Explaining: Aozora's Adventure and Aozora's Adventure II

I'm certain everyone has seen me bragging on and on about that the two main titles in the Aozora's Adventure series being platformers that play too similarly to the Super Mario games. Well, allow me to spare some details on the concepts.

*Each game has thirteen worlds, eleven standard, and two that are unlocked after the game's main story is finished. Each world has roughly between 10 to 30 main levels (with the 30 limit never being reached), five to twenty secret levels, and three bosses. The extreme number of levels can only be traced back to Mushroom Kingdom Fusion, which Aozora's Adventure draws major inspiration from.

*Melee attacks (punches, kicks, etc.) can be pulled off by the main characters in the second game.

*The first game features single player and two player co-op, either locally or online, while the second game has the above, but expands the number to four locally or six online. Certain enemies and bosses are given attack and/or speed boosts the more players active. Unlike NSMBWii and NSMBU, it is possible for players to be scrolled off without getting killed.

*With the online co-op's "Join" system, it is possible for players to end up in levels they haven't unlocked in the main story by joining another player that has already progressed through most of the game. If the player assists in beating the level, they will not have to replay the level when said player unlocks it in the main game, and they can just skip it, but the level will have to be replayed locally or during a "Host" session to have it count towards his/her game completion percentage.

Two additional modes: Time Attack and Score Attack, are also available, and each come with their own respective leaderboards, with local scores, recent plays, regional best, and worldwide best. The main game also features a highscore feature, but it's only for players that finish the game after getting every Star Coin in the game, calculated based on time taken, number of deaths and continues consumed. Also, each user can register only once per board, excluding on local boards, where the player may input a name of up to thirteen characters, and can wipe individual local highscores or all scores at will without deleting the player's save file(s).
*In Score Attack, Enemy spawners are disabled, and shell-based enemies stay in their spots if scrolled offscreen rather than respawning in their original locations. Dead enemies remain dead even after going into and exiting a bonus room.

*Player characters are given a lifebar represented in percents, which is by default 100%, but can be increased by picking up Heart Containers, with an additional 10% per Heart Container. Mushrooms, Super Mushrooms, and Ultra Mushrooms, as well as Max Hearts, are used to replenish lost energy. Damage taken varies based on the strength of the enemy, attack, or projectile.

 *Health a player sports is carried over from level to level.
 *When a Heart Container is collected for the first time in an specific spot, it becomes a Max Heart on repeated playthroughs.

*1UP Mushrooms are present, but are the rarest types item in the games, as each world has a very scarce amount of 1UPs, and they are either well-hidden or placed in an area that would take great skill to survive and claim the Mushroom. Unlike the Mario games, 1UPs do not respawn when replaying a level after death or completion, being replaced by a single Coin until the player spends time in other levels. The method that determines when a 1UP mushroom will be replenished in a level is based around a 10-barrel Russian Roulette system.

 *In contrast, killing enemies with a large combo or collecting 100 coins no longer awards lives. The former just awards 10,000 in place of 1UPs, while in the case of the latter, plays can stock up to 999,999,999 coins.

*Game Houses and Shops, the former replacing Toad Houses, appear on world maps. In the first game, both are ran by Shelbies (Enemies that behave much like Koopa Troopas), while in the second, in the form of playful cameos, DJ Varcanno of Fuzion Frenzy fame and hardcore shopkeeper Anizawa Meito (made popular by Lucky Star) take on their respective roles. Shops are done in the same vein as Mushroom Kingdom Fusion, but with standard coins as opposed to a second type of currency (Rupees in MKF's case).
 *As the player advances through the game, the number of items sold in shops increases gradually.
 *1UP Mushrooms are the only items that change in price as more are bought at once, increasing in value by 200 coins per 1UP bought. In a similar way to 1UP respawning in main levels, the system that determines when the 1UP mushroom's price drops by 200 is based on a five-barrel Russian Roulette.

