the quest-giver obscured a piece of information that gets revealed 2/3rd of the way through. I'm not sure it's even intentional, but it pretty much instantaneously makes things feel like a story instead of just a buncha stuff that happened