This Week’s Topics:

• Rundown Preamble Ramble: re:CPE:Dreamer
• TSF Showcase 2024-20 I Love Yuri and I Got Bodyswapped with a Fujoshi! by Ajiichi
• Bye-Bye Xbox, Hello Microsoft Gaming (Speculating on the Future of Xbox Part 3)
• Oh SNAP! Press-Switch v0.6b is Coming Soon! (Natalie’s Gonna Review The Big Three Back-To-Back)

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Rundown Preamble Ramble:
re:CPE:Dreamer

Maxxie: “Yo Nat, whatcha been up to?”

…Wait, what? Maxxie, what the deviled eggs are you doing here?

Maxxie: “Cross promoting the new novel that you stealth launched this week, ya jerk! You said it was coming out on May 29th, not May 16th! Don’t just lie to people about the publication date! That’s no good.”

Okay, I… Look, the reason why I had VD2.0 begin on May 16th is because I didn’t want the story to begin by introducing a dozen characters at once (actually 11). I wanted the story to begin with a tone setting piece. Something that addressed the sexual nature of the novel, reintroduced the two most prominent characters, and something that cemented the high schoolers as no longer being high schoolers. Because I’m 29. I’m too damn old to be writing about high schoolers and, when I was 16, I promised myself I wouldn’t make the same damn mistake as Dan Shive.

Maxxie: “The El Goonish Shive dude? Wait, is that still going in 2024?”

Yeah, I haven’t read it in years, but it keeps on going on.

Maxxie: “Garf! …But why have this two week gap between chapters like this?”

Uh… it made sense at the time I outlined it. I wanted the story to start with a prom chapter— because losing virginity with one’s lover during prom is moe. But I didn’t want the story to begin until after school was over, because school is boring and I don’t want to write another class scene going forward. 

Maxxie: “…Yeah, I think I get it.”

Anyway, I’m supposed to be talking about what I did this week!

Maxxie: “Research for your next novel? The super racist one?”

It’s an anti-racist novel, thank you very much! But no! I spent my week doing two things. Playing re:Dreamer and taking CPE classes. I need to get my annual re:Dreamer review ready for June 3rd, and I like to do this stuff ahead of schedule. And my boss was out this week, in Puerto Rico, trying to fish up new clients.

Maxxie: “Uh, didn’t you say that you were waiting to hear back from, like, 60 clients and have a bunch of other returns to do?”

No, I didn’t say that Maxxie, you were just looking through my files, like a li’l snoop! But you do raise a good point. My boss is a chronic mess, and as much as I want to just… do the work ahead of the due date, he’s got some procrastination fetish. He’s a chronic fuck-up from The Humanities™ and he is bad at business. I mean, accounting is lucrative as shit, you can basically do it from your bedroom, but he has always been juggling cash for the five years I’ve worked for him. He’s 66-years-old, and I cannot wait until he retires so I won’t need to deal with his bullshit.

As for CPEs, I deliberately pay for the cheapest package possible from Heavy Industry Manufacturer WebCE. It’s basically just 240 multiple-choice questions for 24 credit hours along with some basic review text. It does not take long, has some good information, and keeps me in compliance. I guess you could argue I should try something more intensive but I just took the exams last year, I know this stuff. Either way, I did 16 hours and I’ll do the rest later.

I did this as a buffer between re:Dreamer, as it is hard to go through a 500,000+ word piece of fiction, regardless of the medium, unless you are truly hooked by it. And it’s hard to get fully hooked by something you experienced before and still remember clearly. Or maybe I was just fatigued by writing the 370k word behemoth that is Verde’s Doohickey 2.0 SSR (Act 1 & Act 2). Because… boy howdy did that take the wind out of my TSF hyper-fixation

Maxxie: “Isn’t it like your job to care about TSF though? Who else is writing these super detailed write-ups for TSF stuff?”

It’s not my job! I’m devoted to making no money off of this, because the internet is monetized enough. And I’m not going to let some ojou like you talk me out of it!

Maxxie: “Yeah, that’s fair. I do a bunch of furry stuff, but sometimes I just wanna not fuss around with it for a day or three.”

…Shit, I just realized I made you a furry! Damn it!

Maxxie: “…You wrote that I own KO Beast and had me draw Bloodborne monster porn, but you just realized that I’m a furry?”

YES!

Maxxie: “You’re just a bimbo, now ain’tcha?”

Hey, I resent that! My boobs are too small for me to be a bimbo!

Maxxie: “…Can’t you just buy a bigger pair?”

I don’t have ojou money! I had money, but then I bought a condo and gave $18,000 to queer friends of mine, because I’m stupid like that! …Well, one of them wasn’t a friend so much as someone I highly respect yet feel I should not get too close to. Another one is someone I cannot trust again after she lied to me and took my time, insights, gifts, and support for granted. And the third is my best friend ever!

Maxxie: “You’re a working class girl and you give out dochy like that? Yeah, no argument about it, you’re totes a bimbo, girl.”

…Fine, I’ll accept that.

