History Tropers / ArcticYoshi45

[[DescribeTopicHere Describe [=ArcticYoshi45=] here.]]

''Blindswipe'' is a lighthearted video game filled with [[AffectionateParody teasing references]] and [[SatireParodyPastiche humorous takes]] on game and narrative conventions. It follows the adventures of [[CoolLoser Muesli]], a {{Nerd}} who [[WeirdnessMagnet gets into all sorts of trouble]] when she plans to do anything beyond the most basic activities. And sometimes even then, [[CommonplaceRare there are surprise stumbling blocks]]. It mostly has a RandomEventsPlot, with only a few thematic motifs and recurring characters tying everything together.

'''Muesli:''' Well, [[LampshadeHanging considering it's the game's title...]]
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Captain Starboard says Muesli's [[UnusualEuphemism a few bees short of an apiary.]]

* IgnoreTheFanservice: Muesli barely pays attention to [[TheCasanova Calico]]'s attempts to woo her. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]], as she's [[{{Asexuality}} asexual.]]

'''Muesli:''' Hey! [[ComicallyMissingThePoint I know you're desperate, but you don't have to tear up a perfectly good shirt to prove it!]]

--> '''Muesli:''' Oh no, it's Straw- Uh, I mean, it's Lachrima!\\

* PiratesVersusNinjas: A fight breaks out before Captain Starboard can leave port between pirates on the docks and a surprise ninja attack attempting to capture Muesli. Once the pirates realize who the ninjas are trying to go after, [[FromBadToWorse they figure it's a good excuse to get rid of Captain Starboard too, and team up together.]]

'''Muesli:''' But this is a standalone game. They're not making a sequel.\\

--> '''Muesli:''' I'm gonna miss you guys.\\

** King references the punchline of Literature/TheLongestJokeInTheWorld when he [[BigDamnHeroes returns to help Muesli]].

** The gangsters secretly running the club are playing {{TabletopGame/Pandemic}} when Muesli and co. break into their hideout beneath the building.
** When King mentions how everyone's eyes are glued on [[TheCasanova Calico]] in the club, Muesli responds without looking [[Music/SpikeJones "I bet he looks real silly with all those eyes glued on him."]]

'''[[{{Crossover}} Muesli]]:''' Yeah... My life tends to get pretty weird.\\

** When Captain Starboard [[spoiler: gets stabbed by Samurai Samantha]] and seemingly inexplicably recovers, he claims he cannot get killed off simply because he's "in the sequel."
* Sequelitis: Referenced at the end, when the protagonists part ways.

'''Muesli:''' Well yeah, [[LampshadeHanging considering it's the game's title.]]

* OneWingedAngel: The BigBad attempts this, but it backfires, as she uses up all her energy to ascend and dies anyway.

Well... I have trouble doing the embedding thing using articles with single-word names. That's the most important [=TVTropes=]-relevant thing. Sometimes I do something I'm proud of, but [[GeniusDitz it always seems to be related to coming up with random story ideas]]. And pulling two M&Ms of the same color out of a bag. If you Google me you'll probably find a song I made in about 20 minutes for a royalty-free music YouTube channel titled "Never Goodbye." Which is fittingly named because [[OldShame it'll never stop following me or my username.]] I also made a few [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic pony]] vectors in 2012 or so.

--> '''King: Are you telling us it's our only option? We have to... [[TitleDrop blindswipe]] them?\\
'''Muesli: Well yeah, [[LampshadeHanging considering it's the game's title.]]'''

'''Muesli:''' Hey! [[ComicallyMissingThePoint I know you're desperate, but you don't have to tear up a perfectly good shirt!]]

Well... I have trouble doing the embedding thing using articles with single-word names. That's the most important [=TVTropes=]-relevant thing. Sometimes I do something I'm proud of, but [[GeniusDitz it always seems to be related to coming up with random story ideas]]. And pulling two M&Ms of the same color out of a bag. If you Google me you'll probably find a song I made in about 20 minutes for a royalty-free music YouTube channel titled "Never Goodbye." Which is fittingly named because [[OldShame it'll never stop following this particular username.]] I also made a few [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic pony]] vectors in 2012 or so.

* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Muesli's [[UnusualEuphemism a few bees short of an apiary.]]

'''Strawberry Shortsweet:''' No, that name has gotten tiresome to me. You will call me Black Dagger!\\

--> '''[[BigBad Strawberry Shortsweet]]:''' You may have won this day, but I'll be back in the sequel!\\

'''King:''' Don't you think constantly changing your name probably generates more confusion than fear?

