Daytrip through the shopping mall from Hell- Not Just an Ordinary Ballerina

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Video Games > Let's Play! > Daytrip through the shopping mall from Hell- Not Just an Ordinary Ballerina

«‹›7 »

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 9c

GladRagKraken posted:

Were we holding the calming teddybear when we encountered the Ghost? If not, we should try again with our fuzzy friend.

Seconding what Max Peck said, we should try to use the solvent in the glass bottle to free the scissors in the salon.

You just made me recheck and it turns out I actually missed two different instructions in that post. My apologies.
Holding the teddy bear while in the ghost room:

quote:

Haunted Room
The only light in this room spills through the doorways on the north and south, leaving most of the room in deep shadow. The furnishings are covered with white dropcloths, with the exception of a large hardwood Victrola with a black enamelled horn, which sits on a covered table near the door. There is still a ghost hovering in the center of the room.

You feel warm and secure holding the teddy bear.

>take victrola
Clutching the teddy bear tight, you feel safe and protected enough to ignore the presence of the ghost.

(putting the curry comb into the shopping bag to make room)
Clutching the teddy bear tight, you feel safe and protected enough to ignore the presence of the ghost.

Taken.

The ghost makes a gurgling noise.

[Your score has just gone up by three points.]

>x victrola
It's a very nice wooden Victrola with a turntable on top, a large black enamelled horn and a crank on the side.

Next up, trying to take the scissors.

quote:

Hairdresser's Salon
You are standing in a typical hairdresser's salon -- chairs, basins, shelves overflowing with bottles of lotions, all the expected accoutrements. There are some tattered magazines in the waiting area, and the room has a strong flowery odor. The shop door is to the east, and there is an open doorway to the south.

A little pair of shiny cuticle scissors is lying out on the counter.

You feel warm and secure holding the teddy bear.

>open glass bottle
You flip open the pour-spout.

>pour glass bottle on scissors
You squirt a little of the caustic fluid on the cuticle scissors. Whatever is sticking the scissors to the counter bubbles up in a white froth, which evaporates quickly with a smell not unlike peppermint.

>close glass bottle
You shut the pour-spout.

>pick up scissors
(putting the reindeer pennant into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

[Your score has just gone up by two points.]

>x scissors
A shiny, sharp little pair of cuticle scissors, with curving blades half an inch long.

Last stop, the register in the pet shop.

quote:

Pet Shop

>x register
It isn't exactly a machine, not in the mechanical sense at least. It's a beige plastic cube about the size of a large computer printer. It seems to have a slot of some kind in the top, and some buttons, but you're too far away to make out details

We can't check that out until we take care of the mastiff.

Fresh inventory:

code:

>i
You are carrying:
  some cuticle scissors
  a Victrola
  an ungainly lump of plastic
  a heavy winter coat (being worn)
  a shopping bag
    a reindeer pennant
    a curry comb
    an awl
    a paint can
    a cigar box (which is closed)
    a wad of clay
    a fat wax candle
    a matchbook containing two matches
    a paintbrush

quote:

The Center of the Arcade
You can see a glass bottle, a teddy bear, a sheet of paper, a scrap of paper, a magazine, a brass key, a burnt match, a revolver, a bag of nails, some heavy-duty work gloves, some alphabet blocks, a pair of angel wings and a stepladder here.

# ? Aug 30, 2014 19:50

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Apr 24, 2024 19:57

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

Hm, inventory management question. Can we wear the wings? Do they count as carrying a bulky item while we do?

# ? Aug 30, 2014 19:55

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 9d

Max Peck posted:

Hm, inventory management question. Can we wear the wings? Do they count as carrying a bulky item while we do?

quote:

>take wings
Taken.

>wear wings
You put on the pair of angel wings.

>x wings
The wings combine decorative and functional elements in a remarkable, if unconvincing, manner. They span nearly ten feet, and are covered with feathers in a rainbow of unlikely hues. Surely no earthly bird could ever have sported such plumage; these are angel wings. On the under surface of each wing are a couple of looped straps through which your arms are extended. The wings extend outward from a central harness with adjustable straps, which fit pretty well over your coat.

I know that there is one location in the game which you can't access with bulky items at all. Wearing the wings is also sufficient to block you access, but there's also no reason you'd want to take them (or any other bulky object) to that location anyway. Other than for inventory management purposes, object size is of no consequence.

# ? Aug 30, 2014 20:05

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

But, I mean, if we have the wings in inventory, try to pick up bulky items until we get the "You're carrying too many bulky objects already." message again, then wear the wings, can we then pick up something else bulky?

# ? Aug 30, 2014 21:21

Dancer: May 23, 2011

I just tried some more and could straight-up pick up the Victrola, ladder, and wings (without wearing them) at the same time (which are the only 3 objects we have that block access to that location I was referring to). So it seems that something slightly fishy is going on. I've done a bunch of fiddling with inventory, and I can't figure out what. I thought for a second that that's just the message when your inventory is full and you try to pick up a bulky object instead of a normal sized one, but that turned out to give the "putting X in shopping bag [there's not enough room in the shopping bag]" message instead. So I don't know what's going on. If the game's writer reaches this point, maybe he will comment on this (though he may not be able to, given that the game is pretty darn old at this point).

# ? Aug 30, 2014 21:35

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

Huh, weird.

Well, I'm pretty short on rational things to do, so it's time to start applying adventure game logic. While wearing the wings, can we jump south from the long balcony over that hot floor? I mean, if the floor's that hot, it ought to be creating a decent thermal, right? Just... don't fall short.

# ? Aug 30, 2014 22:34

Astrofig: Oct 26, 2009

Or maybe wearing the wings will make the ghost think we're an angel and we can send it into the light.

# ? Aug 31, 2014 03:32

Striking Yak: Dec 31, 2012

Let's use the solvent (glass bottle) to get the scissors from the salon. And maybe the teddy bear will give us the invincible courage needed to grab the victrola from the ghost room. But we'd have to put the bear down to carry it...
I should finish reading the updates until I start trying to solve puzzles.

Can we examine/turn the valve on the ungainly lump of plastic? Did we examine the marquee at the main entrance yet? We still have a dark room left, maybe the candle will give us enough light to look around in there?

# ? Aug 31, 2014 10:54

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 9e

Striking Yak posted:

Can we examine/turn the valve on the ungainly lump of plastic? Did we examine the marquee at the main entrance yet? We still have a dark room left, maybe the candle will give us enough light to look around in there?

quote:

Main Entrance

>x marquee
Evidently this board was put up to give directions to the various shops. Most of the names seem to have become quite jumbled, however.

