Gamebooks (Choose Your Own Adventure Style)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery Alternate Endings Part 10


Failing to warn the Tollgate soldiers in CHOICE #15 gets what's likely the worst non-death ending.  The Piranha-controlled Rusty Rhino smashes through the Tollgate, and the Piranhas shoot or capture most of the locals.


Trying to sneak past the Piranhas ends in failure.  An over-city "fire control hovercraft" hoses down a boat, but does nothing about the slavers.


"Getting back to Ivory Tower unseen takes half an hour.  You hammer on the bulletproof glass doors.  'Let me in!' You can see someone's shadow moving inside, but the doors don't open.  'Let me in!  I work here'.  Someone grabs you around the neck.  'Not any more you don't, kid', a Piranha sneers, and handcuffs you".

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery Alternate Endings Part 11


Trying to "make a run for the bridge" in CHOICE #9 instead of letting the Piranhas and Kannibal Krew fight each other leads to this path.  Yelling about the Kannibal Krew makes the Piranhas fight them, but they were planning an ambush on both sides of the bridge.  One Piranha suggests killing me to avoid leaving witnesses, but one wants to spare me because my package happens to be for the clinic that treated him in the past.


I find a security pass to the over-city labeled "Ortopa Baskirl".  There's an opportunity to go there, which leads to CHOICE #16:  Lie and say the pass is mine so I can go with the "day workers", or attempt to return it to Ortopa Baskirl?


Let's try to sneak into the over-city!


The gate lets me through, but a "man with no eyebrows" knows I'm not Ortopa Laskirl.  Referring to Laskirl as "him" in my dialogue makes me even more suspicious, as Laskirl is a woman.  I pretend to be a substitute for Laskirl. 


Apparently, Ortopa Laskirl is a janitor.  I work in the bathroom, which seems pointless to the player character because it looks clean.  (Under-city bathrooms usually have rats and cockroaches everywhere.)


It's hard work, but I clean better than the real Ortopa Laskirl.  A security guard knows I'm a fake and takes me to a "well-dressed man".  He says I can be accused of "trespassing, possession of stolen property, identity fraud, interfering with murder evidence".  Ortopa Laskirl was "face-down in an under-city street this morning".


Our mystery man is Bradley Lime, and offers to recruit me as a trainee manager in the Avocado Corporation.  I'm more interesting to him than most under-city folk because I spent the day cleaning bathrooms instead of robbing over-city residents.


CHOICE #17 is to either take Bradley Lime's offer, or "Say no, and get away from this crazy guy as soon as you can".


The Avocado Corporation gives me a T-shirt and makes me watch a New Employees video.  "Over the next few hours, you hear 'corporate policy' about a million times from Marcie".


I note that nobody looks happy here.  Chances are this ending is the reason why:


"Then you see movement through the glass-people trudging along, carrying trowels and baskets.  They look even sadder than the trainee managers, and aren't wearing Avocado Corporation t-shirts.  Hey, one of them is Mac, the owner of Mac's Greasy Spoon back at Ivory Tower!  What's he doing here?  Behind them swaggers a man wearing a Piranha black and white striped bandana and carrying a stun-gun in his meaty hand".


Guess who's buying all those slaves the Piranhas have been selling?  I have to keep silent in this ending, or I'm likely to end up joining them.  This ending also implies that the Piranhas rammed through Big Pig's Tollgate if Ivory Tower people like Mac are Piranha victims.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery Alternate Endings Part 12


Let's run away from Bradley Lime and his evil Avocado Corporation in CHOICE #17!


That doesn't work.  I'm taken to the farm building, where I meet Mac.  He confirms my suspicions that the Piranhas defeated Big Pig's soldiers in this timeline in a conversation.


"What are Piranhas doing up here in the over-city?' you whisper to Mac as you follow him down a long tree-lined passage. 

'The Piranhas supply slave labor to the Avocado Corporation, of course.  You don't think over-city people dirty their own fingers weeding lettuces and picking tomatoes, do you?'


'Maybe we could smash a window and escape?'


He snorts.  'Look at those little windows, surrounded by those solid steel window frames.  This is a prison, and there's no escape.  We're slaves, kid.  For the rest of our lives".


This is even worse than the previous ending because now my character is one of the slaves, instead of a trainee manager forced to look at the situation in horror.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery Alternate Endings Part 13


After the experiences with the Avocado Corporation, let's not go to the over-city in CHOICE #16.


I try to return the pass, but the guard thinks I stole it.  So I run away, only to be surrounded by criminals.  (Probably the Kannibal Krew, because a "speedboat" is mentioned.)


The wild dogs return, but the German Shepherd turns out to be friendly.  I give it the meatloaf.  The dog takes me through the water, leading to a hole too small for adults to crawl through. 