--> '''[[BigBad Strawberry Shortsweet]]:''' You may have won this day, [[SequelHook but I'll be back in the sequel!]]\\

* SuspiciousVideoGameGenerosity: Fundeath Island's jungle is filled with goodies and level-ups, and the characters even discuss how incredible a find it is. They take what they need, prepare to leave, and... absolutely nothing happens.

* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler: Harmonie was planning to kill herself shortly before meeting Journey. Their friendship and [[YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre Journey's encouragement make her decide to keep living so she can help Journey find home.]]

* OminousSavePrompt: After shipwrecking on Fundeath Island, and dialogue from Captain Starboard implies they may be stuck on the island forever.

* OneWingedAngel: The BigBad attempts this, but it backfires.
--> '''Strawberry Shortsweet:''' Power! Incredible Power!! UNLIMITED POWER!!! T-... T-TOO MUCH POWER! [[ClippedWingAngel AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Not really relevant or anything... [[RuleOfCute but, she's kinda endearing in an awkward sort of way, huh?]]]]

Well... I have trouble doing the embedding thing using articles with single-word names. That's the most important [=TVTropes=]-relevant thing. I may have many talents, but [[GeniusDitz they're all related to coming up with random story ideas,]] or tricks to get OneHundredPercentCompletion. And pulling two M&Ms of the same color out of a bag. If you Google me you'll probably find a song I made in about 20 minutes for a royalty-free music YouTube channel titled "Never Goodbye." Which is fittingly named because [[OldShame it'll never stop following this particular username of mine.]] I also made a few [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic pony]] vectors in 2012 or so.

** "Expect her like you expect [[spoiler: the first Journey]] to come back. Expect her, Suben. She's coming."

* WakeUpCallBoss: The DualBoss fight with Samurai Samantha and Quartermaster Quincy. They form a FinesseAndForce duo, plus it's almost impossible to knock the Quartermaster out without first taking care of Samantha (who blocks every attack aimed at Quincy and only takes half damage from those attacks). This example isn't necessarily SurpriseDifficulty so much as it is a reminder that just because the game is silly, doesn't mean it's easy.

--> '''Strawberry Shortsweet:''' Power! ''Incredible power!! UNLIMITED POWER!!! T-... T-TOO MUCH POWER! [[ClippedWingAngel AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!'']]

--> '''Strawberry Shortsweet:''' Power! ''Incredible power!! UNLIMITED POWER!!! T-... T-TOO MUCH POWER! [[ClippedWingAngel AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!]]]

* NoFourthWall: Characters seem to enjoy BreakingTheFourthWall every other line.

* PaperThinDisguise: Subverted, then parodied with the club bouncer. The incident provides the page quote.
* PiratesVersusNinjas: A fight breaks out before Captain Starboard can leave port between pirates on the docks and a surprise ninja attack attempting to capture Muesli. Once the pirates realize who the ninjas are trying to go after, [[FromBadToWorse they figure it's a good excuse to get rid of Captain Starboard too, and team up together.]]

** Dr. Stroop, a huge classical music fan, yells at one point, [[Music/PachelbelsCanon "The greatest composer of all time died on March 9th!"]]

* ArcWords: "How does a mortal become a deity?" Later becomes a DrivingQuestion when the protagonists are trying to learn more about Suben's backstory.
* BeautifulVoid: When the characters [[JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind enter Gibbous' mind]]. The landscape is [[IgnoranceIsBliss Wax]] and [[EmptyShell Wan]]'s doing, as neither are willing to fight each other.

* CombatSadomasochist: Sparky. [[spoiler: He eventually overcomes his predisposition to violence, though he still thoroughly enjoys fighting when given the opportunity.]]

* EvilFeelsGood: Sparky has a lot of trouble accepting Snackervark's occasional [[BoringButPractical diplomacy]] as a means to resolve conflict and gets incredibly antsy when an opportunity to shed blood slips away from him. [[spoiler: He eventually learns to control his impulses better, and once he does [[HeelRealization he begins wondering if maybe part of the reason he doesn't have friends is because of his own behavior]].]]

* GodzillaThreshold: Journey considers getting Snackervark, the leader of a dangerous international mafia group, involved in the fight against Madame Tetra this. After Journey [[TheExile is exiled from Expan,]] it becomes a necessity.

* LotusEaterMachine: Suben attempts to put Harmonie in one so she can't warn Journey he's coming. [[spoiler: She breaks free because Suben assumed she'd be more than willing to enjoy her HappyPlace, when Harmonie doesn't ''have'' a Happy Place and immediately realizes it's not real.]]