>read marquee
MAIN LEVEL:
DOCK THEME IS WING
RUE FOGGY USER SOLO
PORK ROY TAUT
SORE VENAL COAL DUST
BUY DYING SW SHAM MICE
PINK IN WINTER FELL

LOWER LEVEL:
TUBE LP
TAN HER DUFFERS
STUDY HO HO VALUE
THAT FIG CHEST LATIN
RAW RED MARS SAND
GHOST HATH RAGING

UPPER LEVEL:
MUTE NITE
APE FOLLY CAP
PINE THINK
OUT I OGLE SHY KOAN
QUELL SONG CAST AND A BIB
SIREN FED GERM NY
TOOTH BEST CORE

Someone's been having fun, apparently.

quote:

>x lump
A limp lump of red and yellow plastic. The plastic is surprisingly thick and tough beneath your fingers. Turning it over, you notice a recessed valve.

>x valve
The valve in the flat lump of plastic looks pretty much like any other valve.

>turn valve
You are unable to.

This isn't the kind of valve you can turn.

Finally, as for the dark room, when I was playing the game myself I was terrified that I'd be using up a resource that I might need later (and this particular darkness would be dispelled by something else). As it turns out, we have 2 matches left and 2 dark rooms left in the entire game, and we don't need the matches for anything else. So we're good.

quote:

>light candle
After an uncertain moment, the flame blossoms, dancing smokily for a few seconds and then steadying.

>s

Narrow Passage

>w
The light of the flame is enough to show you a gap in the west wall....

Squatter's Den
This squalid little room is cluttered with assorted junk, piles of rags, and ripped-up cardboard cartons. It smells pungently of human habitation. The only exit is a narrow doorway to the east, which appears to lead into impenetrable darkness.

The match fizzles out.

[Your score has just gone up by two points.]

>x cardboard
There's one good-sized sheet of sturdy cardboard, perhaps the side of a discarded refrigerator carton. The rest is just scraps.

>take cardboard
(putting the book of matches into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

>e

Narrow Passage

>extinguish candle
You snuff out the candle.

>x candle
The fat, cream-colored wax candle has been used at some point, but it's still six inches tall.

>x cardboard
The sheet of cardboard is about five feet square. It's a bit crimped around the edges, but seems fairly solid.

Since we're not coming back here, I just took the only thing worth taking. Somehow that little trip consumed half our candle (it used to be 12 inches).

Astrofig posted:

Or maybe wearing the wings will make the ghost think we're an angel and we can send it into the light.

The ghost does not react to the wings at all. And anyway, after taking the Victrola, we're done with that room.

Max Peck posted:

Huh, weird.

Well, I'm pretty short on rational things to do, so it's time to start applying adventure game logic. While wearing the wings, can we jump south from the long balcony over that hot floor? I mean, if the floor's that hot, it ought to be creating a decent thermal, right? Just... don't fall short.

quote:

Long Balcony

>s
As you enter the room, you find the air stiflingly hot. Within a couple of steps you realize that the ceramic tile floor is red not because it's terra cotta but because it's glowing! Even through the thick soles of your winter shoes, the heat is unbearable. No use trying to reach that interesting-looking doorway at the south end of the room -- you hotfoot it back to the long balcony, and breathe a sigh of relief.

Long Balcony

>jump south
I only understood you as far as wanting to jump.

>fly south
The wings are not strong enough for that.

>jump
You jump on the spot, fruitlessly.

In about 12 or so hours I'll explore the upper level of the mall. Updates are going to be a little slower from now on, since I'm moving to a new appartment today, and university starts again tomorrow.

# ? Aug 31, 2014 12:05

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

I think the shapeless lump of plastic might be something interesting when it's inflated. We should open the valve and blow it up.

# ? Aug 31, 2014 19:57

Striking Yak: Dec 31, 2012

That cardboard might let us cross the too-hot floor, give us that extra layer of insulation from the heat. Good call on blowing up the plastic lump, too!

# ? Aug 31, 2014 20:10

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

Dancer posted:

Updates are going to be a little slower from now on, since I'm moving to a new appartment today, and university starts again tomorrow.

No worries, life is important

Striking Yak posted:

That cardboard might let us cross the too-hot floor, give us that extra layer of insulation from the heat.

Cardboard is basically paper; I seem to recall the auto-ignition point of paper is somewhere around 451 F. That's about 233 C. I'm not a scientist, but the internet is telling me that an object glowing red-hot is probably at a bare minimum at 550 C.

What I'm trying to say is, this sounds like an incredibly bad idea. (But do it anyway, in-game.) Cardboard is a lot easier to use as an insulator against cold than against extreme heat.

Speaking of incredibly bad ideas, though. If the wings can't give us lift, are they at least enough to slow our descent? What happens if we try to jump off the roof with them on?

# ? Sep 1, 2014 01:43

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 10

Glazius posted:

I think the shapeless lump of plastic might be something interesting when it's inflated. We should open the valve and blow it up.

quote:

>inflate lump
Worth a try, but you get quite dizzy, and shortly desist. Evidently you lack the lung capacity.

Not quite the Super-Elite-Adventure-Mom we thought we were, apparently.

Striking Yak posted:

That cardboard might let us cross the too-hot floor, give us that extra layer of insulation from the heat. Good call on blowing up the plastic lump, too!

quote:

Long Balcony

>wear cardboard
You can't wear that!

>put cardboard on floor
You can't see any such thing.

>s
As you enter the room, you find the air stiflingly hot. Within a couple of steps you realize that the ceramic tile floor is red not because it's terra cotta but because it's glowing! Even through the thick soles of your winter shoes, the heat is unbearable. No use trying to reach that interesting-looking doorway at the south end of the room -- you hotfoot it back to the long balcony, and breathe a sigh of relief.

Long Balcony

>throw cardboard south
I only understood you as far as wanting to throw the large sheet of cardboard

That sort of action may be just a liiiittle bit too complex for the engine.

Time to explore again. We're going to go counter clockwise through the Upper Concourse, starting with In The Pink, passing through Here's Looking at You, The Boot Sector, Big on Balls and Racquets, and finally My Green Friends.

quote:

West Side of the Upper Concourse

>w

In the Pink Health Supply
There must be thousands of little bottles lining the shelves of this modest store. Beside the door, which leads east, is a counter crowded with stacks of pamphlets.