Maxxie: “And to help with the indoctrination, let me pull up some bimbo music!”

I still don’t know how or why I can write while listening to this music. It makes no sense!

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And this is why Natalie should always rely on an outline, because when she lets her mind wander, she comes up with stuff like… whatever the hell THAT was.

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TSF Showcase 2024-20
I Love Yuri and I Got Bodyswapped with a Fujoshi! by Ajiichi

Digging through my still incomplete list of TSF Showcase candidates, I have a 20 chapter body swap comedy series that is neither obscure, nor that old. Yeah, I didn’t realize this back when going through my 2018 archives, but I Love Yuri and I Got Bodyswapped with a Fujoshi! or Ore ga Fujoshi de Aitsu ga Yuri Ota de received a localization back in 2020 and 2021 by J-Novel Club. I honestly never would have expected that to happen considering how niche the premise is, and the to-the-point title.

It’s a comic about a guy who likes yuri swapping bodies with a girl who likes yaoi (or BL, I view them as synonyms), though the wording here immediately strikes me as… questionable. One, they do that thing I hate where they treat body swap as a compound word, when it isn’t and never should be treated as one. I won’t debate this, I know I’m right. Just like how it’s always video game, and never videogame. Two, the comic is assuming the reader knows what a fujoshi is, and fair enough, as I’m sure that term had fluttered around before I learned about it via a TSF Showcase earlier this year.

But if one is going to use a term like fujoshi (woman who likes yaoi), why not use the equivalent for a male yuri fan. Seconds of research reveals that word to be himedanshi (man who likes yuri). However, that term seems to barely exist relative to fujoshi (14,000 Google results versus 10 million), so I guess this is more straightforward.

Titular tangent aside, the series follows Reiji Yoshida, a moody yuri otaku who likes to hide his interests and Mitsuru Hoshina, a carefree and hyperactive fujoshi. The two bump into each other during summer Comiket, outing each other as hardcore otaku. After… a month of waiting, Mitsuru invites Reiji to join her manga club, only for Reiji to decline, as he was bullied in middle school for being an otaku. Well, he was specifically bullied for being a dude into yuri, but he streamlines that into just being outed as an otaku.

Still, Mitsuru insists that he joins, the two undergo an erotic tumble as they argue, and wind up attracting the ire of the manga club ghost, Manko. Manko is pissed at them for acting like a pair of “normies” and as punishment for their transgressions on the sacred halls of a manga club, they get body swapped. If that seems like a random stretch, it’s later revealed to be because Manko is a diehard body swap fan… meaning this probably isn’t so much a punishment as her way of seeing something she wanted to see. And you know what? That’s fair.

When faced with this, the two have little choice but to make sense of their new lives. Mitsuru lives in an apartment while her parents are working in America, while Reiji lives with his mother as his father works overseas. Meaning this is a swap they can keep undercover without too much subterfuge, at least at the moment. As the comic establishes this, the relationship between the two becomes clear and… I have to say I really like their synergy.

Mitsuru is a chronically messy girl who hoards yaoi merch, is bad at cooking and cleaning, is shameless to the core, and generally takes this shift in stride, not getting too worked up about things. …While also generally not really trying to uphold Reiji’s identity, because that would just be boring. Despite the fang that appears on whatever body she embodies, she is not some demon or monster. She is just a carefree girl who understands that a positive attitude can go a long way

While Reiji is far less sociable, more neurotic, and prone to extreme reactions as he is thrust outside of his comfort zone and into things he is not prepared for. New relationships he is meant to uphold, what would ordinarily be fantasies for him, his borrowed female body, and just about anything when the end result would lead to a funny or exaggerated expression. He is far more rigid in his beliefs, insists on preserving the natural state of things, and generally makes for a great ‘fragile straight man’ next to Mitsuru.

They nicely contrast each other, yet despite being interested in opposites from one perspective, despite being extrovert and introvert, they do have a lot in common even before their body swap. You can easily picture them being friends, and the two have a natural comradery that only gets more pronounced as the series goes on. 

Going back to the story, after a night where Reiji freaks out about objectifying or casting his male eyes on his borrowed body, things pick up at high school again. Mitsuru has taken this opportunity to revise Reiji’s look, making him into the ‘best friend character from a BL series.’ With oversized sleeves, playfully styled hair, and a cheery demeanor. It’s a minor thing, but something that I just love to see in a body swap, especially from female characters. 

Clothing aesthetic and personality changes are wonderful shorthands to convey a body swap, and a source of drama that I just adore. It is the new occupant of a body taking reigns over how others perceive them, while also being a more mundane and reversible shift. Clothes are just clothes, but they are also a key factor in how people are perceived and help determine their reputation. Clothes can play an incredibly important role in illustrating how comfortable someone is with their new body, showing how eager they are to embrace or cling onto an identity, but I think I prefer the aggressive approach. Seeing a character strut in the next day with a new body, looking wildly different, boasting a defiant ‘deal with it’ attitude.

