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Gamebooks (Choose Your Own Adventure Style)

You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 2


The dreaded Blue Screen of Death ate the first attempt at this post.  My desktop often does that a couple of times when I try to start it up.  Curse you, Bill Gates!


Anyway, Paulie doesn't want to time travel again when we agree to keep the secret from Mr. Jackson in CHOICE #4.  This is because he prefers dinosaurs "in books and movies and museums where they belong".  We both talk about experiences with the T. Rex that we've never actually had in this timeline.  Perhaps one CHOICE was mixed up with another in the editing process?


Troodons do have feathers in this book, to correspond with recent discoveries about dinosaurs.  (Or possibly rediscoveries, considering how Mesoamerican civilizations had "feathered serpents". . .)


CHOICE #5 is to either time travel without Paulie, or report our discoveries to Mr. Jackson.  Nothing bad could happen if I time travel without my knowledgeable companion, right?


Anyway, this ending will probably make my readers want to throw any paper copies of the book at Blair Polly after rebinding them in hardcover.


Mr. Jackson appears just as I'm about to travel back in time and goes with me to the Cretaceous.  He's startled by all this and says "What the heck was that?"  I respond with "Welcome to the late Cretaceous, Mister J".  When the T. Rex roars, he shouts "My God!  What have you done?"


Mr. Jackson runs off into the ferns to save himself from the carnivores, but. . .


"You're about to take off after him, when your alarm buzzes and you spring upright in bed.  Sweat drips off your forehead.  Despite being in a familiar place you look around for signs of dinosaurs before realizing it's all a dream and today is the day you leave on your field trip to the Badlands of Montana to look for dinosaur fossils.


'Phew', you mumble as you swing your legs off the bed and start thinking about getting dressed for the field trip.  'That was a little too real".


There's more to this ending, so I quoted the most relevant text.  It's the dreaded "all just a dream" ending.  Has anyone in recorded history ever sprung up in bed after having a nightmare?  I've had plenty of bad dreams, and none ever made me do that.  The player character must have fallen asleep after watching One Life to Live.


After the part I quoted, my character asks Paulie if he believes in premonitions.  He says no, and then "rambles on about the space-time continuum and Einstein's special theory of relativity".


This ending raises questions about whether the others are dreams too, but chances are, this is a world that's formed by your decisions rather than influenced by them.  (e.g. how every path in La Isla de los Dodos seemed to lead to the professor, despite the book spanning much of the Indian Ocean.)


Add this one to the Neutral Ending column.


Results So Far


1 Good Endings

0 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

2 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


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You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 3


This time, I'll try to tell Mr. Jackson what happened in CHOICE #5.  Will it turn out any different from the previous CHOICE #4 version where Mr. Jackson threw away the meteorite?


I suspect my character will land "amongst a pack of Velociraptors", at least according to the narration.  The linked nature facts emphasize how Velociraptors were the size of a turkey, unlike the ones shown in Jurassic Park.


"Unlike modern times, where humans are at the top of the food chain, during the age of the dinosaur, they were the top predators".  But not all dinosaurs were large, and many of them were herbivores!  Besides, some animals can eat humans today, even if humans are more dangerous to them.


Mr. Jackson's phone doesn't work like Paulie's cell phone, since it sends a text message with no effects on the meteorite.  But then he forces me to explain everything, and then he goes back in time without me!


He returns shortly afterwards, saying "A. . .Daspletosaurus. . .nearly. . .got. . .me".  According to the nature facts section, Daspletosaurus was similar to the T. Rex and hunted in packs.


"Under normal circumstances I'd agree with you.  Except that I took photos while I was back in time.'  In his excitement to show you his pictures, and still suffering from shock, Mister Jackson slots the battery into the phone and hits the on button.  'Here have a look'.


Before you have a chance to jump back, the meteorite glows red and there is a FLASH.  Suddenly it is hot and sticky and thick ferns and forest surrounds you.  Strange flying reptiles soar overhead.


'Holy moly, Mister J!'  Paulie yells.  'Look at what you done! [sic]"


'Wow,' you say.  'Look over there, Pacycephalosaurs.  They're butting heads'.


The two animals are crashing through the jungle and slamming their horned heads together in some strange duel.  Their screams are ear splitting as they rush towards each other.


Unfortunately, not one of you hear the two T. Rex's [sic] sneaking up behind you.  The T. Rex's look at each other and drool, as if to say 'lunch is served".


