DXL44

she/they | 21 | project arrhythmia's strongest soldier

[dxl44]

play project arrhythmia now

[dxl44]

now!!!;!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dxl44]

new video where i talk about project arrhythmia erm i mean afterbeat

[wikicamp2]

[dxl44]

YOURE ON TUMBLR?!?!??!?!?!?!?? legendary algorythm pull

no im not what's tumble

[dxl44]

After 3 years, PA Memories 4 is complete. And I was back again.

Go check out what I made for it, and then check out the full collab too. It's a true passion project from this amazing community.

[newtype-lila]

rb to tell prev they're being so brave right now and pat their head a little please

[gojira007]

[guacomelon]

Was "Guacamelon is a system" on your 2026 bingo card?

[guacomelon]

Amygdala Amygdala Amygdala

[guacomelon]

assorted, mostly @dxl44

[dxl44]

i gave cole an otto

[dxl44]

the things i do in this game

[guacomelon]

I think renaming Project Arrhythmia to Afterbeat is not smart!!!

[guacomelon]

Everyone else is much better at expressing their opinions and giving good reasons as to why this can't work out perfectly, but I can't get behind why Pidge dev wants to go through with it, even with their explanation of the thought process...

I think it seriously means something if the majority of your active userbase is communicating with you how this is a bad idea. I'm for devs doing what they want for their games, but like. there's a different way to do this... "Project Arrhythmia: Afterbeat"... "Project Afterbeat" if you really don't want to let it go...

I'm gonna be honest I don't know what "Afterbeat" is supposed to mean or imply anything about the game.

[dukemz]

wait what's happening to pa

wdym they are renaming the game +6 years later??

basically yeah. I need to correct my last statement though it's not because of the new publisher that's my mistake sorry. I've just backread the discord a bit and I think I understand the reasoning behind it better, but basically pidge is rebranding the game to try and improve it:

here's some new logos though nothing is set in stone yet:

i think this is kinda fair since this could potentially bring new players in, and PA is pidge's full-time job

[dxl44]

For anyone curious about my thoughts on this. TL;DR I don't like it for reasons beyond "the name is bad and I'm an oldhead who hates change"

Project Arrhythmia is a name the game has had for over 7 years. There is an INSANE amount of brand recognition in that title.

Every single fan work uploaded before the name change is now outdated. Every single fanwork uploaded after will have to choose between titling itself with a name nobody uses, an incorrect name, or a combination of both that's never used officially. There are actual millions of views attached to "Project Arrhythmia". People are not looking for "Afterbeat story mode", they are looking for "Project Arrhythmia story mode". And they definitely aren't looking up "Afterbeat [insert fanwork name/creator]". Fan works should not dictate the game's development or identity, but the amount of clout attached to the name "Project Arrhythmia" should not be ignored.

People are going to see the game post-rename and still recognize it as the old game. This is a pretty big branding issue where you have to explain to everyone "it's not a rip-off it's the same game" as if this game doesn't have enough people comparing it to another game already.

The name "Afterbeat" just isn't great. There are like, 6 other things named Afterbeat I can look up. Kwalee (PA's publisher) has another game named RoboBeat. I wouldn't hate it as much though if it wasn't the whole name (i.e. "afterbeat" is the subtitle)

This all isn't just coming out of nowhere, honestly. I know loads of people both people inside and outside of the PA community who don't like this change and think it could genuinely harm the game and its community before its full release.

All of this aside, the new logo is way better. The old logo sucked lol and the new logo actually goes hand in hand with the game's branding. And the new name is a bit more lore-accurate? I've heard Project Arrhythmia makes no sense for the game's story now, which like...yeah, sure. I personally don't think that matters, but it's a real concern.

I will be 100% honest though, this change has made me consider dropping Project Arrhythmia for the most part once I do some more things in it. I don't like the idea that what I make in the game has to make these choices. I've been considering moving on for a while, this is just sorta a nail in the coffin sort of thing. Nobody is searching up "Afterbeat Another World" or looking for characters on the "Afterbeat Wiki", and it will be an insane uphill battle to make that happen.

Nothing personal against Pidge, it's their game, and they can do what they want with it. In fact, I think if people decide to head off because of this that's fine! The game's not gonna have everything everyone wants. It is pretty disheartening to see what seems to be such a big mistake get made as someone with so much involvement in the game and its community though, and I really hope I get proven wrong and it works out in the end. The best case scenario for me here is not that Pidge breaks under pressure and says "ok you guys were right lol" but that the game is able to thrive no matter what it's called, cause I only have these concerns because I want the game to be successful.

[dxl44]

looks at you like this

[dukemz]

on April 7th, 2026, nothing happened. or rather a lot of things happened - but there was no dramatic apocalypse, no worldwide tragedy, no unexplainable restructuring of reality. no event that most people would consider to be particularly notable happened.

but it'd be a lie to say that no miracle happened. because a miracle did happen, and is happening, and has always been. don't believe me? it's you.

every single breath you take is a miracle. every single thought you have is a miracle. every single moment you exist in is a miracle. because you exist, and you have thoughts, opinions, dreams, and everything you do is painting the people around you, the world around you, in a colour that is uniquely you.

in this world, true, unfabricated struggle, is still woven into our lives. as a whole we still haven't all been brought together. humans are capable of cruelty that no other living thing we know of can match. so are we defined only by our struggle? the same struggle billions of us go through every day of our lives while others use violence and deception to benefit?

or are we not also defined by all the wonderful things unique to us as well? our art, our stories, our games, our dreams?

in this world, we are not immortal, but if that were to change tomorrow, we would still be humans. we are creatures of the land and sea with the capacity for hope and love, and that will never change.

today I ask for you to look for pieces of yourself in the world around you. I made this post because of a story about a lonely and scared probe hurtling through an endless void. it's just a story. but if you have ever felt alone and scared, or know that you will feel like that again someday, remember the fact that our voyages will end some day gives even more meaning to every moment. so let yourself see the day where you think "I want to get a better job", where you wish "I want to feel less alone", where you say "I want to live somewhere else", where you hope "I want to live"

the world is so beautiful. you are so beautiful. I love you.

[dukemz]

[dxl44]

a card i made for a TCG-themed collab

intertwined into one experience