I mean I get it but to be fair ( playing devil’s advocate) if someone is rude to my friends they are going to have a hard time getting along with me as well.
And Avina tries to be nice. It’s just surface but they try.
I kinda hope we can be friends on a G run 
everyone in G close circle needs a real friend
I was suffering from insomnia last night and did a couple replays. My saves are finally working but my relationship meters aren’t showing up.
Anyway I finally tried a G route. I felt awful but there is something about him. I then proceeded to crush him at the end of chap 3 with the whole Viktor thing (saying we should stay away from each other) and that was rough. Like kicking two puppies, one kitten and a hamster
Then on same route reloaded and replayed (G+7 cause im a fool for him) and rode in Blake’s van. Found it interesting in one save I could tell Blake my mc was ‘unfortunately in love with 7’ and in another Blake said I know you have something going on with Griffin. I was like wow. Just selecting the different dialogue can change things a lot.
Replaying actually made me kind of have a newfound respect for Cory too. Am I crazy to think on a 7 route Cory ships it and is trying to give mc and 7 a nudge? Or just doing it all for BOTB drama? 
Yeah, I haven’t done any code diving yet, so I don’t know the extent of it, but, at this stage, I don’t think it’s a big deal that being mean to their closest friend means that you lose points with Seven. Like, of course it does, lol. Amy has also said that there’s no set way to gain Seven’s approval, and they’re a fickle character who’s obviously going to change a lot, so I don’t think it’s that deep right now.
I also just didn’t think that any of the in-car dialogue options were particularly ass-kissy, personally.
I was actually thinking that may be the only way for a happy ending, a way out before your life can get ruined any more than it already is. Guess it’s about perspective and what we expect from the game.
I wan to fill Viktor’s pool with piranha, cut his arm, tie then throw his ass in the deep end and watch the fishies feast. But I digress…
I’m thinking that this auto-win is going to be followed by at least two auto-losses to appease Viktor. G isn’t going to be allowed to vote for MC’s band to win for a while, and the story that broke is going to turn the rest of G’s band against you. The only positive is that all the drama will draw viewers, and abusing MC will get everyone cheering, so they may just keep the MC around and have them just “barely” scraping by so they can treat them even shittier.
In fact, I think Cory is going to salivate over the opportunity to break the MC with the story. She’ll hammer the MC with it, put them in “scenes” with the other bands abusing the MC over it, and do everything she can to try to get the MC to break on camera, whether in anger, defiance, or sorrow. One of my MCs has just shut down completely, so good luck to her getting a reaction.
My main MC wants G to be free of Viktor, too. She’s hurt over him throwing her under the bus, but at least he tried. She blames Victoria for it, though, and isn’t overly sympathetic to her, at this point.
My others… they want to help both of them get away.
Yeah, I’m guessing O is going to pull back now. In chapter 3, they had a few moments of showing how much they care, and that they do have interest. The leaked video is going to come between them, I think.
With G, G doesn’t seem to care about the video, which is sweet in one way, but a huge problem since Viktor is going to destroy the MC if they don’t stay away from G.
Yep, I noticed that!!
Me, too. I loved their VD special, and agree with you that the bathroom conversation was awesome. I just hope he doesn’t break my MC’s heart, since the ending is out of our control completely.
I have trouble staying away from G’s path, too. I started a Dakota MC and they still flirted with G (my fault, not theirs!), which is why I’m making an estrogen fest for my Dakota-mancer. I’m making Seven, G, and Blake all female to remove temptation (G and Blake) and angst (Seven). She’s probably going to be the one that’s totally hell on wheels. Hopefully she’ll still help G, though, because I hate seeing him so sad. 
I think it’s all about drama. Cory’s comment about not wanting to see the MC hurt physically, then laughing when the MC asks, “But not emotionally?” says it all to me. I think Cory will try to break the MC completely for drama’s sake, and Viktor gave her the sledgehammer to do it with the leaked video.
It wasn’t, rationally speaking. But my hatred of Avina is so strong that anything less than “Why don’t you just crawl up Seven’s ass and chew his fucking food for him, you fake-acting piece of shit ?” is too close to ass-kissing for me. 
Avina brings out my vengeful Italian side.
Me, I’m just a very jealous type. Hands off my durian raccoon, you haven’t had any way in shaping him as a person and haven’t put him through the highs and lows of high school football wringer of high school relationships and situationships!
I see a lot of convos regarding characters and prospects of winning but none about the performance itself??? The big cliff hanger??? How did it go for the mc and the band??
Idk about you all but I can’t wait for the Maya vs Seven showdown lmao
Well, if you dont mind the spoiler
Your band auto wins the performance, you win the first week no matter what.
