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Hey guys this is JMgskills here. I'm the  guy making the Star Wars series and I've recently just posted my seventh chapter. I've been talking with JJJ about featured games and he said to take it to the forums for the communities input. So here goes:

I would like one of my games to be featured, if possible. If this happened then the game I think mine could replace would be Reunion in the fan fiction section.

My reasons:

• For the past four chapters my games have been rated a seven. Reunion is rated five.
• I believe I make use of the advanced editor better(Items, pictures, etc.)

Now I want to  make it clear that I am NOT bashing the Reunion game. It's a good game but I feel that I need to list reasons why I think one of my games should be in the featured section.

Finally, if the community agrees with me then you guys can decide which of my games gets posted because they all have the same rating(chapters 4-7) and I don't know which is best.

Any comments are very appreciated on this topic.

I'd like t know who even looks at this and then decides whether a story should be featured. Is there some kind of time limit before a story is considered or something? Does it need so many ratings or what. The reason I ask is because of the above and seeming inconsistencies. For example, JMgskills points out his 7 rated game vs. a featured 5 rating game.

Also, 'The Adventures of Phoebe McGee: The Lighthouse' adventure was almost immediately featured when it was created. Then there are only 4 Modern games featured.

JMgskills (or anyone else) shouldn't have to "ahem" their own games for consideration. I'd like to see this being more proactive and consistent.

Haven't read them myself since I'm not into fanfic and not the biggest Star Wars fan, but I was sort of surprised one JMG's stories wasn't already featured since I think he's tied with Sin as far as long running series stuff is concerned and I know they're pretty well liked.

Though if we're going by ratings alone, Danny Phantom's Adventure and Star Wars, a New Galaxy also have 5s overall so you'd have to consider those as well for replacement. Then I guess you'd have to break it down and compare their rating counts and do a percentage or something.

I'd agree that one of JMG's Star Wars stories probably should replace something in Fanfic though.

Anyway I already informed DEP so if he cares to he can drag his ass over here and make the attempt to defend his story's honor.  Lol.

Rating is important but not the be all end all. March5th00 originally decided which stories would be featured but I mostly do that, now. I haven't read the Star Wars series by JMg but I'd be willing to feature one or more of them if they're better than stories which are currently featured.

"JMgskills (or anyone else) shouldn't have to "ahem" their own games for consideration. I'd like to see this being more proactive and consistent."

I don't think that's anything to be afraid of. Suggesting that your own storygame be featured doesn't make you out to be an ass, unless you phrase it like: "My storygame is so much better than that piece of shit, Reunion" or something. If we can't get past the fact that someone thinks their storygame is better than a featured game, it's us that have the problem haha.

As for consistency, how is it inconsistent? Seems to be pretty consistent to me. If you mean that you want all storygames to be featured exactly x hours after publishing, I think that's pretty unreasonable. Storygames are featured when it comes to my attention that they're better than featured storygames. If you see a case like that, post in the forums and we'll talk about it.

Back to the question at hand:

JMg, which of your series do you think is the best installment? Rating aside, can you pick one that you like best? If not, I think it's normal for the first of the series to be considered. However, if multiple of them are better than those published, then multiple can be featured. It's my policy that the best stories in the genre should be featured regardless of the diversity of them.

Out of all of them I believe 7 is the best, and most improved, of them all. I believe I use my items better and have stopped doing things that held my games back beforehand. For example:

I've stopped giving hints when a person gets end game links.

I've also stopped doing this when a character talks.

Character: "Hello."

Other character: "Goodbye."

So I think 7 is the most qualified.

I'll have a read then.

Hope you like it.

I liked it, but I don't think it was better than Reunion. The only one that I think it might be better than is Danny Phantom's Adventure so that's where we'll make our decision.

The quality of writing in Reunion is simply better and more polished, that's not to say that your writing is bad, it isn't, but DEP clearly proofread his story and took more time in sentence building. His writing has a flow to it that yours lacks. Don't be discouraged by that, DEP is an accomplished writer who has been writing for a really long time, and your writing seems to be improving with each release.

I think, in order to really improve your writing you should do the following things:

1. Proofread! There were errors in most pages. There was everything from misplaced words to spelling mistakes. This is my biggest issue too, but you really need to take the time to go over your pages thoroughly for spelling/grammar errors.

2. Think carefully before writing dialogue. All of the characters in your story speak similarly. If I was given the lines out of context without a character's name attached to them, I'd never know who was speaking.

