###The Cohost Global Feed
also: ##The Cohost Global Feed, #The Cohost Global Feed, #Global Cohost Feed, #The Global Cohost Feed, #global feed, #Cohost Global Feed
Ya’ll remember that time there was a vore comic in one of the Wario Ware games?
I'm gonna really miss Cohost.
For the more than two years that I've had an account, I've checked it almost daily, even if I haven't posted daily. Often, what I've posted have been the Sega Saturn stories I've written for Sega Saturn SHIRO! but that's because that's been a major hobby of mine for the last few years and I wanted to share it here. (SHIRO! doesn't pay me anything, nor have they ever.) And I wanted to add something to Cohost as a whole — some Sega Saturn fandom specifically, some Sega fandom generally, some retro gaming fandom more generally. I like to contribute, and even though likes and reposts don't show up publicly under posts on Cohost, I've seen a lot of people show that they liked what I put here, and I appreciate that. I'm glad I made this place a little more fun.
I've also posted a lot of screenshots I've taken in Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis. I love that game, for all its faults, and I really enjoy taking cool (and sometime gravure...) screenshots in it. Posting PSO2 screenshots has become a whole thing on Twitter, mostly for the game's Japanese players, and I wanted to try to bring that subculture over here to Cohost, too. I'd hoped at one time that maybe Japanese players would find out about Cohost as Twitter further descends into the abyss and start moving over here, and the PSO2 players would see that someone was already getting the party started with tags like #PSO2_SS and #メンテの日なのでssを貼る but that's not happening now...
I've tried to interact with others on Cohost, too — leaving a like or occasionally reposting or commenting. Compared to Twitter or even Facebook and Instagram, posting on Cohost can feel a little bit like speaking to a dark room, unsure if anyone's in there listening to you at all. Some people post things for themselves and that's fine, but I think most people use a communication platform like Cohost to actually communicate with people, and you're not quite sure if you're accomplishing that goal unless you get some feedback. I know that Cohost intentionally made likes and views hidden to reduce toxicity, which is an admirable goal, but I think it also had a knock-on effect of making Cohost feel very quiet, especially as we've all become trained to accept the loudness and immediacy of social media over the last 20 years.
Anyway, I'm sorry I haven't interacted with people more on Cohost. I hope that everyone I follow knows that I've been reading what they said, at least, even if I didn't let them know directly. Thank you for being here and posting your thoughts, your art and your jokes on this site.
I plan to continue using Cohost and posting my Saturn stories and PSO2 screenshots and whatnot right up until the end. After that, well, all my Saturn stuff always has been and always will be at Sega Saturn SHIRO! and I'm still using my Twitter account. I also have a Mastodon account on the Retro Pizza server that I've used a bit sparingly but fairly consistently for the last couple years — I might use it a little more once Cohost shuts down.
Using those other social media sites aren't the same as Cohost, though. I saw someone contrast Cohost with other sites by describing it as "actually fun," which I agree with, but I'll add that Cohost is also "cozy." There's very little drama and practically no toxicity (that I've seen, anyway) on Cohost, and that's almost unprecedented for a community larger than a handful of longtime friends. Everyone's just talked about things they find interesting, shared cool stuff they've made, done CSS crimes for laughs... Everyone's having fun here.
It's worth nothing that Cohost's lack of toxicity has created a safe place for many in the LGBTQ community, too, and I feel terrible that they're losing a place where they could feel comfortable and have fun without fear.
There's even something about the static nature of Cohost's pages that's felt pleasant — it's not constantly refreshing itself under your nose, it's not dinging you with notifications, it doesn't have ads that pretend you tapped on them and open themselves when you actually were scrolling by them on your phone. What you see is what you get with a Cohost page, and it's not going to change until you choose to click/tap on something. It's like how the Internet used to be. It's how I wish the Internet still was, really.
Even the lack of toxicity is kinda how the Internet used to be way back when — before the Eternal September — at least as far as I understand it, since I was pretty young at the time and didn't use Usenet bulletin boards. With Cohost, it's felt like we regained a place where people conform to a culture of civility on the Internet. It's ironic that we're losing that in the month of September.
I'm gonna really miss Cohost.
You heard that right, and I am not one to be facetious in my development posts. The very first demo for Project Petunia is now available for download on Windows and Linux. Three levels are playable in the demo (and some debug stuff if you like messing around a bit more) and I am very interested in hearing any feedback people might have on how the game plays.
If you are interested in trying out a platformer in its most vestigial state and perhaps even having a hand in shaping its future, please swing by the game's Itch.Io page and give it a spin.