*The worlds in each game are based on the following themes:
 *Aozora's Aventure:

1. Park City Zone- A mostly grass-themed world that takes place around and inside a small city. Boss is Ciber.
2. Blue Metropolis Zone- A large city with some futuristic aspects thrown in, and a large suspended highway. Boss is Moriya.
3. Palm Beach Zone- A futuristic beach that later on evolves into a magical world built with gemstones. Boss is Kokoro.
4. Woody Jungle Zone- A series of islands with beaches and tropical rainforests spread throughout. Boss is Beta.
5. Cloud Beanstalk Zone- A fantasy world in the sky, with many futuristic buildings and grassland areas. Boss is Redd.
6. Casino Palace Zone- A large city set at nightime, with many gambling themes. Boss is Higure.
7. Sky Battleship Zone- Another sky-themed world, this time on a large heavily-armored battleship flying high above the clouds, and even in them. Specific levels take place inside the battleship, with mechanical themes present throughout. Boss is Britly.
8. Frozen Factory Zone- A world that first begins as a snow-themed world, before progressing to a fire/lava themed world once inside it's factory, then going back to snow. Boss is Zidra.
9. Ruined Badlands Zone- Begins out in the desert, then enters a post-apocalyptic city. Boss is Simon.
10. Cosmic Chase Zone- An outer-space world that features some galactic cities and machinery encased in domes, as the player chases Joker's castle.
11. Joker's Castle- A castle in deep space that serves as the top-secret base of the professional assassins, the A.C.E.S.

 *Aozora's Advneture II:

1. White City Zone- A world that begins with a park and then a beach level, and from there on combines grass, urban, and snow themes, with night approaching quickly the further the player goes. Boss is Masayoshi.
2. Buccaneer Grotto Zone- A pirate-themed world with many wooden structures and a good number of cave and underwater levels. Boss is Chinatsu.
3. Metal Desert Zone- A desert world that brings forth many themes of ancient architecture, before throwing players into a gem mine/digging site. Boss is Girou.
4. Lantern Carnival Zone- A Japanese-esque world at nighttime, during a major festival, with some forest areas, and a large pagoda. Boss is Saniko.
5. Wave Cruiser Zone- Begins with a beach area at sunset, before progressing into a large cruise ship in daytime; combining both aquatic and mechanical themes. Boss is Fayato.
6. Canyon Highway Zone- Mixes themes of canyons and mines, eventually leading into a near-apocalyptic city. Boss is Kazuhiko.
7. Onyx Skyscraper Zone- Another large futuristic city at night, even more advanced than any seen before it, complete with a huge skyscraper. Boss is Bachi.
8. Blood Mountain Zone- A fire/lava themed world taking around and inside an active volcano with construction occurring on the volcano's surface and a large factory built inside. For the conclusion of the world, the player boards an airborne battleship for the third and final time. Boss is Sharkane with Grip and Gnear.
9. Crystal Clockwork Zone- A snow/ice-themed world with a few towns present, concludes inside a large factory that sports a giant clock at the peak. Boss is Mignoette.
10. Rocket Galaxy Zone- Takes place in outer space, but now on the surface of small planets and futuristic buildings.
11. Joker's Castle 2- Successor to the first Joker's Castle, with even more deadly traps.

 *In the case of both games, World 12 is a secret world with exactly eleven levels, each level becomes playable if all the Star Coins of the corresponding numbered world are completed, with an extra twelfth level becoming accessible once all 11 worlds are cleared of Star Coins. Completing World 12 with every Star Coin from said world allows the player to visit the "Master World", a thirteenth world that in the first game is opened similarly to Thirdspace from the well-known Super Mario World ROM hack The Second Reality Project Reloaded, while in the second it's opened automatically upon inspecting a gate in World 9 unseen previously.

*Powerups in Aozora's Adventure use pseudo-custom graphics from the Mario games or any other source, (keep in mind I'm not selling my game ideas) and the number of powerups represented continuously get bigger with each game. See for yourself.

The powerups themselves are not only based on Mario, but also the first Wario Land, the Kirby series, Rayman 3, and One Piece. Oh, and a bunch of retooled custom Mario powerups from Fantendo.