Well I don’t know if that’s good or bad
It’s blink-and-you’ll-miss it kind of detail, but Sev and Victoria are both musicans that are twenty seven years old in their canon age. 27 Club, anyone?
Wow, it was busy here! 
Sorry for the wall of text—feel free to keep scrolling 
Yeah, I’m a bit torn on this outcome myself. The default loser being an underage band makes sense, so that would mean we can’t lose. However, an automatic win feels a little cheap considering how many choices we have that are supposed to affect the performance (the topic of the song, the difficulty of August’s drum part, etc.). Also, losing might have helped flesh out some characters, like our band members. Because we woudnt’travel with G/Victoria/Dakota, we could have some normal interaciont with them instead of constant pity looks, E could be in both paths to also help flesh them out.
As many have mentioned, August can feel closer than our lifelong friends, and it’s frankly an exposition problem. There are so many ROs that need airtime, which means that any band interaction ends up solely fleshing out August as an RO, or it’s them throwing pity glances when Seven is mentioned. We should have more carefree discussions with them—e.g., if we aren’t first-week winners, we could be spending time with the band on the bus, playing around, goofing off, etc. Even if we are winners, there could be more points where the band interacts with the MC.
All of this, as I said, is an issue with the number of characters and story points we need to follow. While I can suspend my disbelief and still treat them as close friends because I get that this is the intention, the lack of screen time really messes with that perception and makes it easy to cast them out. We are constantly told that we always spend time together, that we know everything about each other, but in the story, we are constantly getting separated to move the plot along. At this point, the MC, from the player’s perspective, has had more interaction with E than with Iris or Devyn (which is an accomplishment because, E also feels out of left field and shoehorned into every scene they are in). We’ve also had more discussions with Dakota than with all the band members combined!
Yeah, from a romance perspective, my interest in G has died. Like, I know Victor had a bad influence on them, they got into the industry young, spent time partying and doing drugs to fit in, etc., etc., but at some point, you have to take responsibility for your actions. Nothing indicates that G is in some messed-up situation like Britney Spears with her conservatorship, where they have no control over when, where, and what they perform or release to the press. Victor is their employer, and it would be marginally better if he acted without G’s input at all, but if G knew and ‘tried’ to stop him, then sat on this information until it was released, yeah… there is no grey area here.
As for comments regarding how “if only O had been G’s manager, they would be a functional adult,” I don’t fully believe that.
In general, Victor is the villain in the story, but at this point, both Victoria and G have enabled him to some extent. G, as the main earner for the label, should have much more clout than they do, and it’s high time they realized it. Victoria should never have agreed to drop her original PR team for the same company that represents G. Like, who thought that was a good idea? In case of any conflict where PR needs to be contradictory, G would always be prioritized because they are a 10x bigger client with higher-level employees handling them.
It felt rushed, to be honest. We’ve known them for two days, and we already got lines like: “You are everything I hoped G would be” from V and “I worried more about you than for my wife in there” from G. Like, people, chill. At this point, I just assume they are both so miserable that they idolize the first person they have any kind of positive connection with. And while in a story it might have happy ending in real life it looks like greate rebound setup.
I agree that the discourse about whether it’s LT may stem from different definitions. Avina definitely has a crush on Seven, whether they are conscious of it or not, but I still don’t see a reason to be hostile to them. Honestly, I am more annoyed with Seven’s quips every time they interact with the MC (“you mean nothing,” “leaving was the best decision of my life,” “fridge magnets are stupid”). There’s a limit, and at some point, I will simply lose interest in whether they grow up or not. Especially knowing that if MC also stoop to this level every time they interacted there would be no chance of reconcilation.
First a disclaimer. I haven’t read the rewrite so take all this for what it’s worth.
I feel like G is being given too easy a pass for folding every time Victor says so. It’s important to remember G is not the hapless employee here. They are the employer. Firing an agent with a contract is hard, but not that hard. A multimillion dollar asset like G would have new agents and lawyers lined up around the block to take out Victor. And since Victor put all his eggs in this one basket he would have no income to continue pursuing legal action indefinitely. And would most likely end up blackballed in the industry if everything started coming out in court.
I suspect he’s smart enough to know this too. If G actually did fire Victor he would probably back away long enough to write a flaming tell all memoir about G and live off of the royalties. And given G’s reputation they probably wouldn’t suffer all that much from the bad press. Rockstar lifestyle expectations being what they are.
TLDR some needs to help G find his/her/their balls and kick Victor in his.
Also having a wife also named Vic? Seriously G needs help.
Wait until it’s revealed G also has an ex whose name starts with ‘Vic’ and it’ll all come together 
I am glad I am not the only one 
. The Dakota mancer will make due with an almost all female cast because I just can’t stay away.