--> '''[[spoiler: Harmonie]]:''' ...Have you ever told someone a lie, just so they would stay your friend?

->''"Here's where I'd open up my shop. I'm calling it, ''Out of Everything''."''
-->-- '''[[TheScrounger Snackervark]]''', ''The Ceramic Egg''

''The Ceramic Egg'' is a [[DoorStopper sprawling written work,]] primarily featuring the adventures of Journey and the various characters she meets along the way to find [[TheHomewardJourney where she was born]].

--> '''Captain Starboard:''' Ya know how there are some people in the world who, if they're ever stranded on a desert island with other people, will volunteer to go into the jungle to find food for everyone, and immediately get hopelessly lost?

* TheLastDJ: Despite being [[TalkLikeAPirate a walking pirate stereotype]], Captain Starboard is a FatherNeptune who's happy to sail for free. [[spoiler: Being several hundred years old and wealthy enough to live comfortably for several hundred more helps.]]

* WakeUpCallBoss: ???

* EvilFeelsGood: Sparky has a lot of trouble accepting the BigBad's occasional [[BoringButPractical diplomacy]] as a means to resolve conflict and gets incredibly antsy when an opportunity to shed blood slips away from him. [[spoiler: He eventually learns to control his impulses better, and once he does [[HeelRealization he begins wondering if maybe part of the reason he doesn't have friends is because of his own behavior]].]]

* GoodSamaritan: Journey keeps choosing to delay her search for her home to help strangers. By the time she realizes it's a lot deeper than she first thought, [[YouCantFightFate it's too late to back out.]]

* TheScrounger: Snackervark.

* WhamLine: [[spoiler: Harmonie]] gives one when she reveals that she knows who TheMole in the party is.

* WorldTree: What Suben wishes to destroy, and later Natril wants to control.
* YouAreNotAlone: A recurring theme, especially with characters who perform a HeelFaceTurn.

->''"Here's where I'd open up my shop. I'm calling it, ''Out of Everything.''''

!! ''The Ceramic Egg'' contains examples of:

!! The "Works" in Question:

[[folder:Blindswipe]]

!! ''Blindswipe'' contains examples of:

-> '''Captain Starboard:''' Ya know how there are some people in the world who, if they're ever stranded on a desert island with other people, will volunteer to go into the jungle to find food for everyone, and immediately get hopelessly lost?

-> '''Calico:''' Oh come on! [[ShirtlessScene Just look at me already!]]\\

-> '''[[BigBad Strawberry Shortsweet]]:''' You may have won this day, [[SequelHook but I'll be back in the sequel!]]\\

''The Ceramic Egg'' is a [[DoorStopper sprawling written work,]] primarily featuring the adventures of Journey and the various characters she meets along the way to find [[TheHomewardJourney where she was born]].

* EvilFeelsGood: Sparky has a lot of trouble accepting the BigBad's occasional [[BoringButPractical diplomacy]] as a means to resolve conflict and gets incredibly antsy when an opportunity to shed blood slips away from him. [[spoiler: He eventually learns to control his impulses better, and once he does [[HeelRealization he begins wondering if maybe part of the reason he doesn't have friends is because of his own behavior]].

King
Horizon
Muesli
Sienna
Dr. Stroop
Strawberry Shortsweet
Captain Starboard

[foldercontrol]]

Gibbous
Madame Tetra
Journey
Harmonie
Dr. Lede
Ariette
Sparky
Song (as a surname)

-->-- '''Club bouncer''', ''Open Masquerade''

-->-- '''[[TheScrounger Snackervark]]''', ''Blindswipe''

----
!! My favorite tropes:

* ArcVillain: Whether they're a StarterVillain, OverarchingVillain, or DragonTheirFeet, a villainous character who isn't the BigBad is always interesting to me from a character design standpoint, especially if they [[PostClimaxConfrontation fight the protagonists after the main antagonist is defeated or killed,]] or [[EarlyBirdCameo showed up earlier as someone who didn't have a reason to fight the protagonists right then.]]
* ArcWords: I've always struggled finding good arc words for my own writing attempts when I want them, so readings stories that use good ones is always exciting to me. They can evoke mystery and danger, and even tell you something about the characters saying them if used right. Having the protagonists, or the audience, learn what they truly mean as part of TheReveal can be great fun.
* BeautifulVoid: It's amazing to me how such a concept can so thinly divide the line between IgnoranceIsBliss and EmptyShell, and demonstrate it visually as a setting.
* TheChosenMany: Sometimes it's boring having TheChosenOne be a single person. Besides, having your plan rely on a single element to succeed seems a bit flimsy, even if they are part of TheProphecy.
--> '''[[AliceAndBob Adalheidis]], Goddess of Fate:''' You... [[RefusalOfTheCall don't want to save the world?]] Ummm... hmm. Well, [[DidntThinkThisThrough this puts a damper on our plans...]]
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: [[SturgeonsLaw Very easy to do poorly,]] but can be among the most important characters in a group... [[LetsGetDangerous and among the strongest]], [[BewareTheNiceOnes depending on their group role]]. Of course, the comic relief opportunities are also great, since they're good candidates for BreakingTheFourthWall.
---> '''[[BigBad Suben]]:''' You may have won this day, [[SequelHook but I'll be back in the sequel!]]\\
'''Harmonie:''' But this is a standalone game. They're not making a sequel.\\
'''Suben:''' [[BigNo NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!]]
* CombatSadomasochist: Not necessarily the idea itself, but more someone having to choose between what their brain tells them (EvilFeelsGood) and what their heart tells them (just because it feels good doesn't mean it's right) in a way that will likely prevent a character from becoming anything more than an AntiHero but present an inner conflict which can lead to easy temptations and tense {{MoralDilemma}}s. It's an enticing character-building challenge to go from someone [[PyrrhicVillainy lamenting their loneliness because they love hurting and killing things too much]] to building up their own personal code to finally making a SuddenPrincipledStand to demonstrate their progress.
* ElvesVersusDwarves: Ripe for [[SubvertedTrope subversions]], [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructions]], and [[MixAndMatchCritter taking certain traits associated with one and giving them to the other]]. The implied themes of HarmonyVersusDiscipline and RomanticismVersusEnlightenment are also fertile grounds to [[PlayingWithATrope mess around with conventions]], such as giving some form of Romantic idealism to the group espousing technological progress while those with Enlightenment-like beliefs focus on the aspects of it that emphasize self-improvement, immaculate personal conduct, and the journey to self-perfection. Technology doesn't have to be strictly forward-looking or irreverent of past tradition, after all, and neither does elegance necessitate living in GhibliHills.
* ForScience: I think I like this trope best when it's regarded InUniverse as an OldShame sort of thought pattern for whoever's the most scientific-minded of a group. Having excuses for that NoodleIncident, as well as justifications (silly as they are) for why all those [[HomemadeInventions wacky, inscrutable machines]] are just lying around, puts a fun extra twist on a GadgeteerGenius type and allows some expansion and development when there's CreatorBacklash or an old invention GoneHorriblyWrong will cause the inventor to go into a HeroicBSOD. In short, it's nice when it's PlayedForDrama along with being PlayedForLaughs, depending on how serious the consequences are.
* HungryJungle: There are some people in the world who, if they're ever stranded on a desert island with other people, will volunteer to go into the jungle to find food for everyone, and immediately get hopelessly lost. [[{{Dissimile}} I'm not sure what it has to do with the trope]], but yeah, jungles are neat huh?
* KnightInSourArmor: There's something heartwarming about someone who does the right thing because they know it's right, even if they don't think it matters, or even know for a fact it won't matter. It's like WhatYouAreInTheDark, except the entire world (or at least the character's life) is shrouded in doom and gloom, and the character decides to stick by their principles anyway. This may be one of my favorite character types simply because [[TheDeterminator they just refuse to give up,]] even if they're no longer a WideEyedIdealist.

* TheLastDJ: I especially enjoy the Last DJ when their TooAwesomeToUse authority becomes incredibly important at some stage in the story, allowing them to [[BigDamnHeroes turn the tide of an important battle in the protagonists' favor]] or otherwise [[ReimaginingTheArtifact demonstrate how a relic of a bygone era might still thrive in a newer world.]]
* OminousSavePrompt: With the new wave of games playing with narrative tropes like this, there's all kinds of terror you can instill by inserting an Ominous Save Prompt at just the right time. [[ParanoiaGambit Especially if it makes you unsure if you want to take the game up on the opportunity.]]
* TheSacredDarkness: Saying LightIsNotGood and DarkIsNotEvil is one thing, but it also implies [[NobleBigot light is "expected" to be good and dark is "expected" to be evil]] in most portrayals. but when you establish ''why'' Darkness is a positive force of good, it challenges traditional understandings of the relationship between Light and Darkness, and can even make light seem harsh or even chaotic.