*The three bosses in each world, two mini bosses, and a main world boss, are fought alike a boss from the Mega Man games, complete with the screen-long hallway to the boss enclosed with one-way doors. None of them sport weaknesses, but some power ups may allow the player(s) to inflict damage faster than others. Boss levels would first begin with a short prelude level in vain to the third acts from the Sonic games on the Game Gear, usually with a few coins or a power up during the short run before the hallway. The end of World 11 features a boss rush with the main world bosses from the first nine worlds, again done in Mega Man style with the teleporters and extra health following each boss. At least no boss dies in three stomps (oh yeah you can stomp bosses too, but they're quite quick and may knock you aside if you stomp too often at once).

I'm sure some of you could link this to the term "Design by committee", but if the guys at FusionFangaming could pull something like this off with hundreds of levels and abilities, why shouldn't I? :/

The full glossary of Rock Aozora's Weapons.

Felt like sharing so people can see the weaponary I've come up with.

Aozora Buster (P)

Damage: 1, 1.5, 3

Alludes to: Mega Buster (Mega Man series), Rifle (Contra series), M-Ball (Vectorman series)

Cost: Infinite

The starting weapon, Aozora Buster is the weakest weapon in the game, and the only one to not be backed up by an energy gauge. It can be fired in seven directions while standing/running, and eight when the player is on any clingable surface. The Buster has three power levels, initially the smallest is fired for every press of the Fire button, while holding down said button for at least one half of a second after the charge cues in will power up the Buster shot by one stage, then once more after an additional second. Regardless of the power levels of Buster shots fired, only three may be present on screen at a time.

Ooze Grappler (GR)

Damage (Grappler): OHKO (Small Enemy), 6 (Anything Else)

Damage (Thrown Enemy): 9

Alludes to: Scorpion Spear (Fegaman vs. the World) Wire Adaptor (Rockman 4 Minus Infinity)

Cost: 3

The Ooze Grappler is a weapon that shoots out a hand made of slime that can reach to the edge of the screen, which has two alternative uses based on the directions it's aimed. If shot to the left or right, downwards or diagonally downwards, it will phase through all walls, and can be used to capture items and enemies (ignoring enemy defenses). Items collected with the Ooze Grappler are automatically "swallowed" by the hand and are sent to Aozora, where he collects the item(s) the hand obtains. If an enemy is caught by the Ooze Grappeler, the hand encloses the enemy inside a green bubble and brings it back to Aozora, where he holds onto it. The trapped enemy can then be tossed in any of eight directions to deal a great amount of damage, and can also go through walls and strike multiple enemies at once. Larger enemies and mini bosses cannot be grabbed by the Ooze Grappler, but still take damage upon contact with the Ooze Grappler.

The second function: if the Ooze Grappler is shot upwards or diagonally up, it can be stopped by, and latch upon walls and ceilings. If it does hit a wall or celling, rather then retracting back, it pulls Aozora to the location of the Grappler's hand, alike a grappling hook, upon a second tap of the fire button, which allows it to dub as a pseudo-transport item.

Sandstorm Ripple (FK)

Damage: 3, Pierces enemy defenses

Alludes to: Swirlwinds (Donkey Kong Land), Cold Wall (Mega Man & Bass)

Cost: 2

Sandstorm Ripple will generate two tornados made with sand and launch them in opposite directions. Each tornado will bounce when they hit a wall and will continue moving in the opposite direction until it hits another wall and comes back, repeated until a total of five bounces where afterwards they break apart. Small mobile enemies hit by a tornado are launched up into the air and have their speed reduced when they return to the ground; however if the enemy is KO'd by the tornado, it blows up normally when it lands, alike if killed by any other weapon. It's possible for a launched enemy to inflict damage on another enemy (such as a flying one) after being shot up by the tornado.

Rocker's Beam (MH)

Damage: 1 (One Halo) 3 (All Halos and on Bosses)

Alludes to: Flash Light (Doraemon FC), Noise Crush (Mega Man 7)

Cost: 1/2

Rocker's Beam is launched from a cyan-colored electronic guitar, firing three halos that expand out and get larger as they travel across the screen (but go through a cycle of changing size slightly when they reach a certain size). Each ring fired by one round of the Rocker's Beam can inflict damage separately- using it can strike a single enemy thrice.

