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English
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Published:
2024-01-10
Updated:
2024-09-20
Words:
0
Chapters:
8/?
Comments:
94
Kudos:
487
Bookmarks:
101
Hits:
9,400

Firmware Update

Summary:

When Chai is threatened with losing everything, he's put at odds with his friends. Instead of accepting his horrid fate, he decides to take his own path… or is it?

(A Hi-Fi Rush Fancomic)
[Currently on Hiatus]

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Chapter 1

Notes:

After weeks of work, I'm finally ready to share this fic! This story was originally just a wip fic story that I had in my drafts since March of last year. Even though I like the story, I didn't feel like keeping the story in written form would convey the emotions I wanted to convey. Thanks to a friend, I was motivated to turn this into a fancomic. Although I've made short comics in the past, this is the first long-form project I'm working on, I'm not great at paneling, so I hope this is all looks okay!

I just want to thank rinto190 (Angel) for helping out with this! Without them, this story would have stayed a wip fic in my archives. They beta'd and proof'd the story, so big thanks to them! Follow them here:
Twitter: @rint0190
tumblr: @rinto190

Please do not print, redistribute, and/or sell this comic!
In the event that the images on Ao3 glitch out, you can also read the comic right here!

Notice: There seems to be an issue where the images do not show up on Firefox. I'm not sure if there's a fix for this, but switching to a different browser or opening on mobile usually helps!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

cover

inside

pg1

pg02

pg3

pg4

pg5

pg5

To Be Continued...

 

 

 

 

Notes:

And that's it for Chapter 1! It's actually the shortest chapter at the moment, but the two future chapters are longer! I will be cutting this story according to however long I feel like it needs to be. I actually had finished this chapter a while back, but after I got my new drawing tablet, I actually went back to redo some of the panels and (sketchy) linework, which is why there might be some differences between some panels. I wanted to redo the whole thing, but I decided I needed to dedicate my focus to future chapters!

I'm not really sure how often I'll be posting a chapter. I am actually already 1 chapter ahead with two chapters still being worked on, but I want to space myself out. I also have a job and commissions to work on, but I'm aiming for at least once a month, but not garunteed. I'll be posting info, updates, and even sneak peeks on my twitter, so feel free to check me out on @azurajae for those!

Thanks so much for reading!

Chapter 2

Notes:

Surprise! I bet y'all didn't expect me to post a chapter so soon, though those of you who follow me on Twitter had the foresight that this chapter was going to be posted three days in advance.

The support and the reception for this fancomic has been super awesome and it felt appropriate to post this next chapter to get the ball really rolling on the plot. The idea of posting the chapter this month so soon was suggested to me by Angel, my beta, who thought it might be a good idea (and I agreed), but please don't expect a chapter this frequently (this is just a speical case). Chapters take up to a month to complete, the reason why I had this handy is that this chapter was already done by the time I posted Chapter 1.

EDIT: I realized I accidentally linked two pages twice OTL, the missing page has been updated!

Anyways, I thank you all for the support, please enjoy this chapter!
In the event that the Ao3 images are glitching out, you can read this chapter here on Tapas!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

cover

inside

pg1

pg2

pg4

pg4

pg5

pg6

pg7

pg8

pg9

pg10

pg11

pg12

pg13

to be continued...

 

 

 

 

 

Notes:

Most of the pages here have been drawn on my old tablet (with some very minor relining, even compared to last chapter), but from Chapter 3 forward, everything is drawn on my spankin' new tablet so hopefully the quality of the pages and art will look a bit better, but I hope this suffices at the moment!

One thing i kept in mind with this chapter is I wanted it to feel like no one was really in the right. It's Chai's own decision not to want something so life-changing, but his friends are also right for being worried about the consequences about keeping his arm. Some of you may have questions about the exact details on Chai's arm, SPECTRA, and why things weren't mentioned, but those questions will be answered in future chapters.

I have no idea when the next update is going to be, I will likely announce it 3-5 days in advance on my Twitter when it's good and ready, but otherwise, thank you so much for reading! And of course, thank you to my beta Angel (rinto190) for proofing the story!
See you all next time ^^

Chapter 3

Notes:

Hey, y'all! I'm really excited to share this chapter with you, this is my favorite chapter so far for reasons you'll probably see ;D
This is also the final chapter that I had partially drawn with my old drawing tablet, everything going forward should be drawn with my new tablet so hopefully this looks a bit better than before! Anyways, I won't keep you here for long, please enjoy!

In the event the images are not loading properly, you can read this chapter on Tapas!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

cover

inside

pg1

pg3

pg3

pg4

pg5

pg6

pg7

pg8

pg9

pg10

pg11

pg12

pg13

pg14

To Be Continued...