Almost as big an issue is your lack of branching. The story was extremely linear and that's why I think that it doesn't warrant featuring. I'm open to listening to community opinion though.

For the first two things you said I can see you are right in and I will definitely work on those areas.

And for the branching, for me to continue my series it has to end on the same note. If I create my stories in the traditional chooseyourstory way then I could have as many as 3-5 endings(Which is a lot of work as well as me having to consider that for the next chapter. Now I could do what SindriV does and tell the reader what path was chosen but I don't want to do that. His idea, not mine.) So what I try to do is to balance it out is for the reader to choose how they continue the story.

I don't know if you've read all of it but at one point in the story you have three available paths to take. All of them lead to the continuation of the story but all of them are different in how you proceed.

I hope that clears some things up.

Another way I try to make my games non linear is the battle scenes. If you had dueled one person there then you would eventually come across a page with no link. There the reader grabs control of the fight and gets to use the items to proceed. 

Some attacks work while others lead to death. And all the force and lightsaber techniques lead to a page so the reader can try anything.

I understand that it's an interactive storygame, but it's still linear. You've given multiple ways for us to get from Point A to Point B, but there's still only Point A and Point B. Non-linearity happens when you get Point A leading to either Point B or C (or more).

I understand why you don't want to branch, I get it, but the fact is that your story doesn't branch much. That's a detractor in my eyes. I would have liked to see you make one gigantic storygame for your entire series and then have a whole plethora of endings but I understand that that would be a ginormous undertaking. Anyway, what I'm saying is that if you want a featured story, you should make a CYOA with multiple endings because linear storygames are just not the same!

So like maybe three different endings?

I see.

Thanks for taking the time to check out my request JJJ. I admit that some of the things that you pointed out to me I do need to correct about my games, which I will do. On the other hand, there are some things that I will keep the same, like the branching idea. 

The thing is, I like the way I write my stories. I find that I feel the most joy in my writing when I write my games as if it's a story with a singular ending. In the past, I have actually tried to do what many on this site do but it's not me as a person or writer. In all honesty, I don't like chooseyourstory games as much as normal stories like in books. The only real reason I post so much on this site is because of the pictures, items, and the way I can make and control battle scenes. 

And if me keeping the way I write means that one of my games never get featured then so be it. I would rather write my games and be satisfied with my work rather than to sacrifice my own happiness just to get it featured. 

I thank you for your time and advice. 

Hell yes. That is a proper attitude and I have so much respect for the way you presented it.

Hold on a second, I've just found something interesting. JJJ, you stated, and I quote, "I understand that it's an interactive storygame, but it's still linear. You've given multiple ways for us to get from Point A to Point B, but there's still only Point A and Point B. Non-linearity happens when you get Point A leading to either Point B or C (or more)."

I understand why you said that but another featured game, Buried by greevisi, is also linear, yet it is featured in the horror section. I've even checked it out as well. It has a lot of ways to get to the end, but there is only one ending. The other "endings" are just end game links telling how you failed.(Just like my games do.)

Why is that?

I thought games had to branch out and have multiple endings to be featured, yet this one doesn't. You also said:

"Anyway, what I'm saying is that if you want a featured story, you should make a CYOA with multiple endings because linear storygames are just not the same!"

Yet again, Buried does the exact thing that you said a linear game shouldn't have.

Why is this possible?

I thought that a linear game was a detractor in your eyes.

He also said that at one point, Madglee was the one to feature games. So perhaps Madglee had different criteria that he though fit for featuring.

But I don't believe madglee was around when it was featured, just JJJ. And even so, if JJJ is the guy acting in charge of the site  shouldn't he have the power to say no to madglee, even if madglee wanted it? That would mean he was ok with the idea of the featured game.

If not, does this mean that other people other than JJJ can approve featured games?

I'm not sure, but from my understanding only 3J and the owners of the site can feature and unfeature games.

That's exactly what I assumed as well. If that's true, then why is buried featured then considering JJJ's qualifications?

Buried has other qualifications your game lacks. There isn't a cut and dry method. If a game is good enough it gets featured. Linearity is a detractor, true, but it can be overcome. List all the issues 3J brought up about your game. How many of them can be said about Buried?

I'm not saying that my game deserved to be featured(Because the stuff he pointed out was correct.)

However,

He said that the main reason it couldn't be featured was because of the linearity. Now I like my games the way they are and I was saddened to here that they couldn't be featured because of this. But, if I improve my games on the areas other than the branching then one of my games in the future can still be featured.

