this is a hi-fi rush side blog run by pepper. you can find my fics here. pfp by hirameko
been a fan of hfr almost since the beginning. i know a lot about the game and its mechanics, so feel free to ask me if you need to know something or you just want tips/tricks! i'd also love to just chat about it if you just wanna talk!
organization tags i use are: museum gallery (for art), v-logs (for anything text-based), jam sesh (for music), and vandesonic blu-ray (for photo mode pics and edits). talk and ask tags are mission report! and 808 comms.
(Hello I'd like to preface this post by saying 1. Despite the probably aggressive tone of this post, I am completely joking, and 2. I have mobility issues, and they were very noticeable for me lately, which is why I thought to make this post. Ok let's all laugh together now)
I have no idea why, but I was reminded of this one specific ramp in R&D that makes my blood boil every time I see it.
Who. Who approved this?????? Why is it so steep???? I am NOT making it up that without help.
Then I fell down a rabbit hole.
Why are all these ramps so steep????? And why are there no handrails in the majority of them?? NOT TO MENTION (though they're not pictured) that there are stairs usually right after these ramps (which feels counterintuitive)
And then this. This feels problematic. Bc the majority of BK/old Vandelay models have wheels instead of legs, and would thus have the same issues with mobility as, for example, a wheelchair user.
Korsica, honey, I'm gonna hold your hand when I say this. I physically cannot go up the stairs without being in pain or needing prolonged breaks. Also have you seen how TALL THE SECURITY BUILDING IS????? Please.
ANYWAY. Post over. I'll be suing Vandelay Technologies for 1 trillion dollars and notifying the ADA of this company's lack of compliance.
At long last, I can share the piece I did for the @hfr-encore zine :) Had a lot of fun doing this one and I'm super proud of everyone who worked on the project
(stage songs: Heatwave, Test Chamber, That's Mister Chai to You!)
[*adjective*] indicates sprite used for associated dialogue
Chai's Thoughts
No "Chai's Thoughts" option is in this stage, as a result, no dialogue is given.
Play with 808
No "Play with 808" option is in this stage, as a result, no dialogue is given.
Cancel (Getting Up from the Couch)
No dialogue was given for this stage.
Talk with...
Peppermint
Why are you even here?
Chai [Angry]: OK, I want answers. I dodge volcanoes coming here, and you just waltz right in?
Peppermint [Angry]: Waltz!? I RAN here!
Chai [Normal]: So what you're saying is... you were worried about me!
Peppermint [Surprised]: What? Uh, n-no, it was more, a... general concern for the... state of things!
Chai [Skeptical]: So I'm assuming you were one step behind me because you thought I would blow it?
Peppermint [Serious]: No! I mean, not to that level, but... it was good I was close by.
Macaron
So you knew Macaron?
Chai [Thinking]: Let me guess, the "insider" you've been talking to this whole time is Macaron.
Peppermint [Normal]: So you CAN put the pieces together!
Chai [Angry]: Why wouldn't you just tell me?
Peppermint [Disgusted]: Do I need to remind you?
Chai [Sarcastic]: Of...?
Peppermint [Angry]: You never listening to me? You telling the entire company heads our plans?
Chai [Surprised]: THOSE were slip-ups!
Peppermint [Sarcastic]: Well, I didn't need another one of those!
So you work here?
Chai [Skeptical]: Alright, so fill me in. You work here while actively plotting to take down the company?
Macaron [Surprised]: No, you got it all wrong! I wanna save the company!
Chai [Skeptical]: I'm not seeing it.
Macaron [Pleased]: If you'd been here as long as I have, you'd remember: Roxanne Vandelay's vision!
Macaron [Normal]: It was about doing things that made the world better. It wasn't about profits or status.
Chai [Sarcastic]: Have you ever considered working for, I dunno, another company?
Macaron [Sorrowful]: This place—Roxanne's legacy—it's like my family. I can't see it ruined like this.
CNMN
You and Peppermint?
Chai [Normal]: So, you and Peppermint knew each other all along?
Macaron [Happy]: Actually, this is the first time we've met.
Chai [Surprised]: What!? I thought you were collaborating!
Macaron [Normal]: In secret! Code names and stuff. Just so there was no risk of getting caught.
Chai [Skeptical]: But your code names are your... actual... names. Dude, she could have been a crazy internet stalker or something!
Macaron [Skeptical]: Oh... I never thought about that. I guess I was just happy someone wanted to help.
Chai [Confident]: Well, you got lucky this time, but... next time, I won't be here to protect you.