This concept also works particularly well with teenage characters, as it emphasizes a general difference between boys and girls. Most teenage boys are not really taught much about style or fashion and dress plainly, but teenage girls are just the opposite. They’re often pushed into learning how to accessorize and make due with whatever clothing they have to sell a look. This, of course, does not exclusively apply to teenagers, but this is when the ‘skill gap’ is at its most extreme. 

Mitsuru’s wardrobe change is, naturally, a source of drama for Reiji, yet before he can try to reason with her, she takes off to hit up the boy’s locker room. Reiji is prompted to do the same, going to the girl’s room, though he is… hesitant about doing anything of the sort. This might seem strange, as being a girl and being able to be part of a yuri relationship should be one of Reiji’s fantasies, no? Well… the sexuality of these two is a bit more unique than ‘heterosexual while harboring desires to embody the form and guise of the opposite sex.’

Reiji and Mitsuru are both fascinated with romantic couples of the opposite sex, yet they do not wish to participate in these relationships. They are perverted in mind, sexually reserved in practice, and only interested in observing relationships. They don’t want to be the top, the bottom, or even the bed. They want to be the ornamental plant in the corner of the love hotel. They derive pleasure by observing fictional characters navigate romance, avoiding the pitfalls of a messy real life relationship. 

I would call this an interesting phenomenon… except this is not something remotely unique to these two, as these vicarious romances have become increasingly popular in recent years. Particularly in Japan, as burgeoning adults are becoming less interested in pursuing relationships, and likely derive the pleasures of a relationship via fiction. At least based on videos that keep cropping up in my feed.

Now, do I think this decision to make the two so… romantically and sexually disengaged benefits the story? Not really. As a body swap story, there are clear benefits of having sexually engaged protagonists. And as a story about two people cooperating over a common goal, this just removes a layer of romantic conflict. If you know both characters will keep it in their pants, and that no romance will blossom between anyone, then any allusions to this fall flat.

Cripes, I’m so deep into the analysis I’m still on the third chapter… All of these concepts are touched upon as Reiji meets Aika Andou, Mitsuru’s go-to friend, who is gay, in love with Mitsuru, and confesses to Reiji. This conflicts Reiji, as he both always wants to see Yuri, yet does not view it as right when a male interferes in a yuri relationship. Still being male in mind, he views himself as a man intruding on a pure yuri romance, and this is a point he makes throughout the series. Some of his reasoning can be a bit iffy, particularly one line he drops regarding crossdressing girls not being yuri when… they are. But he is also presented as a young extremist, so I’ll let it slide.

Regardless, Reiji ultimately works through his complex feelings, illustrating part of what I outlined above, and he turns down Aika, who will become a secondary character for the rest of the series. On that note, the next secondary character being introduced in the following chapter, Miyu ‘Bermuda’ Kashibawa. Miyu is a high school age doujin artist who, despite being about 16 or 17, is one of the highest ranked young artists on Pixiv, and has made a significant number of popular doujins. Particularly for Mitsuru’s favorite manga series, the homoerotic teen sports series Double Dribble, or Dabudori.

I’m generally not a fan of hyper-skilled young people like her— it’s just unrealistic— but I will admit that she is written as a very utilitarian character. One who went to middle school with Reiji, tried to befriend him, and likes using him as a character in her yaoi fanfics. Miyu fits nicely into the character dynamics in this series. …Sadly, she’s not used particularly well. Past her initial introduction in chapters 5 and 6, she does not play much role beyond being a package deal with Aika as ‘manga club buddies who try to ship Reiji and Mitsuru.’ Her biggest role beyond that is attending a convention as a seller.

Beyond introducing her, chapters 5 and 6 also contain a wonderful bonding exercise between Reiji and Mitsuru where they each read their favorite series. Lily & Rose, a magical girl series where girls must kiss each other to gain magical powers— which reminded me of Valkyrie Drive of all things. And the aforementioned Dabudori. Throughout the series, there are semi-regular snippets from these series, showing off key moments, and demonstrating why the characters are so entranced in these series. It successfully isolates the coolest moments of the non-existent works, helping the audience understand why both characters wind up loving each other’s favorite series, while serving as a fun diversion.

Just seeing these two absolute dorks gush about their hyper-fixations is a high point of ILYAIGBSWAF for me. It brings them together, cranks up their personalities up, shows their similarities, and their differences. They both clearly just enjoy good character work and good storytelling, but are both so dedicated to their bits they will fixate on minor bit players as their favorites, because they’re a boy/girl in a girl/boy-driven series. They are so close, yet so far away…

While I’m still on a tangent, I probably should address the artwork, as it is what really sells the passion of these characters. For Ajiichi’s first first serialized work, it is incredibly strong. Characters are rendered with an enthusiasm that brightens up every page. The comic makes great use of deformation to emphasize the boundless expressiveness of the cast. Everything flows well from page to page, maintaining its bountiful energy without any unwanted lulls. And it received a very clean localization. A lot of smart, if not inspired, lettering choices sell scenes better than a lower effort production would. The script feels genuine and accurate, never sanitized or watered down for a western market, and it shouldn’t because… just look at the title. I can tell the people behind the English release put a lot of work into it, and it makes the comic a treat to read.

