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Questions about a storygame? Thoughts on Eternal? Any other IF you're playing out there?

Question about "Bestist Frend Jane"

20 days ago
I just finished Bestist Frend Jane, and it was one of the best stories I've ever read. I'm still mindblown over what I just read. For people who read it, I have a question.

In the "true ending", Ending 1, where you successfully get to the Grand Canyon, it's immediately followed by an epilogue that contradicts the ending and says you only got to Texas. The Epilogue also switches from 2nd person to first person perspective, which threw me off. Does that perspective shift mean this is a true story that the author is recounting? Or is he just speaking from the perspective of an older Billy who's reflecting on his life?

Which one is right? Did he make it to the Grand Canyon or not? I was confused by the Epilogue that says he only made it to Texas. Or is the Epilogue saying that this was based on a true story that really happened to the author, and in the real-life version he only made it to Texas?

The story was so engrossing that I feel like I really have to know whether he made it or not, because I was really rooting for him to make it. And Epilogue 1 was the last ending I read, so I was really rooting for him to not die or suffer any of the horrible fates in some of the other paths.

Regardless, this was a really great story. Kudos to TheNewIAP for writing such a cool epic!

Question about "Bestist Frend Jane"

20 days ago
IAP claimed this really happened to him. But he was a funny guy and had all kinds of these like, increasingly improbable stories making him out to be this "mountain man" stereotype with the toughest childhood of anyone who ever lived, walking 30 miles uphill both ways in the snow while carrying 300lb tree trunks and delivering papers and digging pit traps for moose by hand to not starve. Which the weak and pathetic youth of today could just never understand.

A lot of them started to contradict each other and he got a little weird in other ways before he left, so.... yeah. Odd little pocket of CYS lore there, the storygame is very good but I'd take anything else with a grain of salt.

Question about "Bestist Frend Jane"

20 days ago
Woah, if it really happened to him that would be crazy. I now feel really bad for the real-life Jane. At least one of the bullies turned out to be alright once he grew up.

Thanks for telling me about the author, that makes the game really interesting since it sounds like he lived quite a crazy life, even if some of it was made up. I guess having the creativity to come up with these outlandish tall tales translated successfully to storygame writing. He kind of reminds me of how my dad would tell these stories about how life was much harder back in his day and kids these days have it soft with their iPads and gadgets: 60 percent truth + 40 percent exaggeration.

After reading Bestist Frend, I hope he comes back and writes more since I wanted to read another one of his games but he only has one.

Question about "Bestist Frend Jane"

20 days ago

I mean the last we knew anything about him is he was going to take a trip to India for "reasons" and we never heard from him again.

Question about "Bestist Frend Jane"

19 days ago
I just really hope for his sake she didn't turn out to have a dick.