Suddenly I was standing in the control room alone. All around me was still. All around me was silent.

The poltergeist was gone.

The bodies on the floor were gone.

Was the storyline over? Did this mean we had won?

I looked at the red wallpaper. No, the storyline wasn't over. In fact, we had just entered the finale. But how was I alive?

I wasn't.

I thought I might have been a ghost, but then I realized that wasn't right either. The red wallpaper had me listed as Written off and Dead. As far as I knew, ghosts weren't Written Off. On the contrary, they still had sway in the story. Ghosts were merely Dead. I was both. Must have been really special to achieve that.

But what was I doing there?

My answer came with a familiar voice.

“Congratulations, you've won a ticket!” Silas the Showman said.

As I turned around to see him I noticed that all the security monitors were frozen. It was like they were paused.

“How am I getting a ticket before the end of the storyline?” I asked. “I'm dead, right?”

“In Carousel, death isn't always the end. Sometimes it's a well-earned rest,” Silas responded with his canned phrasing. "Other times it's just Carousel's way to say that you talk too much. Hehehe."

I knew the drill. I reached out and pressed his red button.

Four tickets popped out. Three tropes and one new kind that I hadn't seen before. It was short and thinner and had a few scant paragraphs.

Silas recited a poem:

“You can pick one from three, what will it be?

No matter the choice, no room to rejoice.

All three can save your skin or tear it off again,

The question remains, you must choose your pains,

In this game of dread, you can choose well and still be dead.”

Of course, Silas ended the macabre poem with one of his signature laughs, “Hehehe.”

Pick one from three of what?

I turned over the cards in my hands. The thin one had the words “Start Here!” in big red letters. I took that as a sign.

I focused on the ticket. It was colored black with text that was printed onto the ticket during its creation. It featured fill-in-the-blank sections but was otherwise generic.

You’ve reached a level where the game starts to get more difficult. Luckily, you are about to get the tools to fight back.

Having achieved Plot Armor 21 and having afterward accomplished the requisite feat of [dying in a storyline] you have now unlocked your choice of aspect.

Choosing an aspect allows you to decide what type of [Film Buff] you wish to be. Good luck!

After I read the ticket, a plaque with lots of writing on it appeared on the red wallpaper.

As a Film Buff, you have a deep appreciation for the art of cinema. However, the way you engage with films can vary greatly, leading to different paths: the Fanatic, the Critic, and the Filmmaker. The choice of aspect will shape your abilities and influence your journey in significant ways.

Fanatic: The Fanatic is a superfan, especially of horror movies. Their passion and extensive knowledge of films make them adaptable and formidable in combat. They learn from rewatching films, preparing them for similar situations or enemies. Their approach to film is instinctual, and their vast movie-watching experience equips them with unique, situational meta abilities.

Example tropes that a Fanatic possesses include Ghoulish Enthusiasm, which buffs the player when they're perceptibly excited about scary endeavors, Shared Fandom, which helps gain info from NPCs by bonding over shared interests, and Weekend Stage Fighting Workshop, which allows them to fake fight, causing enemies to also fake fight temporarily.

Critic: The Critic is an analyst, able to dissect and critique films with precision. They use their analytical skills to understand the underlying mechanics of the storyline and provide valuable insights. Despite their physical fragility, they have strong Insight tropes and high Savvy, reflecting their intellectual prowess and deep understanding of film. Their insights can influence the course of the game and unveil new, intriguing story arcs.

A Critic has tropes like Eye for Intermission, which gives insight into when breaks from important plot events are coming up, The Renowned Intellectual, which assists in getting information from NPCs who admire the player’s career, and A Killer Review, which allows the player to leave vague reviews about the killer after death that allies can read on the red wallpaper.

Filmmaker: The Filmmaker has a comprehensive understanding of the filmmaking process. They can manipulate the game environment effectively, altering the game's dynamics in subtle but impactful ways. Their abilities are a mixture of meta-Insight and meta-Rule tropes. They have higher Hustle, reflecting their ability to stay out of the way, stay alive, and remain unseen as they manipulate meta movie elements.

Tropes that a Filmmaker has include Flashback Revelation, which allows dead players with Deathwatch to echo words they have said on-screen to surviving allies who heard them, It's Just a Puppet, where knowledge of movie monster making soothes fear, and No Stab in the Dark, which helps ensure that important plot events like death will not occur in low-light locations where the audience cannot see.

Choosing your aspect is a crucial decision. It not only determines your abilities but also sets you on a unique path. Whether you're a Fanatic, a Critic, or a Filmmaker, your love for cinema will guide you, but your approach to it will define your journey. Choose wisely.

Finally, I got to learn about aspects. All I knew about aspects I had learned in passing from the veterans, who tried to explain them to us but usually their explanations were difficult to follow because we were too low-level to even see what the aspects of our tropes were.

Now I wasn’t.

I flipped over the three tropes I was given. I had to choose one.

Each was a Film Buff trope and each was from a different aspect. Critic, Fanatic, or Filmmaker... an interesting choice.

I reviewed the three tropes I had to choose from.

Camped Out on Opening Weekend

Archetype: Film Buff

Aspect: Fanatic

Type: Insight/Buff/Perk

Stat Used: Savvy

As an ardent horror movie buff, you've gone to great lengths for your passion. From taking time off work for premieres, and camping outside theaters, to immersing yourself in every detail of your favorite flicks’ creation, your dedication is unparalleled. After multiple viewings within the first week of release, you've mastered the nuances of each new horror film. Your love for horror is not just a hobby, it's your way of life.

Deathwatch: the player can observe a storyline after their character's demise.

With this trope, Deathwatch allows the player to enter the Theater from the red wallpaper and watch the film version of the remainder of the storyline in real time.

In addition to this ability, the player may rewatch the film without needing to visit Carousel Family Video.

This ability to rewatch enables the Fanatic to learn and adapt, enhancing their performance. After having rewatched a storyline, they will receive situational buffs when rerunning it. Rewatching storylines will also lead to buffs in new storylines with similar scenarios or enemies to those that have been studied.

This ticket is granted after the first character death following the achievement of Plot Armor 21. Selecting this ticket aligns you with the Fanatic aspect.

“To a true Fanatic, watching a movie isn’t just entertainment, it’s preparation.”