 

 

 

Notes:

Can you tell what my favorite panel is? It might be easy to tell because I did give the whole thing special attention x)
I had actually reused an older drawing I did (an art piece I did for the Hi-Fi Rush TGA annoucements) as one of the panels, if you'd like to see the full piece, you can see it here! Fun Fact: I've taken the interpretation that Chai can kind of 'talk' to 808, but that no one else can really understand her 'words', Chai just can because they're synchronized. I love them as a duo, so having a chapter with (mostly) just them was fun to do.

Finally the plot has started rolling and I'm really excited to share the coming chapters! The next chapter will be coming sometime next month, I'll be sure to post updates on my Twitter in case anyone wants to keep track! Thanks again to my beta, Angel for all their hard work, and for proofing so well (and giving some ideas too)!

See you all next time!

Chapter 4

Notes:

Hey guys! Sorry for the wait!
I was going through some production restructuring because I've actually onboarded a background artist to help me work on the backgrounds: my best buddy SupremelySalty AKA Nick. I will still be doing all of the character art and some of the more abstract backgrounds when I feel a panel needs them, but Nick will be handling more of the more detailed stuff. But you guys won't be seeing the new backgrounds until Chapter 5.

I would also like to take this moment to personally thank Dawn (@Waning_Twilight) on Twitter for letting me know that the pages had died. I don't know what happened, but all pictures I linked on AO3 suddenly went kaput, but I managed to find a new hosting service to host the images so it can be posted here. Thanks so much for this! I don't know how long it would have taken me to notice ><

Just in case the images bork up again, you can read Chapter 4 for right here on Tapas!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

cover

pg1

pg2

pg03

pg04

pg05

pg07

pg09

to be continued...

 

 

Notes:

Part of the pages here were part of a short four page mini comic that I had made a long while ago called 'Bad Dreams'. I didn't feel like posting it at the time because I felt as though it was missing something. But after I started Firmware Update, I repurposed these pages to help convey the emotions Chai is feeling at this moment. The young Chai is based on some old sketches of young Chai I did a while back and on the interpretation that Chai has been disabled since he was born. Also, originally, CNMN was going to be part of that dream sequence, but I felt that the scene might a bit too silly, so I replaced him with Roxanne xD

Also, I'd like to think that 808 has frequent sleepovers in Chai's place because of how close the two are. I think she does still return to Peppermint every so often to hang out and undergo general maintenance, but 808 wanted to keep an eye on her friend.

Anyways, the next chapter may be coming a bit sooner than this chapter took, but I'll see how it's progressing. Again, if you guys wanna see some updates on the comic, check me out on Twitter, I will post them there ^^
Thanks so much for reading! See you next time!

Chapter 5

Notes:

Hiya! I meant to post this sooner, but some personal stuff came up and I ended up having to delay the posting of this chapter. The chapter has already been done for a while, but I just didn't have time to post it. As such, I want to thank everyone for the patience and the kind words shared to me. I'm really glad to share this chapter!

This marks the first chapter that my buddy, SupremelySalty (also known as just Nick) is going to be helping me draw the backgrounds for this fancomic. He did such a great job this chapter! If y'all are ever looking to get some VTuber modelwork/Live2D work done, would highly reccomend.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Note: if the images for this chapter are not showing up properly, you can read the chapter here!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

 

 

Notes:

Originally, this scene took place right after the first second chapter's arguement and was a convo between not just Peppermint and Korsica, but with Macaron and CNMN too (the "anti-consumer" line was originally CNMN's LOL). I was going to cut this scene from the story entirely, but I decided to repurpose it into another scene with just Peppermint and Korsica to give some context into what exactly is wrong with Chai's arm. In a way, it is a little bit of a shorter 'exposition the chapter', but I thought it'd be nice to check in with the others after being with Chai for two chapters.

We're gonna really be getting into some interesting stuff next chapter. Work on it was sort of staggered a little so I need some more time to work on it, but I'll post any updates on my Twitter, as per usual.
Thank you so much for reading! See you next time ^^

Chapter 6: Chapter 0.5

Notes:

I am absolutely devastated by the news that Tango Gameworks was closed down. I am beyond LIVID and I have so many choice words for Microsoft that wouldn't be appropriate for an E rated for everyone, but I won't share it all here. In my grief, I drew up a comic that I decided was canon to the story.

Idecided to post the mini-comic in this story so people aren't confused in future chapters. All you need to know is that this takes place before Chapter 1.
In the event that you can't read this, you can read the original post I made on twitter.

Also, if you are having trouble viewing the images, there seems to be a problem with only Firefox. I haven't really figured out why that is, but if you are using Firefox and you can't see the images, I would reccomend using a different browser or try viewing it on mobile. Sorry for the invoncinence, hopefully I can find a fix to this!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

 

Notes:

I'm just so sad for everyone at Tango. They worked SO hard for the game, were awarded prizes and the like, were told they had a secure future, only for Microsoft to backstab them, and as if that wasn't enough, they rubbed salt all over the wound by claiming they wanted 'smaller games with prestige and awards'. I cannot believe it. It just hurts so much more knowing that we were going to get a sequel and now it will never happen. I will never forgive them for this.