But it would be awesome if we can be friends with G on that run. I get the feeling that even a friendly G is kind of possessive fuelled by his angst to lose someone close to them. We will see I might read into that, and can’t remember if Amy said anything about his jealousy/possessive level.
Oh yes! I want to cuddle and protect her she is so precious. But I am also very afraid until now all my MCs have trouble staying away.
I am sorry Sebastian 
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It makes sense from a narrative perspective. Because we get to spend some time with G before the confrontation in the office. Which gives people the opportunity to feel closer to Vic and G and thus the Viktor conversation can hit harder.
Even if I am with you with the normal interactions with the band. We will get them as we still have a lot of the story to go.
I find that relationship very interesting and I am waiting for the shoe to drop so to speak. Until now Rowan as well as Jazzy have titled the MC their best friend and both have shown what kind of people they are as friends (jazzy a little more) the MC is very isolated even then.
But it can be a wanted isolation and a disconnect between the friends. I am so looking forward to how that plays out.
Oh I don’t know. Being in a toxic dependable relationship through your formative years has a pretty big impact on a person.
People literally get withdrawal symptoms in some cases and it ruines their ability to have normal relationships for sometimes decades so I kinda think it pans out.
To be true we don’t know G all that well and are starting to see a discrepancy between what we saw in the press (Gs dating history) and the reality.
With Britney spears we also only learned what was going on after it basically destroyed her
Actually from performing at the audition to that part of the tour it’s more like a month. Since August spends a few weeks with the band settling in to their new role etc.
Kinda like that G is so obsessed with my mc. Makes a change from the constant vitriol she gets every time she even looks Seven’s way 
Part of me agrees, another feels like there’s something more going on.
And this isn’t a spoiler, no big confessions in that regard yet, but at this point there has to be a reason as for why G just doesn’t do something about it. Either Victor has some career ending dirt or who knows, maybe G is either (for whatever reason) scared firing them could impact their career or maybe it’s a more “psychological” thing where they believe Victor is entitled to be a massive bitch all the time (again, for whatever reason.) It could also be related to Blake, who knows.
That being said, I do think you’ll be able to grasp a little bit more with the update! Some G scenes are pretty revealing imo.
Both viewpoints are valid, but I guess we have to ask ourselves: how long can people close to G deal with the fallout from their addictions and dependency on Victor? I believe that everyone should be given a chance to get better, but the sad truth is that, in many cases, people will give up on someone before they actually improve. This happens for various reasons, of course—some people don’t really care, some get burned too many times, and some have seen them try and fail so often that they just can’t stand to stay and watch it happen again.
Oh, that’s a good point regarding the timeline, but in terms of depth and the number of interactions, it still feels a little rushed to me. We have some very brief interactions scattered here and there—riding in the same limo, a short talk outside a bar, etc.
I agree that it can be defended from a narrative perspective. Normally, I dislike games where, whenever you can interact with an RO, you have to choose only one, and it’s done like that throughout the whole game. But having some points where one interaction is at the expense of another isn’t inherently bad, especially since we have so much content that we can still form opinions on characters we choose not to interact with.
I think it was necessary, considering the “win” quickly turned bad for the MC. I think it will spawn a series of auto-losses, so no matter what you do, you come in last or next to last. G can’t vote for you, at this point, no matter how good you are, because they’d appear to be playing favorites. G’s band won’t vote for you, at this point, because you’re (in their eyes) a piece of shit who is causing problems and plotting behind the scenes with G’s wife (or fucking them, if that’s what they choose to believe).
I think this win was a little treat from Amy before everything completely turned to shit for a good long while. MC was at the bottom before, had a moment to shine, and will now be at the very bottom, with everyone hating them except for Maya (who may even turn against the MC, who knows).
Regarding the MC’s band: I am actually happy not to have to deal with them much yet, because I don’t particularly like them. If interactions could be limited to August, that’d be great.
You’re dismissing just how much emotional and psychological abuse can fuck with your head, especially when it starts at such a young age. G was alone when he started in the businss–that’s flat out stated, at one point. Viktor was all they had, the one who made them famous and built their career. That allowed Viktor to isolate G, to an extent. By the time G’s band started to give a damn about them, it was too late. The damage was done.
It’s obvious that G doesn’t really have anyone they can count on and that they can discuss their fears/hopes/desires with who doesn’t immediately scoff. We even see that Victoria just blows it off when G laments they can’t even go to a store by themselves, because Victoria obeys the rules of fame and, apparently, thinks it’s fine to lose everything that made her “normal” at some point in time. G misses it, though. G wants to feel normal and, more importantly, wants to be seen. Not as a “star” who is nothing more than an image someone else made of them, not as a cash cow who is only there to sing when Viktor snaps his fingers, and not as a “problem” because he’s unhappy and trying to find a way to cope.