That's what I wanted to know.

Given that several stories that are featured are somewhat linear, it stands to reason that yes, if you improve the other aspects of your storygame, the linearity of it will be forgiven.

Alternatively, you could have several different endings, but only one "real" ending, which would be the ending used in the next installment of your series (much like how I think Sindriv does his series).

Honestly, with doing a continuing series I don't think it's even possible to make it all to non-linear.

That sounds absolutely reasonable. I've never said my stories are perfect and I'm always trying to improve so this is very encouraging.(Hopefully JJJ will agree.)

Right. There are two factors at play here.

1. Buried is part of a weaker category as a whole. If there was an empty slot in your category, like in Modern adventure, I could see featuring your storygame. However, Sci/Fi is full.

2. Linearity isn't an 'unforgivable sin', just a major distractor.

1. I'm talking about Fan fiction(I most definitely did not create Star Wars.)

2. So then one of my games could be featured?

3. I wasn't aware that a slot was missing in horror before Buried.

Sorry, still, Fan Fiction is a more developed category. One of your storygames could be featured if it was better than one of the games that is currently featured. But the games that are currently featured are better, like I said earlier, multiple times.

But you said that the Danny Phantom game could be considered. 

"The only one that I think it might be better than is Danny Phantom's Adventure so that's where we'll make our decision."

We didn't discuss the Danny Phantom one though. Also, you stated to me that you would let the community have a say if it got featured but you didn't take a vote or anything.

Proof:

From: JMgskills

End of proof.

And there are people who feel that my games are pretty good. There have been people who have consistently commented and liked my games(Showing that at least some of the community likes it.) and even Endmaster, a prominent member of the site, thinks that maybe it should be considered.

So why aren't we taking a vote on this?

Community Involvement
Endmaster said that he hasn't read your storygames. We don't feature stories based on the number that are published. The community didn't push one way or another, and even if they did, it doesn't force my hand, which is why I said the word 'generally'. Community involvement is important and I do usually go with it, but I don't require it to move forward. This isn't a democracy. I try to involve the community a lot (and everyone can vouch for that) but don't try and contractually bind me to it, that's really annoying.

Danny Phantom Adventure
At this point, there's zero chance of your storygame getting featured. I've made a concise argument as to why, I gave you three things your storygame didn't do well and I told you what you needed to do to write a better storygame. If I thought your storygame was better than Danny Phantom Adventure, then I would feature your storygame. I didn't think that it was (I thought that the deciding factor between the two was linearity) so your storygame isn't featured.

The Annoyance of this Conversation
You're no longer arguing for the merits of your storygame, you're attempting to get it featured by prying at what you consider to be inconsistencies/loopholes. There aren't any and it's frustrating to be defending myself in an arena where I perhaps should have just said: "Your storygame is worse. Make a better one." It may that in the future, when dealing with your stories, I'll just do that, since you seem to be unable to drop the matter, even when given concise information as to why your story isn't going to be featured.

I'm not asking for my game to featured, if you look at what I have said you would see that I never once said that I wanted the game to be on.

All I'm trying to do is understand what's going on here. Based on what you have said I thought that it was impossible for my games to be featured but then I found out that a game, much like mine, is featured.

This confused me because I thought you had strict rules.

I have now found out that one of my stories can be featured, which is what I wanted to know all along.

I'm not trying to be annoying, but I was really saddened at the thought of all my hard work never even having a chance at the big time.

If that's what you thought, then you jumped to conclusions incorrectly and since I addressed that much earlier in the thread, I would have assumed that you'd stop badgering. Since you continued to pull at straws, it's extremely fair to say that it would be impossible for myself or anyone else to come to the conclusion that you weren't still trying to get your story featured.

PARTICULARLY BECAUSE YOU JUST ASKED ME TO HOLD A VOTE.

I just wanted to know. You said one thing but did another.

So I want to know, to put an end to this without asking for my game to be featured:

Can one of my games be featured even though it's a bit linear?

And what I mean by that is:

Is there a possibility one of my games could be featured if I improve?

1. I never said one thing but did another. I said I usually involved the community, I said nothing about taking a vote. This is the 8th instance of you putting words in my mouth.

2. I'm going to quote all of the times, I've told you that you simply need to write a better storygame than the ones presently featured, in order to have a featured storygame:

"One of your storygames could be featured if it was better than one of the games that is currently featured. But the games that are currently featured are better, like I said earlier, multiple times."