* TortureTechnician: Similar to the CombatSadomasochist above, someone who's hurt and/or killed so many people in such a clinical environment makes an interesting challenge for character development, as they may be a PunchClockVillain who refuses the idea of becoming good simply because they're afraid [[ReformedButRejected what they've done will make them ostracized no matter what.]] If they do become an ally for protagonists, they may still refuse to provide help in any way related to their previous occupation, since acting as an ExaltedTorturer in any capacity may constitute JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope for them.
* WhamLine: The ability of a single word or sentence to completely change a situation is something I've experienced more than once, and it's sent chills down my spine. It would be a dream come true to recapture bottled lightning like that.
--> '''Harmonie:''' ...Have you ever told someone a lie, just so they would stay your friend?
* WorldTree: Something about representing the world as a tree has always resonated with me. It's more a gestalt of a tree's features that make it appropriate, rather than any specific quality. Trees are just nice.

->'''Journey:''' What does "communication" mean...? [{{beat}}] I guess... I would say communication is [[YouAreNotAlone knowing you aren't alone.]]

Well... I can't figure out how to do the embedding thing using articles with single-word names. That's the most important [=TVTropes=]-relevant thing. I may have many talents, but [[GeniusDitz they're all related to remembering random tricks for games I've played,]] or what you have to do to get OneHundredPercentCompletion. And pulling two M&Ms of the same color out of a bag. If you Google me you'll probably find a song I made in about 20 minutes for a royalty-free music YouTube channel titled "Never Goodbye." Which is fittingly named because [[OldShame it'll never stop following this particular username of mine.]] I also made a few [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic pony]] vectors in 2012 or so.

I like [[WorldBuilding imagining random story ideas,]] and promptly doing absolutely nothing with them. Maybe someday I'll bother establishing a canon for them... [[OrphanedSeries but probably not.]]

---> '''[[BigBad Suben]]:''' [[SequelHook You may have won this day, but I'll be back in the sequel!]]\\

* HungryJungle: There are some people in the world who, if they're ever stranded on a desert island with other people, will volunteer to go into the jungle to find food for everyone, and immediately get hopelessly lost. [[Main/Dissimile I'm not sure what it has to do with the trope, but yeah, jungles are neat huh?]]

* TortureTechnician: Similar to the CombatSadomasochist above, someone who's hurt and/or killed so many people in such a clinical environment makes an interesting challenge for character development, as they may be a PunchClockVillain who refuses the idea of becoming good simply because they're afraid [[ReformedButRejected what they've done will make them ostracized no matter what they do.]] If they do become an ally for protagonists, they may still refuse to provide help in any way related to their previous occupation, since acting as an ExaltedTorturer in any capacity may constitute JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope for them.

-->-- '''Club bouncer''', ''Blindswipe''

-->-- '''[[TheScrounger Snackervark]]''', ''Masks and Secret Natures''

I like [[WorldBuilding imagining random story ideas,]] and promptly do absolutely nothing with them. Maybe someday I'll bother establishing a canon for them... [[OrphanedSeries but probably not.]]

* HungryJungle: There are some people in the world who, if they're ever stranded on a desert island with other people, will volunteer to go into the jungle to find food for everyone, and immediately get hopelessly lost. [[Dissimile I'm not sure what it has to do with the trope, but yeah, jungles are neat huh?]]

--> '''Journey:''' [[GoodSamaritan Most people do the right thing when it's easy]]. [[BeingGoodSucks Good people do the right thing when it's hard]]. Heroes... [[ShootTheShaggyDog Heroes do the right thing when it's impossible]].

Well... I can't figure out how to do the embedding thing using articles with single-word names. That's the most important TVTropes-relevant thing. I may have many talents, but [[GeniusDitz they're all related to remembering random tricks for games I've played,]] or what you have to do to get OneHundredPercentCompletion. And pulling two M&Ms of the same color out of a bag. If you Google me you'll probably find a song I made in about 20 minutes for a royalty-free music YouTube channel titled "Never Goodbye." Which is fittingly named because [[OldShame it'll never stop following this particular username of mine.]] I also made a few [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic pony]] vectors in 2012 or so.

* Cloudcuckoolander: [[SturgeonsLaw Very easy to do poorly,]] but can be among the most important characters in a group... [[LetsGetDangerous and among the strongest]], [[BewareTheNiceOnes depending on their group role]]. Of course, the comic relief opportunities are also great, since they're good candidates for BreakingTheFourthWall.