redshiftlogs | Let's partyyyyyyy! [open]

Who: EVERYONE.
What: A meet-and-greet party for everybody in Anchor!
When: early October
Where: the VR room lobby
Warnings: none yet
Format: go wild!

[ The day before, a wild network post appears, from the username @aa : ]

hi everyone!
i just wanted to let you all know
the meet and greet party previously discussed in this space
will be held tomorrow afternoon!

it will take place in the vr room lobby
and of course everyone is invited
refreshments and games will be provided
but if you would like a little extra challenge
please feel free to bring something to share!

attendance is mandatory!
(lol just kidding)
seriously though i do hope to see all of you there ;)

[ She's also posted handwritten signs to that effect in the mess hall and several of the staircases. Just in case! ]

The day of, a party appears in the VR Room lobby area, as promised!

Though it's not brightly lit, the lights there are are brightly colored, creating a chilled-out evening atmosphere like you'd find at a club. Plush chairs and couches are interspersed throughout the room, and there's been a solid attempt to clean the place up, or at least do something about all the dust.

A shortage of conventional party supplies has forced Ami and Cho to get creative, so the tables and parts of the wall are decorated with paper flowers, and the buffet table is presided over by a number of ... weird, pink, glitter-covered, vaguely animal-shaped sculptures made out of spare plastic pipes and stuff. With googly eyes. If nothing else they're a conversation piece.

FOOD: The main offering is barbecue! There's a pretty wide assortment of meats, all of which Cho has certified safe for human consumption, and also certified delicious. Chips, dried fruit, and a few different desserts are available, including homemade chocolate chip cookies that Ami made herself (wich Cho's help). All the trays are helpfully labeled, including allergy information.

Any and all potluck submissions are welcome as well! Just set it down over here and make a little card of your own.

DRINKS: Sadly, the coffee machine is still out of order. But there is a cooler stocked with ice and a few different choices of juice and soda. Alcoholic selections are limited to two types of pre-mixed drinks, which are intentionally weak on the alcohol, but at least they're not tequila sunrises. If guests want anything stronger, they'll need to bring it themselves.

ENTERTAINMENT: In fiddling with the controls, Ami got the overhead speakers to play some music, but couldn't figure out how to modify the playlist, so it's just one song on loop. Maybe if she keeps the volume kind of low, no one will notice. No live music is scheduled, but if anyone wants to bring a guitar and jam for a while, they will be more than welcome to.

And most of the arcade games are online! Anyone for Fruit Ninja? Air hockey? Dance Dance Retribution? Virtual Billiards? Or perhaps you'd like to try out a full-simulation game in the VR Rooms proper? Now's as good a time as any!

Oh, and don't forget to enter the raffle! The winner will be chosen randomly and announced a few hours into the party.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ he considers this briefly before shrugging. ]

Why not?

[Yesss, victim number two to force to play games. It's not impressive if all the high scores are Genji's initials. There's gotta be other names in there too!]

That is the spirit! Come, I will show you. You may find you enjoy them.

[ it's possible. anything is possible, to be honest. loki rises to his feet gracefully. ]

Lead the way.

[Video games are life bro. He leads the way to the arcade, lots of beeping and flashing lights indicating that the machines are ready for action. There's some older games like Pac-Man, some newer things like Fruit Ninja and a few fighting games. Genji fits right in as the lights on his armor glow green in the dimmer light.]

Do you favor skill or chance?

[ loki glances at genji's armor curiously before replying. ]

Both I suppose. I use both when I need to.

You may enjoy fighting games then, they combine both. But that may be difficult to start with if you've never played anything before.

[He surveys his options. Something traditional maybe? Or does he throw him right at Tekken and try to explain quarter circling. Hm.]

Let's do something simple.

[Pac-Man it is. Not too many controls, easy concept. Probably won't die immediately while playing.]

[ loki squints at the screen. ]

What is the purpose of this game?

This is you.

[He points to the yellow circle happily chomping dots.]

The point is to eat all the dots without being caught by the ghosts. You navigate around, eating things, and when they're all gone you proceed to the next level.

The point of the game is to be a glutton until we're killed by the undead?

Be a glutton and not get killed by the undead. You can also eat cherries for additional points. And special items that will let you eat the ghosts.

[ what a strange game . . . ]

I suppose this would be a useful skill in an apocalypse.

It is for fun, the idea is not to teach you life skills.

Educational games to do not make their way into arcades. What does your culture do for entertainment and to relax?

[ loki shrugs. ]

It depends. Some watch plays, enjoy the arts. Others thirst for battle.

Sparring? Or actual battle for fun?

Both. Ours was a warrior race.

So is mine.

[Well that got sort of side tracked and now Genji is thinking about things he doesn't want to. BACK TO VIDEO GAMES.]

When you learn the basics of this I can show you fighting games, that might be more interesting, but they are vastly more complicated.

How complicated can it be?

[ loki glances at the console. ]

The technology is not complex.

It's not the tech that is complex, it's memorizing the moves and knowing how to counter. This one is easy though. All you do is move with the joystick.

Try it.

[ very well. loki starts playing the game, his grip on the joystick loose. his eyes dart around the screen, sharp. he loses the first few times but after attempt number five, he easily passes the level. satisfied, loki leans back. ]

How many of these levels are there?

In this version, two-hundred and fifty-six. They change layout and there are more enemies and more power-ups. But they're all very similar.

You are doing well for your first time. You're a natural!

[Yay! Someone else who may be good at video games. He'll be challenging him later.]

[ that doesn't seem too bad. ]

Ah, I suppose I have some experience in such things.

I thought you said you had not played before?

I have not, but I was trained to fight and in battle tactics since I was young.

As was I, but I cannot say it has helped me much in video games.

I don't think it has anyway.

[He's probably ridiculously good at them because he spends 70% of his life playing them.]

I'm sure it has done something. Tactics, no matter what form, are always helpful to learn.

(no subject)

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