For End Master's Manifest Destiny Contest.

"Welcome to the experiment. A man is dead, and you have to find his killer. There will be a list of rules in your room once this briefing is over, but all you really need to know is this: There are five of you, but only one can solve the mystery. You will be given five days. Each night, one of you will die - no more, no less.

Ready? Even if you're not, it doesn't matter. You're in my world now."
 

This is also a War on Intfiction contribution.

Note: Aside from a few references to Dreamtruder characters/ events, this storygame is a standalone.

It is my first time writing a mystery storygame on this site, so I would appreciate if you could leave feedback on whether this mystery was too easy/ difficult to solve. If you find yourself stuck, don't hesitate to message me directly. That being said, do not feel discouraged if you are bewildered at first; as you progress further in the game, the clues and secrets would make everything clearer. Eventually, the secrets you find would allow you to make sense of most clues except a few, and these would point to the killer.

Make use of the notebook, which would keep track of the information you gained from the interviews and the secrets you may find out. Also, check the item descriptions of all the objects since some of these would have to be 'used' in order to access some clues.

Once you've solved the mystery, there are 3 possible endings you could get. Only one of these actually results in returning back to the 'real world'. If you're looking for this 'true ending', it requires you to play through the last of the five days rather than just skipping to the end and guessing the answer.

Good luck surviving the Halloween experiment!

Beneath the seas, hidden from the Ones Above, our society goes about our normal, routinely lives. I cannot help but feel bored with all that is going on, until I find the letter. A letter that sends me on a journey to deliver a magical item to the group of people that have been villainized over the years, the letter that challenges everything I thought I knew. But which side is on the side of good? How can I break out of the only world I have ever known? Should I join the heroic villains or the villanous hero? I have finally gotten the adventure I always needed, but not exactly the one I wanted.

Note: This game was created for Camelon's break contest. During the part where a specialist is assigned to the breakers, there are three different paths (Lawbreaker, Breaker of People and Breaker and Enterer). Due to time constraints, for those who would like to know, Breaker of People is the longest path, followed by Lawbreaker and Breaker and Enterer, but aside from the epilogues, it all leads to the same chapter 5. As before, feel free to comment or message me if you encounter any issues or problems that I should fix.

"The delicate balance between the dream world and the real world is disrupted. You intruded and messed up the dream of an innocent. By talking about this with an Unknowing, the possibility of the dreamstage being unveiled is now greater than ever. The Jury has made a decision - we have no choice but to send you to The Jungle..."

Life was hard, balancing work and relaxation. Then the nightmares came, and all I ever wanted was to be free of them. Yet, I never accounted for this - finding out the truth about the dream world, exploring the vast plane of the imagination...only to be whisked away to the longest nightmare ever. 

Think a jungle's bad? Try a fictional jungle, where literally anything can happen, and the most creative minds have conspired to give you a hard time.

Note: This game was created for Mizal's 'Welcome to the Jungle' contest. There are several epilogues, and while the main one is the normal Dreamtruder path, others include Dream director, Dreamcaster, Dreamediator, and Dreamhero. Fancy a challenge? Try completing the Jungle challenge without picking up any dreampowers - it's possible, but requires a bit of thinking and planning ahead. Also, for some items, click the 'use' button as a link would not be provided (if this is the case, it would be specified in the object description)

Since this would be my first published storygame, I am still relatively new to this. Feel free to message me or spam the comments if you encounter any issues, have any suggestions for improvement, or just have something you want to say.

Enjoy!

A quest doomed from the start. A man with an unwavering yet unusual moral compass. A daughter in the darkest depths of the night sky.

It isn't truly over until all hope is lost.

'Good and evil, heroes and villains… they are all fantasies created by the world. There are only two types of people: the people you care about, and the people you don’t.'

Arnold Cyzila's best life may have been long since over, but he would do anything to save his daughter from the clutches of her confinement. Even stealing an airplane, killing the innocent, and entering a dangerous world where death is almost guaranteed. 

[Warning: There are some mentions of murder, deaths and several dark themes, so if those things make you uncomfortable, perhaps it is better not to read this story.]

Note: I initially did not plan on joining this contest, yet I'm glad I did since it has motivated me to publish a new storygame. It is related to Dreamtruder in a way… well, you’ll see. While this story may not be as long as my previous two, it was interesting to write a shorter project. 

Just like all my other storygames, commenting and rating this story are both highly welcomed and appreciated. Also, as I have used quite a lot of variables in several fight scenes, let me know if you ever encounter a page where there are no visible links. 

Lastly, there are a few different epilogues but the 'main' one would be an epilogue which mirrors the start of the story (you'll know it when you see it). There are three possible ways to reach that. Even though I may consider it to be the true ending, it is not a typical happy ending.

If you don't like letters, extremely short stories or cliched moral lessons, don't read this. I found it when I was browsing through the old storygames I had created a long time ago. If I'm not mistaken, this was made for Mizal's Tiny 'Topias jam although I never really thought it was good enough to add to the thread. I don't think I'll publish this, but it's completed if anyone happens to browse my profile and wants to read it.

