voice.

[talim]

[ so... guess who spent some of his credits on a smartphone?

guess who discovered certain apps?

guess who hasn't left his apartment all day? ]

Has anyone else been playing Hate Die? I seem to be kind of stuck on Pacifist War on expert mode. It's the rush toward the end that always gets me.

So... any advice?

[ there's a pause. ]

Oh, sorry, just one other thing. Creature Crossing: Compartment Complex... Apparently the app is still pretty new, but I can't decide how I feel about it. I mean, the animals demand constant favors, need you to build certain sets of furniture just to come visit your complex, and then it all goes to waste afterward? Talk about being used and abused.

Comments

[lunala]

Oh. Is it scary or violent? It's just a rhythm game, right...? [Are there cutscenes...]

[talim]

The idols say different phrases while you play, but for the most part it's just tapping with your fingers and aiming to get a high score and a full combo. You also use something called hate gems to roll for rare cards to put on your team.

The premise might be a little... out there, but the game itself is harmless. Really. I understand being skeptical.

[lunala]

I guess I can give it a try if it's fun. Mimi might like it, too. But I bet it would be cuter if they were all friends having fun!

[talim]

I'm going to have to agree with you on that one, but I guess the world of fictional idols is rougher than I imagined...

[lunala]

Oh! Maybe it's trying to say something about how hard idols have to work! [No, it's probably not that deep...]

[talim]

You think so? I didn't put it into that sort of perspective, but maybe you're on to something!

[ hmmmmmm... ]

I wonder what it's like, to be an idol...

[lunala]

They work really hard! I've seen them on TV at home, they have to work really long hours practicing and being popular is really important. Where I'm from, there's more competition, because Pokemon can be idols, too.

[talim]

Poke... mon?

[ he sounds totally baffled. ]

I'm going to take a wild guess and say that this is something exclusive to your world, huh.

[lunala]

Yeah, they're animals from my world. I actually went to a world that had Pokemon, too, but that was before all this happened. It's kind of weird, though, right? Some things are really unique, but it looks like a lot of worlds have humans in them.

[talim]

Come to think of it, it is strange. There are androids, dragons, these Pokemon of yours, trolls... but the vast majority of us are human despite there being countless different worlds. Something to think about, for sure.

... I don't think we've met, by the way. I should introduce myself. My name's Jude.

[lunala]

Maybe there's something about humans that makes us really common. And there's other things, too, like--most people know what grass is and trees are and gravity and stars.

I'm Moon! Not the moon, that's my name. There was this one woman who thought--never mind.

[talim]

Moon, huh? That's certainly unique. Is it a nickname?

[lunala]

No, it's my real name. Is it weird? [Apparently no one has ever told her this before.]

IGNORE THAT MISFIRE

[talim]

I've never met anyone named Moon before, but I like it.

[ pointedly not answering that question, but it is true. ]

[lunala]

Thanks! I like your name, too. I guess it's nice that my mom gave me a special name, if it's really unique like that! [She's never met anyone else named Moon, either. On the other hand, it's normal to name your kids Red, Blue, and Green in her world.]

[talim]

Do you have any siblings?

[ maybe her sibling is named sun??? ]

[lunala]

Nope, I'm an only child. Having a little brother or sister would be fun, though! What about you? [This is now a getting to know you game.]

[talim]

I'm also in the only child camp. I was thinking that, if you had a sibling, they must have been named Sun.

[ how did this happen? who cares? moon seems sweet and jude hopes she plays hate die so he can add her. ]

[lunala]

Oh, that would be cute! Now a little sister or brother would be even more cute! [She likes being the oldest, so a hypothetical older sibling is right out.] I do have Cyan--she's the palai I adopted. But she's not really a sibling and she's growing way faster than me.

[talim]

You adopted a baby Palai? And she's still here? I don't think I know anyone besides Emil and Lalli who ended up taking one of them along with them. She must be quite a handful.

[lunala]

Yeah! I promised to take care of her, after all! [Moon has a lot of experience with taking care of non-human creatures, at least.] My Pokemon help me out. One of them, Razzle, she looks kind of like a palai a little bit, and she's been tons of help.

[Razzle is more the mom than Moon is, but Moon is eleven and her Salazzle is an adult Pokemon so that's really for the best.]

[talim]

Well, I'd love to meet them both one day. It sounds like you're great with taking care of them.

[lunala]

You definitely can sometime!

I don't know if Cyan should play Hate Death, though. [Moon, you're eleven.]

[talim]

Then it's a promise!

... Could Cyan really play a rhythm game at all? Depending on how you choose to play, you have to use either your fingers or your thumbs.

[lunala]

Well, she does have hands, so I think she could. But still, she'll have to wait until she's older to try it!