Speaking of reading the comic, let’s get back to that, because I’m over 2,000 words in and only a third done. Chapter 7, easily one of my favorites, sees Reiji visit his mother after living as Mitsuru for several weeks. Reiji’s mother, the 39-year-old Yokiko, makes a bold introduction, pulling off her best tiger mom impression, and looking at this ‘girl’ her ‘son’ brought home with grave suspicion. Not dissuaded, Reiji tries his darndest to act like Mitsuru, gushing about how much he loves yaoi before his mother… only for her and Mitsuru to break out laughing. As it turns out Mitsuru did such a bad job of impersonating Reiji that Tokiko that she found out about the swap on day one. Meaning this entire charade was just a way to mess with Reiji. I love it.

The flashback to Tokiko finding out is hilarious in its hyperbole. Tokiko’s personality is usually very reserved, so seeing her worked up makes her emotions feel all the bigger, and just when you think she’s going to be a regular anime mom, Mitsuru mentions the basement. Inside the basement, Tokiko reveals her personal library, with shelves upon shelves full of… yaoi doujin!

Yes, it turns out that Tokiko, mother of a yuri otaku is a fujoshi. A fujoshi who retained her BL cred into her adulthood, known as a kifujin! She got married and had a son, yet remained a diehard enthusiast with what has to be over a thousand doujin in her possession. Doujin she has used to form a motherly bond with Mitsuru, claiming she’s like the daughter she never had. It’s such a wild left field move that feels wildly unconventional for a body swap story… but completely right for whatever this is. 

However, this does raise a question about why Reiji and Mitsuru don’t live in the same house, as the secret is out. Reiji spouts some nonsense about how a man and woman shouldn’t live under the same roof, because that’d be improper. It’s a shame, as the ultimate point of this body swap is to bring these two diametrically opposed otaku-lings together, and nothing brings people together like living together. Also, it would mean more panel time for Tokiko, which I would appreciate, as this woman is just wonderful when teasing her son.

Around this point, the comic more or less enters an episodic format, meaning I should be able to breeze past most chapters pretty quickly. 

Chapter 8 is another glimpse into the school life of Reiji and Mitsuru a month after they swapped. It takes the time to show how the passage of time affected their reputations, with Mitsuru making Reiji more popular with the girls, while Reiji struggles to maintain Mitsuru’s life. Though, that’s more of a B-plot, as this doubles as the obligatory period chapter. It sees Reiji faint while running track, Mitsuru rescuing him before teaching him how to deal with his period, and him being predictably aghast by this. I will admit that chapters like this are important to illustrate the differences between male and female bodies, though I will say it is hard to make the contents feel… distinct. It pretty much always boils down to the same conclusion: Menstruation sucks and men are lucky to not deal with it. You can do it well, but it’s hard to achieve that when in a more comedic setting. 

Chapter 9 is the obligatory theme park chapter, where Reiji and Mitsuru go alongside Aika and Miyu, all dressed in their fly casual wear instead of their stuffy old uniforms. It’s one part an expansion of the relationship of the club members, cementing Aika and Miyu as a matchmaking duo. One part another way to show the differences between the two leads with their theme park preferences, with Mitsuru loving thrill rides while Reiji cannot stand them. And a pontification on the romantic utility of Ferris wheels in fiction, being slow, isolating, featuring a vast view, and overall intimate spaces. I’m being more mechanical with my description here, but the cast once again is so extra in everything they do they can make waiting at a bus stop seem like a party.

Chapter 10 is interesting as it expands on the relationship of Aika, Reiji, and Mitsuru. Aika invites Reiji to her room, only to lock the door, strip, and throw herself onto Reiji. Which… is a crime. In response to this, Reiji is conflicted. He still views himself as a man despite spending a month like this, and believes in upholding the sanctity of yuri. But when in a position as compromising as this, he has an angel/devil debate, his will falters, and he is only saved by Mitsuru, who ruins the mood. Still, Mitsuru cares about Aika and speaks to her in the same way she did when in her own body. A gesture that sets the flag for Aika to discover the truth of the matter… only for that to never happen. It’s a chapter that could work, it just lacks a proper continuation and would work far better with a less regimented protagonist than Reiji. At least things are book-ended with more grade-A antics from the two, with Mitsuru being a little chaos gremlin.

Chapter 11 is another prime example of what I was talking about how any allusions to romance fall flat. The entire chapter is predicated around a male student confessing their love to Reiji, while he’s still in Mitsuru’s body. Reiji both does not want to prevent Mitsuru from entering a relationship, and feels awkward about being the subject of such affection, though, after enough coaxing from Mitsuru, Reiji turns the male student down. …Only for it to turn out that the male student is just a very androgynous girl. A girl that Reiji would love to see in a yuri couple, but now he can’t because he rejected her. …And that’s the joke!

