Button Mash adjusted himself on the seat, staring into the arcade cabinet intently. He had been waiting all week for it to arrive, and now, finally, it was here. Pony Quest V, the latest installment!

Ever since he first saw the poster for it, hanging triumphantly over the entrance to the arcade, he just knew he would have to play it. It was shaped like a banner, and read, “The Greatest Entry into the Pony Quest Franchise yet! For the Very First Time, Total Freedom of Choice. Coming Soon to an Arcade Near you!”

And here it was, flashing the word, ‘Ready’ in front of him, like a neon siren. Button eagerly reached down towards his stack of coins he kept on the floor, and inserted one into the machine. After pushing a button, the screen suddenly changed, and before him were three separate characters.

The first was a stallion, wearing a big floppy hat, over which flashed the word ‘MAGE’ in red letters; the second was a griffon, wearing the traditional armor of a Griffonstonian Warrior, over which flashed the word, ‘Warrior’, as expected; but the third was a newcomer. Instead of being a mare, dressed like a rogue, it was an old dragon, who seemed to tower over the other two, but in reality was only a little taller. Over him was simply the word, “Draconian.’

Button Mash knew he’d have to go with the unexpected, and so with a tentative press of several buttons, he selected the Draconian, and was thrown into the story. Apparently the dragon he had chosen was known as ‘Crimsonfire the Brave’, and had set out on a quest to save his clan of dragons.

Getting passed the tutorial was easy enough, and after that he was set loose into the world of Equestria.

And a few hours later, Button Mash was finished. “Whoa…” was all that he could say. This was the best game he’d ever played in the arcade, and he had played quite a few. And there had been so many choices! He just had to find out what happened in the others’ story modes.

But as he hit the button to replay it, he noticed that now it cost him four coins. Shrugging, he said to himself, “It’ll totally be worth it, just to find out what else happens,” and put in his four coins, from the stack that was still on the floor.

This time, he decided to choose the Warrior, and so was thrown right back into the story of the game. But… something seemed off. His attacks seemed different, certainly, but they did the exact same amount of damage as Crimsonfire’s. And the story… a griffo who had set out on a quest to save his nest. Button Mash shook his head, trying to clear away the implications. He took a deep breath, and carried on into the game.

And as before, a few hours later, he had finished the griffon’s campaign. “That can’t be right,” he muttered, staring at the ‘You Win,’ screen. The story, whilst superficially different from the Draconian story, ended up having the same ending. But, he had to admit to himself, he did make the same choices as before. Maybe it would change, should he do something different.

With that idea in his head, he once again pressed the replay button. But this time, the screen asked for eight coins. Button Mash gritted his teeth, but he wouldn’t let the game beat him. He inserted the required coins, took a deep breath, and selected the first character, the mage.

And again, he was thrown into the story. And once more, he noticed that his attacks, whilst looking different, did the exact same amount of damage as the others. Gritting his teeth harder, he prepared to once again play through the campaign, but this time make different choices.

Finally, after even more hours (By this point, the arcade was close to closing, but he still had time), he was at the final boss. And with the pattern of attacks he had learned the second time through, he struck down the foul demon and won.

And was faced with the exact same ending as before. Exactly. The. Same. Button Mash threw his head up, and let loose a howl of rage. And as management came to calm him down, he burst into tears.

But, on the bright side, he had learned to never trust advertisement again.