You can see a Doctor Agile's pill bottle (which is closed) here.

>take pill bottle
(putting the burnt match into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

>e

West Side of the Upper Concourse

>sw

Optician's Display Room
You feel a little self-conscious being gazed at by dozens of disembodied styrofoam heads, each bedecked with a distinctive type of fashion eyewear. There is a shop door in the northeast corner, and another door in the east wall, beside which is a sign that reads "STAIRWELL".

You can see some binoculars and some spectacles here.

>take binoculars, spectacles
binoculars: (putting the fat wax candle into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.
spectacles: (putting the Doctor Agile's pill bottle into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

>ne

West Side of the Upper Concourse

>s

South Side of the Upper Concourse

>e

East Side of the Upper Concourse

>se

Shoe Store
Tables overflowing with shoes in all sorts of styles crowd the floor of this shop. On the first table as you enter is a work boot of an unusually striking design -- bright red vinyl and a thick black composition sole. The only exit is through the door in the northwest corner.

>take boot
(putting the binoculars into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

>nw

East Side of the Upper Concourse

>e

Sporting Goods Store
This shelves and displays in this sports emporium offer a familiar panoply of recreational and exercise equipment, from hockey goalie masks to folding pingpong tables. Your eye is drawn to a bright red oversized tricycle; it looks like something Pee-Wee Herman might have ridden. You also spot an old-fashioned plunger-topped bicycle pump. The exit is to the west.

>take tricycle, pump
tricycle: (putting the spectacles into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.
air pump: (putting the heavy work boot into the shopping bag to make room)
There's not enough room in the shopping bag.

Laaaaaaame. Looks like I will also have to start dumping items we've never used in the Centre of the Arcade. I will tend to drop items which we could not possibly use at the current point in the game, but that's not a strict rule.

quote:

Sporting Goods Store
This shelves and displays in this sports emporium offer a familiar panoply of recreational and exercise equipment, from hockey goalie masks to folding pingpong tables. There's a very nice-looking bicycle pump lying in the center of the floor. The exit is to the west.

>take pump
Taken.

I'm not going to be lame and wait for you to request to inflate the thing again with the pump.

quote:

>inflate lump with pump
You insert the pump's nozzle in the valve and pump vigorously. The plastic lump swells, and shortly it's transformed into a fat round beach ball.

And just to make sure we haven't crossed a point of no return (who knows, maybe we genuinely need the lump in lump form)

quote:

>deflate ball
Air hisses from the valve.

It worked out. Only one store left to explore. I hope it's going to be quick.

quote:

Plant Store
The plant store is surprisingly extensive and very well stocked. You can see big bags of mulch near the door, bottles of snail poison, hanging planters, a table full of miniature cactus, and much more. There is a door in the west wall, and by going north or northeast you can proceed deeper into the store. Even a casual glance suggests that it would be easy to get lost there among the twisting aisles of luxuriant foliage.

>n

A Refuge in the Jungle
It's both hot and humid in this dank, vegetation-infested room. Ferns jostle one another on the shelves. You can force your way down a narrow aisle that opens between the close-pressing greenery to the south, or forge off into uncharted territory to the southeast. Heading in the latter direction might be inadvisable, however, unless you're equipped with some sort of navigational aid, as the vegetation looks quite dense. There is an archway in the northern wall, which at present is blocked by a sheet of gray stone.

>se
The pair of angel wings is so bulky that it gets tangled in the vegetation and prevents your moving in that direction.

>drop wings
(first taking the pair of angel wings off)
You take off the pair of angel wings.
Dropped.

>se
The large sheet of cardboard is so bulky that it gets tangled in the vegetation and prevents your moving in that direction.

>drop cardboard
Dropped.

>se
The tricycle is so bulky that it gets tangled in the vegetation and prevents your moving in that direction.

>drop tricycle
Dropped.

>se

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>n

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>nw

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>sw

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>n

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>sw

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>n

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>
I beg your pardon?

>e

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>w

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>sw

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>nw

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>s

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>s

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>s

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>nw

Somewhere in the depths of the plant store...
A very dank, overgrown, overheated part of the plant store. The smell of vegetation is quite cloying.

>s

Plant Store

>n

A Refuge in the Jungle

You can see a tricycle, a large sheet of cardboard and a pair of angel wings here.

>take tricycle, cardboard, wings
tricycle: Taken.
large sheet of cardboard: Taken.
pair of angel wings: (putting the heavy work boot into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

... I think Super-Elite-Adventure-Mom might be traumatized now. We're taking a break, after examining all the new items we collected.

(hey, did you know that, though we might have explored every shop in the mall, technically we've visited less than half the locations in the game? Food for thought...)

quote:

>x pill bottle
It's a white plastic pill bottle whose label reads "Doctor Agile's Patented Do-Anything-Better Pills -- Guaranteed to Improve Your Fine Muscle Coordination."

>x specs
The spectacles have small round lenses, gold wire rims, and flexible ear-pieces that look as if they would wrap securely around your ears.

>x binoculars
A very nice pair of Bausch & Lomb 8x40 binoculars.

>x boot
The boot was made for a dainty foot -- no more than a size five -- and the impression that it's intended to be part of a feminine ensemble is strengthened by the shiny vinyl upper, which is a glamorous fire-engine red. The black composition sole is almost an inch thick, and rock-hard.

>x tricycle
The tricycle is larger than average, and bright red. The tires are not pneumatic; they look like hard rubber.

>x pump
It's an old-fashioned bicycle pump, suitable for inflating pneumatic tires and other rubber appliances.

Our inventory:

code:

>i
You are carrying:
  a pair of angel wings
  a large sheet of cardboard
  a tricycle
  an air pump
  a heavy winter coat (being worn)
  a shopping bag
    a heavy work boot
    some spectacles
    some binoculars
    a Doctor Agile's pill bottle (which is closed)
    a fat wax candle
    a burnt match
    a matchbook containing a solitary match
    some cuticle scissors
    an ungainly lump of plastic
    a reindeer pennant
    a paint can
    a wad of clay
    a paintbrush

quote:

The Center of the Arcade

You can see an awl, a curry comb, a cigar box (which is closed), a Victrola, a glass bottle, a teddy bear, a sheet of paper, a scrap of paper, a magazine, a brass key, a burnt match, a revolver, a bag of nails, some heavy-duty work gloves, some alphabet blocks and a stepladder here.

