How video games are easing our phobias, one spider at a time
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Date: 2023-12-10
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Comments and reviews: 30
-MadDepot
i'm glad we're starting to have more acessibility options in gaming, but it makes me kinda sad that it took so long, I know tons of people that need those options, colorblind people, people with phobias, and there's just a huge chunk of games we just can't play: /
a game I absolutely can't play at all is bioshock. the needles instantly trigger me, it just messes me up A LOT. I have the entire series on steam, but I can't play it because there's no way of censoring it. I tried finding a mod that dealt with that, but I didn't, but I did found a bunch of other stuff: threads, pages and pages of people asking for ways to censor it, only to be met with dismissive responses from everyone else. it was ridiculous, like, really! people said things like -it isn't that bad! - -the needles are so cartoonish, that's silly, it's okay-, or -just look away from the game when you need to reload-. like, seriously?
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i'm glad we're starting to have more acessibility options in gaming, but it makes me kinda sad that it took so long, I know tons of people that need those options, colorblind people, people with phobias, and there's just a huge chunk of games we just can't play: /
a game I absolutely can't play at all is bioshock. the needles instantly trigger me, it just messes me up A LOT. I have the entire series on steam, but I can't play it because there's no way of censoring it. I tried finding a mod that dealt with that, but I didn't, but I did found a bunch of other stuff: threads, pages and pages of people asking for ways to censor it, only to be met with dismissive responses from everyone else. it was ridiculous, like, really! people said things like -it isn't that bad! - -the needles are so cartoonish, that's silly, it's okay-, or -just look away from the game when you need to reload-. like, seriously?
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-LeoFieTv
Not hot on that -training autistic people for job interviews- thing, because it's just another on a long line of -therapies- that essentially force an autistic person to be less autistic when it's not the autism that's the problem, it's the environment. I'm willing to bet there is not one person on the planet who likes job interviews, and we talk about how it's just a shitty situation and maybe we shouldn't do them. But when autistic people have the exact same problem, it's the autism's fault. It's like telling a bullying victim to stop being weird instead of telling the bully to stop. It's backwards. And in most other situations it would be obviously backwards. But the dehumanization of autistic people is so prevalent and runs so deep that it barely registers for most people.
I'm not saying that there is malicious intent. I'm saying it's the wrong way to think about autism.
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Not hot on that -training autistic people for job interviews- thing, because it's just another on a long line of -therapies- that essentially force an autistic person to be less autistic when it's not the autism that's the problem, it's the environment. I'm willing to bet there is not one person on the planet who likes job interviews, and we talk about how it's just a shitty situation and maybe we shouldn't do them. But when autistic people have the exact same problem, it's the autism's fault. It's like telling a bullying victim to stop being weird instead of telling the bully to stop. It's backwards. And in most other situations it would be obviously backwards. But the dehumanization of autistic people is so prevalent and runs so deep that it barely registers for most people.
I'm not saying that there is malicious intent. I'm saying it's the wrong way to think about autism.
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-RaccoonLaundry
-It's the difference between playing and not playing a game- - that's so true. A lot of Real Gamers like to be super elitist about these kinds of things: you have to play on a harder difficulty (thus the easy mode is called Baby Mode, you can't turn down the gore (-because that's the point of the game! 1! -, subtitles aren't on be default, or hidden in a convoluted menu (-because it spoils things! 1. It's like subtle, (often unintentional) gatekeeping.
I once saw the argument that a game couldn't add subtitles because it would give players that use them an advantage. . Okay? So then everyone turn them on then? That's like saying you don't want to install elevators in a building because you want the employees to get more exercise. The people that need elevators can just work somewhere else!
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-It's the difference between playing and not playing a game- - that's so true. A lot of Real Gamers like to be super elitist about these kinds of things: you have to play on a harder difficulty (thus the easy mode is called Baby Mode, you can't turn down the gore (-because that's the point of the game! 1! -, subtitles aren't on be default, or hidden in a convoluted menu (-because it spoils things! 1. It's like subtle, (often unintentional) gatekeeping.
I once saw the argument that a game couldn't add subtitles because it would give players that use them an advantage. . Okay? So then everyone turn them on then? That's like saying you don't want to install elevators in a building because you want the employees to get more exercise. The people that need elevators can just work somewhere else!