Yeah, this chapter is little more than a justification for antics, extreme reactions, and tangents from the two leads. Namely a lovely debate about the role of guys or girls in a yuri or yaoi story. Reiji emphasizes that he wants a world with no men, only girls, even if it means he needs to be un-existed in the process, just so yuri is the only option. While Mitsuru tries to get him to see that both yuri and yaoi can exist simultaneously. That any two hetero couples can be broken up and turn into two gay couples, just like that. …It’s definitely funnier in context than how I’m describing it here.

Chapter 12 is the obligatory convention chapter, seeing Reiji tag along while Mitsuru attends a local yaoi convention. Like many, this chapter is another excuse to get Reiji all frazzled as he navigates the convention floor and then works for Miyu as a con salesperson, despite having no experience. Only after his pride is damaged and his otaku pride is threatened does Reiji find the determination to kill it at the sales booth. And for his trouble, he is given a “blessed” doujin by Miyu, showing a supplemental scene from Double Dribble. After which it’s implied that Reiji is turning around to liking yaoi as well as yuri… except that never amounts to anything.

Chapter 13 has Reiji and Mitsuru go through a collection of body swap stories in order to find a way to return to normal. …Even though they know this is a curse, and who cursed them. On cue, Manko the ghost girl reappears and exposes herself as a body swap fan. Specifically, she spies a copy of a 90s manga called Watanobu, or I’m a Trendy Girl and I Got Bodyswapped with a Bandit. Which sounds like Ranma ½ X Inuyasha to me. Manko loves this comic so much that she promises to swap the two back if they can find a Watanobu doujin, leading the two on a race through Tokyo doujin shops. They find nothing though, and with nowhere else to turn, they remember Tokiko’s yaoi library and find just what they’re looking for.

They eagerly run to Manko to get swapped back, only for Tokiko to follow behind them, revealing that she used to be Manko’s fujoshi bud back in middle school. It’s a great bit of closing loose ends, tying the story together in a reasonable, satisfying way, and could serve as a satisfying enough ending for the series. …But then Tokiko pauses, realizing that Tokiko betraying her otaku roots by becoming a mom— a normie— and swears to never break the body swap curse. …Which is both a lame conclusion, and will look extra silly when Manko shows up again in chapter 19.

Chapter 14 is built around the manga club getting tickets to Lily & Rose the Movie, and much of the chapter is about teaching Aika, the lesbian who only reads One Piece, to appreciate yuri. It does not go well, but actually watching the movie, Aika winds up enjoying it, having ‘confused gay feelings’ about it. Which could be the start of turning a lesbian into a yuri fan… except Reiji botches the introduction, overwhelming Aika with recommendations. Cute idea, cute moments, and I liked the cutaways to Lily & Rose, but that’s about all I can say.

Chapter 15 is the obligatory pedophilia chapter, as it centers around the introduction of Shou, Reiji’s 27-year-old cousin, who immediately falls for Reiji in Mitsuru’s body. The core of the chapter is spent with Reiji trying to turn down Shou, only to be coerced into going on a date with him at a fancy restaurant. Reiji tries to gently turn him down with unattractive, honest responses, only for Shou to take all of them well, appreciating the ‘honesty.’ Unable to reject the guy, Reiji invites Shou inside to his apartment so he can control the narrative, except Shou thinks this is a proposition for sex.

Shou pins his cousin to a door, asks him to date him, go all the way with him, and says that sex with a minor is okay if there is consent. Reiji panics, falls, and with his older, stronger cousin over him, he panics and tells the truth, that he body swapped with Mitsuru and is actually his cousin. Shou is taken aback by this, apologizing and leaving… only to show up the next day, with a bouquet of flowers, asking to date Reiji.

On one hand… Shou is a massive creep and I do not approve of playing off the sexual assault of minors as a comedic element of a story. On the other hand… if you age up the characters, make the age gap only… 5 years or so, dial down the comedy, and play things more dramatically… YES. The idea of a family member being attracted to another family member, while they are in the body of someone unrelated, is an idea with some real potential.

By having characters swap around bodies, giving them time to adjust to them, and forcing them into living new lives… you basically wind up creating new characters, new people. By making them into new people, one introduces a vast opportunity for new character dynamics and pairings that previously would not make sense. Such as ones that would not work due to a lack of history, sexual preferences, personality compatibility… or fear of creating an undesired offspring. It’s a topic that I did not really think about too deeply until doing this recap… and it’s hot as hell! Just not when pedophilia is on the table! Sure, it’s a fantasy, but you gotta keep your mind somewhat clean if you wanna stay sane..

Chapter 16 is the obligatory school festival chapter— wait, I just did that naming convention so it’d be weird when I got to chapter 15. Chapter 16 is set during the school festival, and sees Reiji and Mitsuru’s class pursue the ingenious idea of a maid crossplay and cosplay café. Which is such a good idea that I’m pissed I didn’t think of it before. As Mitsuru points out, it is “a balance between fun and sexiness.” Concept aside, this chapter is largely an excuse to put Reiji into a female role and Mitsuru into a male role in a somewhat extreme display. 

