Unfinished Story Tutorial

Here's a story fragment from my last game:

Six of us submitted endings. The winner? "...birthday balloon that said 'Sorry About Your Hamster.'"

Did it solve the mystery? No. Did it make narrative sense? Barely. But it was memorable and bizarre in a way that felt intentional, not random. That's the magic of this mode—you're balancing creativity, coherence, and "what will make people actually vote for this?"

How Unfinished Story Mode Works

AI generates the beginning of a story (usually 2-4 sentences) and cuts it off mid-thought. Everyone gets 30-40 seconds to write an ending—anywhere from a single sentence to a short paragraph.

All endings get shuffled and displayed with the original story start. Players vote on their favorite. Top-voted ending wins points.

Three Approaches That Actually Work

Approach 1: The Satisfying Completion

Sometimes people just want the story to make sense. If the setup reads like a thriller, give them a thriller ending. If it's wholesome, stay wholesome.

Approach 2: The Comedic Swerve

This is the party game sweet spot. Set up expectations, then yank them in a different direction. Works best when the original setup takes itself seriously.

Approach 3: The Horror Injection

Take an innocent setup and make it unsettling. This works surprisingly well even with comedic groups because it's still entertaining.

What Kills a Good Ending

I've written probably 200 story endings at this point. Here's what doesn't work:

Reading the Room (Or Lobby)

After a couple rounds, you'll get a sense of what your group likes. Some lobbies vote for clever wordplay. Others vote for whatever makes them laugh loudest. Adjust accordingly.

In a recent game, I noticed every winning ending had a dog in it. Not because of narrative necessity—just because our group collectively loved dogs. By round three, I made sure my submissions included at least one canine reference. Won two rounds straight.

Is this gaming the system? Yes. Is it also understanding your audience? Also yes. The line between the two is pretty thin in party games.

Advanced Technique: The Callback

If something funny or memorable happened in a previous round, reference it in your new ending. Shared experiences create instant connection.

⚠️ Warning: This only works if people actually remember the earlier reference. If you're playing with randoms or it's been 10 rounds since the original joke, skip it.

Genre-Specific Tips

For mystery setups: Either solve it in an interesting way OR make the "solution" more confusing than the mystery itself.

For romance setups: Subvert expectations. Everyone expects a kiss or a happy ending. Give them something different—awkwardness, misunderstanding, or heartfelt weirdness.

For sci-fi setups: Go philosophical or go absurd. Middle-ground sci-fi endings feel flat. Commit to the bit.

For horror setups: Ambiguity is scarier than explicit gore. Imply rather than describe.

Quick Practice Round

Before scrolling, take 20 seconds and write your own ending. Then compare to some approaches below:

My Personal Rules for Story Endings

These aren't official, just what I've noticed works:

1. First read the setup twice. Understand the tone.
2. Decide immediately: am I going sincere, funny, or weird?
3. Write the ending I'd actually want to read.
4. Cut at least one sentence (less is more).
5. Read it again. Does it have a rhythm? Good sentences have music to them.

Probably the most important one is number three. If you're forcing yourself to be funny, it'll land flat. Write stuff YOU find entertaining, and chances are others will too.

When You're Stuck

Sometimes your brain just blanks. You've got 15 seconds left and nothing. Here's my emergency backup strategy:

Pick the most important noun in the setup (detective, attic, lighthouse) and make it mean something different. Is the detective actually a crossing guard? Is the attic sentient? Is the lighthouse a metaphor that you're now making literal?

It's a cheap trick, but it works when you're panicking and the timer is ticking.

Final Thoughts

This mode rewards risk-taking. The safe, predictable ending might get a couple votes, but the one people remember (and talk about after the game) is usually the one where someone took a weird swing and actually landed it.

Don't be afraid to write something that might not work. The worst thing that happens is you get zero votes and everyone moves on to the next round. The best thing that happens is you write something genuinely creative and people screenshot it to send to their friends later.

Also, saved endings from previous games make great icebreakers. I've started about five conversations this year with "so I was playing this game where I had to finish a story about a haunted sandwich..."