Yes, G is an adult, but G has never had any control of their own life, and they have lost who they once were because of fame and the trappings that come along with it. G is trapped and afraid (recall Viktor’s “gutter” comment, indicating that, without him, G would be broke and starving and have nothing, since G has no other skills to fall back on and no one to help them along the way).
To get to a point where G can tell Viktor to fuck off, they have to get past their own trauma and have to realize that they do have choices. That may mean taking a chance that they’ll lose it all, and at this point, G’s not ready for that because they think they can’t survive without their career. This is why I’m hoping the MC can befriend G and help them, if not on their romance path, because G needs a friend who can help them see they can make it without Viktor and that they’re more than just an object, which requires showing interest in who G is, beneath all the glam and glitter and “image”. On the romance path, I think it could work out better, if Amy allows it not to be complete misery, anyway. Getting O as their manager would be the perfect move, G romance path or not.
See above. I don’t think they’re given a too easy pass for the reasons I stated above. The fact that G even tried this time really means something. G just really needs a MC who understands that. I think giving G support for trying will help them try again in the future, instead of just folding (“Why should I bother even trying when it won’t work and it doesn’t matter to anyone, anyway?”).
G does need a bit of tough love (like with the constant drinking), but I think they also need an “attaboy/attagirl” when they move in the right direction, no matter how small that move may be. You don’t teach a child the right path by criticizing them and freezing them out when they’re trying. And, psychologically, G is very much an abused, if overgrown, child.
Exactly. Even when you’re an adult, if you spend much time in such a relationship, it can have a huge impact. Emotional and psychological abuse can destroy a person, no matter their age.
Same! And I want to help G, dammit.
So, I did originally think whatever song theme we picked etc. would determine if we came in first or not but after reading chapter 3 I think the auto win works really well. The revelation we learn about the band that does get sent home was pretty deliberate in making MC question if everything is as it appears on this show. Young and Reckless being kicked out because of their age despite meeting the requirements and having the objectively better musical performance over the ones who performed like shit throws MC into wondering if their win was an honest one or a set up by the higher ups/producers (and you can choose whether you want MC to actually follow that line of thinking or dismiss it) which is of course already compounded by the cheating allegations of the audition performance. It’s also implied that being the Week 1 winners specifically is a huge deal for this show.
Amy probably wants all MCs in the same spot in a narrative sense and having a win be conditional/optional seems like it would be a lot to account for in writing and maybe stagger whatever she has planned for chapter 4s story. So yeah I think it makes sense that we get streamlined into being week 1 winners lol.
That’s a great point I believe will be explored in game. Simply because you already have a chance to not only get angry at G at the end, but also to say multiple times how G is “losing the allure” in your eyes. I think their route will have a path in which you help them heal from whatever trauma is keeping them chained, or if not trauma then help them escape whatever Victor is doing, but also there will definitely be an option to go “yeah no, I tried but I cannot do if there’s no will to fight back from both parties.”
Idk, imo G portrays well the image of the rockstar, in which they look cool from an outsider pov but then surprise shit is fucked. Plus there could be a cool narrative to be explored, given their self-destructive way of life. It could go a lot of ways and most of them are pretty interesting.
I agree and didn’t mean to imply that G’s behavior is entirely of their own making. There are many factors outside of their control, as you and others have pointed out, and I definitely didn’t mean to diminish the abuse G suffered when they entered the industry with Victor. However, I wanted to consider this from the perspective of someone who has lived for many years with a close relative unsuccessfully fighting addiction. It’s draining and affects many people besides the one struggling with the addiction.
Obviously, it’s a game, and I doubt we would have an ending where G doesn’t get better or at least show a very promising future. We are basically coming in during a turning point in their life, so it’s much easier for us to forgive them. I doubt that Victoria’s default approach was always to try and shame or antagonize G into behaving. I’m sure that when they both decided to actually marry, not just as a PR move, they had genuine love for each other. But as mentioned, that love wasn’t enough at the time. Victoria loving G and going backwards, trying to be there for them at every point in their life, didn’t fix them (and this hero comples is also not healthy btw). I also doubt that the MC is some angel and the first person besides Victoria to genuinely try to help G get better. The MC will also not be the reason they magically improve, there will be some breaking point that we will simply witness and can aid in. So, while G has an abusive relationship with Victor, we can’t simply forgive them for every decision they make that negatively affects the people around them, they still need to be held accountable.
This, of course, adds a very interesting twist. Usually, when an abusive relationship is portrayed, the abuser has power over the victim in every aspect of their life, but here, Victor controls G due to grooming them since childhood. It’s like the anecdote about elephants being kept in place by a rope, while it physically restrains them when they are young, as they grow older, they become easily capable of freeing themselves but don’t, due to their past experiences