Hunter Needle (SB)

Damage: 5, Pierces enemy defenses if shot properly.

Alludes to: Gemini Lazer (Mega Man 3), Rebound Gun (Thing Thing Arena 3), Super Shot (Vectorman 2)

Cost: 4

Hunter Needle sprays out four needles in a shotgun-like fashion, which can ricochet off walls. When a needle does bounce off a wall, it auto-targets the nearest enemy to strike, bouncing off adjacent walls if necessary to succeed in hitting it's target. Each needle will usually go for a separate target if many are present on the screen, however some needles may attempt to impale the same target(s) should there be only a few on the screen.

Sunset Blade (TY)

Damage: 14

Alludes to: Flame Sword (Mega Man 8), Grollschwert (Rosenkreuzstilette)

Cost: 1

Being a close-range weapon, Sunset Blade is the most powerful of any of the weapons in the game, with the ability to pierce defenses. Pressing the attack button will cause Aozora to swing the blade instantly, charging the attack beforehand will release a small blast of fire from the ground where the sword strikes, which allows the attack to reach much farther distances.

Toxin Sludge (OC)

Damage: 4 Pierces enemy defenses

Cost: 2

Toxin Sludge throws forwards three sticky bombs, which detonate two seconds after thrown. They can stick onto any surface, including enemies, and are able to damage an enemy multiple times with one bomb, as the explosion each Toxin Sludge sets off lasts for a second before disappearing.

Warfare Sniper (KT)

Damage: 1, 10

Alludes to: Metal Buster (Fegaman vs. the World), Sniper Rifle (Halo series)

Cost: 1/10 (Normal) 4 (Charged)

Warfare Sniper has two different firing modes. The first, by repeatedly tapping the fire button, is a machine gun that is the same strength of an uncharged Aozora Buster, however the extreme amount of weapon energy- one unit for every 10 shots, and the rapid pace, and speed at which each bullet is shot make the weapon effective. Charging up the Warfare sniper allows one to convert four Machine Gun shots into a single Sniper shot, the game's most powerful projectile power up, which flies across the screen in an instant, making it very effective for firing at far range.

Gambler's Cards (KU)

Damage: 2 (uncharged), 2-7 (Charged, calculated based on number of cards left)

Alludes to: Leaf Shield (Mega Man 2), Magic Card (Mega Man & Bass)

Cost: 3

Gambler's Cards generates two overlaying shields of playing cards that revolve around Aozora in opposite directions, which can be fired at a very fast speed each, inflicting twice the damage of the Aozora Buster uncharged. The cards, when orbiting the user, are also capable of absorbing small enemies and (almost) any type of weak projectile before disintegrating, and as the number of cards declines, the speeds at which the cards revolve increase, to ensure protection of the user. Charging while the shield is activated will allow Aozora to fling the entirety of the shield in any of the eight directions, causing considerable damage.

Rock-Aozora Weapon Icons

Thanks to Rosenkreuzstilette Freudenstachel, "Mega-Fever" has sprung inside me, and I created icons for just about all the weapons Rock-Aozora would have utilized should it exist.

As I said previously on my main blog, this Mega Man clone would feature many unique features that other clones tend to overlook, such as the ability to fire in any eight directions (five when on the ground) like Contra and Vectorman, and the crouch, which even a few Mega Man clones (Magical Doropie and Darkwing Duck, the later was an actual Capcom title) included to dodge attacks and fire at targets closer to the ground. It'd have item sacks suspended from poles and ceilings, revealing a random item plus gold sacks that give out upgrades if you open fire on enough times, and diamonds as a form of currency. Alike Mega Man 7, (also 9 and 10) there will be a shop, sometimes ran by Toshi, though there is a chance Sakaki will take the shopkeeper's seat.

As I said before, these are only ideas as to what could come. I'm not making the games just yet, and they're not really "take thats" against other clones, just to show one done from my perspective.

