Rockstar

First Impression: Rock on!

God that was a retarded thing to put there but whatever. I really liked this one but didn't have a better joke or anything to put there.

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Story and worldbuilding: It's been a hot second since I last commented on a story so bear with me if the format isn't exactly like I've been using. This story just lives and breathes. The character is fantastically written, has compelling motives and backstory, and narrates like an absolute boss. I actually felt like I was following a 30-something who's rock career never quite took off and is now resigned to playing for the church service.

I did have a bit of an issue with the gun fight ending. It kind of makes sense but I feel like that could have gone a different direction. The other endings that I decided I absolutely needed to find were pretty good. Most of the choices led to a completely different outcome than I expected a story about a guy who likes rock music but plays for a church service to go. I like that the character never really goes anywhere and is mostly accepting and chill with it. There's no flashy rise to fame, which really adds to the real life feel.

The atmosphere was awesome too. I could visualize everything in my mind, and it was glorious. The drag of public transit, the youth singing, the graveyard, the bar, even the music was playing in my head.

Gameplay: The gameplay was a bit... simple. There weren't that many choices. Most of them completely changed the path of the story and that's what really counts if you are going for more story and less choice. At least two choices were just extra dialogue though, and one choice was basically choosing yes or no and getting the same result either way. Other than that, no complaints.

Grammar: Pretty much immaculate. I know there were some things that were misspelled or shortened on purpose and that added to the story so I'm not going to complain about it. I do think that ol needs an apostrophe at the end, but I might be wrong.

Overall: I give this a 10/10. The feel of the story and the excellent writing beat out anything negative I felt about it. Good job.

This story is a must-read, if only as an example of how to use narrative voice to its full extent. If you’re looking for escapist fiction, this is not it. In fact, I think part of the purpose of this story is a critique of certain escapist fiction. It is a great story though, and apparently building off the setting of Sterling City, of which I have lamentably read only one other story. It also weaves an impressive musical metaphor throughout and references lots of iconic rock and roll.

If I were to characterize the story to explain what to expect without spoiling anything, I would say that the entire story is like a character. It’s three dimensional. It’s also quite realistic and modern in the fact that you’re not really expected to win, and I wouldn’t even say that there is any clear conflict in the story. It’s a jumbled mess of the protagonist struggling with himself, the world, other people, religion, and you could probably find more. In this way, this is probably the storygame that I have encountered that most represents the human experience.

That’s not to say that the story is as dull as the life lead by the Everyman. The title is Rockstar after all. Nearly any path you choose contains at least one life altering event for the protagonist.

SPOILERS

The highlight of this story is easily the narration. We’re guided through the life of the protagonist by his own thoughts. There’s a misanthropic wit that runs through the entirety of the story and sets the tone of Sterling. In this way, I get the sense that the character practically is the city.

I am also blown away by Ninja’s descriptive instincts. He seems to know exactly when to describe something and when to leave it be. I would daresay that can be attributed to lots of practice and a labor of love.

The characters of the story are varied, but also all the same. From Pastor D to the wino on the bus, everyone wears at least a bit of a mask. Religion I’m Sterling is almost invariably simple empty ritualism aimed at pleasing the masses who demand it. The metaphor often used is comparing it to pop music. Obviously, this type of Protestant Christianity is informed by real life, and also seems extremely American. That’s beautiful, because it builds the character and attitude of Sterling itself. The protagonist is also an interesting character as he is almost entirely reactionary and passive in his actions. He’s not in the driver’s seat of his life and neither are you. The choices almost always just choose how he will react to a situation. That is a feeling that I am certain many readers can relate to.

The story itself almost seems secondary. It’s not so much a story as much as a person’s life lived. It’s difficult to reasonably express my impression of the story because of how much it was character driven. The thing that definitely impacted me the most was the fact that specifically when the preacher strangled the kid and when Wormfood pulled his gun, it really did feel like everything just spiraled out of control. There was certainly no guessing which way the story was going next.

If I were to try my best to throw stones at Ninja’s castle from my glass house, I would say I have one possible critique. In the path after the preacher killed the kid, when the two of you were in the cemetery, there are a couple of choices that just don’t really matter. They don’t even change the dialogue that much. I sort of understand the motivation behind the preacher smoking or not, but it doesn’t seem like that much of a revelation that the pastor secretly smoked or smokes. There is a real possibility that I am just a bit dim and don’t get it though.

Very well written and an extremely enjoyable read :)

Good stuff. I like guns and roses and the implementations of music lyrics. Gives it a rocky gritty vibe as if I'm listening to some radio while driving.