Our first Death in this book, and our hero can't bolt upright in bed this time!  It doesn't really seem to follow from telling Mr. Jackson about time travel, as trying to go back in time by myself results in the "just a dream" ending.


This is going to be one of those CYOAs, isn't it?


Results So Far


1 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

2 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


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You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 4


Time to return to CHOICE #2 and climb the arch.


Paulie and I manage to ascend the sandstone arch thanks to there being enough handholds caused by erosion.  A Troodon appears, which has "pale scaly-green" skin with "tufts of red feathers on its elbows, head and tail".


According to the nature facts, Troodon was likely nocturnal due to having large eyes.  Then we get the sentence "Like many dinosaurs, Troodons laid eggs".  Were there dinosaurs that didn't?


The T. Rex's roar sounds "like a lion's growl, only deeper, followed by something that sounds like an angry bull elephant calling".  Paulie shouts "Holy moly!", which appears to be his catchphrase.  The T. Rex is chasing the Troodons and attacking them instead of us.  We get dinosaur drool on us, which makes me think this path was meant to go to CHOICE #4 given the dialogue.


Eventually, the T. Rex eats one of the Troodons and pursues the others.  CHOICE #6 is to either stay on the arch or get off the arch while the dinosaurs are distracted.


Staying on the arch makes Paulie nervous.  He "looks pale and his breathing is coming in rapid gasps as he rocks back and forth", and his skin is "cool and clammy".  My character worries Paulie's going into shock, but he seems to go back to normal after 20 minutes.


We occasionally hear running water, but don't want to risk dealing with aquatic predators.  Then we see a Pterodactyl shadow.  The reptile's head is compared to a "deformed goose".


The Pterodactyl knocks Paulie down and I fall down when I try to catch him.  My leg is bleeding, though Paulie seems to be barely injured.  Now there are 3 Pterodactyls "circling above, like vultures".  We warp just in time by using the cell phone, but things aren't what they seem when we come back.


In the canyon area, there's now a track with a train going 500 miles an hour.  We see "gleaming towers" that are likely 100 stories tall, so Paulie and I walk toward them.  Paulie sees a sign with the binoculars saying. . .


"WELCOME TO GABRIEL'S GULCH WORLD WILDLIFE HOTEL


'Looks like we jumped a bit too far,' you say.


'Yeah, but won't it be interesting!'  Paulie is bobbing up and down like a jack-in-the-box.  'Did you know that Einstein said. . .'


You ignore Paulie's ramblings as you wander towards the hotel.  The sky is crystal blue and cloudless.  The air smells pure and clean.  Maybe the people of earth finally got their act together and stopped the pollution and the damages due to climate change.  Maybe things are different now.  You sure hope so.


'Hey, Paulie', you say.  'Can I borrow those binoculars again?'  He digs into his pack.  'Sure'.


Then you see what you're looking for.  It's another sign just beside the entrance to the hotel.  It reads:


FREE ICE CREAM FOR CHILDREN UNDER 18


'Hey, Paulie'.  'Yeah?'  'I think we're going to like the future.'  'You think so?'  You're grinning so hard your face hurts.  'Yeah, I'm sure of it".


Enough time travel gambling leads us to a future where the environment is doing well, they still speak the same language as the characters, and even give away free ice cream!  Could this be the best ending in the book?


Results So Far


2 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

2 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


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You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 5


When we get off the arch in CHOICE #6, Paulie and I discuss Occam's Razor, suggesting it's the meteorite or cell phone doing it instead of more outlandish explanations.  Then again, it's possible my player character could have teleported here from Creepy House's library, or has magical potential as revealed in Dragon's Realm.


Paulie suggests "also possible that little green spacemen or the cookie monster did it.  Extremely unlikely, but within the realm of possibility".  Who knew this book would become The Muppets Take the Space-Time Continuum?  Normally, I'd only see this kind of strange stuff in a Spanish CYOA, but it looks like the English books are taking some cues from them. . .


Paulie then receives a text message. . .from himself in 2060.  MAY 2060:  YOU CAN GET HOME BY REBOOTING YOUR PHONE WHILE HOLDING IT NEAR THE METEORITE.  PAUL LEIGHTON SMITH.


So Paulie signs his text messages just like characters in the Mary Worth comic strip?  Whatever brand of cell phone he's using, it should have 100% market share.