Keanu Profile Art Preview

Thanks to Keanu's simplicity, I was able to make a good amount of progress on him within a short time.

I still need to finish up on his left foot as well as add a few details to the outfit. But it's hard to believe a design that turned a year old last month and I'm finally getting around to his profile art.

In terms of whom he is, Keanu is one of those fancy men that you always find getting lucky down at the casinos. He's a hardcore gambler, and will do anything to keep himself looking attractive for the ladies. His main skill is going above the limits of "magic tricks" with a deck of cards that Keanu can levitate at will. These cards can act as a barrier to block a wide variety of attacks, and counter by flinging them back at opponents at high speeds, slicing through. Other hobbies include breakdancing and singing.

Keanu's first appearance in the Aozora's Adventure canon would be the Mega Man fan clone Rock Aozora as one of the pawns of Joker. The weapon Aozora receives from him is known as "Gambler's Cards", which is a take on all the sheild/barrier abilities that Mega Man can acquire throughout the ten games, the first of its kind being the Leaf Shield from Wood Man. After that game, he becomes loyal to the main protagonists, alike Fakhriya, Shinobu, and TaiYang. I could reveal more about how Keanu came to be, but that would cause me to mention Super Justin *shrug*.

One influence for Keanu's design was this car commercial that a new-deflunct Youtube user created a Youtube Poop of a few years ago, sporting the same colors (though the man represented had an afro, while Keanu has messy hair). On par with Gotobuki, Keanu was also based on part by one of my classmates from senior year, whom became a very big force to reckon with, appearing at every after-school event and devoting a large amount of his time to helping the school. We weren't off to a good start, but weeks passed, and I would develop a good friendship with him.

I'm not going to make any deadlines for myself alike before, so when Keanu's finished, he's finished.

The yaoi. Why the yaoi.

As some of you may have noticed early today at the time I'm writing this, I posted yaoi of Aozora with Masayoshi, Gotobuki, and Sharkane. Of course since there were no ladies in that picture, I expected it not to gain much reputation. Turns out I was right.

So just to make sure my audience didn't abandon me for this once-in-a-lifetime occurrence, I'm going to whip up a version with Shinobu, Heren, Chinatsu, and Saniko, an all female cast. Keep in mind that I suddenly didn't become homosexual; I'm just going through one of my many phases, like I do with videogame series (at least, when I was younger). I didn't stop liking the human female body and giving it unique twists; it's just I might as well have drawn my characters especially considering no one'd be interested in doing ecchi of a guy. *lmaos*

Okay, BS is over.

If you all remembered a time when I explained the series' story arcs, I mentioned one entitled Aozora's Adventure 64, which if my series actually had games, it'd be a Super Mario 64 clone with elements from hack-and-slashers, first-person shooters, and role-playing games. It'd have 360 (or 240 if so much replay value for 100% gets aggravating) stars to collect, multiple mini games, tricky boss fights, and a heavy online matchmaking system where you can unlock new costumes and equipment to deck out your avatar, and you can save 100 of these per save file (though in the main campaign, you always control Aozora). And I was thinking of what ways that if somehow Aozora's Adventure 64 ever made it to the Xbox 360, the Playstation 3, and the upcoming Wii U, which let's be honest will never happen, methods I could provide exclusive content for each system the game comes out on. And the main method would be through three new characters added to the game.

Much like Hyperdimension Neptuna, these three characters would be based upon the color scheme and theme of the consoles they represent, all with heavy duty armor. The one representing the Wii/Wii U would be a beige-skinned man with powerful ice magic, the one representing the Xbox 360 would be a man that's not as muscular but has standard skin color and uses electricity as his main gimmick (aside from having the personality of a warrior), and the one modeled after the PS3 would be a female with a design that parodies Purple and Black Heart from Hyperdimension Neptuna but with a bit of a Bayonetta flavor, using a variety of black magic to get her ways.