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-Arya-we7vf
I may hate spiders with a passion, but I still can't help but love Jenna's enthusiasm and phrasing with -maximum spiders-. I hope Jenna continues to get her maximum spiders while I get minimum spiders.
Also, -the scary is -not- stored in the orbs- could not be a truer statement. It is in fact stored in the creepy face, floof, stick leggies, and detail/realism. I find that making the leggos less long, reducing the amount of eyes, removing any fur, and overall orbifying the legged nightmares makes them significantly less scary and even kinda cute sometimes. Depending on how it's done, sometimes the mandibles don't even have to go. Essentially, if make spider look simplified and baby then spider will not spook (as much.
Jenna wants maximum spider, I want maximum -O R B-
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I may hate spiders with a passion, but I still can't help but love Jenna's enthusiasm and phrasing with -maximum spiders-. I hope Jenna continues to get her maximum spiders while I get minimum spiders.
Also, -the scary is -not- stored in the orbs- could not be a truer statement. It is in fact stored in the creepy face, floof, stick leggies, and detail/realism. I find that making the leggos less long, reducing the amount of eyes, removing any fur, and overall orbifying the legged nightmares makes them significantly less scary and even kinda cute sometimes. Depending on how it's done, sometimes the mandibles don't even have to go. Essentially, if make spider look simplified and baby then spider will not spook (as much.
Jenna wants maximum spider, I want maximum -O R B-
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-melaneykk5986
I know games do a lot with accessibility in the modes. I have two requests please don't penalize me for having RA. Such as in Horizon New Dawn. where you can only get the cool face paint if you have completed the game at the hardest mode. I can not physically do that. there is no getting good. How about just the achievement. I accept I can't do that and I am happy for those who can. I will never have that achievement, why can't I have face paint. I put as many hours into this game loved it just as much, maybe more because it is hard for me. My hands hurt and I have to be careful how long I play. I also use it to keep my fingers moving, it is a balance. To be denied of cool stuff because you are disabled sucks.
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I know games do a lot with accessibility in the modes. I have two requests please don't penalize me for having RA. Such as in Horizon New Dawn. where you can only get the cool face paint if you have completed the game at the hardest mode. I can not physically do that. there is no getting good. How about just the achievement. I accept I can't do that and I am happy for those who can. I will never have that achievement, why can't I have face paint. I put as many hours into this game loved it just as much, maybe more because it is hard for me. My hands hurt and I have to be careful how long I play. I also use it to keep my fingers moving, it is a balance. To be denied of cool stuff because you are disabled sucks.
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-rachael4345
One strange example: I have a phobia of zombies (all phobias are irrational, this is mine so don't judge. I had gotten my phobia to a place where I could walk away when I hit my limit, thanks to therapy. I did not expect to enjoy zombie flicks, I was mostly looking to not have a panic attack everytime zombies came up (you'll be surprised how often it does. However, doom eternal switched possessed back to zombie and I really wanted to play. What ended up happening was I got excited for zombies because zombies = easy ammo/health/shield depending on how you killed them. So Doom helped me in a way that I doubt the devs intended, and I'm grateful for it.
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One strange example: I have a phobia of zombies (all phobias are irrational, this is mine so don't judge. I had gotten my phobia to a place where I could walk away when I hit my limit, thanks to therapy. I did not expect to enjoy zombie flicks, I was mostly looking to not have a panic attack everytime zombies came up (you'll be surprised how often it does. However, doom eternal switched possessed back to zombie and I really wanted to play. What ended up happening was I got excited for zombies because zombies = easy ammo/health/shield depending on how you killed them. So Doom helped me in a way that I doubt the devs intended, and I'm grateful for it.