New map:

Click here for the full 3100x1200 image

Hints: As per usual, the Children's Play Area. Also, we have it in our power to solve one of the two mazes we've uncovered. Also, the cardboard is used in a way which I couldn't have figured out in a million years without using hints, so feel free to speculate even more wildly about that than you would about other things.

Dancer fucked around with this message at 02:00 on Sep 1, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 01:51

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

From just before the update:

Max Peck posted:

Speaking of incredibly bad ideas, though. If the wings can't give us lift, are they at least enough to slow our descent? What happens if we try to jump off the roof with them on?

Dancer posted:

That sort of action may be just a liiiittle bit too complex for the engine.

Hm, I was picturing something more like drop cardboard, stand on cardboard, south.

With the new inventory, can we...

... head back to the souvenir shop, take a pill from the bottle (assuming it has pills, I guess, open it up and see), then immediately take the plate?
... wear the specs?
... look through the binoculars? Maybe stand on the roof to get a better view.
... wear the boot?
... ride the tricycle? If we can, try riding it over the hot floor too, I'm in a destructive mood.

# ? Sep 1, 2014 02:02

AutistTree: Mar 28, 2010

Can we use the coordinates from the travel magazine we found to navigate the jungle maze?

# ? Sep 1, 2014 02:30

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 10a

Max Peck posted:

... head back to the souvenir shop, take a pill from the bottle (assuming it has pills, I guess, open it up and see), then immediately take the plate?
... wear the specs?
... look through the binoculars? Maybe stand on the roof to get a better view.
... wear the boot?
... ride the tricycle? If we can, try riding it over the hot floor too, I'm in a destructive mood.

In order.

quote:

Souvenir Shop

>open pill bottle
You flip open the pill bottle.

>look in pill bottle
In the Doctor Agile's pill bottle is a little white pill.

>take pill
(putting the air pump into the shopping bag to make room)
There's not enough room in the shopping bag.

... This is getting silly. BRB gotta ~~break~~ gently place some things on the floor in the arcade.

quote:

Souvenir Shop

>take pill
The little white pill is now resting in the palm of your hand.

>swallow pill
You pop the little white capsule into your mouth and swallow it. Immediately a sense of ineffable dexterity envelops you, and your fingers begin to tingle.

>take plate
Moving with exquisite care, you pick up the plate painted with the Three Wise Men.

[Your score has just gone up by three points.]

>take plate
You already have that.

>take plates
They're far too likely to break.

>z
Time passes.

>z
Time passes.

Your fingers stop tingling.

>x plate
The plate is nearly a foot across. Its upper surface is painted -- by hand, as well as you can judge -- with a scene showing the Three Wise Men crossing a desert by night. A star beckons them onward, and they're carrying gifts and leading camels. The camels look bored, but you know how it is with camels.

I got greedy and tried to take more. Apparently once we took this one, the others are magically more likely to break. You know, engine limitations and all that.

quote:

>put on specs
(first taking the spectacles)
(putting the air pump into the shopping bag to make room)
You put on the spectacles.

So we can put them on. Let's try moving.

quote:

Haunted Room
When the ghost catches sight of the spectacles, his eyes widen. "Mine! Those are mine! Give them to me!" He reaches out toward your face -- and although you can't feel the touch of his fingers, it seems something cold, damp, and thoroughly unpleasant has brushed across your skin. Involuntarily you twitch away from the sensation and reach up to ward it off. Your own hand catches the spectacles and knocks them from your face onto the floor. Off balance, you step forward to retrieve them, and inadvertently step on them. With a sickening crunch, the lenses are ground beneath your heel. Oh, dear. More than likely, those spectacles would have been good for something. You feel, without knowing quite why, that your prospects for getting your hands on Sugar Toes Ballerina have just taken a decided turn for the worse.

Well, we can move alright. Gonna undo that turn and more somewhere else, and then try to look at stuff.

quote:

>x tricycle
It's boring.

>x binoculars
They're boring.

>l
Most everything is dull and gray.

>wear boot
(first taking the heavy work boot)
Why bother?

Taking off the specs before we get a mid-life crisis. Christmas is quite possibly the worst time of year to have those. May

quote:

Roof

>look through binoculars
Everything looks very large.

That's the message I got everywhere I tried that.

quote:

>wear boot
You'd look pretty silly limping around wearing only one boot. Besides, it looks too small for you

quote:

>ride tricycle
That would be problematical at the moment. You need to set the tricycle down first.

>put down tricycle
Dropped.

>ride tricycle
You get onto the tricycle.

The elf heaves a soft sigh.

>s
You pedal around in circles for a minute. Wheee!

The elf wipes away a tear.

So I decided to ride the tricycle to the roof. Because it's fun. Apparently riding it doesn't let you leave the location. Also, a fun little easter egg:

quote:

>d
The tricycle is not a helicopter.

>u
The tricycle is not a helicopter.

If we set down the tricycle down at Long Balcony however...

quote:

Long Balcony

>drop tricycle
Dropped.

>ride tricycle
You get onto the tricycle.

>s
(pedalling the tricycle...)

An Overheated Room (on the tricycle)
This room is entirely unfurnished -- which is just as well, because anything left here would quickly burn to a crisp. It would be best to proceed either north or south, and not get off the tricycle. In fact, its tires are already beginning to smoke, so dawdling here would be a poor idea.

>get off tricycle
Getting off the tricycle in this room would be tantamount to suicide.

>s
(pedalling the tricycle...)

In the Solarium (on the tricycle)
In better weather, the view from this room to the east and south should be spectacular, thanks to the broad multi-paned windows. The window panes are all about a foot square, and the moulding between them is painted white, giving the room a cheerful atmosphere. The white paint is peeling, however. The only doorway leads north, back to the overheated room.

You can see a helium tank here.

>take tank
Taken.

[Your score has just gone up by three points.]

>x helium
The tank is about two feet tall, and bright yellow. On the side it says "Party Time Helium".

>inhale helium
That's not a verb I recognise.

>swallow helium
That's plainly inedible.

>n
(pedalling the tricycle...)

An Overheated Room (on the tricycle)

Something funny happens in this room, engine-wise. At first I tried using the "z" command to just wait in this room for many turns to see the game over message for getting fried. Nothing ever happened. Then, at some point, I sorta got access to the game files, and I certainly did find a death message involving this. Eventually I found out that to trigger it you need to give any move command other than north or south (including up and down), for multiple turns.

quote:

>u
The tires begin smoking more enthusiastically as you pedal around in circles.

>w
The tires begin smoking more enthusiastically as you pedal around in circles.