Each version has their own set of exclusive missions/stages and an exclusive course encountered late in the game where one of these characters, a recent member of the Witches, would be faced (the other two serve as allies at different parts of the story). The Wii U version would have Glacier Carnival with the Wii/Wii U character as the main boss, the 360 version would have Terraform Base with the 360 character, and the PS3 version would have Onyx Industrials with the PS3 lady as the main boss. Whichever one the player must confront must be defeated alongside the other Witches (present in all versions of the game) to enable access into Kurayami's base.

Can't really explain anything else.

Buddy-Zora

Wanted to see more art of my characters (but cuter)
Wanted to play with them to your heart's desire?
Want to make up your own yuri and yaoi scenes with the stupidest of combos?


Then you're sure to like the Aozora's Adventure for BuddyPoke collection! Scan these sexy QR codes in the iOS app BuddyPoke to get 75% accurate re-creations of 27 characters from the series.

A random assortment of summer updating.

Since I had updated my deviantART journal only moments ago, I'd thought I'd take the tlme to discuss improvements about other plans with Aozora's Adventure.


*I am now done with school entirely, so now I can devote my entire time to helping the series grow. This also means sketches (as well as new designs) will now be put on hold for some time, and the focus will be on expanding and in rare cases re-designing the current cast.
 *Kurayami, for instance, will have her normal appearance re-designed so she looks more what she's supposed to look like: a witch, though still revealing in appearance, but not half-naked like she is now. The other members I didn't design (which consists only of Blake, Adelvina, and Lorenz) will have their transformed appearances designed revealed as well.
*I will not change the title nor any of the character's names anymore. Aozora's Adventure is the true ultimate final title.
*Once again, the series is intended to be somewhat of a parody series; in that some, though not all characters are designed based on already-existing concepts and ideas, while poking fun and also being a tribute to Japanese fiction and culture. Though I promise, everyone will go through a growth spurt and undergo character development, with their backstories, characteristics, relationships with others, etc. finally recorded on the Wiki, and I'll try to make them as original, detailed, and if possible heartwarming at the same time. Any kind of assistance and/or feedback is welcome, though don't be too critical; I work my best! B)

I'm also thinking of starting a contest with actual cash prizes $50 for 1st, $20 for 2nd, $10 for 3rd, plus features for top 5 as well, though such a thing won't happen for some time, as I need to get more profile art done.

But otherwise yea, what a hectic day I had today.

Plots. Nothing else.

Howdy fellas. Today I was initially going to showcase a drawing that I did a few weeks ago, but I eventually wanted to instead devote some time to answer the question I got recently: What am I going to do with the characters that I have had in my series since late 09 and early 10?

Well they're still there, of all things. Still not amused? Read on.

The series is meant to be a cross between numerous different genres and heavily spoof and parody different Japanese media franchises, whenever it be anime, manga, video game, or any combo of the three. The series' storyline initially begins in the year 2017, which is where the first arc, simply titled Aozora's Adventure is set, and focuses on Aozora attempting to rescue the Jetters after they're kidnapped and re-programed by the A.C.E.S. It's basically the plot of Mega-Man (more along the lines of Powered Up) retold with different characters, in the form of a Super Mario-esque game, based mainly on the layout of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World. Rosenkreuzstilette did the same thing, so why is me trying to do so no different? The only difference is mine is a Super Mario clone rather than a Mega Man clone. Regarding the games, they are scheduled to be made in the near future. How many times do I need to get this across your heads? I'm allowed to express my ideas.

The second arc is known as Aozora's Adventure 64 and plays like a Super Mario 64 clone crossed with the gameplay mechanics of titles like Kingdom Hearts and Devil May Cry and many more 3d platformer/adventure titles. The story is that the Witches, ascending from an unknown dimension, have entered another dimension in the hopes of causing as much havoc as possible. So Nack, a small boy-man with a propeller cap goes into the real world to seek Aozora's assistance, agreeing to such an ordeal. Joker and his crew return and partner with the Witches, but as the story unfolds, they separate back into two clans both against Aozora. This would be the game that would spawn Aozora's new design from my pal Ryan McConnachie and his ability to use "gear"; weapons like swords, guns, and boomerangs, as well as being able to pilot ground, water, and air-based vehicles.