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-gayflower900
In case anyone else was curious about Grounded-s Arachnophobia mode -
Level 0 is the default, it changes nothing about the spider-s appearance
Level 1 removes half of the spider-s legs, leaving them with just four (for most, it-s the spider-s 8 legs that makes them uncomfortable)
Level 2 removes all of the legs, leaving just a floating spider torso
Level 3 removes the spider-s fangs, leaving just the body, head, and eyes
Level 4 removes 6 of the spider-s eyes, leaving just 2
Level 5 (shown at 10: 48) removes all the spider-s textures, leaving the former spider to simply be reduced to two floating white balls with two red eyes
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In case anyone else was curious about Grounded-s Arachnophobia mode -
Level 0 is the default, it changes nothing about the spider-s appearance
Level 1 removes half of the spider-s legs, leaving them with just four (for most, it-s the spider-s 8 legs that makes them uncomfortable)
Level 2 removes all of the legs, leaving just a floating spider torso
Level 3 removes the spider-s fangs, leaving just the body, head, and eyes
Level 4 removes 6 of the spider-s eyes, leaving just 2
Level 5 (shown at 10: 48) removes all the spider-s textures, leaving the former spider to simply be reduced to two floating white balls with two red eyes
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-crystal5064
Very minor nitpick, but I would be cautious against describing the body's natural fear response as -bad- even when it is in the context of a phobia or trauma reaction. I know that you are having to break down some fairly complex concepts into something a little more bite-sized, but I think it's important to normalize that response. Your brain (and body) trying to protect you under dangerous circumstances. And it's not that it's a bad response or we want to get rid of it; we just want to make sure it's not being triggered at the wrong times/settings. I think it would be more accurate and helpful to describe it as a misfire.
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Very minor nitpick, but I would be cautious against describing the body's natural fear response as -bad- even when it is in the context of a phobia or trauma reaction. I know that you are having to break down some fairly complex concepts into something a little more bite-sized, but I think it's important to normalize that response. Your brain (and body) trying to protect you under dangerous circumstances. And it's not that it's a bad response or we want to get rid of it; we just want to make sure it's not being triggered at the wrong times/settings. I think it would be more accurate and helpful to describe it as a misfire.
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-haleymj553
The first time I ever played skyrim I played fo r 5 hours straight and then died at the end of a dungeon with the first giant frostbite spider I had ever seen dancing over my body. I waited patiently for my character to respawn but no. no, that spider danced on my lifeless body for hours while I left the game running hoping to respawn. I finally had to restart the game and lost all of my progress because the autosave was glitched. That experience dulled my spider fears thats for sure.
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The first time I ever played skyrim I played fo r 5 hours straight and then died at the end of a dungeon with the first giant frostbite spider I had ever seen dancing over my body. I waited patiently for my character to respawn but no. no, that spider danced on my lifeless body for hours while I left the game running hoping to respawn. I finally had to restart the game and lost all of my progress because the autosave was glitched. That experience dulled my spider fears thats for sure.
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polygon
I used WoW to help ease (not cure) my fear of spiders and wasps. I've never been bothered by spiders/wasps/bees on a screen. my brain is able to recognize that difference at least. but I tamed a wasp and a spider (and my bumblebee is one of my favs, now. ilu MsWiggles) and having them HELP me kill things has helped me manage to abscond without freaking the hell out irl. I do not have access to vr so I'm not sure how that would go for me. I suspect it would make me motion sick tho.
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I used WoW to help ease (not cure) my fear of spiders and wasps. I've never been bothered by spiders/wasps/bees on a screen. my brain is able to recognize that difference at least. but I tamed a wasp and a spider (and my bumblebee is one of my favs, now. ilu MsWiggles) and having them HELP me kill things has helped me manage to abscond without freaking the hell out irl. I do not have access to vr so I'm not sure how that would go for me. I suspect it would make me motion sick tho.
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-norasyikinali6283
The talk about arachnophobia reminds me of Outside Xtra's Ellen videos ranking which spidery characters in games that triggered her arachnophobia the worst, and for her it. actually quite varied. Too many legs and it won't trigger much, different proportion/appendages. it's basically the fancier a spidery creature is designed the less triggering it gets. Honestly it's very fascinating from an outside perspective.
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The talk about arachnophobia reminds me of Outside Xtra's Ellen videos ranking which spidery characters in games that triggered her arachnophobia the worst, and for her it. actually quite varied. Too many legs and it won't trigger much, different proportion/appendages. it's basically the fancier a spidery creature is designed the less triggering it gets. Honestly it's very fascinating from an outside perspective.
