Player Comments on Finding the Muse

I came into "Finding the Muse" thinking that it would be a linear story. What I got instead, was something surprisingly fun.

The story has you in the role of yourself as you try to think of things to do to strike your inspiration for a new CYS storygame. In order to do that, you can complete any number of actions including "Watching TV", "Exercising", or even "Viewing Facebook messages".

For the 5-6 times I played it, I ended up getting the Cake ending, without writing my story. This one is going to puzzle me for a bit. The replay-ability is relatively short, but has some good fun while it lasts.

I like the original concept for this one (once we ignore the special thanks to Kiel in the intro… :D) and the number of options and clever use of variables is very, very impressive. It’s great how some ways of getting ideas about better than others and that this game is actually pretty educational for site members from that perspective. The different options were well-written and relatable and I was pleased to get the winner ending (when I ran out of time I thought I had failed).

I like this one a lot. Ogre takes a simple idea and makes it work really well, giving several great suggestions of how to get inspiration (sorry, Muse) for writing. It would be interesting to know which ones work best for different people but I definitely think people with writer’s block should be redirected towards this game. I enjoyed it a lot 😊

I was directed to this to ‘Fine My Muse’ when I got writer’s block and it was surprisingly helpful. :0 Thank you!

I actually liked it! Although it did take me literal HOURS to get the winner ending, the game itself was pretty accurate and fun. Nice job!

Is it ironic that I was playing this storygame when I should have been working on my current submission to a contest? Why yes. Yes it is.

I got three out of five of the endings, but I'm not quite sure how I can get the ending where I actually submit something! It seems like I found my muse in my last playthrough, but I still got the cake ending...which wasn't a bad thing, as cake is good (dependent on the cake, of course), but still....

The options in this storygame were great ways to procrastinate, and pretty much all of them were variations of things I myself do to either procrastinate or awaken my muse (sometimes both at the same time). This storygame felt very true to real life, and I definitely felt a bit called out by it.

Great concept for a storygame! Thank you so much for writing and sharing this!

I got the English class ending.

Overall this game was a charming little exercise where you play as a character shockingly similar to yourself: a writer who's run out of ideas.

But the game itself didn't lend itself to combining the various different actions and there was virtually no branching, it was simply a list of clicks and you click on the actions.

I liked it because it gave me some ideas for how I can beat writer's block, but it doesn't stand on its own outside of that. I feel like there could have been a way to make tackling writer's block a bit more engaging, as it is, it read as a public service announcement.

Honestly the information presented could have gotten Ogre a commended post in the writer's workshop forum, as the linear style is more suited to forum comments.

It is a very interesting story. I tried many times, but I couldn't beat it.

Good concept. Is there a way to lose?

It took me like three tries to get the good ending, but I really like the ideas! I could definitely use some of these to 'find my muse' and write.

It was a swell story and it had a lot of choices.

This game feels well thought out and not what I expected it to be for something with the humor tag. I thought winning was pretty easy without knowing how many points each option gives or takes away in some cases. But I chose things that help me focus, let me take a break, let my mind wander, and/or put me in a better mood.

Overall, the point values for the options seem fair. This could've been filled with options that reduce the score, but it isn't and the options that do make sense. Some of the options that don't add much to the score could probably give fewer points, but I think it depends on whether your using them as a distraction or looking for inspiration to write.

The only problem I have with this is that one in the middle of the exclamation marks when you choose Mountain Dew/Coffee. While I wouldn't say this is the best game, it's still pretty good.

You should add an option to read "Finding the Muse" storygame in the storygame!

There is a lot of truth in this... recommended

For a short story, well-thought out, a balanced range of options to choose from. I was just a little confused about what was supposed to whether I was trying to get something different to happen when I went back to force write. But on the whole this was a lot of fun. The time element is a good addition. Thanks.

Ingenuity is very important as a criterion for me when reviewing a story. While there are a few examples of stories based on CYS as a website, this is the best example I've seen so far and was a fun game. I'm guessing this whole idea was thought up when trying to find an idea for another story, but is a fair addition to the site in its own right.

Scripting, I think, is undervalued on CYS, so it's always good to see someone like Ogre using his abilities to make something quite unique. In my opinion, a higher rating could be achieved by a combination of quality writing and substantial plot with good scripting, but I respect that this was meant as a small game rather than a heavily scripted epic.

I only found one mistake 'along' instead of 'alone' on my mountain hike. Obviously the others were purposely put in for comedic effect, giving the whole thing a silly, enjoyable air about it.

5/8 and I look forward to reading more of your work

:D Awesome! Really inspiring! It will bring you enlightenment!

C: nice ! (:

This was a fun way to show how hard it is to find inspiration for stories!!!

I loved this story! Managed to get the Winner ending after a while, there were lots of different options and it was wonderful going through all the different routes. It was quite simple at heart too. Well done!

Interesting...

It DID show some of the stuff I did to my own story (under process). This is more of an advice giver, than a storygame.

That being said, at least it does fulfill what it is designed and made to be. Usually, however, I look to a story which can DRAW, can keep one clicking/tapping choices and reading digital pages for a long time. And that, unfortunately, is not really found here.

Still a good concept, but I've read better. 5/8.

Cool.

The game was definitely amusing, as I didn't really do much ( drank coffee, slept, read a book, and a couple of other things) and yet still got the "Winner's Ending."
I wonder, however how doing some of the activites listed could take so long or be so short.It definitely interested me.
5/8

Not bad. Personally, I don't find this to suit me. Maybe because I'm a different type of person, so I have my own way to find my muse. But good job nonetheless.

I love this game! It really does have awesome tips!

I am curious as to how you can go to a bookstore and get back in 30 minutes.

I have tried so many times and still haven't gotten it! Is there something I'm doing wrong?
Well I love this idea in general, and you did a really great job on it. I don't see any grammar mistakes and but it's not a very fun game. 5/8

I was procrastinating reading this story. This story is about procrastination. Good job. Now I really feel like shit.

This aMUSES me! (laughs at own joke for one hour straight.) Really awesome story, I like how they are always varied and interesting.

Hm, shoulda won just by drinking the Mountain Dew ;P

I need to go back to English Clas... haha I really liked this story and I think it's a great trigger for people experiencing writer's block or just finding it difficult to get all their ideas together, maybe there should be a link to this in the Help and Info section? A really great, well planned and well thought out story/game :D

SO great! I love how this game works and I think it's a great idea, but why so hard?
I'm too stupid to think about what rating I would probably give it so I just chose 8/8
-Warriorstar