Time to fly into another Give Yourself Goosebumps. So the first two books were solid premises that use the concept of the split paths very well. Can third time be the charm as we cover a book that's just plain batty? For some odd reason this was always one I felt mixed on covering I don't know why. Maybe it's time to be proven wrong as we end up Trapped in Bat Wing Hall.
This is a decent cover, but not one I think that much of the problem is the bat's anatomy. It has a good scary face, and the wings are cool, but the claws look unattached to the bat. Like they were added super in post. And the body doesn't have much to it as it just sort of lacks much of a bottom half. Some of the concept covers actually look better and do give the bat a feeling of having its claws attached to it body. It's far from the worst cover ever, just one that does feel forgettable in the grand scheme.
As is the case with these books, given that the protagonist is often presented as the reader and no specific gender is given, I'll be using They/Them and "The Player" when I talk about our protagonist. Cool? Things are about to get batty.
The player has been bored all week. They just moved to town with their parents and haven't made any friends now. That is, until they meet a boy named Nick who lives in the supposedly empty house next door. He mentions that he's part of a group called the Horror Club and they hang out every Friday at Bat Wing Hall, the former home of one Professor Krupnik. But it's a haunted house, so it's going to be very scary. It gives us our first path, continue talking or go home, and yep, the latter option is exactly what you think it is, Stine calling you a fool for not engaging further, and just takes you to the former option anyway. The player agrees to join the club and later that night, the player, Nick and a girl named Debbie arrive at the house, the player goes to walk up, but Nick stops them. It's a path to either listen, or keep going, with the former being an ending, so no split just yet.
The player, Nick and Debbie sneak into the building without getting themselves caught. Inside are four other kids who are nervous about another kid joining as their plans for just telling horror stories in Bat Wing Hall have changed. Tonight is game night and they're going to play a scavenger hunt. They form into two groups, a red group consisting of Nick, Debbie and a boy named Connor, while the blue team consists of other members of the group, Marcie, Laura and Martin. And with that, we have our actual true split of the book. Which team should we join?
PATH #1: SCOOBY DOOBIES
We'll start with the red team path. The player is given a list for the scavenger hunt which consists of finding a human bones, three werewolf hairs, straw from a witch's broom and a mummy bandage. The player thinks this is all a jape, but Debbie, Connor and Nick remove their faces to reveal hideous monster faces underneath. Nick looks like a reptile, Debbie is purple and warty with tarantulas in her hair, and Connor is a seven foot tall cyclops. So to say this escalated quickly is an understatement. The next path is the player either believing or not believing this to still all be a joke despite, you know, it being some damn impressive makeup. Of course it's legit. The player is, obviously, freaked out and ready to leave, but the kids block their path, saying there's only one way to leave the game. And that's to find all four objects before midnight. If not, the player is turned into a monster. Next path is going either upstairs or the main floor. To get what are considered the good endings, it's the main floor.
The player searches the dining room and kitchen. After being scared by a large rat, they find some bandages in a drawer. However, Debbie brings up that those aren't actually mummy bandages. The next place to look is a closet that seems to be oozing with blood, or check the dining room again. Closet is the path, so the player opens it to find it's just a knocked over jar of jam. But there is a skeleton hand in there, so the player grabs a piece of the pinky and that's the bone portion done with. Debbie then talks with the player, saying that Nick and Connor don't intend on letting the player leave, but she's on the player's side and will totally help them out. So that's our next split. Trust her or continue the hunt. This time it's continuing the hunt. Debbie gets angry and throws her tarantulas at the player. So it's two doors to choose to escape. Orange or blue. Orange actually causes a weird nightmare loop where the player wakes up and the game resets to page one, so blue it is.
The green door brings the player back to the living room, where there just so happens to be a mummy wandering about. Also the other kids are talking about the player. Eavesdropping is a bad option, and we need that mummy wrap, so that's our path. The player finds the mummy sleeping next to his sarcophagus, so it's a split path of either taking it from inside the case or from the sleeping mummy. For the better endings we need to take it from the mummy, which is successful. Now we're down to two items left and two paths to take. A staircase leads the player upwards and they can take the left or right way. Both can lead to the ideal endings, but one requires you wearing a sweater. It's not even fully autumn yet, so we'll start with the path that doesn't require a sweater. The player finds a rope ladder that takes them to the attic. Inside is a broom and a box with someone screaming for help inside. Inside it is a witch, who asks the player to help her. Should we? The answer this time is yes. The witch thanks the player and gives them her broom, but warns that they have to gently pluck the broom straw. They take the broom to the elevator to the basement to find the werewolf.