>e
Your rash disregard for the laws of physics proves your undoing as the tires of the tricycle melt. Stranded in the middle of the room with your lungs quickly turning to well-cooked bacon, you have no choice but to try to hoof it. But three steps short of the door you stumble and fall headlong. You try to crawl, but scream in agony as the searing pain stabs up through your palms into your arms. Your coat begins to smolder, and quickly bursts into flame.

*** You have died ***

After some experimenting, this works like a counter. As long as you move north or south immediately after getting into the room, nothing will happen to you, but you can only spin in circles twice throughout the whole game, the third time will kill you.

Max Peck posted:

Speaking of incredibly bad ideas, though. If the wings can't give us lift, are they at least enough to slow our descent? What happens if we try to jump off the roof with them on?

Some funny things happen, it would seem. From most roof locations, in most directions:

quote:

The West Side of the Roof

>w
Best not go wandering around at random -- it's a long way down.

Which, unsurprisingly, is the same message you get when not wearing the wings.
From the "Roof" location only, attempting to go in the four diagonal directions generates this message:

quote:

Roof

>sw
You're planning to sprout wings?

Again, this also happens when not wearing wings.
Attempting to "jump" from various locations first gave me the message:

quote:

>jump
You can't possibly expect the wings to bear your weight plus the weight of all the stuff you're carrying.

Then I got rid of all my bulky items, and tried again:

quote:

Beside the packing crate (near the edge of the roof)

>jump

Throwing caution (and yourself) to the winds, you launch yourself from the edge. For a vertiginous moment, you seem to be descending far too quickly. But then the wings bite the air, and you spiral gently downward. Only a few feet remaining in your descent, you hear an ominous 'crack.' One wing tears loose from the harness, and you drop to the earth, jarring only your teeth and your ankles.

Main Entrance

In order to inspect the wings, you unstrap yourself from the harness. Sadly, they're damaged beyond repair. Possibly you're a little heavier than the average angel.

... Is the game calling us fat?
From the location "Roof", jumping will not do anything, from West Side of the Roof, we will land in Patio, and from South Side of the Roof we will land in At The Foot of a Power Pole. Nothing also happens if you try to jump from Catwalk.
One weirder interaction occurs if you're at West Side of the Roof and give the command "d"own. Because you're wearing wings, the game will choose to jump, over taking the fire escape ladder down to the arcade (and in fact even if you can't jump, because you're holding the tricycle for instance, the game will still attempt to jump, and give the failure message).

AutistTree posted:

Can we use the coordinates from the travel magazine we found to navigate the jungle maze?

You'll have to explain in more detail how you want to do that (but no, you don't need to - the magazine is talking about an entirely different jungle).
Not going to bother updating the map after uncovering two new locations which we're never going to visit again anyway.
New inventory:

code:

>i
You are carrying:
  a tricycle
  a helium tank
  a heavy work boot
  a pair of angel wings
  a heavy winter coat (being worn)
  a shopping bag
    some spectacles
    a Three Wise Men plate
    an air pump
    some binoculars
    a Doctor Agile's pill bottle (which is open but empty)
    a fat wax candle
    a burnt match
    a matchbook containing a solitary match
    a reindeer pennant
    a wad of clay

quote:

The Center of the Arcade

You can see some cuticle scissors, an ungainly lump of plastic, a paintbrush, a paint can, a large sheet of cardboard, an awl, a curry comb, a cigar box (which is closed), a Victrola, a glass bottle, a teddy bear, a sheet of paper, a scrap of paper, a magazine, a brass key, a burnt match, a revolver, a bag of nails, some heavy-duty work gloves, some alphabet blocks and a stepladder here.

Dancer fucked around with this message at 16:46 on Sep 1, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 02:55

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

That marquee isn't just scrambled, it's outright missing letters.

quote:

>read marquee
MAIN LEVEL:
DOCK THEME IS WING - Something Wicked
RUE FOGGY USER SOLO - Your Gorgeous Self
PORK ROY TAUT - Park Your Tot
SORE VENAL COAL DUST - Colossal Adventure
BUY DYING SW SHAM MICE - Big Yummy Sandwiches
PINK IN WINTER FELL - Inkwell Fine Print

LOWER LEVEL:
TUBE LP - Belt Up
TAN HER DUFFERS - Feathers [a]nd Fur
STUDY HO HO VALUE - You Should[n]'t Have
THAT FIG CHEST LATIN - The Light Fantastic
RAW RED MARS SAND - [G]randma's Drawers
GHOST HATH RAGING - Hot Rags Hang [R]ight

UPPER LEVEL:
MUTE NITE - Tune Time
APE FOLLY CAP - Palace of Pl[a]y
PINE THINK - In The Pink
OUT I OGLE SHY KOAN - He[re]'s Looking at You
QUELL SONG CAST AND A BIB - Big on Balls and [R]acquets
SIREN FED GERM NY - My Green Friends
TOOTH BEST CORE - The Boot Sector

Eight letters.

Yeah.

quote:

>read slogan
You manage to decipher the crooked and hastily written phrase as reading "Joseph's most important job..."

quote:

>turn on console
You flick the switch, and the screen comes to life. On the screen you find the following message: "Jeez, it's not bad enough I gotta ladle slop into the trough for the sheep and cows and donkeys all day long, no. I gotta make sure it's all set out just so, with an attractive garnish. What am I? It's not bad enough I gotta run all over to hell and back keeping the tax collector off my rear end -- no, I got employee pilferage to deal with too. Don't play innocent, you know who you are. If you got any legitimate reason to be laying hands on the supplies, I'll have given you the secret code, won't I? All you gotta do is type the code, and you can take whatever you need. Without the code, hah! Nothing."

Beneath this somewhat churlish outburst are a couple of spaces for text entry. They look like this:

------ --------

The answer to both: Manger arranger. :sigh:

# ? Sep 1, 2014 03:52

Striking Yak: Dec 31, 2012

Trying to think of things we could do in the Children's Play Area, examine the shop window? Try to open the window inside the store and climb out? Look at the musical staff on the poster (this one seems most likely)? Take apart the climbing frame?

# ? Sep 1, 2014 10:24

Kegluneq: Feb 18, 2011; Mr President, the physical reality of Prime Minister Corbyn is beyond your range of apprehension. If you'll just put on these PINKOVISION glasses...

Out of interest, can the helium tank be used with the beachball? I'm guessing it can't, and that the ball will be used to unblock an opening/raise an object somewhere, but it could be worth a shot.