Reiji is put into the most revealing maid outfit the school allows, gets pestered by Shou the pederast again, and gets hit on by two twenty-something creeps who almost rape him. Mitsuru serves as his knight in shining armor, carrying Reiji like a sack of potatoes, pampering him with food, and spooking two creeps while dressed as a maid and wearing a bra. Just seeing her emanate that aura, with such defined muscles, really shows the skills of the artist behind this work. It’s sweet, ends with Mitsuru claiming that Reiji should rely on her while he’s a girl, and even sees Aika and Miyu— remember them— swoon in the background over how manly Mitsuru is. It’s a good chapter to set up the end of the series… unlike the next one.

Chapter 17 is the illness chapter, as Reiji got a cold during the festival. So Mitsuru, Aika, and Miyu all try to make him rice porridge, only one of whom can cook anything better than dubious food. It has some fun antics thrown in, but is very much a take it or leave it chapter. Which is bad because it precedes the final story arc.

Chapter 18: The Beginning of the End sees the return of Mitsuru’s father, or Daddy, come back from America, with the intention of taking his daughter out of the country. …In the middle of a school semester. That is a conflict in and of itself, but Mitsuru’s father is also the type of dude who makes apple juice by crushing apples with his hands— meaning he’s straight up scary. Meaning impersonating would be hard even if Mitsuru shared critical details with him. Reiji botches it hardcore, going on about how he cooks and cleans, while failing to go sufficiently bananas over a new Dabudori DVD. That’s a three-for-three impersonation misstep!

Mitsuru’s father goes completely berserk over his ‘daughter’s’ sudden change in personality, only to forget about it after Reiji sits him down to watch Lily & Rose. A series so sweet it can lighten the hearts of even the strongest men. It’s a funny way to end the conflict, though there is still the matter of whether Mitsuru wants to come to America, as her father wants her to enroll in college there. Lord knows why, considering how expensive American college is…

Now, this is a conflict that could be easily solved by Mitsuru saying that she does not want to go to America for college (smart girl), but she muddles her words by bringing up the body swap. This misunderstanding leads Reiji to think that Mitsuru wants to go to America and after a surprise visit from Manko, he is given the offer to swap back, on one condition. He must become Manko’s girlfriend once they are swapped back. …For the record, Manko is a ghost and looks like a high schooler, but she’s 39. Goldarn it Ajiichi.

Chapter 19 is largely devoted to the details of this, with Reiji going over if he wants to do this and ultimately deciding that… this is worth any sacrifice. Even if Mitsuru is a “complete idiot”— she’s actually more of an airhead— he admires her carefree nature, is glad that she was such an agreeable swap partner, and does not want to burden her. With a kiss from Manko, the body swap is undone, and Reiji and Mitsuru are back to themselves.

This carries into the final chapter, which sees the fallout of these choices. Manko is a possessive girlfriend who does not want Reiji talking to Mitsuru anymore, and the bonds they spent the past two months building up are left to decay as they go about their school lives. Reiji has become socially isolated once again, leaving the manga club, and Mitsuru feels bad about his sacrifice, as she came to really care for him during the time they spent together. So, she comes up with a master plan.

During winter Comiket, the two meet up again, where Mitsuru has come prepared with an offering to free Reiji of his eternal curse. Manko’s greatest desire, 100 Watanobu doujins featuring her favorite ship! …Yes, really, that’s how they’re ending it, and I love it.

This leads to a wonderfully sweet moment where Mitsuru declares that they are buddies, that all she wanted was to bond with others through a shared hobby, and she wants to be friends with him forever. Reiji is moved by her words, agrees to return to the manga club, and the series comes to an end… right?

No, you silly dummy! It’s a body swap story, and just ‘cos two people swapped back for a… month and learned a lesson, that doesn’t mean you get to end it by undoing the swap! Right as the two leave, they suffer another erotic tumble— with a KISS! This once again inspires the ire of Manko, who swaps the two… again.

Yeah, this is pretty lame in my book. I love long-term body swaps, despite so rarely actually writing them, but having them swap back after a break just feels like a reaffirmation of the status quo. Now, if it ended with a ‘gender transformation’ instead, turning Reiji into a girl and Mitsuru into a boy? 10/10 ending. They should have taken more cues from Meguru Milk. You should end a TSF story with more TSF!

Overall, I wound up liking I Love Yuri and I Got Bodyswapped with a Fujoshi! far more than I expected. I already gushed about its artwork and presentation, but the comic is also consistently funny and its lead characters were a treat to follow, without ever feeling tiresome. It stays true to its premise, is full of an expected yet surprising amount of glimpses into the subcultures it explores, and I’m glad a work like this got picked up for localization. Because TSF will only get bigger if we prop up the good stuff, and this is definitely in that bucket.