However, entering the elevator gives LA Law flashbacks as the player is about to plummet to the ground. But since the broom is magic, they manage to use it to fly downwards. Down in the basement are Nick, Connor and Debbie along with a werewolf in the cage. With only four minutes left the player has no choice but to go into the cage to confront the snarling beast. This gives the next path. Does the player try to command the werewolf or pretend to be one? The player gets the werewolf to shake just as the clock is about to hit all twelve chimes. This gets them the hairs they need. Suddenly, everything resets. They find the kids looking human again with no clue what the player is talking about. Nick then tells a story about three kids who were secretly monsters and the player decides that's enough for them so they go home instead. Okay, now that's a funny way to end this.
But what if we were bundled up for the incoming cold weather? Well, instead of continuing the hunt, the player sees that Nick and the others are playing a video game called Mud Monsters, which I guess counts as our reference to past books. The player realizes that maybe if they beat Nick at the game, the hunt will be called off. The player does well, managing to make it to the final level to face the mud monsters. The monsters throw a wave of mud at the player who has to either jump or duck. The player jumps and wins the game. While the monsters argue, the player rushes out the door, but not before being stopped by a skeleton. The player kicks the skeleton and escapes Bat Wing Hall. They return home to see their little brother playing Mud Monsters. The player plays with them and loses.
So that was a wild little scavenger hunt. But what if we went with the blue team instead?
PATH #2: NA NA NA NA BAT, MAN!
The blue team takes the player outside and tasks them with finding the scariest thing possible in the cemetery. The player finds the Krupnik Crypt and is about to open the door, only for the inscription to say that entering the crypt will make them grow bat bones. But to continue the story that's what the player does. There's nothing inside so they leave. They go home, only to have discovered they've shrunk and become a bat. It's then they realize that the crypt's spell was real. So now the player has to question if they'll return to the crypt to change it or wait until morning. The choice is the next morning, to which the player discovers they can't be in the sunlight or they'll burn up. So they wait it out until night and return to the crypt, even eating a moth in the process. But they can't close the door. So the paths require the player to pick either Martin, Marcie or Lara. For all of the good endings, it's Lara. But she thinks the player is just a normal bat and shoos them off.
The next day, the player bundles up and heads to the mall where they find the three kids. The kids either want to go to the science shop or see Dracula, because we need that extra tinge of irony I guess. Inside the science store are insects in a glass case, which makes the player hungry. The player finds a beetle and eats it, which grosses the kids out and puts the player in jail before their parents bail them out. The player never changes back, but does come up with the incredible ice cream flavor of "Beetle Berry Crunch". And yes, that technically counts as a good ending. But it wraps up too quick to satisfy, so let's go see Dracula instead. While they watch the movie, the player decides whether to tell the kids or show them. The path to the good endings is to show them. So they wait til later that night at the cemetery to wait for the kids. Suddenly they hear a voice calling to halt. Either do so or continue to run. It can lead to different good endings, so we'll start with halting.
The player halts and sees that the voice is coming from the ghost of Professor Krupnik, who is pretty sick and tired of all of the kids disturbing his slumber. The player tells him of their dilemma, to which Krupnik offers to undo the curse if the player can get rid of the kids. So the player tries to convince them of one of two options. That the place is haunted, or that they should move to another location. The player chooses to make Bat Wing Hall feel like a haunted house by having Krupnik try to scare the kids, but the group are excited to see a ghost, not so much scared. So either come up with a new plan or try to join in the scaring. The new plan is to make Professor Krupnik an honorary member of the club. The spell is lifted, the sun rises and the kids listen to Krupnik's ghost stories.
So that's what would go down if we halted. Instead the player runs for the mansion. The others arrive and the player turns into a bat. They lead the others to the crypt where the group sees the warning. The kids need to close the door, but to do that, the player has to convince them either by going inside or sitting on the door ring. We'll start with going inside first. The player manages to turn back to human form. However, Martin and Lara turn into a bat and a frog because there's other text that says that doing it more than once a year can yield unpredictable results. So the player decides it's best to keep them as pets until next year. Because I'm sure they'd consent to that. It counts as a good ending I guess. So what if we stood on the knocker? The kids try to shut the door but it's heavy, eventually they manage to shut it, breaking the spell. The player promises to tell the kids how being a bat was when they meet up at the next meeting.
We have 21 bad endings to go. And with the books having pretty straightforward gimmicks, I'm sure there will be a lot of fun variety here. Go on with your bat self!
#01: Instead of listening to Nick, the player steps on a burglar alarm and gets caught.
RATING: 1. Fine, but also so quick that it leaves no impact.
#02: The player still thinks this is a joke and tries to pull off Nick's face, only for him to eat the player instead.
RATING: 2.5. Good payoff for a very dumb decision.
#03: Nick says that time's up. The player notices the clock doesn't say midnight, but Nick says the game is being played on Monster time. The player starts turning into a monster.
RATING: 3. Fun little screwover of the player.
#04: Not helping the witch angers her and she casts a spell on the player, trapping them to her broom that flies off into the night, unable to stop.
RATING: 3.5. Another solid screw-over. And one that works given to get to this path to begin with the player has to not listen to Debbie, so the book's tricking the reader to not just stick to that instinct. Good work Bob.
