2025 Year Wrap-Up

Despite the positivity and hope I share with others outwardly, seeing the end of 2025 is a miracle for me. This year was filled with immense stress and was honestly not good. This year began with a devastating fire that forced Chris and I to evacuate our home for a few days (thankfully nothing was damaged, aside from needing to completely restock our fridge), and I had a huge variety of medical needs, including further dental issues and many nerve-wracking hospital visits. Money has been tighter than ever to where I'm just barely scraping by (read "The Future" below for more on this), and both depression and grief have been pervasive. If you've seen the news in any capacity, you know things have been bad on a broader level, too.

In the face of all these terrible things, there's a spark within me that refuses to give up - to continue creating, in spite of it all. An urge to give when possible, to smile bigger in the face of adversity, to laugh louder, to be sillier, and to spread love to everyone. I've made it this far and I do believe in a better future - together, we'll make it happen.

The following post shares little pieces of joy I picked up along my journey through 2025 - things that might also lighten your heart a bit, or find some comfort or solace in, too. I share what I do as a reminder that even though this year was terrible, there is still so much to take joy in.

Thank you for being here.

Personal Updates

One of the miracles of this year was being able to replace my laptop almost immediately after it had a meltdown, just before my birthday... My previous laptop was a 10-year old Macbook Pro my dad handed down to me, which unfortunately had a very swollen battery and janky power cord, and ended up having some logical issues that spontaneously exploded on me all at once. As a very special gift, Chris' parents stepped in with some immense kindness to make sure I was taken care of, especially since every bit of work I picked up this year relied on a laptop. I'm grateful to be so loved and fortunate.

Even in stressful times, Chris and I found fun events to take part in. My favorite event CALA (which I just mentioned in December's post), an early-summer anime convention in a huge near-empty mall, and even a cool "take-over" of LA's Little Tokyo in honor of the game Silent Hill f (which I now own thanks to a Christmas gift from my friend Anthony, thank you!!), where Chris and I tried a delicious strawberry roti. Also in Little Tokyo were several video game pop-ups from Square Enix and SEGA, which brought me happiness just by being surrounded by series I love.

A 2025 memory that'll stay close to my heart is that one of my dearest friends - Edge - visited California/the USA for the first time! We only spent a few days together, but I'm grateful for every second of it!! Chris and I whisked them away for a fun-filled day around LA sharing our favorite places, visited Universal Studios to see Super Mario World together with other new pals, and shared some delicious foods and interesting spots (including one of the Square Enix pop-ups) in Little Tokyo. I hope that more time together isn't too far off in the future because I miss them immensely!!

Something I'm very grateful for is that I did make some very cherished new friends this year, and even grew closer to some I've made in the past. I hope every friend can feel the warmth and love I have for them whenever we talk, because no matter how long it's been since we last spoke, my adoration doesn't fade - and to those of you who haven't known me for long, I hope we'll continue to become even better friends! I'm grateful for your presence in my life.

Projects

X-YZE, Chris' bump combat game, is out and is free to download! Play it!! See my character designs!!! Feel the power of BUMP!!!! Another great way to see my designs - as well as give both of us an immense amount of support - is getting its bonus pack, which has a whole concept art book I made, an enemy guide with helpful tips and tricks, and much more! I'm immensely proud of Chris for crafting such an incredible work of art.

This year had many sleepless nights. Late Night Solace was born of one of them, when my inner thoughts got almost too overwhelming to handle. Give it a look if you need something to re-center yourself during a rough time. This game marked my first time using the VIDEOTOME engine, and my very first ever music compositions (they're short and dinky, but they serve the purpose I was going for).

Also using VIDEOTOME for a game jam, and a parallel story to The Anniversary, I made Crafted with Care to introduce some characters I hope to become more recurring with games I make going forward. The story is about making time for those you care about during a hard day.

Comfort Foods Filled with Heart is a little zine I put together just before the Thanksgiving holiday so I could have something a little extra to give people who supported an art stream I did that week. It's filled with some of my staple dishes, such as Creamy Miso and Coconut Chickpeas, Cowboy Pasta, and some other tasty treats.

I'm extremely grateful to my friend Event Horizon for trusting me with making artwork for so much of her wonderful music this year. I've really enjoyed working together, especially since listening to her music evokes such a strong image for the character she's inspired by! I don't play anything from Hoyoverse, but I had a really good time getting to learn about some of her favorite characters through the art I made. I hope we can work together more in the future! And please check out her tunes!!