Edit: I'm an idiot, there are balloons in the cigar box. Not sure if there's a use for them yet, but maybe they carry a message/code when inflated? (The game certainly loves anagrams.)

Kegluneq fucked around with this message at 12:07 on Sep 1, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 12:02

Striking Yak: Dec 31, 2012

Kegluneq posted:

Out of interest, can the helium tank be used with the beachball? I'm guessing it can't, and that the ball will be used to unblock an opening/raise an object somewhere, but it could be worth a shot.

Edit: I'm an idiot, there are balloons in the cigar box. Not sure if there's a use for them yet, but maybe they carry a message/code when inflated? (The game certainly loves anagrams.)

Use the helium-filled balloons to lift the Elf's spirits (and body) so we can take a look inside that crate he's sitting on. Give him the wings too, and he can fly off to look for Santa!

# ? Sep 1, 2014 13:32

inflatablefish: Oct 24, 2010

Try giving the elf the plate with the Three Wise Men, which will remind him of the Meaning of Christmas (TM) and make him give us another puzzle as a present.

# ? Sep 1, 2014 18:56

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 10b

Max Peck posted:

That marquee isn't just scrambled, it's outright missing letters.

quote:
>read marquee
MAIN LEVEL:
DOCK THEME IS WING - Something Wicked
RUE FOGGY USER SOLO - Your Gorgeous Self
PORK ROY TAUT - Park Your Tot
SORE VENAL COAL DUST - Colossal Adventure
BUY DYING SW SHAM MICE - Big Yummy Sandwiches
PINK IN WINTER FELL - Inkwell Fine Print

LOWER LEVEL:
TUBE LP - Belt Up
TAN HER DUFFERS - Feathers [a]nd Fur
STUDY HO HO VALUE - You Should[n]'t Have
THAT FIG CHEST LATIN - The Light Fantastic
RAW RED MARS SAND - [G]randma's Drawers
GHOST HATH RAGING - Hot Rags Hang [R]ight

UPPER LEVEL:
MUTE NITE - Tune Time
APE FOLLY CAP - Palace of Pl[a]y
PINE THINK - In The Pink
OUT I OGLE SHY KOAN - He[re]'s Looking at You
QUELL SONG CAST AND A BIB - Big on Balls and [R]acquets
SIREN FED GERM NY - My Green Friends
TOOTH BEST CORE - The Boot Sector

Eight letters.

Yeah.

quote:
>turn on console
You flick the switch, and the screen comes to life. On the screen you find the following message: "Jeez, it's not bad enough I gotta ladle slop into the trough for the sheep and cows and donkeys all day long, no. I gotta make sure it's all set out just so, with an attractive garnish. What am I? It's not bad enough I gotta run all over to hell and back keeping the tax collector off my rear end -- no, I got employee pilferage to deal with too. Don't play innocent, you know who you are. If you got any legitimate reason to be laying hands on the supplies, I'll have given you the secret code, won't I? All you gotta do is type the code, and you can take whatever you need. Without the code, hah! Nothing."

Beneath this somewhat churlish outburst are a couple of spaces for text entry. They look like this:

------ --------

The answer to both: Manger arranger.

Good job. That is indeed the correct password for the snack bar console. Before I open it though, there is one more clue for this puzzle that no-one noticed (and I'm not going to ask you to sort through mountains of text to find it).

quote:

The Children's Play Area

>x blackboard
The black chalkboard -- and where could it have come from? surely these things are seen nowadays only in museums -- is quite smudged and dusty. Some numbers have been written on it. There is also a slogan of some sort scrawled in the corner.

>x slogan
You manage to decipher the crooked and hastily written phrase as reading "Joseph's most important job..."

Although this was the main reason I instructed you guys to focus on this room, it's not the only one. There's still something to do.

Striking Yak posted:

Trying to think of things we could do in the Children's Play Area, examine the shop window? Try to open the window inside the store and climb out? Look at the musical staff on the poster (this one seems most likely)? Take apart the climbing frame?

quote:

The Children's Play Area
>x window
The window affords a view of the gloomy, snow-smudged landscape to the east.

>open window
The window clasps are stuck fast.

>x clasps
You can't see any such thing.

>x window clasps
You can't see any such thing.

>unfasten window
That's not a verb I recognise.

>x poster
The poster, which has seen better days, is evidently intended to give youngsters the idea that music is fun. It features a five-line musical staff that winds like a river among fat pie-shaped wedges of color. At one time the colors must have been bright, but the poster has by now faded so badly that it's hard to be sure what they originally were. The pie-slice on the left is a sort of aggressive lemony beige, the one in the center might best be described as rusty pumpkin, and the one on the right is a blotchy mix of pea-soup and turgid aquamarine. On the staff are some dancing notes with little smiles. Above the staff is the admonition "Our little friends love cheerful tunes!", and along the bottom is a line of lyrics: "It's as easy as one, two, three...."

>x musical notes
The poster, which has seen better days, is evidently intended to give youngsters the idea that music is fun. It features a five-line musical staff that winds like a river among fat pie-shaped wedges of color. At one time the colors must have been bright, but the poster has by now faded so badly that it's hard to be sure what they originally were. The pie-slice on the left is a sort of aggressive lemony beige, the one in the center might best be described as rusty pumpkin, and the one on the right is a blotchy mix of pea-soup and turgid aquamarine. On the staff are some dancing notes with little smiles. Above the staff is the admonition "Our little friends love cheerful tunes!", and along the bottom is a line of lyrics: "It's as easy as one, two, three...."

>x toy
Given the rounded edges and the thick soft pad on the floor beneath it, the colorful plastic climbing toy is probably quite safe for youngsters.

>break toy
Vandalism is not the answer.

>take apart toy
You can't see any such thing.

>dismantle toy
That's not a verb I recognise.

No luck, unfortunately. The slightest of hints: The text in this update references what can be done.

Anyway, let's go to the snackbar and take those cookies!

quote:

Snack Bar
Either the snack bar has been closed down for the season, or the proprietors are unusually fastidious about cleaning up at the end of the day. Aside from a few nondescript tables and chairs, which have seen better days, and a large and rather tattered wall poster extolling the health benefits of the South American rutabaga, the room is quite sterile-looking. Along one wall is a glass-fronted display case, and next to it is a small computer console of some sort. In the southwest corner is a heavy metal door. The door through which you entered is to the north.

>type manger arranger

The space for the secret code now reads as follows:

manger arranger
You hear a muted 'click'.

[Your score has just gone up by six points.]

>open case
You open the snack display case.