A T. Rex pokes above the bushes and roars, but we teleport in time to reach the present, as indicated by the presence of red-tailed hawks and jackrabbits.


We both wonder how we managed to get reception in the Cretaceous, and whether we'll still be friends in 2060.  Another message from Future Paulie answers that question:


"MAY 2060:  I HAVE HIDDEN THE METEORITE.  YOU WON'T FIND IT UNTIL YOU ARE A FEW YEARS OLDER AND MORE RESPONSIBLE.  IN THE MEANTIME, STUDY PHYSICS.  YOU TWO ARE GOING TO BE FAMOUS. . .JUST NOT FOR A FEW YEARS YET.  HAVE FUN IN THE MEANTIME.  PAUL LEIGHTON SMITH PHD".


I guess history is deterministic in this pathway, if our careers are planned out by Future Paulie.  Can we choose to act differently, or are we condemned to live out happy yet fatalistic lives?



Results So Far


3 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

2 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


Reply

You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 6


Only place left to go is to the eroded hills in CHOICE #1, instead of the Cave of Time Gabriel's Gulch.  Despite the large amount of space it takes up in the 4 YSWW collection, there aren't all that many CHOICES.  This is because there are usually a couple of pages of text before each decision, along with all the nature facts.


Paulie and I see what seem to be rattlesnake tracks along the way, and my companion says "But only one lives in Montana.  So don't worry".  It's not the number of species that matters so much as the quantity of POIsonous snake specimens in the area, Paulie!


The hills have distinct strata, "like a cake with hundreds of thin layers".  Paulie points out a marker 50 yards ahead.  We see an abandoned mine, which Paulie suspects was meant for gold, silver, or copper.  When we're about to go inside, I say "This shaft doesn't look very safe.  These timbers are pretty old".


Paulie then sees something out of the ordinary.  "Holy moly, are those dinosaur bones"?  Please tell me there's a part where Paulie sees a giant mole!  Anyway, the fossils are piled up, leading us to suspect other people who aren't miners are inside.


We stumble into 2 men armed with guns.  One of them shouts "Hey you brats!  What do you think you're doing?"  They're most likely fossil smugglers, as Paulie suspects.  The smugglers are blocking the way we came, so it's time for CHOICE #7.  Either we go into the "deserted mine shaft", or "follow the trail further up the hill".


When we go further into the mine, Paulie and I grab pickaxes "for protection". 


"Holding the flashlight, you work your way further into the mine.  As you do, the support timbers look even less stable.  The tunnel twists and turns.  Side shats branch off every fifteen yards or so.  Some of them only go in for a few yards, others disappear into a darkness the powerful beam of your flashlight can't penetrate".


We go into a side shaft and find an adult human skeleton.  Paulie says "Holy moly, its skull is cracked".  (Drink!)


Suddenly, there's a cave-in.  This isn't a Death because we feel a breeze from outside.  But the smugglers survived too, and one of them shines a flashlight at us.  "Don't worry Walter', a gruff voice says.  'Those brats aren't going anywhere".


 Paulie says the smugglers are attempting to make the tunnel collapse on us.  "Paulie's suspicions are quickly confirmed when a low rumble shudders through the shaft and the sound of snapping timbers and a blast of dust and grit from falling rock shoots through the hole".  This blocks off the path with the breeze.


CHOICE #8 is to either go further into the mine and risk our batteries running out, or try to dig our way out.


I decide to explore this mine some more.  My character licks a finger and holds it up to check for wind.  Apparently this works in real life, as whichever side cools off or dries faster will tell you the wind direction.  Paulie didn't know about this trick either!


The breeze leads us to a point where the flashlight's beam disappears.  My character knows this is where the ground ends, and this is a large cavern.  About 25 feet away, there's a stream that might carry us outside.  We use a rusty cable to climb down.  We are carried through the cold water to a "shimmering pool", and the rocks are warm.  Staying here for 20 minutes dries off our clothes.


But along our way back to the camp, we see "a pickup truck parked behind a couple of boulders off to the north", which of course belongs to the fossil smugglers.  My character suggests hotwiring it, but Paulie is opposed to this and suggests disabling the tires instead. 


CHOICE #9 is to either try to deflate the smugglers' tires, or run to camp and call the police.


Before trying to mess with the smugglers, I tell Paulie to wave an orange t-shirt in case they show up before I can finish.