I made some art for the Power in Numbers show that Gallery Nucleus throws, and even though my works weren't picked for it, I'm still glad I took the time to bring my Sunflower Fairy pieces to life. My fairy friend Mia graciously provided a nice home for them! You can read a blog post about my ideation and watercolor process for these pieces here.

I made a comic called survival revival to commemorate 10 years of healing from a specific set of pain. You can read the comics I made regarding that by clicking the link.

I made some Hyrax-themed Valentine Cards so that anyone around the world could spread a little love. Nobody's gotten them, but I hope someday someone out there sees the pink hyrax I made!

Pokemon

Pokemon gets its own section because it has helped me through so much this year, and I love it very much!! I replayed the very first game I ever got, Crystal, and completed its Pokedex for the first time ever. This involved also playing through Gen 1 for the first time in my life - Pokemon Blue, followed by Yellow - and also playing a bit of Gold, which I have completed before when I was a kid. Chris also played through a Gen 3 game for the first time - my very own copy of Pokemon Ruby - and enjoyed it. I played Pokemon Channel quite a bit near the beginning of the year when I needed something to look forward to doing day to day in a slow, harsh time. I went to my very first Pokemon Worlds when it came to Anaheim - Chris and I didn't participate in any tournaments, but had a fantastic time exploring the Pokemon Center (the first time either of us had been to an official one!!). And to top it all off, a great new entry to the series released: Pokemon Legends Z-A, which I loved a lot and continue to pick up again when I want something to pass the time despite finishing all the side missions. I'd like to get the Legends Z-A DLC - Mega Dimensions - at some point, but don't have the money for it right now...

Video Games

1000xRESIST is one of the greatest gaming experiences I could ever recommend. It won multiple "best storytelling" awards in 2024 and it totally deserves them; it features a beautifully written story which is also genuinely heartbreaking. Though it's best to go into it without knowing much, please be warned that this game touches on a LOT of trauma and does get extremely heavy... if you're able to handle that sort of heaviness, please try it!!!

hoptix is super fun and you get to play as a cyborg bun!! I'm lucky to call the devs behind this one - Cin and Echo - my friends, and recommend this game even beyond that friendship - this game is a shining star of an indie with positively wonderful vibes. Hop, dash, grind, explore, and break targets through a world you can enjoy at your own pace!

This year, Chrono Gear: Warden of Time finally released!! I'm grateful to have been a small part of its development, and glad that now everyone has an opportunity to enjoy the world my bestie and so many friends have worked hard to create. Even if you're unfamiliar with the talents featured in the story, I recommend giving it a try if you enjoy engaging, movement-forward platforming/action games!

I watched my partner play some really cool retro-style indies: the vibes of vividlope are off-the-charts cool, with a sleek Dreamcast-esque aesthetic, bangin' soundtrack, and adorable animal playable characters. I thought the gameplay would be hard to wrap my head around, but it ended up being a lot easier to grasp than expected! And also Super 10 Pin, a wacky and wild bowling game with an N64 aesthetic, almost mini-golf-like controls, and yet another excellent soundtrack. Both games deserve more love.

I experienced a bunch of lovely little indies this year, all of which made me feel inspired to want to keep creating. I watched my friend Edge play HalOPE, saw Chris play Mage Recall, shared Pepo multiple times myself, and got utter delight from playing The Annual Ghost Town Pumpkin Festival on Halloween with my sweetheart (I'm looking forward to playing it again next year)! I also finally got to experience my friend Crit's story The Chainwalkers, which is short and sweet - I'd love to see more of its story someday!

This year, one of my favorite artists released chapters 2 AND 3 of their visual novel, Soul of Sovereignty! GGDG's works have always been thoroughly influential to me, and their writing is just so very charming and appealing. I highly recommend checking it out (psst... sometimes they put free community copies out, and there is a free demo! but I do urge you to support it!!)

One of my favorite games ever, Undertale, had its 10th anniversary this year. This was accompanied by two days of streams featuring a full playthrough of the game, with some extra surprises and lots of laughs as Toby commentated. I teared up at the thoroughly loving memories people shared. If you've somehow never played this game before, I urge you to give it a chance no matter what you've heard - it's very special for more than just being "funny," and has a whole lot of sincerity that I resonate with deeply.

