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[1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 12:43 pm
by paarfi
Fred has posted the comic to his Patreon. He'll post it to the main site and elsewhere probably tomorrow.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 12:45 pm
by paarfi
Iiiiiiiinteresting. So that's who creepy guy is. Should we call him Dr Gero?

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 1:30 pm
by Invisigoth
A few people called it. I'm not sure that creepy is the proper word for that guy though....

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 2:26 pm
by eomdal
He's been seeing Junko to use her as part of Ping's design? No wonder he seemed different from her other clients to her. Obviously she doesn't know: he didn't even know that she and Ping knew each other and she had never heard of an EDS before the lamp post incident. This will really mess with her head and her heart when she finds out.

Junko's dad already sucks as a father, but he also sucks as a Nintendo operative. He knows what an EDS is but doesn't know that Sony is using his daughter to develop it. I say this because He defended Junko from the Sony guy who chunked his predecessor, so we know that he won't stand for Sony messing with Junko...which means he can only recognize clear and obvious threats but not an enemy op that uses more subtle tradecraft, otherwise this old Sony engineer would have gotten a noggin full of Tetris by now.

Engineer's main problem, then, is Ashe and the rest of the family. I can't wait to see how she interprets all of this.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 4:41 pm
by Olba
Ah, Ashe is still confused about Ping's true nature. Love the little ear twitch, 10/10 would annoy Ashe to see that happen more.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 5:30 pm
by cidjen
Calling him creepy would be like, calling your girlfriend's dad creepy...

I mean, technically, that is what he is. Pings' Dad.

And he has no idea that his daughter is just being EDUCATED. In the topic that was supposed to be sealed within and not part of any game...

Wait.

So Ping did not have the data because she is still a prototype.
Means, she's not finished. The creator must have put a dummy condition to prevent her going there, disguised as a dlc request...

*That* part of her is pretty much an end game then? The designer did not think beyond that part? How to sustain the relationship beyond the 'big level up'??? Must read some more shoujo manga then, lol...

Hmhhhh or he and his teammates did not have experiences beyond that and that's why he's a creep....?

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sat Jan 19, 2019 7:21 pm
by Iceman
Called it back in 1522 but it wasn't the biggest stretch with the way he talked

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=256&p=3773#p3773

I do think Junko is going to feel "used" if he she learns about that last line and maybe think Ping is an idealized version of her. Curious how she'll come back into the picture for maybe the final conflict of the chapter, or left for next

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:48 am
by Roamer
Random thoughts -

-He talks like he's lead designer on Ping's project, which is interesting. Clearly he's ok with Piro's stewardship of Ping - ownership simply isn't the right word, not at this point. We can probably assume a tracking device, either hardware or software. I'll bet Kimiko could get some of her fan brigade to help with that.

-There's real opportunity here for Ping to learn more about herself, what was intended for her, and how she can deal with where those intentions differ from how she wants to live. Of course, this assumes he can see her as enough of an equal that she can have a real conversation. If not, I suspect Ashe would be willing to supply beatings to improve his attitude.

-Why Junko as one of the models for Ping? Did Sony find out about her through surveillance of her father, as a Nintendo op? Or is she regarded as some kind of paragon of what she does? And is her use in modeling Ping why the two of them became friends so quickly? Junko certainly isn't one to trust easily, so that would make sense.

-Does this mean Junko can sue for lost wages as a professional consultant from Sony? That would make a nice alternative career. I would suggest royalties, but I don't think the EDS project is going to reach production - I don't think this lead designer is going to last a full hour with the Sawatari ladies. Dude, when a stalking predator twitches an ear like that, reasonable people get out of arm's reach.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 4:19 am
by Skorpion
Oh, so he's NOT just a creep. He was using Junko to gather data for Ping's reactions?
Roamer wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:48 am
Random thoughts -
-Does this mean Junko can sue for lost wages as a professional consultant from Sony?
She's been paid for her time already, though.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 4:24 am
by Roamer
Skorpion wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 4:19 am
Oh, so he's NOT just a creep. He was using Junko to gather data for Ping's reactions?
Roamer wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:48 am
Random thoughts -
-Does this mean Junko can sue for lost wages as a professional consultant from Sony?
She's been paid for her time already, though.
Hired under false pretenses, lied to about the nature of what the client was actually looking for, and if she was chosen from among all the other practicitioners as the best, grossly underpaid. Also, pretty sure Sony won't want to go to court about hiring somebody her age at all, much less for what she does. Talk about bad PR....

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 5:13 am
by Yl33 D4 N00b
I would've liked to have known the text on Ashe's phone.... :' ) Is it just me, or does the old man give off a "Piro, only older" vibe? I could see Piro doing the exact same thing in an alternate universe.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 7:42 am
by cryum
So does that make Junko Ping's sister or mommy?

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 9:12 am
by cidjen
That makes Junko an older, slightly more mature and lots more cynical sister...

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 9:16 am
by cidjen
Roamer wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 4:24 am
Skorpion wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 4:19 am
Oh, so he's NOT just a creep. He was using Junko to gather data for Ping's reactions?
Roamer wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:48 am
Random thoughts -
-Does this mean Junko can sue for lost wages as a professional consultant from Sony?
She's been paid for her time already, though.
Hired under false pretenses, lied to about the nature of what the client was actually looking for, and if she was chosen from among all the other practicitioners as the best, grossly underpaid. Also, pretty sure Sony won't want to go to court about hiring somebody her age at all, much less for what she does. Talk about bad PR....
More like a double blind trial. She's not the only one used like this. She's one of many girls.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 9:45 am
by Invisigoth
He finds Ashe to be a very interesting young lady as well, wonder if that's going to go into his data set?