This is probably a stupid plan.  It takes 1/4 of a mile to get to the truck, and depressing the pin on the tire barely deflates it  Paulie waves the t-shirt and I say "Rats!  Time for plan B".  Then I slash the tires with my knife.  "The sudden hiss of air sounds like an angry cobra as it escapes through the punctures".


I sneak back towards the ridge using scrub as cover.  The smugglers are too busy looking for rattlesnakes to bother with me.  When one of them realizes what happened to the truck, "his curses float up on the breeze".


Even with deflated tires, the smugglers move quickly relative to Paulie and I.  When we reach camp, we tell Mr. Jackson about the smugglers.  "Paulie and I caught them up at the old mine.  They tried to bury us!"  Paulie says "They're coming in that truck!  And they have a pistol".


Mr. Jackson is not pleased when we explain the truck sabotage.  "Because now they have come to camp for more transport.  What were you thinking!"  He does try to save the other students by saying "I want everyone on the bus right now!  Duck down below the windows and stay there until I say otherwise". 


Mr. Jackson gets out a flare gun and loads it.  The smugglers point a pistol at him and order him to make all the students leave the bus so they can steal it.  But my character has other plans.


"Then you hear the distinctive sound of the snake again.  It seems to be moving towards the front steps.  You have an idea.  Rather than getting off the bus, you duck back down.  You listen as Mister Jackson gives the man the keys.


'Now get out of my way', man says [sic]'.


There is a scrunch of gravel as the men make their way to the bus.  When you think they are about to climb aboard, you stand up and start down the steps, stopping at the bottom one.  You and the man are eye to eye.  'I said, get off!'  he yells.  You wipe his spittle off your face with the back of your hand.  You're about to climb down when the rattlesnake strikes.


'Yeow!'  the man yells, throwing himself back.  But the snake is on the attack.  It whips its head forward and strikes him again.  When the man grabs at his leg and falls to the ground, the pistol skids on the dirt.  The second man moves to pick it up.


'I wouldn't do that if I were you', Mister Jackson says, leveling the flare gun at the man's face.  'Now back up!  Put your hands on your head!'


The snake backs off at the sound of Mister Jackson shouting and slithers off into the sagebrush.  The second man does as he's told.  You jump off the bus, pick up the pistol, and run behind Mister Jackson.  The man on the ground has his cuff pulled up and is staring at the puncture wounds in his calf.  His face is twisted in pain and the area around the wounds is already red and swollen.  'I need a hospital', he moans.


Mister Jackson takes the pistol from your shaking hand and sends you to sit with the other studens.  'Tie them up', Mister Jackson says to the other parents.  'I'll phone the police'.  Once the men have been secured, and police phoned, Mister Jackson grabs a snakebite kit from the first aid box and moves towards the injured man.  'Just take it easy', you'll live".


So a POIsonous snake stops the smugglers, with some help from Mister Jackson and I.  Paulie then "waffles on about rats", and how snakes keep vermin under control.  Add this to the Good Ending column, even though this path probably should have gotten my character killed.



Results So Far


4 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

2 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


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You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 7


Let's go back to camp in CHOICE #9 instead of poking holes in the smugglers' tires.


It seems the underground stream only rises above ground when it's raining.  There's now the risk of a flash flood.  "A bolt of lightning flashes towards the ground.  Seconds later, a huge BOOM echoes across the sky".  About 15 minutes later, "hailstones the size of walnuts pelt down".  One of them conks Paulie.


We hold our packs up for protection.  "The lumps of ice beating on your packs sound like some crazy drummer.  Strong gusts fling fine particles of sand like miniature missiles, stinging your exposed skin".  This is another occasion where Paulie shouts "Holy moly".


Too bad the smugglers see us!  We ditch our packs and have to run in a detour towards the camp.  Paulie has trouble breathing in the dust for a bit, and then shouts "Holy moly.  A tornado!"  Paulie was a fun character until he had to say "Holy moly" every time something happened in this book!


The tornado is a deus ex machina, as shown in this scene.  "The men are only 60 yards away when the funnel picks them up and swirls them into the air.  You're not sure if the high-pitched screams are the men or the wind. . .The edge of the funnel misses you by 20 feet, scattering sand and pebbles in its wake, then races on across the prairie".


Paulie and I speculate that the smugglers may have survived, and hope they land in prison instead of dying.


About 50 yards north, we see "lumps" which turn out to be the unconscious smugglers.  We decide to tie them up with bootlaces before they wake up again.