Psych robot?
Chai [Weirded Out]: Honestly, I don't even know where to begin with you. A... psych robot? For what?
CNMN [Normal]: Sir Macaron programmed me to analyze his creations, since his... exile from Development.
CNMN [Sorrowful]: But my analysis leads me to a conclusion that he was merely lonely.
Chai [Sorrowful]: Macaron's a friendly guy—you'd think he'd be more popular around here.
CNMN [Sorrowful]: Sir Macaron is shy, non-confrontational, and what I would categorize as a worrywart.
Chai [Skeptical]: Why not try helping him out?
CNMN [Angry]: Oh dear, no. My job is to inform. It is for the individual to change.
Your name...
Chai [Normal]: So, I gotta ask: CNMN. What does it stand for?
CNMN [Normal]: Oh, Mister Chai, isn't it obvious?
Chai [Thinking]: Of... course it is... I just want to confirm it with you.
CNMN [Pleased]: I can see you truly have no idea. How sad.
CNMN [Pleased]: Sir Macaron designed me as a Consciousness Review Allocation Personnel. Hence CNMN.
Chai [Weirded Out]: But that doesn't... Actually, it even—
CNMN [Worried]: No need to dwell on names. Unfortunately, not all of us can have a very common and usual name like you, Mister Chai.
i do think it’s funny when you’ve been into a thing long enough that you’ve done all the serious analysis you can do so now you’re mostly just thinking up looney tunes scenarios to put the characters in
being really fixated on a game means you WILL recognise when a youtuber uses a random part of the game's soundtrack in the very quiet background music of an entirely unrelated video
I've been mulling this one over for a while, trying to phrase it as well as I can, because I think it might be my favorite thing that the writing team did with the parallels between them?
The thing is, Chai and Roxanne both have a gift for inspiring and encouraging people. In Roxanne's case, since she doesn't appear in person until the end of the game, we see this mostly through the reputation of her company, and the way other characters talk about her. She's obviously a very charismatic person, who naturally draws other gifted people into her orbit and makes them feel like they're part of something special.
But in Chai's case? Well. Here's the thing:
In every track of Hi-Fi Rush, there's a quiet interlude between missions. Sometimes it's in the hideout, sometimes out in the field, but it's always there. It's like the chorus of a song, repeating between every new verse. And the whole game is structured around this recurring pattern.
The gameplay purpose of these interludes is to give the player a chance to unlock new upgrades and rewards and equipment; but, in what seems like a very deliberate design choice, that process involves Chai actually walking around to check in with each member of the team, one by one. This routine gets more complex every time a new team member is added, but the game always encourages you to "make the rounds" and chat with each character, and give them a little pep talk if they need it.
And as you progress through the game, you can see Chai getting better at cheering his friends on! He starts asking how they're doing, listening to their worries and fears, praising their strengths, and making them feel seen and appreciated. In a very real sense, he's taking on the inspirational role that Roxanne played in their lives, before she disappeared.
You get into the habit of doing this round of check-ins, whenever these quiet moments happen between missions. It becomes a familiar part of the rhythm of the game.
And then, at the very end of the game, there's one last quiet interlude in Roxanne's office. But this time, it's Roxanne who "makes the rounds" instead, speaking with each member of the team one by one. It's very sweet, but it also produces a subtle sense that Chai has been displaced. Is his presence still necessary, now that Roxanne has stepped back into her old leadership role?
...and then, at the end of her rounds, Roxanne alters the pattern by turning to Chai and checking in with him. She listens to his worries, and she reassures him that he still has a place here, and that he's more than welcome to stay.
I think, maybe, this is why that moment feels so narratively satisfying. That familiar repeating pattern throughout the game is resolved at last, when Chai finally gets a chance to feel seen and appreciated, and is officially recognized as a permanent part of Team Vandelay. <3
As Peppermint plods down the tunnel to the hideout door, she can hear faint notes of music drifting through the air. Something inside her unknots, just a little.
Chai looks up from his guitar practice as she lets herself inside, and winces. "Oof," he says, flatly. "You look awful."
"Thanks, Chai, you say the nicest things," Peppermint groans. She slumps down on the couch next to him, buries her face in her hands, and lets out a long, shaky breath.
808 trots across the couch cushions and climbs into her lap immediately, snuggling close to her. Peppermint sinks her fingers gratefully into the cat's warm synthetic fur, and the knot in her guts unties itself a little more.
Chai sets his guitar aside and gives her a sympathetic frown. "Rough interview, huh?" he observes.
