Well,
mes amis, ‘ere we are at ze end of ze road and, as ees so often ze case in zese games, I find myself laid bare. I believe zat in Survivor, whether you like eet or not, your true nature ees revealed to yourself. And now, as ze game winds down, I think I realize what part of myself zis game ‘as exposed. I think zat eet can be summed up in one word:
I ‘ave put so much effort into zis game,
mes amis. I ‘ave probably put too much effort into eet. From ze moment I received my acceptance PM until zis moment
maintenant, I ‘ave cared so much and I ‘ave tried so, so ‘ard. Before ze game even began, I compiled a list of French phrases used by Poirot in ze novels to aid in my characterization. I spent hours upon hours perfecting my representation of Poirot throughout ze game (and in my confessional), sending enormous wall PMs peppered with French words and phrases. My elaborate posting gimmick was in and of eetself a testament to my effort and ees ze perfect representation of ze kind of person and player zat I am, but my effort went far beyond zat. And just as effort can be a strength, eet can also be a weakness.
I put effort into getting to know every person I met, even people like M. Blart who I knew were about to unanimously go ‘ome. I put effort into socializing and effort into making genuine bonds. I enjoyed eet, but I could not do anything else. Zere ees a reason zat I ‘ave spent more time on ze forum zan any other player. I was incapable of not putting in effort. Eet ees at ze ‘eart of who I am.
I developed a reputation as a social threat because I ‘ad to put in effort. When I was in danger, or even sometimes when an ally was in danger, I ‘ad to fight as ‘ard as I could and leave everything on ze table. I played ze game, 'ard, round after round, to keep myself in ze best possible spot. Zis ees not a choice for me,
mes amis. Eet ees a compulsion. Eet ees not something zat I can ‘elp. Eet ees something zat I bring to everything zat I do. Eet ees too central to who I am as a person for me to leave at ze door.
At times, my effort led me to do things zat I know some of you are uncomfortable with. I understand and respect zat. If zat ees what costs me your vote, eet ees perfectly
raisonnable, and I do not blame you. But please do understand zat eet brought me no pleasure, as much as I ‘ave touted eet as a strength throughout FTC. I will apologize for ze emotional pain zat I caused, but I will not apologize for putting in effort. I will not apologize for always doing everything zat I could to keep myself in ze game.
At FTC, I felt myself putting in effort, as I always ‘ave. I think at times I put in too much effort. I put in so much effort zat eet seems like I need to put in zat much effort to sell my game. I don't. My game stands on eets own. At times people told me zat things I was saying were not acknowledging enough of my faults or only telling people what I think zey want to 'ear. I don’t necessarily agree with zose criticisms, but I understand where zey come from. I 'ave never intentionally misrepresented my game. I stand by most of what I 'ave said. I legitimately think zat my game ees
fantastique, and I wanted to ‘elp you all to see zat.
But in pursuit of zat goal, I ‘ave per’aps oversold my case. When I put so much effort into constructing every response, eet may 'ave made zose responses seem less genuine. If zat ees why you find yourself unable to vote for me, zen again, I understand completely, but I do urge you to really strongly consider zat. Because beneath all of zat effort at FTC, zere ees hundreds of times more effort throughout ze game.
Even if you disagree with many of ze arguments I ‘ave made at FTC or didn’t appreciate ze way I advocated for my game, my FTC ees ze perfect embodiment of ‘ow I ‘ave played zis entire time. Just as I was working every angle zat I could for myself in each FTC response, I also worked every angle zat I could every round zat I was in ze game. I will not apologize for trying to sell my game as best I could. Zat ees what I must do at FTC. I will not apologize for my effort.
Because ‘ere ees ze thing,
mes amis. As much as effort can be flawed, as much as eet can lead you down ultimately destructive paths,
pour moi, ze effort ees enough. Eet ees enough because eet ‘as to be enough. Eet ees enough because eet ees what I ‘ave to offer ze world.
And when eet comes to effort, I believe zat ze good outweighs ze bad. I could not live with myself if I came to FTC and did not pitch my game as ‘ard as I could and zen lost. Or if I ‘adn’t tried what I did at 4 and went ‘ome to a firemaking challenge. Or if I ‘ad not removed M. Grouch at 9 and zen M. Grouch became my undoing in ze game. I could not ‘ave lived with myself if I didn’t fight as ‘ard as I could to save M. Briscoe and M. Peralta, even if eet was unsuccessful. Or if I didn’t build every social bond zat I could to ze best of my ability, even if zat meant ‘aving to sever some of zem in brutal ways. Or if I didn’t give zis game every ounce of effort zat I ‘ad in ze tank. Eet goes against my nature as a ‘uman being.