In case anyone is worried, Firmware Update will continue no matter what. I want to finish this series as my tribute to Tango. But I likely won't be posting a full chapter this month. I feel like I need some time to cope with HFR's tragic ending, Chapter 6 just not ready yet, but I thought I'd share this mini comic here in the meantime. Tango-chan will be making future appearances in this story as a background character.

They really didn't deserve this. Thanks so much, Tango, for creating one of the best games of all time.

Chapter 7: Chapter 6

Notes:

Heya! Sorry it took a long time, but this chapter is finally done!
I'm still kinda beat up over the fact that we won't be getting any more official Hi-Fi Rush stuff in the future. You know, I wrote Firmware Update styled as a DLC in my head. Like conceptual levels and stuff. I was hoping that when the DLC or sequel comes out, I could laugh about how different it was to my idea, but... well... At least, I can still finish this story.

Speaking of which, with the ways things are playing out, the chapters are actually getting longer and longer, it's taking a lot more effort to work on the storyboarding, lineart, and coloring all by myself. Nick has been a lot of help with the backgrounds and saved me a ton of time myself, but I realize I may need more time for the chapters. I really want to update this comic monthly and I still want to shoot for that goal, but I've come to the decision that I will just put away the schedule for now and just update the comic when the chapters are done. There might be some more time in between chapters, but maybe I'll post previews and sneak peeks on my twitter? I'm not sure.

Anyways, thank you all so much for the wait, please enjoy this chapter! It's my new favorite chapter so far :)

Note: If these images ever flub up, you can read the full chapter right here! Also, I just noticed that i accidentally uploaded the non-HQ version of some of the images in previous chapters, so I will be updating them to the HQ versions soon.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

 

 

 

Notes:

Fun fact, I haven't really had a chance to mention this anywhere, but you may have noticed that Firmware Update 808 is wearing a bell instead of her normal Hibiki pendant. There are two reasons for this: it's easier to draw and merciful to my hand :D And the second in-universe reason is that the bell is a soundless bell that Chai had made as a present for 808 and she's worn it ever since. So with that into consideration, it's kind oof that Chai is using his present to her to apprehend her :,)

You know, originally, this scene was a going to be a lot more humorous. Following my original notes, Chai was going to have an argument with himself, basically fighting over the control of himself. I feel like if this was true canon, it would definitely have gone that way instead. But I came up with the 'bad cat' scene and things went from there instead :D I just love angst a lot OTL Also in my original script, I was going to be vague on Chai's past because I was hoping we would get some more canon info on it in the future, but since that won't happen, I might flesh it out a bit more. I did hint a bit of it this chapter.

Can't wait to share with you all the future developments of this story. Thank you for the continued support via comments, retweets, likes/kudos, etc!
See you all next time ^^

Chapter 8: Chapter 7

Notes:

Hey guys, sorry for the long wait! It took a long time to get through this chapter because it was such a chunky chapter to begin with; there's just a lot to go through. Big thanks to my new beta, Cocoa, who did a great job on helping me tie down the story for this chapter, thanks so much! Still, irl stuff got in a way, but I'm happy to finally have this out.

A minor announcement, but Nick (SupremelySalty) who had drawn the backgrounds for Ch5 & 6, is stepping away from the fancomic because he's busy. All art here is drawn by me again!

Without further ado, please enjoy!

If you're having trouble reading this chapter, you can read it on Tapas!
Just click on this link~

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

cover

pg1

pg2

 

 

 

Notes:

I had a huge writer's block with this chapter, mainly to do with the character interactions, it was part of the reason why it took so long to get this chapter out. That, and the very first original concept of this chapter was actually much longer, but I've decided to condense some ideas and move them into what would be Chapter 8 for now. There's so much more that I just wish I could say, but I can't because of spoilers🤭But the next few chapters is something I've been waiting this whole time to finally work on and share!

I'm hoping that getting to Chapter 8 won't take as long as the wait between 6 and 7, but that's just something we'll have to see. I'm taking a short break from the comic next week for my birthday on the 24th and will probably start on the next chapter in October.
In any case, thank you for reading!

Notes:

Follow me on Twitter for more updates or sneak peeks, or just to check out my other work! I draw a lot of Hi-Fi Rush!
Twitter: @azurajae
Carrd: @azurajae

Check out my beta, Angel, (Chapter 1-6):
Twitter: @rinto190
tumblr: @rinto190

Check out my BG Artist (Chapter 5 & 6):
Twitter: @SupremelySalt
Carrd: @SupremelySalty

And thank you to my other beta reader, Cocoa (Chapter 7)

Other credits:
- Inkling (Font) by Eli

Thank you for all the kudos, comments, subs, and bookmarks! I may not have time to reply to every comment, but I do sincerely appreciate the support greatly!