"But suddenly there's wet fur under your hands, and the big dog is towing you through the water to the other side of the street.  'Thank you,' you say, as you squeeze through the hole in the brick wall, with seconds to spare.  The dogs and the people on the boat growl at each other for a few seconds, then the boat roars away.  'Thank you,' you repeat, reaching back through the hole and patting the German Shepherd.  'Double, no, triple meatloaf for you tomorrow".


I live for another day in this ending and make it back to Deadline Delivery.  Overall, a mediocre ending, but that's pretty good for this book.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery Alternate Endings Part 14


Let's lose a few dozen IQ points and hitch a ride with the Kannibal Krew in CHOICE #8.


This becomes a surprisingly positive ending!  The Kannibal Krew likes the Brine Street clinic even more than the Piranhas.


"You hide the necklace under your shirt, put your Deadline Delivery cap back on, and walk the six blocks back to Tollgate, thinking hard.  Safe passage through Kannibal Krew territory, forever?  A necklace like this is worth its weight in gold, to any courier.  After paying your toll, you jog to Nori Road and deliver Doctor Hurst's package to 157, then return to Ivory Tower and Deadline Delivery. 


Miss Betty scowls at you.  As usual.  But pays you the ten dollar delivery fee, as promised.  That's thirty-two dollars in your pocket-you're rich!  Well, a lot richer than usual.  The steel door squeaks and starts to close, and you hurry out.  Miss Betty doesn't say goodbye.  She never does".


$32 and a bottle cap and human tooth necklace to keep the Kannibal Krew from eating me!

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery Alternate Endings Part 15


CHOICE #10's alternate route is to try to escape from the froggies by going through a hole.  Deciding against rescuing Bucket is a horrible idea, as this ending indicates:


"You run out through the jagged hole.  But it's not an exit after all, just a smallish room with one wall of glass bricks.  Two doorways.  One's blocked by a fallen concrete beam.  The other's on the far side of a raised platform occupied by a family of crocodiles.  They stare at you.  Two of them hiss then slip into the water.

You turn and look out the hole, only to see that ripple again, heading straight for you.  At the front of the ripple, a crocodilian snout and eyes appear.  The last thing you ever see is its jaw opening wide".


Alternate Ending Death Count:  2

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery Alternate Endings Part 16


Our final ending, as far as I can tell, involves refusing to become a froggy and returning to Deadline Delivery in CHOICE #11.


I become a permanent friend of the froggies by rescuing Bucket, and they take me through a secret passage under Big Pig's Wall, avoiding the toll.  The froggies offer to teach me how to swim later.


"Miss Betty scowls at you.  'You're late.'  Late?  'I was attacked by Kannibal Krew, Piranhas, and a crocodile!' And by froggies too, sort of. . .but not really.  You're not going to say anything bad about the froggies.  'No excuses!'  She counts out eight one-dollar coins.  'Eight?  You said the job paid ten dollars.'  She gives you a sour grin and points to your dripping cap.  'Minus two dollars-Wet Uniform fee'. 


So unfair.  Maybe you should've become a froggy.  Bet no one makes them wear stupid caps or pay stupid fees.  Miss Betty drops a long blue box on the counter.  'Urgent delivery, Crabb Street.  Pays nine bucks'.  You sigh, nod, and take the box.  The steel door squeaks and starts to close, and you hurry out.  Miss Betty doesn't say goodbye.  She never does".



For a post-apocalyptic dystopia, there are only 2 deaths!  Slavery is the punishment for incorrect choices on other routes.  If you want a good ending, help Big Pig and the Rusty Rhino crew or the froggies.  So my CANONICAL ENDING turned out to be one of the better choices, though perhaps not the best.


I still have no idea where this city is supposed to be.  I tried Googling some of the landmarks mentioned in the book, but nothing turned up.  Maybe it's in New Zealand, where Peter Friend is from.  It would fit the story because the currency is dollars.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

La Prisión:  Elige Tu Propia Aventura Part 1


The next book isn't one of the other You Say Which Ways.  It's Choose Your Own Adventure Spanish Edition!  ("Elige Tu Propia Aventura" translates perfectly into "Choose Your Own Adventure").  It's not part of THAT series by Edward Packard et al, so don't get too excited.


La Prisión:  Elige Tu Propia Aventura's author is Ramón Díez Galán, who doesn't seem to have written any other gamebooks.


"Today is your first day in prison.  The place is much worse than what you were imagining.  You've already met Blas and Valero, the two security guards who've taken away your personal belongings and had given you your new orange uniform.  Valero seems to be a veteran, one of those guards who worked in Hell his whole life.  Neither of the two seem especially nice to you."


Our mission is to escape, as you might have guessed from this prison plot.  My character stays in Cell 313 in a "dirty hallway".  It has two beds, one on each side, a "night table" (mesita de noche), a toilet covered by a white curtain, and a small window that can't be opened.


(I had to look up "váter", the word translated as "toilet" here.  I usually see "retrete" or "inodoro" used for that instead, so maybe "váter" is unique to Spain?)