However, I also feel that the fixation on comedy and antics distracts the story, which could benefit from a more structured narrative. Despite becoming friends and ultimately being a story about bonds, I do not feel like Reiji or Mitsuru really grow that much throughout the series. Sure, they have reservations they discard, but most of those happen in the first handful of chapters, and the rest of the series is just… them getting into antics. Fun antics, good antics, but there’s a certain lack of… tension or purpose with a lot of what’s featured. It raises various story arcs that could go somewhere, but kind of don’t, and I’m not convinced the mangaka behind it really even wanted to go down these untrodden routes.

As a body swap story, it is missing a few elements to sell the concept as well as I would want to. Whether that be more romance, more conflict around living another person’s life, or just a little something to push it over the edge. Still, for what it is, I thoroughly enjoyed myself from start to finish, and if the length of this write-up isn’t enough of an indicator, it sent my brain on a lot of tangents. Which I think is a good thing.

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Bye-Bye Xbox, Hello Microsoft Gaming
(Speculating on the Future of Xbox Part 3)

Oh my gosh is Xbox in a weird spot as of late. There was so much confusion back in February regarding the potential end of Xbox as rumors poured like Austrian wine back in 1985. I fell for the hype, and now I am cautious about doing any additional reporting on Xbox going downhill or the brand being dissolved as Microsoft enters a new era. However, the closure of Tango Gameworks and Arkane Austin last week has caused people to come out of the woodworks about how Xbox… has changed.

IGN published an in-depth article on the subject, and the big takeaway is that, after growing so large and changing so many priorities, “it’s no longer Xbox, but Microsoft Gaming.” And there is definitely some truth to that, as Xbox is now dramatically larger than it was back in… 2021. Bethesda (ZeniMax) bolstered their head count by over 2,000 people. And with Activision Blizzard King, they added another 17,000 people. They went from being a dauntingly large organization to one that, even after the layoffs, boasts a headcount of over 30,000 people. And… how do you even manage that? 

Communication across hundreds, let alone thoughts, of people is difficult in the best of times, and maintaining a culture after an acquisition is always difficult. Positions are eliminated, co-workers change, and nobody specifically knows what they should be doing on a corporate level. Culture is destroyed by layoffs, the skills required to do something are just lost, and the goals of a company… start to change. 

As companies get bigger, goals become more abstract, numbers and financials become more important, and things like people or even products become insignificant gristle to make the line go up. This is in part because it’s hard for humans to comprehend organizations on such a massive scale, and it’s hard for those on top to view those working beneath them as… human. When there are only 30 people working for a company, it’s hard to let someone go. But when there are 30,000 people working for a company… executives have no hard feelings about getting rid of 1,000, because they never ever met these people. They stop being faces, and just become numbers, like everything else.

Okay, okay, enough melodramatic rambling. What does the phrase ‘Microsoft Gaming is replacing Xbox’ actually mean? Well, it is a shift away from being a platform, and pursuing additional revenue by any means necessary. The release of Pentiment, Hi-Fi Rush, Sea of Thieves and Grounded on new platforms was positioned as a test for Microsoft, and they were probably happy with the results. …Or at least with Sea of Thieves. It was a relatively low cost venture, and every additional sale meant more money to make the line go up.

Looking at the current state of things, seeing that Xbox sales are down 30%, that the PS5 is outselling it 5 to 1, I think the takeaway is pretty clear. Microsoft is planning a major shift to their gaming operations, and there is good cause for them to just… give up on the Xbox experiment. (Gosh, calling a profoundly expensive venture like that an ‘experiment’ sounds so stupid. Then again, people call The United States of America an ‘experiment,’ so I guess I’m the bimbo.)

This all painted a bad picture, but what really snapped the twigs for me was hearing how Microsoft is implementing a ‘no red line’ policy to ports. Meaning that Microsoft is inclined to let developers bring any and every game to PlayStation and other platforms. They appear to be diluting their value as a console brand, and seem to be pivoting to being a ‘digital platform’ and ‘third party publisher.’

Now, do I think this is a good idea? …NO! More competition is needed to make a healthy industry, and I could see Sony and Nintendo forming an alliance. Where Nintendo rules handheld gaming, and Sony is the only console in town. 

What about PC? PCs ain’t consoles, ya frick, and Alpherz don’t care about your GOR Allies and assorted flim-flam! (GOR Ally is a typo of ROG Ally, but I think it’s funnier this way.)

While I do not like Xbox, and have not since… like, 2012 maybe, I would rather see them stick around, would rather see them bring back console exclusives, than just disappear. They are alsoa n intrinsic part of gaming history, and the day when they fully shelf Xbox as a brand and staple, when they just become Microsoft Gaming… will be many times worse than when Sega went third party.

However… all of this is still unconfirmed, and who knows if there will be some last minute decision that changes everything. Corporate decisions like this are always hard to grasp, as there are so many layers of information, thin lines between truth and hearsay, and everything can change with a simple email. It is possible that this might all be some minor blip in the system… but I think that, at this point, a collapse is actually happening. The day Microsoft brings Halo and Gears of War onto PlayStation is the day Xbox stops being a pillar of the industry, and… it sounds like higher ups just gave developers the go-ahead to do just that.