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-angawaanas
I have a huge phobia of spiders. I often cant think of them without getting jittery, seeing one somewhere makes me immediately feel uneasy and want to take my clothes off. I tried Grounded, I tried both with and without the censor. i cant. in south africa we go through some beeg beeg traumas with these giant spoders. I cant sit still at my desk now. thank you for censoring the spoders
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I have a huge phobia of spiders. I often cant think of them without getting jittery, seeing one somewhere makes me immediately feel uneasy and want to take my clothes off. I tried Grounded, I tried both with and without the censor. i cant. in south africa we go through some beeg beeg traumas with these giant spoders. I cant sit still at my desk now. thank you for censoring the spoders
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-DiamondCalibre
-give people options- YES THIS. Even when there's accessibility options available that aren't necessarily targeted towards me, I often enjoy the fact that I can, y'know, fiddle around with the options with such precision. Let the player tailor fit their game experience and interaction with the game world, even if they don't necessarily -need- it for accessibility reasons.
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-give people options- YES THIS. Even when there's accessibility options available that aren't necessarily targeted towards me, I often enjoy the fact that I can, y'know, fiddle around with the options with such precision. Let the player tailor fit their game experience and interaction with the game world, even if they don't necessarily -need- it for accessibility reasons.
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-cynetiac
Indie Developers most likely want people to actually play their game, yes. but the AAA Developers DO NOT care if you play the game- but they do need that money that-s in your wallet and for you to have that launcher open so they can claim to their investors they have a certain monthly active user base. But don-t think for a second there-s anybody in the AAA space that cares.
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Indie Developers most likely want people to actually play their game, yes. but the AAA Developers DO NOT care if you play the game- but they do need that money that-s in your wallet and for you to have that launcher open so they can claim to their investors they have a certain monthly active user base. But don-t think for a second there-s anybody in the AAA space that cares.
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-lonk9865
One time while I was playing grounded I ran into a spider at night and I mean that quite literally, Its eyes turned red and i ran I immediately. After a few minutes of running I thought - it cant still be following me at this point right? - so I turned around and saw it in the middle of its attack animation with its eyes still glowing red. That terrified me.
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One time while I was playing grounded I ran into a spider at night and I mean that quite literally, Its eyes turned red and i ran I immediately. After a few minutes of running I thought - it cant still be following me at this point right? - so I turned around and saw it in the middle of its attack animation with its eyes still glowing red. That terrified me.
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-itsaUSBline
Subnautica definitely almost totally cured my thalassophobia, like it's still kinda there but it's not debilitating now. I can actually stand near deep water now without totally panicking.
Took me like 70 hours because I was taking it really slowly, but the way it doesn't force you to go deeper and lets you take it at your own pace really helped.
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Subnautica definitely almost totally cured my thalassophobia, like it's still kinda there but it's not debilitating now. I can actually stand near deep water now without totally panicking.
Took me like 70 hours because I was taking it really slowly, but the way it doesn't force you to go deeper and lets you take it at your own pace really helped.
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-generrosity
Love it. There is so much depth that I imagine the conversations also went into (like Tetris - interesting. I would love to watch a long form of this video with Jenna's commentary and the deeper conversations. I have different friends with spider and zombie phobias, and helping them out with mods and options is always great
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Love it. There is so much depth that I imagine the conversations also went into (like Tetris - interesting. I would love to watch a long form of this video with Jenna's commentary and the deeper conversations. I have different friends with spider and zombie phobias, and helping them out with mods and options is always great
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-abnerpinker7849
Damn, Gears of War developers must see this video, not for the phobia factor, but by the words of the designer themselves:
-Dont assume that you know everything about players, give them the options to play as they want and make it feel like a tailor experience
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Damn, Gears of War developers must see this video, not for the phobia factor, but by the words of the designer themselves:
-Dont assume that you know everything about players, give them the options to play as they want and make it feel like a tailor experience
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-robynmaag1266
I didn't know about the Spider Slider at all, but as someone with a very deep insectophobia, that is such an amazing thing to add that. I actually might consider playing the game tbh because while I'm scared of pretty much every bug, spiders are the biggest ones.
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I didn't know about the Spider Slider at all, but as someone with a very deep insectophobia, that is such an amazing thing to add that. I actually might consider playing the game tbh because while I'm scared of pretty much every bug, spiders are the biggest ones.
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-seriousbusiness47
I'm cursed with the internalized knowledge that things on my screen aren't real. The only time I get scared in a game is when something surprises me.
What I'm trying to say is that I like jump scares because they give me that small thrill that I crave.