None of zis means zat I don’t take responsibility for zese things. I do. I understand ze problems of too much effort left unchecked. I understand ze shortcomings of my game and of me as a person. When you play with such single-minded determination, you can sometimes lose perspective on things, and zere definitely were moments where I did zat.
But
pour moi, ze effort ees enough. Ze fight ees enough. Ze willingness to make crazy plays. To push your own limits. To take risks and see if zey pay off. To backstab friends. To lie. To blindside. To do whatever eet takes.
I will not apologize for zat. I will not apologize for who I am as a person, for one of my best traits and one of my worst.
I do not mean to suggest zat M. Morningstar did not put in effort. ‘E did. I’m sure ‘e wants to win as badly as I do. But effort does not dominate ‘is personality. Eet ees not ‘is defining trait.
If you want to vote for restraint, vote for M. Morningstar. I ‘ave no restraint. I ‘ave no subtlety. I am unwilling to not push things as far as I can possibly take zem in ze pursuit of my goals. Zat ees not what I bring to life, and zat ees not what I brought to zis game.
If you want to vote for effort, vote for me. If you want to vote for someone who really really really wants to win and who was willing to do whatever eet took in ze pursuit of ze win, vote for me. If you want to vote for someone who cares so much, too much, about zis Internet forum game, someone who played ‘ard and made moves and ‘ad control and lost control and regained control and fought ‘ard for everything zat ‘e was given, zen vote for me.
I will not directly compare my game to M. Morningstar’s in zis speech. I don’t think I need to. I think you all know ze games zat we played. Most of you probably already know which type of game you respect more. I do not think either game ees a bad one, and if ‘e wins, I will be ‘appy for ‘im. Zis ‘as been a ‘ard fought FTC.
But I will say zat I want eet so badly,
mes amis. I want eet more zan I can even put into words. Because I ‘ave invested so much time, so much energy, so much effort into zis game. I ‘ave poured my ‘eart and soul into eet. Round after round I ‘ave fought. Winning zis would mean so, so much to me. Eet would mean zat everything, all of eet, all of ze work, all of ze betrayals, all of ze hours spent thinking, spent socializing, spent fighting, all of ze effort, all of eet was worth eet.
Zat does not mean zat I automatically deserve your votes, ‘owever. If you think zat M. Morningstar played ze better game or earned your vote in some other way, zen your vote ees yours and you can do with eet what you please. I respect whatever choice you make.
My game ees a strong one. I think I laid eet out fairly clearly in my opening speech, and apart from a few minor changes, I think zat most of zat speech still ees ‘ow I feel about eet
maintenant. If you still are undecided, reread my speech. Reread FTC. Decide for yourself what type of gameplay you want to see in games, what type of gameplay you most respect in zis game in particular. And zen if you still can't decide, vote for effort.
I ‘ope zat my effort ees enough. I ‘ave nothing more to give you. I ‘ave nothing more to give zis game. I ‘ave nothing more to give myself, so for me, eet ‘as to be enough. My effort ees ze
raison zat I made eet to ze end to plead my case in ze first place. I cannot regret eet.
And now eet ees in your ‘ands. You ‘ave to put in some effort. You ‘ave to decide what matters to you. You ‘ave to decide what type of winner you want to see. I’m leaving zis game ze same way zat I came into eet. I'm putting in effort and fighting until ze last. Eet ees ze only thing zat I know ‘ow to do.
I ‘ave tried to keep zis speech as
authentique to me and to ze game zat I played and ze person zat I am as
possible. I ‘ope zat you agree. I ‘ope zat ze effort ees enough for you
aussi. I ‘ope zat when you go to cast your vote, you vote for Poirot.
Merci beaucoup for a great game and for a respectful FTC. I’m so glad to ‘ave met all of you. No matter what, I’m proud of what I accomplished zis game, and I ‘ad such a good time. Eet was an honor to play zis game representing Hercule Poirot. I ‘ope zat I did ‘im justice.
And now, eet ees time to say
au revoir, mes amis. Au revoir. I gave zis game everything zat I 'ave. Zere ees nothing more zat I can do.
Topic: Closing Speech Drafting (Read 319 times)