>take cookies
(putting the air pump into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

>open metal door
You open the metal door.

>sw

Walk-In Refrigerator
This small square room is quite chilly, and smells sourly of last month's dairy products. The walls are lined with bare wire shelves. The only exit is to the north.

You can see a steak and a banana here.

>take steak, banana
steak: (putting the helium tank into the shopping bag to make room)
There's not enough room in the shopping bag.
banana: (putting the helium tank into the shopping bag to make room)
There's not enough room in the shopping bag.

Evidently the cookies were so dry that they couldn't safely be carried around in your hands. Without warning they fall very thoroughly to pieces. It being impossible to hold onto a loose pile of cookie crumbs, they swiftly sift through your fingers and form a loose mound around your feet.

Okay. We either need to find a way to use the cookies within three turns, or we need to find a proper way to carry them (spoiler: the shopping bag won't cut it. Also, this is the last time I'm showing you the full shopping bag message.

Kegluneq posted:

Out of interest, can the helium tank be used with the beachball? I'm guessing it can't, and that the ball will be used to unblock an opening/raise an object somewhere, but it could be worth a shot.

Edit: I'm an idiot, there are balloons in the cigar box. Not sure if there's a use for them yet, but maybe they carry a message/code when inflated? (The game certainly loves anagrams.)

quote:

>inflate ball with tank
Worth a try, but you get quite dizzy, and shortly desist. Evidently you lack the lung capacity.

>use tank on ball
That's not a verb I recognise.

It would be funny if I occasionally acted like I'm stupid and can't figure out the proper commands for an actual good solution to a puzzle, but I'm not going to that. So no, you can assume that the helium tank and beach ball can't interact. As for the balloon, there was nothing stopping us inflating them without the helium tank, if our goal is to observe its surface.

quote:

>take red balloon
(putting the steak into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

>inflate red balloon
After drawing a deep breath, you blow up the red balloon and tie the end neatly.

>x red balloon
It's a typical red balloon, inflated to a taut diameter of about eight inches. A short length of string is handily pre-attached to the open end.

>deflate balloon
Psssss.... You let the gas out of the balloon.

Nothing special there. Let's play with the helium though. If you inflate it and drop it in the Center of the Arcade:

quote:

>drop balloon
As you let go of the balloon, it drifts up and bobs beneath the eaves for a moment before an errant gust of wind carries it out into the open, where it rises swiftly into the sky and is gone.

If you do the same somewhere indoors:

quote:

As you let go of the balloon, it drifts up to the ceiling, where it bobs festively, just out of reach.

And if you do this somewhere "properly" outdoors (i.e. unlike the arcade):

quote:

>drop balloon
As you let go of the balloon, it drifts up higher and higher into the gray sky, and is soon lost from view.

You will remember that we have access to a stepladder, so we can pick it back up in this situation.
Trying to figure out more possible scenarios, I thought I could let go of it in the overheated room, and then see if I can recover it (or maybe just see what happens if you're chillaxing on the stepladder while in the overheated room). This is what happened:

quote:

>drop ladder
The stepladder instantly turns to a useless mound of ash and slag.

As it turns out, this happens regardless of what object you drop (as long as it's an item that actually touches the floor):

quote:

>drop helium
The helium tank instantly turns to a useless mound of ash and slag.

I wish the game had something like nitroglycerin, or a lump of wolfram, to experiment with...
Letting go of the balloon gives the same "bobs festively out of reach" message as releasing it somewhere else inside.
One piece of good news: The tank seem to have an unlimited supply of helium. I inflated and deflated the balloon 20+ times and nothing happened.
Finally, while doing all this I noticed a pretty cool little detail: if you put the open box in the shopping bag, all balloons spill out. A little bit of realism.

Striking Yak posted:

Use the helium-filled balloons to lift the Elf's spirits (and body) so we can take a look inside that crate he's sitting on. Give him the wings too, and he can fly off to look for Santa!

I found a funny little bug while trying to do this. I tried to give the wings to the elf without having picked them up from the arcade. This happened:

quote:

>give wings to elf
You aren't holding the elf.

Unfortunately, the elf wasn't interested in either of those items. Attempt at a more direct strategy:

quote:

>attach balloon to elf
You're decorating for a party, perhaps?

(as you might imagine, that's a standardized message)

inflatablefish posted:

Try giving the elf the plate with the Three Wise Men, which will remind him of the Meaning of Christmas (TM) and make him give us another puzzle as a present.

quote:

>give plate to elf
(first taking the Three Wise Men plate)
The elf looks at the Three Wise Men plate without much interest.

To close up the update, some good news. New rank!

quote:

>score
You have so far scored 50 out of a possible 232, in 1253 turns, earning you the rank of wreath hanger and amateur caroler.

We're now hitting up a little bottleneck, which I will start fixing next update. For now: Try to figure out how to use the paint and brush, and the beach ball. And there are things we can achieve in the furniture store, and in the restroom (though the thing we're going to do in the restroom is something with no obvious benefit, so try to be extra creative). And of course, there is still exactly one useful thing we can do in the children's play area.

Inventory:

code:

>i
You are carrying:
  a Three Wise Men plate
  a pair of angel wings
  a cigar box (which is closed)
  a helium tank
  a heavy winter coat (being worn)
  a shopping bag
    a heavy work boot
    a banana
    a steak
    a Doctor Agile's pill bottle (which is open but empty)
    an air pump
    some spectacles
    a fat wax candle
    a burnt match
    a matchbook containing a solitary match
    some cuticle scissors
    an ungainly lump of plastic
    a reindeer pennant

quote:

The Center of the Arcade

You can see a tricycle, a stepladder, a paintbrush, a paint can, some binoculars, a wad of clay, a large sheet of cardboard, an awl, a curry comb, a Victrola, a glass bottle, a teddy bear, a sheet of paper, a scrap of paper, a magazine, a brass key, a burnt match, a revolver, a bag of nails, some heavy-duty work gloves and some alphabet blocks here.

Edit: minor ommission on my part:

quote:

>x steak
The steak is large and lean and at least an inch thick.

>x banana
It's a large, yellow, ripe banana.

Dancer fucked around with this message at 02:16 on Oct 20, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 20:32

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

Woo, new inventory.

The obvious way to use the cookies within three turns is to eat them. Also the steak and the banana.

Can we climb the climbing toy? Or look under the pad below it?

# ? Sep 1, 2014 20:38

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 10c

Max Peck posted:

Woo, new inventory.

