Welcome back to Mystic Messenger Trash, a column wherein I chronicle playing Mystic Messenger for the first time. The following contains spoilers for the Rika Behind Story DLC, along with mentions of her portrayal in other routes more broadly. Content warning for mentions of sexual assault and parental abuse, and a brief discussion of suicidal ideations and depression.(more…)
Sidequest’s former managing editor Naseem Jamnia used to do sciencey things, but they now slam their keyboard and call it art. Their debut novella, THE BRUISING OF QILWA, introduced their queernorm, Persian-inspired secondary world; their middle grade horror debut SLEEPAWAY comes out in 2025.
Content note: This piece contains descriptions of depression.
It’s 2017, and you’ve just separated from your spouse and partner of eight years; you decide to download the remastered Crash Bandicoot in your newly much-emptier apartment. Or you’re in a hospital lobby, waiting for a surgeon to come tell you what you think you already know: that your father has lung cancer. Shovel Knight keeps you occupied in this clinical, quiet space. Or it’s the present day, and you were just told that you are not supposed to leave your apartment for the foreseeable future, and you are never going to see your students in person again, and all you have to keep you company is a copy of Celeste. In all of these clearly universal and not at all deeply personal situations, there is a commonality: grueling platformers providing grounding and a sense of purpose and achievement. Anyone can use this notoriously difficult, frustrating, and demanding genre to solve your problems, provided you follow this simple ten-step process.
Emma is a PhD candidate in Rhetoric and Composition who studies how play impacts learning. Her words have also appeared in Critical Distance and Unwinnable. When not writing, she enjoys passing the controller between friends for runs of Silent Hill. She can be found @kostopolus on Twitter.
Welcome back to Mystic Messenger Trash, a game diary in which I chronicle playing Mystic Messenger for the first time. The following contains spoilers of Secret Endings 1 and 2. Content note for physical and emotional abuse.
Since I’m covering two endings here, I decided to break this piece up into sections for your reading convenience. (more…)
Sidequest’s former managing editor Naseem Jamnia used to do sciencey things, but they now slam their keyboard and call it art. Their debut novella, THE BRUISING OF QILWA, introduced their queernorm, Persian-inspired secondary world; their middle grade horror debut SLEEPAWAY comes out in 2025.
Welcome back to Mystic Messenger Trash, a game diary in which I chronicle playing Mystic Messenger for the first time. (Did you miss me?) The following contains spoilers of Seven’s route, Good Ending, and After Ending. Although there will be some discussion of Secret Endings 1 and 2 as it relates to Seven’s character—it’s very difficult to talk about Seven’s story without at least some reference to them—there will be a piece covering those endings. Content note for physical and emotional abuse.
Buckle up, because this summary is a long one. Seven’s route begins as he’s trying to balance keeping you, the player, safe from whoever is trying to hack into the RFA. You learn that he is, indeed, a secret agent, and his colleague Vanderwood, acting as his maid, watches over him. (Side note: Up until now and even through Seven’s route, Seven uses female pronouns for Vanderwood, but he’s actually a man. Why… did they misgender him? Is having a male maid so weird? On another note, why is Vanderwood cleaning up after Seven at all??) But Seven can’t focus because he’s never had a crush before, and soon finds himself coming to Rika’s apartment to protect you in person. This pisses off both Vanderwood and their spy agency, causing them to plan their retaliation to get rid of Seven. (more…)
Sidequest’s former managing editor Naseem Jamnia used to do sciencey things, but they now slam their keyboard and call it art. Their debut novella, THE BRUISING OF QILWA, introduced their queernorm, Persian-inspired secondary world; their middle grade horror debut SLEEPAWAY comes out in 2025.
Written by Whitney “Strix” Beltrán, Marissa Kelly, and Sarah Richardson
Magpie Games
October 24, 2017
Bluebeard’s Bride is an extremely unusual tabletop roleplaying game in many ways. It recreates the fable of Bluebeard, a wealthy nobleman who marries women and then kills them. All 3-5 of the players work together and against each other to play a single character, the Bride. The game is built around telling variations of one single story only, rather than the free-form campaigns of traditional roleplaying games. It always ends horribly for the Bride; there is no “winning,” only an exploration of her choices and experiences as she investigates the house of her serial killer husband. Plus, it’s printed on square pages. Who does that?
Annie Blitzen is Sidequest’s Resident LARP Expert, an inveterate player of tabletop roleplaying games, and a fair hand in video and board gaming. Sidequest writer since 2017.
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