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I'm cursed with the internalized knowledge that things on my screen aren't real. The only time I get scared in a game is when something surprises me.
What I'm trying to say is that I like jump scares because they give me that small thrill that I crave.
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-philipptomic6310
Ahhhhh my arachnophobia
My brothe hide himself in my closet then threw me a fake bug as spider in the face
Later the sister of a friend of mine threw me a real big as spider in the face and i
just play skyrim and bash em dead as fast as possible
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Ahhhhh my arachnophobia
My brothe hide himself in my closet then threw me a fake bug as spider in the face
Later the sister of a friend of mine threw me a real big as spider in the face and i
just play skyrim and bash em dead as fast as possible
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-QuantumPhanatic
I love the way Satisfactory dealt with this; by putting a png of a kitten over every spider-like creature in the game. It genuinely added to the experience by being not only funny and creative, but also being compliant with the game and actually effective.
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I love the way Satisfactory dealt with this; by putting a png of a kitten over every spider-like creature in the game. It genuinely added to the experience by being not only funny and creative, but also being compliant with the game and actually effective.
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polygon
The fear that is most prominent, throughout all of human history and every society, is death. It's sort of the big mama of all fears. Coming soon: An option to remove death from your game, which locks your console to never close that game or play anything else.
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The fear that is most prominent, throughout all of human history and every society, is death. It's sort of the big mama of all fears. Coming soon: An option to remove death from your game, which locks your console to never close that game or play anything else.
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-NevTheDeranged
the beginning part reminds me of how I always subconsciously hold my breath while my game character is underwater. I can hold my breath for a while, but not as long as the average game character, and I've started blacking out more than once.
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the beginning part reminds me of how I always subconsciously hold my breath while my game character is underwater. I can hold my breath for a while, but not as long as the average game character, and I've started blacking out more than once.
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-fireaza
I don't have an issues with spiders, since I was born with a natural immunity to fearing spiders: being Australian! I saw spiders far more scary-looking than most people will ever see before I could walk! Videogame spiders are nothing! ;)
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I don't have an issues with spiders, since I was born with a natural immunity to fearing spiders: being Australian! I saw spiders far more scary-looking than most people will ever see before I could walk! Videogame spiders are nothing! ;)
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-djangomarkov7948
Im a big horror fan but nothing really scares me, i just think its cool. I WISH I could feel the fear people seem to have towards something as simple as a spider. And i actually got bit by a spider as a kid, had to have surgery
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Im a big horror fan but nothing really scares me, i just think its cool. I WISH I could feel the fear people seem to have towards something as simple as a spider. And i actually got bit by a spider as a kid, had to have surgery
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-hedgehogkween
The trailers for Grounded looked amazing, like the game I've been waiting for for years, but the spiders definitely turned me off. Having seen the spider slider though, this baby's going to the top of my Steam Wishlist! -
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The trailers for Grounded looked amazing, like the game I've been waiting for for years, but the spiders definitely turned me off. Having seen the spider slider though, this baby's going to the top of my Steam Wishlist! -
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-Thesaurus_Rex
I hope that maximum spider on the spider slider is like. every spider is a wolf spider whose eggs just hatched.
Sorry, arachnophobics, I mean that they're like wolf peaches whose seeds just hatched. yeah.
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I hope that maximum spider on the spider slider is like. every spider is a wolf spider whose eggs just hatched.
Sorry, arachnophobics, I mean that they're like wolf peaches whose seeds just hatched. yeah.
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-s9l177
I feel bad because I can't play minecraft survival mode due to my massive fear of spiders. Also for some reason the skyrim ones arnt to bad for me. I mean the get me at times but not as much as u would think.
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I feel bad because I can't play minecraft survival mode due to my massive fear of spiders. Also for some reason the skyrim ones arnt to bad for me. I mean the get me at times but not as much as u would think.
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-ThexDynastxQueen
Cool cause 1st mod I downloaded fro Skyrim within 5mins of playing it was to replace the giant spiders with bears. After all the updates it thankfully still works, PRAISE THE MODDING COMMUNITY!
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Cool cause 1st mod I downloaded fro Skyrim within 5mins of playing it was to replace the giant spiders with bears. After all the updates it thankfully still works, PRAISE THE MODDING COMMUNITY!
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