It is too early to call it the end right now… but I cannot imagine any Xbox fans are enthusiastic about the future. …Or that people are going to want to buy Xbox consoles going forward.

As an addendum I’m adding after editing, Wall Street Journal is saying that Call of Duty is coming to Game Pass. Which sounds like it will be a short-term boost to Game Pass sales, but Call of Duty retails for $60, sells millions upon millions, and this just gives all casual players a reason to use Game Pass instead. …However, this could be related to some Game Pass restructuring, as I’ve heard buzz about that, and the best thing about subscription services is that it’s easy to jack up the price. No matter how this is implemented though… I think it is going to be bad for someone. Either for the customers who need to pay a CoD tax, or for Microsoft as their CoD revenue goes down.

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Oh SNAP! Press-Switch v0.6b is Coming Soon!
(Natalie’s Gonna Review The Big Three Back-To-Back)

Well this was a pleasant thing to see on a Saturday morning. Trigger posted an update, via the Press-Switch Discord, stating work on v0.6b was wrapping up and they intend on sending out (and subsequentially releasing) the build in “the coming week or so.” Now, the update will be a relatively minor one, featuring only one stretch of new content, but knowing Trigger, there should be a lot of oddball wackadoo endings thrown in for good measure. Specifically, Trigger described the features of this new release as follows:

• An expansion of the family swap Jenna variant. The 0.6b content will focus on figuring out the problem with the aid of other [Hintre’s] and things may or may not go south. I would estimate the new content for 0.6b is about 80~100k words.
• A quick jump option at the menu to jump to new content.
• A bio screen with character profiles.

Overall, a ‘minor’ update, but one that will indicate the project is still alive and kicking. Previously Trigger teased some other content originally intended for v0.6b, but that is being kicked down the curb for v0.6c and… fair enough. It has been over a year and a half since v0.6a.

For me… this means that I’m going to be going through The Big Three within the span of about two months. Which might sound like a dream come true, but this does represent a little scheduling issue for me, and I might need to make some sacrifices to Natalie.TF content to maintain the November release date of PS 1988. I don’t want to say I will demote TSF Showcase from a weekly to an occasional segment starting in July… but I’m sure considering it.

Also, I’m definitely not going to replay through the other… 700k+ words of Press-Switch for a review, but I will re-edit and revise what I said in my review of 0.6a. I just did, like 500k+ words, for re:Dreamer and I know the Student Transfer V8 update will at least 300k+ words for me to catch up on everything.

Also, I’m releasing a 370k word TSF novel in the upcoming weeks so… shit, this is The Summer of TSF here on Natalie.TF, ain’t it? Maybe I shouldn’t demote TSF Showcase until October if that’s the case… I’ll just need to work my ass off with PS 1988. Especially with the vacation I have planned for August. My first vacation in 15+ years.

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Progress Report 2024-05-19

Yeesh. This re:Dreamer review is going to be largely a recap, but I’m going to need to rewirte a bunch of stuff involving good old CapCap. (I know they like being called Cap, not CapCap, but CapCap is such a good nickname, and I’ve used it since 2020.) Their mental illnesses and life conditions are getting worse, and I’m starting to get severe doubts about whether they can actually achieve what they have set out to do. I have oodles of sympathy for them but… fuck man.

2024-05-12: Played re:Dreamer and not much else, getting through the Alone, Mom, and up to the arcade date in the Britney route.

2024-05-13: Got 4 CPE credit hours and played re:Dreamer, getting up to day four of the Britney route. Day 3 is really long, okay?

2024-05-14: No re:Dreamer today, as I had to pick this week’s showcase. I wound up going for another title I only read the first few chapters of, and it was good. I was busy doing tax stuff for some dude who worked on Ubisoft’s NFT project. No, really.

2024-05-15: Wrote 5,000 words for the TSF Showcase. I was freaking LATE this time! Wrote the 800 word Microsoft bit and polished off the 800 word preamble. Got another 4 CPE credits. Finished the Britney re:Dreamer route. I earned my cummies tonight!

2024-05-16: Another 4 CPEs, edited this week’s Rundown, and pulled the 27 images for the TSF Showcase. Started the Keisuke route in re:Dreamer.

2024-05-17: Got 2 CPEs, got distracted by cleaning up some files and testing a few things, but got to the end of the Keisuke route in re:Dreamer. Now I just need to replay the intro and do the 4th anniversary route.

2024-05-18: Another 2 CPEs, and I think I’m done playing re:Dreamer for this year. also, added the tiny Press-Switch bit. Will do TSF Showcase stuff tomorrow and write/modify re:Dreamer review later in the week.

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Psycho Shatter 1988: Justice X Genocide
Progress Report:

Current Word Count: 0

Estimated Word Count: 88,000

Words Edited: 0

Total Chapters: 14

Chapters Edited: 0

Header Images Made: 0

Days Until Deadline: 170

Yeah, I have not started on this novel yet, haven’t even written an outline, but I need to get into my mind that this novel is gonna need to be written, and SOON™. So I may as well reset the clock…