*Sigh* - we’re talking about the rules of the legal system here, not an abstract equality of outcomes.  I’m sorry if I didn’t specify but it didn’t seem necessary.  Since 4 people like your comment, obviously such a distinction is necessary.  It’s even dumber to have that argument when we’re talking civil, not…

I agree with you regarding mergers in general.

I don’t think people need an explanation as to “mergers are bad why”. The issue with this particular issue is “why Microsoft?”

Also the American consumer. GM/Ford have been perpetually by decade guilty of one thing or another. But if you want to support American auto which is a big deal for some people, you have traditionally had to go to them.

Isn’t this just “prestige horror” all over again?

Agreed.

I don’t really disagree in the slightest regarding the creepy aspect. The difference between P5's Joker and Liesure Suit Larry is they are inverse mirrors of each other but it’s the same thing and operating at fundamentally the same level

I guess your complaint boils down to the level of writing which really settles for how to make something make sense within a simple game frame work. I actually do get that, although I think the main problem with incredibly complex romances and characters is you sort of end up with the Dark Souls/Ghosts ‘n Goblins of…

I think there was a point and time about 20 years ago where representation wasn’t great and everyone really did understand why certain groups would ship the way they want to because it took care of a need that wasn’t being fulfilled otherwise.

Didn’t the trans community basically have an apoplectic fit over Contrapoints as well?

It’s probably simpler - she had already played a “bad-assed” character and like the Shatner’s or Ford’s of the world, the fear of getting typecast was probably very real for her.

Rebrand as Babbage’s you cowards.

I think Bros. had a strategic misstep in the marketing phase. I distinctly remember watching it and kind of grinning and then there was some throw away line like “remember straight people?”

Thing is - look at the comments on this and other threads. There is a long history of Microsoft being crossways with anti-trust and a long list of people who would like to see nothing but bad things happen to them comparables be damned.

Strangely - Disney is probably the premier example of why buying physical media is ideal. Long before streaming, Disney utilized “the vault” (or basically denying the ability to purchase things for set periods of time) to both jack up the price of their media and push product. It’s been interesting to watch Netflix…

It’s a valid course of logic though.

I mean I heard about DA:O from other RPG fans. So the success to some extent was tied to the genre and didn’t go outside of it. What inherent risk there was in the property was both by virtue of being an RPG in the American market and making the game as dark as it was.

I’m not even sure if that’s as true as people make it out to be.

It’s a fair point but it exists largely so no single character stays dominant for too long because they all have different play styles. Essentially there’s no “perfect” balance to the game so a permanent state would basically immediately make half the the characters completely pointless, a handful of characters useful…

Fujoshi as a topic is always going to be fraught. If we accept that it’s a bit... objectifying with straight guy’s and Yuri, then it’s really, really, really hard to avoid twisting yourself into knots to not see the potential skeeze factor that gay men may see being viewed that way. In the end there are far more…