Note: This walkthrough isn't complete, so some parts are yet to be added.

On a dark and chilly night, you visit the Skeleton to ask for hints in order to solve the mystery of 'A Haunted and Hunted Halloween'.


If you find yourself stuck while trying to complete A Haunted and Hunted Halloween, this is the guide for you! Since it is a walkthrough, there are bound to be spoilers, so I recommend reading the aforementioned storygame first before referring to this.

Do let me know if you happen to find any inconsistencies between the storygame and this walkthrough. As this would remain unpublished, I should be able to fix errors rather quickly.

That's all from me. Enjoy!

There's that pumpkin at the start, which counts as art. I also created... something.
 

Whoever sees this pumpkin is obligated to read the story above!

Edit: Here's an imgur link in case the image method I'm trying out doesn't work.

The only ‘bad’ thing here is the lack of comments this story is getting. It’s great, honestly. I’m not being too productive right now so I might as well praise this brilliant work of art (and I don’t just mean the picture at the top haha).

I like the corruption arc of the innocent main character, who starts off as a naive young girl. This character trait remains consistent throughout the entire story, which makes for an interesting read. The mother seems like her character foil, focusing on more materialistic things while Sweetums is sort of idealistic (which makes sense since her motivation of ‘revenge’ is based on the notion of righteousness). 

Although it’s a retelling, it encompasses a rich and vivid world with a multidimensional main character and an intriguing plot. There’s just enough that it resembles the source material too. As I stated in a previous comment, my vote would definitely go to this story if it were in the duel; from the well-written characters and their unique dialogue styles to the comedic theme throughout, it keeps me reading from the very start (and I don’t usually do much when I’m at this stage of tiredness, much less get inspired to write text walls).

I laughed at the thought of a little child fearing that she’ll somehow scare away a man, who later turned out to be a serial killer. But then she did much more than just scare him; she ended his life in the end. Immaculate foreshadowing there. This story balances out the more emotional parts with lighthearted comedic lines very well. 

The third person limited pov really works well for the story, since it allows the readers to feel Sweetums’ confusion and slowly familiarize themselves with this new, ghostly side of the world. During the orphanage part, the story takes a slightly darker turn, keeping with the dark undertones of the story it’s based on. Not everything that happens is explained, yet that is believable since the perspective is that of a young girl.

In keeping with Sweetums’ naivety, she charged into the library with an oversimplified plan that somehow, after the accidental possession, managed to actually work. Her taking control of the old lady is certainly a funny scene to visualize. This is followed by an even more hilarious scene (and I had to turn off my webcam in order to laugh it out). The anticipation, followed by the subsequent fall with a knife still in hand, was vivid in my mind. Then there was the shocked lady who suddenly regained consciousness and realized what a strange situation she was in. Lastly came the epiphany, which led to the satisfying death of the serial killer.

The Grim Reaper’s insults and the killer’s reaction reminds me of all the noob executions I’ve had the privilege to watch. After all, nothing makes an all-powerful mod more apologetic than the threat that the site would be denied awfully-written games if a noob is continued to be bullied, right? (that’s sarcasm, if any passing noobs can’t tell).

As I’ve grown attached to the main character, I’m glad that this story strayed away from the tragic ending in the other one. Overall, this story is amazing; more people should definitely read it!

I'd like to complain that Thara is too... amazing! She wrote a really nice review for me on my recent storygame and is generally a helpful admin. All CYStians are great, really (except the spamming noobs but those are still great for entertainment value, so everything's perfect on CYS).

Overall, I'd rate this site 10/10.

they all have endings where every action results in misfortune

Yup, Endmaster seems to have summed up that noob's life pretty well, which is probably why it's mad.

"actually good poem you wrote"

Ha, take that, Enterpride! Thanks, Soy_No_More! You certainly get all the inspiration credit.

(Just kidding about the first part btw, all the poems in this thread were great, whether for comedic purposes, entertainment, inspiration, or a combination of several factors. And impeccable rhyme scheme lol).

Now, I've got to focus on my Halloween story's walkthrough. I've delayed it for too long. 

Yes.

Are you sarcastically attacking Wizzy or did you mean to respond to the noob?

It'll be interesting to watch if this actually escalates to a poetry duel (especially if the main focus is on humour rather than rhyme schemes or meter).

Petals thrown in windswept waltzes,
Spring’s silver sheen atop their heads.
When Joy’s merriment begins to exalt us,
The luminous feeling spreads and spreads.

Dazzling rays slice through the darkness,
Sun-lit sands, they shimmer and shine.
Summer's warmth invokes a kindness,
And it quells the night by its design.

Orange-streaked leaves in rhythmic patterns,
Glide gracefully across the chilly altitude.
Autumn breathes life into the hidden,
We’re stranded in the silence of sweet solitude.

Withered corpses lay on snowy-white landscapes,
As beauty exists amidst the cruel carnage.
A tranquil flurry of ethereal, feathery shapes,
Descends to obscure Winter’s cold rage.

Brb, going to shatter a noob's dreams for the entry fee.