"Kneeling down, you tie the man's wrists behind his back, watching for any sign that he's waking up.  Paulie does the same with the other man.  Once they're secure, you'll breathe easier.  'Right, that should do it', you say standing up.  'They're not going anywhere'.


'Now what?'  Paulie asks, admiring his handiwork.  You look towards the camp.  It's still at least a mile away.  'We can't leave them here alone.  They'll run away'.


When you look back towards Paulie, he has a big grin on his face.  'Not without shoes they won't'.  'Now you're talking!'


You get the men's boots off, just as they begin to move.  'Good work, Paulie.  Now let's go get help'.  Carrying the men's boots, the two of you jog towards camp.  'I just thought of something', you say.  'It's not that far to their truck, what if they get loose and drive off?'


Paulie reaches into his pocket and pulls out a set of keys.  'I took these while I was tying the guy up'.  'Stole them, you mean?'  'I've borrowed them', Paulie says.  'He can have them back once the police arrive.  And with that sorted, you head straight back to camp.


Dinosaur Canyon almost seems like 2 tiny CYOAs in one.  One half is a fanciful time travel story like the Cave of Time, while the other half is closer to a realistic survival Western or something.  So both CHOICE #9 paths lead to Good Endings, but the one where you deal with the storm is less likely to traumatize the other students for life.


Results So Far


5 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

2 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


Reply

You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 8


Will our heroes dig their way out of the collapsed mine in CHOICE #8?  Or will Minecraft-induced hubris lead them to an early grave?


5 minutes of digging gets us nowhere, so we'll have to take another path.  We feel a vibration in the rock, and Paulie thinks it's a generator.  We might face carbon monoxide poisoning, since Paulie smells fumes.


We wonder why anyone would need electricity down here when we come to a steel door and enter a room with neon light, "stainless steel benches and laboratory equipment".  Paulie finds a centrifuge and says there's also a gel box meant to extract DNA.  No, he's not trying to create Jurassic Park, unlike Dr. Pook from La Isla de los Dodos.  "I know, you're thinking Jurassic Park.  But no, we don't want that.  We do, however, want to discover more about these creatures, and how they evolved".


The scientist says this area was formerly a missile silo, and then became a research center for the University of Montana.  He acts confused when we tell him about the smugglers, though becomes excited when he learns they have a big pile of fossils.  The scientist gives us an elevator ride to to the surface and says he'll call the police about the smugglers.


"That's my blue pickup', the man says.  'Jump in.  I'll give you a ride back to your camp'.  Mister Jackson stops what he's doing and looks up as the pickup pulls into the campground.  'So what trouble did you two get into?'  Mister Jackson asks as you get out of the Ford.  'I hope you haven't embarrassed the school'.


The man from the lab chuckles.  'No, nothing like that.  In fact, these two have been quite helpful'.  Then he explains the situation and repeats his invitation for the students to tour the dinosaur lab.  'See you tomorrow at ten', the man says, getting back into his truck.  You and Paulie wave as he drives away.


Once the pickup is gone, Mister Jackson puts his hands on his hips and stares down at you.  'Well it sounds like you two had quite and adventure'.  Paulie is so excited about the lab visit, he can hardly contain himself.  'Did you know that the lab used to be a missile silo and that there's all sorts of equipment they're using to extract DNA. . .'


You look at Mister Jackson.  He raises an eyebrow and nods towards Paulie.  Paulie hasn't noticed that the two of you have stopped listening.  He's still rambling on about the lab.  When Mister Jackson starts laughing, you join in, unable to help yourself.


Paulie stops talking, looks first to you and then to your teacher.  He seems confused.  'What-what's going on?  Did I say something funny?"


Those smugglers must be unlucky if their hideout is a facility owned by a university!  I was expecting at least one Death by cave-in similar to the tunnel one in La Prisión.  But You Say Which Way tends to be a more easygoing series than other CYOAs.


Results So Far


6 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

2 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


Reply

You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 9


Let's go up the hill in CHOICE #7 instead of descending into the mine.


Paulie and I pick up loose rocks "the size of softballs" and start chucking them at the smugglers below.  One of them falls on his back and says "Walter, help me.  I think I've broken my leg".


We come across a spring and refill our water bottles, and then Paulie sees a "dusty old trailer, its hitch propped up on a lump of sandstone".  Around the trailer, we find whisky bottles, tin cans, and a barbecue.  When we're about to leave, an old man appears and asks "What're you two young'uns doing way up here?  Not looking for gold I hope".  I tell him we're on a school trip, and ask if there are any bones around.