The third arc abandons the main storyline and instead takes place in Japan's Sengoku period, featuring Amano and his four allies, (with designs for only two of them existing) venturing off into northern China to defeat an unknown evil. This game is more along the lines of a platformer mixed with a RPG, somewhat like a Zelda II-esque clone, but with Mario powerups. Yea powerups; What else?

The fourth arc focuses on another new band of characters, from what I've described countless times as the "Darkness" sidestory. This part of the saga contains six main characters, including Mara and Vinzenz, in a gothic/futuristic type setting, up against a large demonic beast of a character whom pretty much is like the Kurayami of this story, but male. It returns to being a Super Mario 64 "expanded" clone but with new and different features, mainly ones based on the complete change in tone.

The fifth arc returns to the main series with an RPG based on Super Mario RPG named oh so creatively; Aozora's Adventure RPG. When Joker makes an unexpected comeback to defeat Aozora again, he launches him high into the sky and across Asia, where he lands (rather uncomfortably) on a small pirate ship coasting along the north-west region of Europe, piloted by a mysterious young pirate about Aozora's age, whom Monkey D. Luffy would be embarassed to have as a sidekick. Aozora recovers and travels across Europe, with new allies: a Robin Hood-esque character (Jiroukichi), a princess specializing in magic, a cowboy, a mermaid (Nanami), a shy and independent mage (Zeshiro), and a large brute who loves his big guns. At the end of it all, they go into a portal that takes them into Joker's new digs and finish him and the A.C.E.S. off again. Aozora then returns home, he bids goodbye to his new friends, and they have a happy evening.

The sixth and last arc of the first saga is the Rockman/Mega Man clone I've mentioned two months ago on my brother blog. Nack returns and requests Aozora to assist him again with another land (this time an island) run amok by the demonic beast character from the Darkness sidestory (the first in-universe crossover), whom has taken control of eight of the contents' individuals (Genroy, Fakhriya, Matthias, Shinobu, TaiYang, Orochi, Kento, and Keanu) and sent them to raise hell. Toshi (yea that guy) makes a chargeable gun that shoots blue plasma bullets and can scan the abilities of a weakened or defeated foe in battle to create a new projectile with limited ammo based on the scanned person and give Aozora a fresh new coat of color. Once Aozora restores the eight "masters" back to their initial state, he ventures into the demon man's castle and defeats him, only to have Joker pop out and announce his plans to rid of Aozora and many others, so Aozora chases him to Joker's new castle, and ultimately defeats him again. Aozora then leaves the island via a surfboard and returns back to his home in Japan, where he don't here much about the guy for a while.

Then the second major saga kicks off with yet another Super Mario clone with some elements from Rayman Origins, Donkey Kong Returns, and Kirby's Return to Dreamland. This title, known as Aozora's Adventure II, begins with Keisha beginning to be uncomfortable around Aozora and his constant and unexpected nor unexplained mood swings, so to break the too off together, Toshi offers to take Keisha out on a small boat ride across the night sky, which Keisha agrees to. Unfortunately, the two are caught by a large battleship with a mechanical mouth used to trap targets, and taken inside by a pink-haired sailor wearing a striped uniform, where they are forced to stay with him and are shattered of every possible method of escaping (including overloading the circuits of Toshi's "Neo-Watch" preventing him from getting in touch with allies for help). The next morning, Aozora gets worried and takes Satoru and Zik out to investigate, where they come across Taiyang, Fakhriya, and Shinobu, who were visiting Japan that day, and decide to help. They eventually spot the battleship across the ocean and race on foot to get to it, which actually takes days, as they get intensely sidetracked by four of the sailor's top crew members sent to stop Aozora's progress. These include an emo dancing swordsman (Masayoshi), a large, busty pirate woman, a young and crazy male who loves mechanics, previously appearing in Aozora's Adventure 64, and a ninja woman lurking inside a large Japanese bathhouse/hotel (Saniko). After defeating the four crooks, Aozora and friends reach and begin investigating the battleship for any clues on the sailor, and eventunally they find him inside in the main control room. They have a large fight, eventually defeating him. When they demand answers, the sailor replies that he was forced to send Keisha and Toshi into another dimension by the request of his superior-in-command, so with minor assistance, Aozora's team enter the second dimension (how many are there in this series? @__@) where they come across four additional baddies, a man sporting crazy blonde hair in a tuxedo with a passion for badass cars, a bounty hunter with armor, a long sword, and a big stinkin' machine gun, a fighter with two sidekicks and a large flamethrower with a knife mounted to it (Sharkane, with Grip and Gnear), and a powerful ice princess with a cold passion. They eventually come across the big bad responsible (whom I have yet to create/receive any designs of) for kidnapping Keisha and Toshi. And I'll leave it with that.