"You publish one that is better than one of the featured ones. Admins decide which are featured."

"Like 3J said, a game being linear is just a detractor, not an unforgivable sin. As long as it's a great story and the community as a whole thinks it should be featured, I'm sure it would get featured." - Playa

"He didn't say it CAN"T be featured, he just said that if a story doesn't branch it is a major con." - Playa

"since we are a CYOA site, linearity IS  a big factor. however, if you do improve them, over time they can POTENTIALLY be featured. just focus on writing better each time." - Nate

"Linearity detracts, but it doesn't mean you can't have a featured storygame. However, it is a big detractor."

Stop it.

Thank you.

That's all I wanted to know.

Then you should have read it the first 5 times rather than continuously forcing everyone to consistently repeat themselves.

Ah, fair enough :)

He didn't say he would take a vote, he just said he'll listen to our opinion and nobody really spoke for or against your game being featured either way. If you want to take a vote, I'd vote for Danny Phantom just because I found it more entertaining. I'm not much into Star Wars and Danny Phantom used to be my favorite show so naturally it interests me more.

Note: This is in reply to Skill's latest message. The forums are a little buggy for me late at night and it's hard to reply to things.

I'm not asking for my game to be featured at the moment. It has flaws in it that I admit to.

What I'm asking is if my future games can be featured even though it's linear. 

See the thing is, I was going to let this go. I understood what he said and decided it was a valid reason. This is a choose your adventure kind of site, my game is to a degree(But not that much), I get it. 

But, I've found a game that is similar in the way it is written. We both have end game links where you deviate or make a mistake from the main plot. We both have one ending. Difference is, JJJ said a linear game couldn't be featured.

Yet it is.

So I want to know this:

Can my games be featured or not if they get better?

Because if so, and I blow my previous chapters out of the water with this new one(Which I'm aiming for) then that means it has a good chance being featured because my seventh chapter, even with all it's flaws, was still comparable to another featured game.

Like 3J said, a game being linear is just a detractor, not an unforgivable sin. As long as it's a great story and the community as a whole thinks it should be featured, I'm sure it would get featured.

So then why did he say a linear game couldn't be featured?

He didn't say it CAN"T be featured, he just said that if a story doesn't branch it is a major con.

But it being a major con isn't the only deciding factor, right?

That means that my games can be featured and if I improve on the areas I am weak then I can get one of them up there.

Right?

Correct

That's what I was hoping for.

I can change my grammar and the way my characters act, but I really love the way I write my series.

Thanks.

since we are a CYOA site, linearity IS  a big factor. however, if you do improve them, over time they can POTENTIALLY be featured. just focus on writing better each time.

nate

That's what I thought. I am getting better and I think this next one can be the one where people can consider it being featured. I'll have to work hard on the grammar and putting emotions on the characters but I believe I can do it. 

Finally, and going by JJJ's words, if it's better than my previous one then I really do think it can be featured because this one was close to the Danny Phantom game.

You need to immediately stop putting words in my mouth. Particularly when I've already clarified what I was talking about. Linearity detracts, but it doesn't mean you can't have a featured storygame. However, it is a big detractor. Writing your next one to be a little better than this one doesn't guarantee you a featured game. Writing your next one to be significantly (largely) better than this one, would guarantee you a featured game.

I'll repeat myself again though: You need to stop trying to put words in my mouth. Already in this conversation you've misrepresented my position on linearity, community involvement and the relationship between your storygame and Danny Phantom's Adventure. It's becoming highly frustrating and if you'd like me to be open about you with my process in the future, you need to stop doing that.

Edit: Nate and Playa's avatar's looked the same to me. Thank you so much Nate, that is a concise way of putting my position down into writing.

I didn't know.

There isn't an article on how or why games get featured on this site so I was just trying to understand. Also, you pointed out three things that I had to work on.

I thought what you meant was that if I improve on those areas then it can be considered to be featured.

"There isn't an article on how or why games get featured on this site so I was just trying to understand."

Go back to the very first message I sent you. You posted it earlier in the thread. (I'll put it here for you)

"You publish one that is better than one of the featured ones. Admins decide which are featured."

Then, I told you three things that I thought detracted from your storygame. The conversation could and should have ended there.

The conversation really went down hill. 

"Hell yes. That is a proper attitude and I have so much respect for the way you presented it." -3J

Conversation should have stopped there.