The prospector is searching for Bill Rafferty's treasure, and Paulie knows Rafferty disappeared in 1863.  When we mention the smugglers, the prospector says "Smugglers eh?  Those varmints better stay off my patch, or I'll give 'em what for', and then swings around his cane a bit.  He points the way back to the camp and says there are bones at the bottom of Long Canyon.


These fossils seem to come from Einiosaurus, a dinosaur that's essentially a smaller Triceratops.


CHOICE #10 is to either "follow the ridge", which is gentle, or "take a more direct route down one of the many watercourses".


Going along the watercourse is hazardous to the player character's health.  "Snake!' you yell up to Paulie.  Rattle, rattle, rattle, rattle, rattle".  I slide too fast and hit the snake.  "A sharp stabbing pain runs up your leg".


Paulie takes the lad and tells me to "keep quiet so you don't pump the poison around your system".  He reassures me that only 8/8000 people bitten by North American venomous snakes die per year.  My character at first was less optimistic and thought "2000".  My suggestions of sucking out the poison and making a tourniquet make Paulie say "You've been watching too many old movies".  "Blackness takes you", and we get this ending.


"When you wake up, you're in a room with white walls.  It smells of disinfectant and it's dark outside.  Near the window, Paulie is asleep in a chair and the ward is reasonably quiet apart from the squeak of rubber shoes on hospital linoleum and the beep, beep, beep of a monitor somewhere.


Paulie is still wearing the same clothes but he's washed his face.  You cough, and reach for a glass of water on the cabinet beside you.  'Oh, you're awake', Paulie says, rubbing his eyes.  'How do you feel?'  'I've been better, but I'm alive, thanks to you'.  'You really scared me', Paulie says'


'I thought you said I'd be fine.  That not many people died of snakebite'.


'Yeah, well I didn't want to worry you.  On the bright side, Doc says you'll be okay to leave tomorrow afternoon.  You'll just have to take it easy for a few days'.


'No more fossil hunting, eh?' you say, giving your friend a smile.


'Not this year.  But there is some good news.  They caught those fossil smugglers.  I forgot all about them when you tangled with that rattler.  But it seems you were talking in your sleep and one of the paramedics asked me if what you were saying was true or just a nightmare.  I said it was true and told them about the men.  They got on the radio and contacted the police'.


'Wow, that's great', you say, resting your head back down on your pillow.


'It's been exciting alright.  I got to give a statement to one of the policemen.  Did you know that police capture over three thousand. . .'


You drift off to the sound of Paulie telling you all the facts he's learned about the police.  It's quite comforting, almost like having someone read you a story".


So which category would this ending fall under?  The smugglers are captured, but I took a bite from a POIsonous snake in the process.  Then again, it's not a lasting injury like getting conked on the head with the coconut in La Isla de los Dodos.  So it'll be Neutral, maybe?



Results So Far


6 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

3 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


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You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon Alternate Endings Part 10


Our final ending for this book requires me to "follow the ridge" in CHOICE #10.


We cross the ridge easily, and Paulie almost forgets about the smugglers.  We decide to search different sides of the canyon and look for dinosaur fossils.  There's a change of plans when "you don't see the rotten timbers on the ground in front of you until it's too late and the planks are cracking under your feet".


I fall through a trapdoor, but fortunately there aren't any snakes.  There's a trunk with a piece of paper which turns out to be Rafferty's treasure map!  The X happens to be on our campsite.


"And with that, you forget all about fossils and head back towards camp".


When we're back in a region with decent cell phone reception, we call the police about the smugglers.  Why is cell phone reception an issue only in the present, when we can get text messages from 2060 during the Cretaceous period?  I guess this is why the whole smuggler arc feels like it came from a different book altogether.


"The old stone wall looks more like an X from this angle.  Next to the wall, you find various parents sitting around the table, talking and preparing the evening meal.  Mister Jackson looks up from chopping onions and gives you a funny look  'What are you two so happy about?  You're grinning like you've won the lottery?'


'Grab a shovel, Mister J, and we'll show you'.  'Show me what?'  You shake your head.  'Nah.  I'm not going to say.  That would spoil all the fun'.


The next day, all the kids call you the 'prairie dogs' as you dig around the old wall.  It doesn't help that you haven't told them why.  The first time you ask Mister Jackson to move the camp kitchen, he lightheartedly complies.  The second time, he decides enough is enough.


