Umbrella Terms

I haven't gone as far as reading the novels, but would be interested to hear your thoughts on how they compare if you do! There's also the 2 previous Her Interactive games, McKenzie & Co and The Vampire Diaries(a mystery game as well!). The first I recommend, the second not so much lol

Get more from Amr Al-Aaser on Patreon creating an alternative history for videogames.

This piece is part of the CANON FIRE project, an alternative history for videogames that focuses on the obscure, underappreciated and strange games.

If you like this piece, consider supporting the project:
www.patreon.com/siegarettes

055: Absolum brings the arcade spirit of its fantasy inspirations roaring into the modern age The latest from Guard Crush Games, one of the main developers on Streets of Rage 4, Absolum takes plenty from their work on SEGA’s brawler. The skeleton of the game can be seen in their experiments...

INCOMING CANON FIRE!

A deep dive into the ABSOLUM, the latest from the Streets of Rage 4 team!

I dig into how it evolves the arcade spirit of games like Capcom's Dungeons and Dragons beat-em-ups, its remix of fantasy tropes, and even its take on gender and identity.

canonfire.net/post/7992333...

I enjoyed playing through the first 5 games and want to play the rest someday. While there is variance in quality between them, they're all generally solid. Idk if they match to the above games, but it's worth playing at least one of them for their unique take on the genre. Which specific one idk

Takara Building Adventure Part 1 (1982) The last time I wrote about a Japanese game was with The Palms, where I mentioned skipping over two games from 1982 because there were no copies available. This was one of them. Brief history recap…

1982 was very early for Japanese adventure games, with only a small number of releases. Takara Building Adventure thus is one of the earliest adventure games in Japanese, but it was not generally available...

...until today.

Includes some unexpected history!

bluerenga.blog/2025/10/29/t...

Umbrella Terms' Blog Zonelets is a scrappy blogging workflow designed to encourage creative fun on the internet!

Also should link to the site: umbrellaterms.neocities.org

An upside down black umbrella on the left, text that says "Umbrella Terms" on the right. with a purple gradient with stars in the background.

On my website I now have a button if you want to share the site that way, created by my wonderful girlfriend @maidrobo.bsky.social!

I am covering EVERY First Person Shooter EVER made in Japan.

From 1985 to 2025, that's over 40 years and 70 games of gaming history.

Link: youtu.be/F80Cl6WzBNo?...

This was without a doubt the most ambitious video I've ever made.

Donate to Help Rebecca Ann Heineman Fight Aggressive Cancer, organized by Rebecca Heineman I’m Rebecca Ann Heineman. The very first video game champion, creat… Rebecca Heineman needs your support for Help Rebecca Ann Heineman Fight Aggressive Cancer

I’ve started a GoFundMe to help with my cancer battle gofund.me/6850175a3

Skate & Dates title/logo! The main character Maggie is looking at her rival Patricia with heart eyes with the title of the game in the center of the image.

Skate & Date - lesbian roller derby, rhythm game is out now! Come get your yuri on wheels!!
https://f.mtr.cool/scjlbborbl
https://f.mtr.cool/ugehecznam

(I've linked steam codes to itch.io so you can easily get it for both and have Valve take less money from me <3)

A Conversation with Nathalie Lawhead Nathalie Lawhead joined us on Zoom to talk about their work, interactive fiction, internet subcultures, social media and lots more.

TIER (The online journal of games criticism) just published this conversation with me!
www.tier-review.com/a-conversati...
it was a lot of fun, deeply thoughtful, and i appreciate the opportunity to have chatted with them.
#GameDev #GamesCrit

Thumbnail art for "The History of Chunsoft's Sound Novels" video. Shows a girl wearing headphones while reading a book. The English and Japanese words SOUND (音楽) and NOVEL (小説) are behind her.

!!NEW VIDEO!!

This time I cover Chunsoft’s Sound Novel franchise, a hugely important series in the history of Japanese video games that served as the progenitor to the visual novel genre and was a source of inspiration for all kinds of developers.

WATCH - www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9BT...

We played the ORIGINAL survival horror and watched the movie it was tied in with. We had a great time!

btw if u dig my work and wanna support me making more, you can always drop a donation via ko-fi.com/cathroon 💜

EVERYTHING SPIRALS TO A FINAL POINT OF UNIFICATION

THE SACRED ΩMEGA POINT
cathroon.itch.io/omega-point

A MIXTAPE AT THE END OF THE WORLD

[FLASHING IMAGE WARNING]

053: Tales from Toyotoki: Arrival of the Witch Abandoned by his deadbeat aunt and uncle, Hikaru Nishime finds himself stranded on the remote Okinawan island of Toyotoki, unwelcome, broke, and homeless. Taking shelter in a field, he meets Lilun, a....

INCOMING CANON FIRE!

A slice of life comedy about... being abandoned by your family.

TALES FROM TOYOTOKI is
surprisingly lighthearted, until it's not.

Conbining real and magical history, it's a story about finding your place when you've been tossed aside.

canonfire.net/post/7937752...

i reviewed NBA 2K26 for @endlessmode.bsky.social because someone had to while you're all playing silksong: www.endlessmode.com/article/comm...

Pleased to have such a thorough and thoughtful reflection on TIER, it really reflects the scale of what we can do!

when i replayed Repeat the Ending to write this piece, i thought about how there aren’t that many spaces these days to publish personal games without feeling unwelcome.

everything is gazed upon with this “critical” eye that pathologizes or fawns over any vulnerability: bsky.app/profile/tier...

Having read all 6 chapters and not spoiling any specific story moments, I thought it was just ok. In regards to its handling of gender, it has a few sweet moments, but doesn't go as far as I'd like

Download the latest indie games itch.io is a simple way to find, download and distribute indie games online. Whether you're a developer looking to upload your game or just someone looking for something new to play itch.io has you co...

At this point think a statement is in order.

Framing itch.io as anti-queer is genuinely maddening.
Besides the horrific pressures exerted on it recently that every other company, including steam, has folded on far more harshly and thoughtlessly, Itch has bee nothing but supportive of queer games.

it was wonderful to come through and talk about this game, had a pretty good time even with a pretty poor translation

Stop payment processors from censoring games!

and here: stop-paypros.neocities.org

Pay Omar Elaasar using PayPal.Me Go to paypal.me/siegarettes and type in the amount. Since it’s PayPal, it's easy and secure. Don’t have a PayPal account? No worries.

hate to ask but it's been a miserable week, and I've been hit with a lot of unexpected bills

anything you can give would help me afford food next week
www.paypal.com/paypalme/sie...

I do not like Date Everything, but it is so fascinating... I tried to work though just how weird this thing is.

the BDS requests on microsoft are extremely clear and also targeted. they aren't "uninstall windows now and change your entire life," they aren't even a huge ask for games media outside of like exclusive world of warcraft streamers. there is no reason for the near total silence other than shame

For April I bring you THIRTY daily entries on the obscure and underappreciated parts of games history!

Welcome to the CANON BARRAGE!

We start our exploration with--SUPER SMASH BROS??
www.patreon.com/posts/canon-...