Valero pushes a 60-year-old man named Armando into my cell.  I refuse to answer his question as to why I'm in jail.  He says I'm not very "talkative" (hablador), and tries to fall asleep in his bed. 


Valero orders me to go to "el patio" (prison yard?) in half an hour.  Armando warns me that there are various gangs (clanes) fighting each other, and that the first day is the most important because everyone wants to know if they can control me.  


"El patio" is square and has a guard tower, a basketball court, and a sort of gym.  Ten hairless prisoners with tattoos on their heads are sitting on the stairs.  Armando calls them "los latinos", and apparently they always say "You're with us or against us".  Armando suggests that I ignore them whenever possible.  Their leader with the snake tattoo is named Jhony.  Jhnoy's sentence is so long that "he could spend three lives there".


The prisoners playing basketball seem to be okay in comparison, according to Armando.  He calls Jorge "a good sort" (rough translation of "buen tipo") who was a former professional player for Valencia who wound up in prison after a night of drunk driving.


Three prisoners then approach me, and one of them wears a "luxurious gold watch".  He's going to offer me CHOICE #1:


"Welcome to my prison.  You may call me 'Boss' (Jefe).  Around here, every business deal has to go through my hands.  In exchange, I offer protection, information, and. . .everything that you may need.  We say that I am God in this place.  Do you need to know something about someone?  I'll tell you.  Do you want to have a Picasso picture in your cell?  I'll get it for you.  In return, I'll need to know what we can discuss.  I'll call you in the morning, in the afternoon, or at night, and you'll be there to listen to my request.  Is that clear?"


CHOICE #1 is to agree to his offer, or refuse to say anything.  Jefe seems like a colorful enough character that I want to find out what he has to offer!

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

La Prisión:  Elige Tu Propia Aventura Part 2


Let's agree to Jefe's offer.  What could go wrong with a man who calls himself God in a moment of classical Greek hubris?


Jefe gives me a firm handshake, like you'd expect.  My cellmate Armando approves of this decision:  "You've done the right thing, friend.  Be very careful with the Boss:  he has as many contacts within the prison as he does outside.  His eyes and ears are everywhere.  If he helps you with something, you'll have to return the favor, one way or another.  You'll end up working for him".


My character wonders if Jefe has guards in his pocket too, which might help me escape.


Armando urges me to be more cautious:  "I'll tell you something:  I've been in this hole (agujero) for 20 years.  I was thinking about escaping during the first 5, but gradually I found out that it's almost impossible.  Do you think you can go running and jumping the two fences in the prison yard without the guards shooting you?  Three years ago, some prisoners tried that.  They were planning for months, and finally one night they started a fire in the kitchen.  The fire activated all the alarms, and they were running through a hole that they had made in a fence.  The guards trapped them on the second fence.  They didn't realize it was electrified."


I suggest that they could have escaped if they had rubber gloves.



Armando's suspicions about why I need to escape so quickly lead to CHOICE #2.  Tell Armando the truth, or tell a lie and pretend to be a normal prisoner?  Readers so far have no idea what the player character is in jail for.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

La Prisión:  Elige Tu Propia Aventura Part 3


We all want to find out what "la verdad" is in this situation, so let's tell Armando the truth!  We don't get much out of the player character at first:  "It's a matter of life and death.  I can't talk about this."  Armando laughs at me, and insists he wants to know because he's an old man without "personal interests".  Is he going to be the inevitable snitch?  There has to be one in any prison story.


Armando seems trustworthy to my character, so I finally reveal what happened:  "I used to work in Internal Affairs, the police that investigate the police.  I was working on the case of several agents who had taken bribes.  It didn't seem like a big deal at first.  Until I discovered the connection with ARTUS, the business that manages more than half the prisons in the country".


ARTUS also runs this prison, as seen on the guard uniforms.  I then explain more of ARTUS's scheme:  "Did you know that the government pays for every prisoner who's here?  Exactly like a hotel.  I discovered fake bills, prisoners who don't exist, a whole network of corruption created to steal taxpayer money (dinero público)."


My coworkers in the police force betrayed me after I told my boss.  They staged a car accident so I would wander into their trap, and then handcuffed me.


The older guard Valero has a weakness for money, according to Armando, and supposedly belongs to Jefe.  I suggest arranging a situation where one of the guards leaves the fences unguarded. 


Valero has this to say:  "To the cafeteria!  It's time for your rat meat!"  Chances are "carne de rata" isn't literally "rat meat", but after reading Deadline Delivery, I'm not so sure!


My meal includes an "orange-colored soup", and "a piece of dry fish".


Like in any good Choose Your Own Adventure sort of story, there are conveniently only two tables where I can sit.  CHOICE #3 is to either go with Jhony and his "latino" gang, or sit with a "lone man who seems to have no friends".
 

(I have no idea as to whether "latino" is referring to their ethnicity here, or if it means something else.  This book is written in Spain's dialect, which is strange to me even though I've seen it often in books and video games.)