RATING: 3. The "You always wanted to join a rock band" line's funny, I'll give you points there, Bob.
#06: The player breaks off the broom straw, which causes the elevator they're in to plummet to the ground below, presumably killing them on impact.
RATING: 2.5. Treat your brooms with respect.
#07: The player's werewolf impression works too well and the werewolf starts licking them as the clock hits midnight, turning the player into a werewolf.
RATING: 3. Another good screw-over. I guess. I mean I know a lot of people who would see being a werewolf as a super happy ending.
#08: The player loses the video game and turns into a monster. But they're fine with still playing the game at least.
RATING: 2. A very simple ending, but we needed at least one bad ending to the video game path and this works fine.
#09: The player winds up in ancient Egypt. The player choses to stay with the king, but the king mummifies them.
RATING: 3. I do with the Egypt path was more interesting, but this is still a solid ending
#10: The player runs into a snake charmer who forces them to play for the hundreds of snakes forever.
RATING: 2.5. All your time learning to play the flute better have paid off.
#11: The player returns to the present, but just as midnight hits, meaning they lose.
RATING: 2. Good, but still feels in line with all of the other "it's too late" endings.
#12: The player is stuck in a force field and loses the game.
RATING: 1.5. Less interesting than the one above but about the same.
#13: The player tries going through a crack in the tomb, only to get caught. They hear the sounds of a monster coming towards them, but is more worried about the other kids seeing their stuck butt.
RATING: 2. It's a decent silly ending. I do like the player being more concerned with looking dumb than dying.
#14: Krupnik's ghost gets angry and turns all of the kids into bats.
RATING: 2. No, we're far from done with straightforward screw-overs. But this one is at least pretty fun.
#15: A boat ride with the grim reaper leads the player to their gravestone.
RATING: 4. Now that's a good dark ending. Also hey, the grim reaper can exist in these books. Makes Ghost Next Door more frustrating though.
#16: The two-headed monster forces the player to read to them for all eternity, lest they want to be eaten.
RATING: 2.5. Reminds me a bit of the snake charmer one mentioned earlier.
#17: Marcie doesn't help the player, but traps them in her freezer.
RATING: 3. Dark, and probably one of the more interesting cases of animal cruelty in the book. That would definitely be something he'd do in Fear Street.
#18: Marcie's brother Darryl accidentally knocks a cabinet over on the player, killing them.
RATING. 3.5. Another nice dark ending. The "Flat Bat Tricks" line's a bit silly. Though I get it. But what kid would get a David Letterman Stupid Pet Tricks joke though, Stine?
#19: Zombies pull the kids into the ground as Professor Krupnik says he doesn't want the kids anywhere in Bat Wing Hall, even outside the house.
RATING: 3.5. Good and dark and a good use of zombies. Not bad.
#20: A giant Swamp Thing eats the player, but the player is given a chance to restart the story.
RATING: 2. A bit weirdly put together, and I guess doesn't fully count as an ending.
#21: The player is stuck in the zoo's bat house with other vampire bats.
RATING: 2.5. Another really solid screw-over.
BEST ALTERNATE ENDING: A GRAVE DISCOVERY
WORST ALTERNATE ENDING: IN-SECURITY
This one is just okay. Far from a bad book, but one I really don't think much of. And a lot of that does come from a lot of the endings. There's more variety in the blue team path with how the player gets screwed over. And while the red team path has a lot of solid endings, it also suffers from a lot of endings feeling the same, which is screw the player over and have them lose the hunt, turning them into a monster. What saves it from being annoying is there's definitely variety. Like one turning the player into a werewolf or turning them into stone. So it's far from feeling a bit too similar. But I come into these books expecting far more wild and exciting twists. And this really didn't have it. A few that are fun and silly, and a few gruesome deaths, but nothing that feels as memorable as some of the really wild ones in Goosebumps books prior. Which is also frustrating because for a plot I feel the red team path is more interesting. Having to search the hall, avoiding the monster kids, dealing with the other monsters in the house. It's got good atmosphere and the horror is solid. I just wish there was more oomph in the bad endings to excite me.
The blue team path is good but feels rushed. I was hoping for more vampire-themed twists, given that the player is a bat and seems to possess some vampire traits, like not being able to be in the sunlight. It just feels like it ends far too quick to really leave as much of an impact as this plot could have. I will say though that it does feel like a story that could have worked as a standard Goosebumps story without the choose your own gimmick attached. It helps that it does have some of the more fun and varied twists though. Not just several dozen similar ones with slight variants. So in the end while this book has some good ideas, it lacks the energy that the other GYG books have provided. But I still feel is better than Purple Peanut Butter because it does use its gimmick quite well. So, even if it didn't land with me, I'll give it a recommend. It's a fun book, but honestly pretty forgettable. It won't drive you batty. Trapped in Bat Wing Hall gets a B-.
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