Relatedly, Deltarune chapters 3 and 4 released at last this summer! I adored them both, with a few particular characters continuing to occupy my brain heavily even now. I'm still wanting to go back through and play them to find all the things I missed (I was in and out of the hospital when it came out so I didn't have much energy to explore). I'm super excited for chapter 5 when it comes out next year!

It's been a long time since I had SO much fun with a game that I went out of my way to Platinum it, and that's exactly what I did with Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii!! The RGG team has tightened up the action gameplay so perfectly that it was extremely hard to stop myself from fighting every goon who showed up... and on top of that, each side mission had me coming back for more. I had the most fun running around befriending chickens and cats, belting my heart out in karaoke with Majima's unhinged enthusiasm, and sailing the seas in my pretty pink ship while blasting Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Monkey Ball's soundtracks.

I had never played through the entirety of Final Fantasy X but always heard that it's one of the best in the series, and after watching Chris play through it for the first time, I finally understand... what a journey!! It immediately became a favorite entry for me as well, I really like how complicated and multi-dimensional the characters were. Inspiring atmospheres and a phenomenal soundtrack held my attention the full way.

I truly loved the entire aesthetic of the fairytale story featured in Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon. Though not advertised as a couch co-op game, it works perfectly as one. As it's a prequel, you don't need to have played the rest of the Bayonetta games to understand what's happening (I haven't played them myself yet), so it's easy to pick up and play.

Muddy Buddies Recipe

This is one of my most-made recipes, a favorite snack of mine, which I attribute entirely to my end-of-year friend gatherings I used to have with my dear childhood friends. I miss them so much, but eating these keeps them in my heart.

8 cups Chex cereal (rice or corn)

2 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I do a dark/semisweet mix)

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

4 tbsp butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

a sprinkle of salt

a shake of cinnamon

1. Measure the cereal into a container and set it aside.

2. In a saucepan add the chocolate chips, butter, peanut butter, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon over medium-low heat. Stir until everything is melted, mixed, and smooth. Take it off the heat.

3. Add the cereal to the pan and mix with a rubber spoon, making sure the pieces of cereal are evenly coated.

4. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time, stirring it into the mix to make sure each piece is individually coated. Move the muddy buddies to a container and chill for at least 15 minutes in the freezer. You can store at room temperature or in the fridge for a week, or freeze for longer.

Movies

Have you seen del Toro's Frankenstein yet? If not, I highly recommend making some time to do so. The craftsmanship is off the charts - all the little details are created with intentionality, featuring costumes crafted to highlight specific traits of their wearers, handmade props and sets bringing fully lived-in worlds to life, and phenomenal acting to match a fantastic take on a classic tale. It's truly a masterpiece!

I saw Lost in Translation at a point in time where I felt disconnected from everything, and it hit on the feelings of loneliness and uncertainty I was feeling all too perfectly. I was surprised at how much I connected with it.

To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar was so delightful. Funny and sweet, with some bonkers happenings along the way, this roadtrip featuring three drag queens left me feeling hopeful and uplifted.

I had been looking forward to KPop Demon Hunters since an animation blog I like had posted some clips of it awhile back, and had no idea how much of a sensation it would become after watching it the night it released. Gorgeous cartooning and colors with wide appeal in a variety of ways, it's no wonder it took off!

Chris and I did a Universal Monster Movie Marathon (check September's blog for links to every movie!) and it was so much fun. I've always loved movie history and I learned SO much as we watched these older films! I also just straight-up love monster stories, so I had a grand time seeing what "horror" meant to people 100 years ago.

This year's Halloween spooky movie watch-fest yielded many new favorites that I'll be excited to return to again in the future. My top picks that were new to me this year include Nosferatu, Sinners, Cult, Talk to the Dead, The Vourdalak, Shirome, Blood: The Last Vampire, The Screaming Skull, Weapons, Viy, and The Taking of Deborah Logan)

Ghost Cat Anzu was a movie we saw during Halloweentime after I'd been looking forward to it for a long while, and is genuinely one of the prettiest movies I've seen. I love media with a supernatural touch, and thoroughly enjoyed how fluid the animation was with how they rotoscoped it onto the painted backgrounds.

I found a surprising amount of new holiday favorites, spanning both Thanksgiving (Pieces of April, Sweet November, and Soul Food) and Christmas (Christmas in Connecticut, The Holdovers, Feast of the Seven Fishes, The Man in the Santa Claus Suit). Something special to me this year is that Chris, who's typically not a big fan of Christmas movies, ended up watching a bunch of them with me... I'm super glad we've found so many that we both like now!