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 10:14 am
by mostlyharmless
Yl33 D4 N00b wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 5:13 am
I would've liked to have known the text on Ashe's phone.... :' ) Is it just me, or does the old man give off a "Piro, only older" vibe? I could see Piro doing the exact same thing in an alternate universe.
I need one of those detective-show ultra-magnification programs and a decent Japanese translation program to read what's on the 'phone...

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:52 pm
by peyole
Patreon members have access to high resolution copies of each comic, and I think I remember in one of the Twitch streams him saying that they would be able to read it. Are there any of your that don't mind pulling them up and satisfying our burning curiosity?

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 2:51 pm
by Eraden
I think the engineer made it pretty clear to Ashe that Ping is not a real human. Quite unambiguously in fact. At this point, what does Ashe do with that knowledge? If she shares that information with the rest of the ladies, how will they react to that knowledge that Ping is a synthetic?

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 6:35 pm
by eomdal
peyole wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:52 pm
Patreon members have access to high resolution copies of each comic, and I think I remember in one of the Twitch streams him saying that they would be able to read it. Are there any of your that don't mind pulling them up and satisfying our burning curiosity?
Sorry, Max zoom of the Highres download reveals nothing.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 7:28 pm
by eomdal
Roamer wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:48 am
Random thoughts -

-He talks like he's lead designer on Ping's project, which is interesting. Clearly he's ok with Piro's stewardship of Ping - ownership simply isn't the right word, not at this point. We can probably assume a tracking device, either hardware or software. I'll bet Kimiko could get some of her fan brigade to help with that.
Engineer was surprised to find her. If Ping was still being tracked by him, he wouldn't have been.

Of course, this does not mean that Ping is not being tracked at all: Ed seems to be able to find her without difficulty, (it's carrying out his job of eliminating her without getting ganked by someone, that's the hard part.) so Sony's intellectual property enforcement division apparently does not communicate with the R&D division.
Why Junko as one of the models for Ping? Did Sony find out about her through surveillance of her father, as a Nintendo op? Or is she regarded as some kind of paragon of what she does? And is her use in modeling Ping why the two of them became friends so quickly? Junko certainly isn't one to trust easily, so that would make sense.
Junko was probably flagged by data mining, made a little easier by the fact that her laptop is a Sony.

Yeah, in Engineer's eyes, Junko may be a little different from most girls who do the Enjo-kōsai thing who are just out for some spending cash. Perhaps Junko brings a certain emotional depth to her business because of her domestic situation and, being a model student, is more intelligent and confident than most. If Sony's marketing division had any say, then Junko must fit a profile of an anime/game archetype, though I'm still trying to figure out which.

Oh, and on the subject of modeling from Enjo-kōsai girls, it has been pointed out that there is the fact that Fred has introduced us to Ping's sisters Pong and Poke, at least one of which is a Hentai version. I agree that Engineer may think that the EDS he just spoke to is one of them.
-Does this mean Junko can sue for lost wages as a professional consultant from Sony?
Consultants are paid because they observe, apply their expertise, and provide the relevant results in a useful manner so that the client does not have to. Junko's is not observing nor is she analyzing: she is being observed by someone who has to do the analyzing.

Now, if she can show that she has insight that would be of value, then she could be hired and paid for her observations thereafter. But not for having been observed so far, so no back pay.
I don't think the EDS project is going to reach production - I don't think this lead designer is going to last a full hour with the Sawatari ladies. Dude, when a stalking predator twitches an ear like that, reasonable people get out of arm's reach.
If the EDS has any value, Sony will push ahead regardless of what happens to anyone. If the lead engineer dies when the product is usable but not perfect, then they'll just do what every tech company does: ship now, patch later, and the joyless proles who keep giving them money for it can just suck it.

And, yeah, Engineer doesn't have a clue of the hornet's nest he's poking at.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 7:54 pm
by Invisigoth
Given what's been hinted by Fred about Megumi with her phantom ears and tails, tails being erased for the final comic, our Engineer will be fortunate if Ashe deals with him herself without bringing in more family

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 8:08 pm
by maldrul
Iceman wrote:
Sat Jan 19, 2019 7:21 pm
Called it back in 1522 but it wasn't the biggest stretch with the way he talked

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=256&p=3773#p3773

I do think Junko is going to feel "used" if he she learns about that last line and maybe think Ping is an idealized version of her. Curious how she'll come back into the picture for maybe the final conflict of the chapter, or left for next
Also called it back in 1522.

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=256#p3742

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 9:53 pm
by paarfi
eomdal wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 6:35 pm
peyole wrote:
Sun Jan 20, 2019 1:52 pm
Patreon members have access to high resolution copies of each comic, and I think I remember in one of the Twitch streams him saying that they would be able to read it. Are there any of your that don't mind pulling them up and satisfying our burning curiosity?
Sorry, Max zoom of the Highres download reveals nothing.
It says "<So if this other girl shows up, you can buy sex from her and leave this girl alone?>".

You have to click the download link on the png to really see teh high res versions on patreon.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 10:00 pm
by garapagosu
I'm strangely reminded of the Wonder Project J games where you try to teach a robot how to behave correctly as a human.

Re: [1546] Gauging intent

Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2019 11:02 pm
by senjyu_kannon
Can't help but note he said "one of" the EDS prototypes. Which makes me wonder:

How many more are there?

Have we witnessed an encounter with any of the others?