Then, just as you're about to get a telling off, Paulie's shovel rings out against something metal.  'Holy moly', he says.  'I think I've found it!"


And with one final "Holy moly" from Paulie, we conclude our journey into Dinosaur Canyon.  I enjoyed this book, though the smuggler arc and time travel arc should have been separate books.  As they are, they feel incomplete because each has so few CHOICEs.  It sure beats the repetitive endings of Dragons Realm and 22 Minutos:  Tibicenas, or the weird inconsistencies and nonsensical consequences of La Isla de los Dodos.


(Although the dream ending is a cop-out, and turns the book into yet another solipsistic universe where the main character magically alters reality with their thoughts and decisions.)


Wonder what funny comments RefSteel will have about Dinosaur Canyon?


Final Results


7 Good Endings

1 Deaths

0 Bad Non-Death Endings

3 Neutral Endings

0 Inconclusive Endings
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


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Herman Gigglethorpe's Gamebook Scoreboard Update


Time Machine 6:  The Rings of Saturn


-NO SCORE.  The only ending is victory, so failure is a minor setback at worst.



You Say Which Way:  Deadline Delivery


-GOOD ENDING.  I saved the under-city from the slave trading Piranha gang by crashing the Rusty Rhino into a concrete column before they could destroy Big Pig's Wall.  I'm still a Deadline Delivery courier, but I have enough money to buy almost-new shoes and dinner, and I don't have to pay Big Pig's toll.



La Prisión:  Elige Tu Propia Aventura


-GOOD ENDING (possibly the best).  I got ingredients for Félix so he can send a message rocket to his friends outside of prison.  ARTUS's conspiracy is unraveled, and both of us are set free.  It's implied that we retire to a tropical island by finding Félix's gold stash.



Isla de los Dodos


-BAD ENDING.  Vijay tricked me into going to a house full of Mauritius mobsters who bound and gagged me.  My final fate is unclear, but the line about being a "pawn in a game of mafia chess" isn't promising.



You Say Which Way:  Dragons Realm


-GOOD ENDING.  I become a dragon rider.  Not that such a feat is hard to accomplish in this book, where most of the endings are in your favor.  Anyone playing this book should get points for finding a Death instead.



You Say Which Way:  Creepy House


-BAD ENDING.  I touch the cursed mirror and am trapped inside, forced to watch as a ghost steals my identity.  But then again, I was sort of going for a Death or Bad Ending this time.


22 Minutos:  Tibicenas


-BAD ENDING.  I survive encounters with the forest fire and demon wolves, but the priestess dies and I lose my sanity.  Guayota also probably eats the sun and conquers Earth.


You Say Which Way:  Dinosaur Canyon


-GOOD ENDING.  Paulie and I survive an encounter with a Troodon in the Cretaceous, and bring back a bone from the Bison Period to our camp in the present.  Then again, I was trying to get my character fossilized next to a dinosaur to confuse paleontologists, so was this really a victory?



Now's the time for the audience to make requests for which book will come next.  The candidates are as follows.


-You Say Which Way series


Dungeon of Doom by Peter Friend:  The player character and friends are trapped inside their favorite RPG after reaching a secret level and have to escape.


Secrets of the Singing Cave by Blair Polly and D.M. Potter:  I don't know much about the premise, because finding out about the world is part of the plot.  It seems to be about a tribe in a fantasy world trying to make sense of a strange cave and the local wildlife.



Movie Mystery Madness by Kevin Berry:  A film crew is short on staff, and the player character is hired.  The movie being made is "a murder mystery themed birthday party".  It's likely there will be actual murders.



-Spanish Books



No Me Llames Tami by Eugenia Alcatena, Melisa Marti, and Florencia Miranda:  An Argentine horror CYOA that has its female player character face "vampires, aliens, underwater monsters, ghosts, parallel realities, psychos with medical instruments, abandoned houses, secret cults, government agencies experimenting on the public, among others I'm surely forgetting at the moment", according to Goodreads reviewer Gizmo.


This one is available for free on the blog, which will hopefully not have any technical difficulties if you have me do it.  The title translates as "Don't Call Me Tami" in English.
"I wonder what that even looks like, a robot body with six or seven CatClaw daggers sticking out of it and nothing else, and zooming around at crazy agility speed."







T-Hawk, on my Final Fantasy Legend 2 All Robot Challenge.


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