Yensia
[Wanderstop][catchall post for this weekend] Spoilers for a character interaction, name inside
Yensia
so after Alta shouted at Ren, four pluffins came up and were making sounds at me
Yensia
(also setting aside everything else, I feel like it says something that a secret clearing full of flowing water doesn't seem enough like a sacred spring to Ren)
Yensia
honestly I loved the pluffins for being there for Alta
Yensia
I'm sure there is more chat to be had with Ren, but yeah
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
I love the pluffins. And they having Alta’s back is fantastic
Yensia
Yensia
after boro told me how mushrooms work I. I definitely spent several hours duplicating, moving, and changing the color of trees
Yensia
tbh the fact that we didn't carry seeds forward was a relief because that means I don't need to worry about using up all the seeds I get
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
right? it's so soothing
Yensia
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
: I have created an art wall
Yensia
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
That’s fantastic
Yensia
If you put a photo or painting in the tea you give Zenith, they are infinitely touched by your sacrificing something personally meaningful
Yensia
(I put in a photo of boro)
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Hey high five I did too!
Yensia
Note: you cannot put a pluffin into the tea machine
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Omg I never even thought to.
Yensia
Zenith asked for something valuable! I would not have done it had the game given me the actual option
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Hahaha
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
First thing I did was go get a picture I took of Boro
Yensia
Oh, I just took a new one
skerple
omg the stop sign in the fairy ring
Yensia
I HAVE TAKEN A PHOTO OF THE STOP SIGN IN THE FAIRY RING IN EACH ITERATION
Yensia
/cough
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skerple
: I thought of it once and I am not stopping now
Yensia
Okay also can I say I appreciate that you get the achievements for, as far as I can tell, just playing the game?
Yensia
It does not tell you how to get them
Yensia
they just show up
Yensia
devs like auto-denying your request for a list of tasks to complete
Yensia
ngl Boro is...such a good
Yensia
I know that Alta does not seem curious about him at all but I am DESPERATELY curious
Yensia
Though also I just appreciate that Boro does not judge Alta. Or if he does at all, it never shows.
Yensia
It's...she clearly has reasons for being who she is, but she also runs away from any hint of responsibility for her worse actions
Yensia
And...I feel like that character trait is difficult to sit with in a game because it is a painfully normal way to be self-protective.
Yensia
Shifting blame to anyone but yourself
Yensia
Also also I can HEAR the "do you count things" conversation in some part of my soul.
Yensia
The combination of...wanting a solid reason for feeling a certain way, when accepting that sometimes you just don't fucking know is something you need to do, being a teenager when EVERYTHING is too big and confusing, alta's having very clear control issues even at that stage in her life, and then. Shame. Don't let people know you're like this.
Yensia
Being a person is hard and messy and complicated and what Alta has been resisting so hard isn't just change in herself (and self-reflection), it's dealing with change in others. And not just change in others, dealing with her perceptions being incorrect, with someone being more than the person she first met.
Yensia
and well
Yensia
I think the reason people are going to love or hate Alta is that same reason people hate Dolores Umbridge more than Voldemort
Yensia
she's done really shitty things and refuses to take accountability, she is self-centered, she has a hot temper and doesn't necessarily think things through and these flaws are incredibly real and familiar
Yensia
Of course, she also worries when she sees someone else suffering. She's concerned when she sees a child on their own and plays along (to some extent) with their make believe. If it weren't taken to an extreme, her dedication to hard work would be admirable. She can, depending on the player, display a lot of (grudging) patience.
Yensia
And she's genuinely distressed when she realizes she has hurt people
Yensia
Her way of dealing with that distress is not good and prevents her from actually becoming a person who DOESN'T hurt people but she does care
Yensia
(I am going to sit here and wait for the discourse on What if Alta Was a Dude)
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
I also noticed from what she was saying in the teas she drank. That her mom did some damage by imposing that being hurt and all can’t be shared. She definitely is a messy person but I’ve been chatting with others as I notice how she came to be that way
Yensia
Yeah, her being told to repress and hide her flaws fed into this need to be perfect and in control.
Yensia
Repressing all her feelings probably also led to more outbursts rather than less.
Yensia
Also, all Master Winters had to go on was Alta's account of herself; while I think that she would still have said she couldn't train Alta anyway, she might have approached it differently.
Yensia
That's not a criticism of Master Winters, just an observation.
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Yeah I agree
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
There is also how hands off her both her parents were. She was left to come up to her own conclusions it seems like
Yensia
The pluffins:
Yensia
Yensia
Sherry, Cherry, Berry, Merry, Ferry, Kerry, and Wendell.
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Hahaha
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
I love their coloring
Yensia
It's puffpod and...one of the last two fruits you get, I forget which
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Yeah I think I know which one. I made them a rainbow of colors
Yensia
I've been doing that but I was like eh this time around
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Very fair! They look like a little music band
Yensia
I am now 27 hours into Wanderstop and I feel like I am playing it correctly for me.
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
Definitely. It took me three days and I took a lot of time
Sᴀɢʀᴇᴅᴏ
I love the gardening