Did you know I love dinosaurs? That certainly showed in movies I watched: the entirety of Jurassic Park/World, the Christmas-y Rex: A Dinosaur's Story, and We're Back! A Dinosaur's Tale (which I've seen many times, but was Chris' first viewing).

Anime

We experienced some incredibly awesome anime-original shows that instantly became all-timers for me. Deca-Dence totally engrossed my brain and I STILL can't stop thinking about how amazing it is - please watch it, but go in blind and watch the first and second episode back-to-back! Trust me!!! Apocalypse Hotel caught me by total surprise with how hilarious and beautiful it was, giving a super fresh look at what a post-apocalypse story could look like... it feels like it's the most underrated show that released this year, I loved it! And Zenshuu was another that came out this year, a celebration of creativity with fantastic character progression and absolutely cracked animation (it is by MAPPA after all!); episode 4 was exactly what I needed to see when I watched it.

Some manga that I love were adapted into anime!! One of my favorite ongoing series - The Summer Hikaru Died - had the perfect anime!! The texture... the animation... the feelings!!! I can't wait for season 2! And a one-shot that I greatly enjoyed also got a short anime: Let's Go Karaoke! Ridiculously silly, it's all about yakuza getting singing lessons from a (begrudging) kid from a chorus club ala karaoke sessions. It's fun and funny.

Chris and I were lucky to discover some feel-good shows to help us through our struggles this year; both of these series are shows I feel I could return to at any point just for a hit of coziness, AND both feature cute cats! We watched Aria the Animation and got through half of Aria the Natural, and gosh, I wish I'd known about this series when I was a kid - immensely good vibes, and the titular Aria is just the most adorable critter ever. I highly recommend checking it out if you need a gentle, heartwarming pick-me-up! Windy Tales was also a delight from start to finish, featuring an instantly recognizable, angular art style, and many flying cats in this tender slice of life show.

We had the pleasure of watching some shows that featured action, touches of the supernatural, fantastic writing, and the most excellent of vibes. Kurau Phantom Memory is sci-fi action, with a world of mercenary agents and alien life forms called "Rynax" that grant the body they inhabit supernatural powers. The stories it told felt real and resonant despite being fantasy. Another that I'll absolutely be coming back to in the future, especially around Halloweentime, is Shiki. I don't know why people don't recommend this anime more because not only is it fantastically written, it has so much interesting about it that my attention never wavered throughout the episodes. It was so good that we finished it in its entirety in the span of two days!

I'm not usually one for romance-forward shows, but we found two that were really good!! Paradise Kiss, made by the creator of another show we both love (Nana), features a highly creative group of characters and is surprisingly progressive for the time it came out! Ultimately, it's about a girl who's picked out of the crowd to do some fashion modeling for a group of college students pursuing their dream of creating their own brand. Very dramatic in an engaging, intriguing way! And one that released this year - Kowloon Generic Romance - was more mystery than romantic, which is probably why I enjoyed it so much! Twists and turns all over in a dystopian town where a perpetual summer ensues. Watch to the end to see what's going on!!

These are a bit more assorted, so here are two more new anime from this year! The first pick, Takopi's Original Sin, I use the word "enjoyed" loosely as it was engaging but BOY does it hurt the heart to watch... do not take its content warning before each episode lightly!! I also wanted to mention Lazarus because it has some of THE best storyboarding I've ever seen in a show, complemented by a beautiful soundtrack and phenomenal action. I wish that the writing and pacing were better, because I do like everything about it otherwise!

The Future

I need to find full-time work (if anyone reading this knows of any remote opportunities in video games for concept art / design/ QA / paid testing, something to do with video editing, or even writing / editing / proofreading, please reach out!!). Chris and I have been living almost entirely on savings and whatever freelance work I could find, which has been inconsistent overall and not feasible to continue as my sole means. I'll be taking time away from streaming to build a proper portfolio, and hopefully find something before things get... worse. I do hope to occasionally stream, I just can't promise any kind of schedule or consistency at the moment.

Thank you to everyone who has believed in me, you're part of why I'm still creating. And if you read all this, please know I'm sending you the biggest hug EVER as another thank you. I'd be honored to know what parts of this resonate with you, if there's anything that I mentioned that you're interested in, and even some of your own favorite things of 2025.

And most of all... thank you to Chris, for continuing to be the light of my life and making things good no matter what it throws at us. I couldn't do this without you. I love you more than anything.