After that, the second saga would spawn two "Gaiden" games, one a fighting game alike Street Fighter and Sonic the Fighters (especially the later, with some features from The King of Fighters), and the other a racing game based on Mario Kart, but with no rubber-band but instead human-like AI, 36 tracks, 50+ items, and a precise and near-flawless online mode. Both titles would feature most, if not all the characters in the series to date across three different universes (main, oriental, and darkness), including new characters thrown into the mix.

So that's it. Please of all things don't throw a shitfit, because I've had a rough afternoon today regarding a few subjects.

Revenge of the Sketches

Been a while, hasn't it? Back with the sketches!

Now if any of you are asking why I refuse to upload these to deviantART, I don't want people to start flaming these because the anatomy and/or designs of these aren't well-done as any of my digital stuff. That doesn't mean I don't want anyone seeing them. In fact, I want every of my major followers to notice these one way or another so that they can tell me what I should try fixing on their designs before I start on (that is, if I start on) basic art of them in any future. In the meantime, here's the new four I have to showcase.

This one is the earliest I've done since Saniko; and is possibly another male alternative to Kurayami besides Blake. He is a large demon-esque character and the main antagonist of the "Darkness" side-story, though he does fade into the storyline of the main series later on. Possibly the only character that has similar strength to, if not stronger than any of the higher-ranked members of the Witches, but unlike them, this character always stays in his "transformed" state.

The photo I took of the sketch is of a very shoddy quality, but at least you can still see what the character looks like. :P Moving on.

This girl is part of the oriental side-story (the one that Amano is the protagonist of). There's not much I can say regarding her appearance, though I did take minor inspiration from one relatively unknown source [second from left], though the source does have some "advanced" characters. Either way, there's your lead female of the side-story. A Chinese girl that migrates to Japan and performs in Kabuki plays before joining with Amano and venturing alongside him.

The oriental side-story takes place in Japan's Sengoku period and is set to include many references and spoofs to ancient (pre-Tokyo) events and stories of both Japanese and Chinese cultures. For those wondering, it won't have much, if any fan-service compared to either the main or Darkness plots since all the characters are pretty much clothed all the way. But I'm sure you'll be finding some busty girl in there somewhere.

*absolute embarrassment moment"

ONWARD.

Yes I did tell you these were sketches, didn't I? Well either way, as if I needed to pay homage to any more characters that I was not involved in designing, here's our third "Mascot" character, Nack. A small chubby man-child with a battery-powered propeller on his pilot's cap. Not much to say about him either, he just follows Aozora and delivers news to him should any major threat appear. Of course this does lead to Aozora sometimes popping Nack one on occasion, either intentional or on accident.

And here comes our final offender for the night. the tan-skinned light sand haired-name not announced. Now where have I heard of this color combo?

He is probably one of the series' many parodies and shoutouts to the ever-so-loved Tengen Toppa Gurren Laggan, sporting an outfit with a similar color scheme and appearance (but not exact) and a thing for piloting large mechas, much like Simon's child form, the one that he uses most frequently is a large "stomper", somewhat like Mecha-Legs from Rayman 3, though more advanced. He's a frequent villain in the series, though not as threatening as the A.C.E.S. or any of the witches or demons. And whenever he's defeated by Aozora, you can expect him and his stomper to be back for revenge. Even without the stomper, he's pretty furious with the series' many gun variants.

That's all for today. If you like, leave me your thoughts.