The obvious way to use the cookies within three turns is to eat them. Also the steak and the banana.

Can we climb the climbing toy? Or look under the pad below it?

quote:

Snack Bar

>eat steak
(first taking the steak)
It's raw. You're not that hungry.

>eat banana
(first taking the banana)
(putting the cigar box into the shopping bag to make room)
You strip back the peel and make short work of the banana.

>i
You are carrying:
a banana peel
a steak
a Three Wise Men plate
a pair of angel wings
a heavy winter coat (being worn)
a shopping bag
a cigar box (which is closed)
a heavy work boot
a Doctor Agile's pill bottle (which is open but empty)
an air pump
some spectacles
a fat wax candle
a burnt match
a matchbook containing a solitary match
some cuticle scissors
an ungainly lump of plastic
a reindeer pennant

>x peel
It's a typical banana peel, I'm afraid.

>take cookies
The snack display case isn't open.

>open case
You open the snack display case.

Belatedly you begin to feel that eating that banana may have been a mistake. Not that it was starting to go bad or anything. On the contrary, it was delicious. But just speculatively, you might have been able to find a more pertinent use for it. In fact, as you contemplate how rashly you've squandered your resources, you feel an inexplicable but overwhelming urge to give up on the whole idea of getting your hands on Sugar Toes Ballerina. Perhaps after all it's time to go home.

>eat cookies
(first taking the ginger snaps)
(putting the Three Wise Men plate into the shopping bag to make room)
Overcome suddenly by unaccountable hunger, you wolf down the ginger snaps. A bit dry -- a glass of milk would have gone well to wash them down -- but very tasty for all that.

>z
Time passes.

>z
Time passes.

>z
Time passes.

You feel a bit nauseous from having gorged on ginger snaps. You've also begun to develop the lingering, uncomfortable feeling that you might have been able to find a better use for the cookies if you had considered the matter just a bit longer. Your confidence in your ability to gain possession of Sugar Toes Ballerina has taken a sudden nose-dive, in fact.

How nice of the game to warn us.

quote:

Children's Play Area

>climb toy
You weigh too much. You'd surely break it.

>lift pad
The thick pad is probably about as high as it's going to get.

>look under pad
You find only dust.

In case it isn't clear, those last two are both stock responses.

# ? Sep 1, 2014 20:53

Striking Yak: Dec 31, 2012

Perhaps we could use that steak to befriend a vicious animal that would otherwise want to tear our throat out.

>give steak to elf

Striking Yak fucked around with this message at 21:19 on Sep 1, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 21:10

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 10d

Striking Yak posted:

Perhaps we could use that steak to befriend a vicious animal that would otherwise want to tear our throat out.

>give steak to elf

quote:

>give steak to elf
(first taking the steak)
The elf looks at the steak without much interest.

And on an entirely unrelated note.

quote:

Pet Shop
>ne
The mastiff leaps in front of you, barking furiously, and lunges at you with his teeth. You retreat hastily.

The mastiff snarls at you.

>give steak to dog
The dog licks its chops and eyes the steak, but evidently it doesn't trust you not to have loaded the meat with ground glass or strychnine.

The mastiff snarls at you.

# ? Sep 1, 2014 21:15

Striking Yak: Dec 31, 2012

Within 3 turns, the only places we can reach are the parking lot, the hedge path, and the chilly passage. Which leads me to believe they're used to lure the raccoon. Let's accumulate an entourage of stray animals. Or we could put the crumbs in the empty pill bottle for later, in case we get hungry.

Edit: Or maybe we could take a bite of the steak first, then drop it?

Striking Yak fucked around with this message at 21:40 on Sep 1, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 21:19

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

Fine, game. If you're going to just give us stock responses, let's just take the climbing toy and pad, see how you like that.

Does the dog react at all if we drop the steak, then leave?

# ? Sep 1, 2014 21:38

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 10e

Striking Yak posted:

Within 3 turns, the only places we can reach are the parking lot, the hedge path, and the chilly passage. Which leads me to believe they're used to lure the raccoon. Let's accumulate an entourage of stray animals. Or we could put the crumbs in the empty pill bottle for later, in case we get hungry.

Edit: Or maybe we could take a bite of the steak first, then drop it?

quote:

Snack Bar

>take cookies
Taken.

>n

Patio

>drop cookies
Dropped.

>z
Time passes.

>l

Patio
In better weather, this paved expanse might be a pleasant place to have a cappuccino or a frozen yogurt. The tables and chairs have all been taken indoors, however, leaving the patio frigid and uninviting. Over the low hedge to the north you can see your car in the parking lot. The Main Entrance is off to the east, and on the south is a glass door beneath a sign that reads "BIG YUMMY SANDWICHES". Set in the pavement near the door is a small grate.

You can see some ginger snaps here.

>z
Time passes.

>z
Time passes.

>z
Time passes.

>l

Patio
In better weather, this paved expanse might be a pleasant place to have a cappuccino or a frozen yogurt. The tables and chairs have all been taken indoors, however, leaving the patio frigid and uninviting. Over the low hedge to the north you can see your car in the parking lot. The Main Entrance is off to the east, and on the south is a glass door beneath a sign that reads "BIG YUMMY SANDWICHES". Set in the pavement near the door is a small grate.

You can see some ginger snaps here.

>e

Main Entrance

>w

Patio

>l

Patio
In better weather, this paved expanse might be a pleasant place to have a cappuccino or a frozen yogurt. The tables and chairs have all been taken indoors, however, leaving the patio frigid and uninviting. Over the low hedge to the north you can see your car in the parking lot. The Main Entrance is off to the east, and on the south is a glass door beneath a sign that reads "BIG YUMMY SANDWICHES". Set in the pavement near the door is a small grate.

So, that didn't work out... We probably don't want to try to deal with something as unpredictable as a raccoon. Besides, such a major random element (sometimes you may have to wait more than a dozen turns for him to show up) wouldn't be very good game design. Unless we can attract him of course...
Anyway, to cut this short, let me make the game say it for me:

quote:

>hint on raccoon
You can't interact with the raccoon in any way. He's going about his business just as you're going about yours.

I guess it must've been the raccoon's twin brother or something, that stole/ate those cookies then...

(that's the in-game hint system btw, which I had to use extensively to get anything done the first time I played the game about a decade ago, and only slightly extensively a few weeks ago when I completed it)

quote:

>take cookies
(putting the cigar box into the shopping bag to make room)
Taken.

>z
Time passes.

>z
Time passes.

>z
Time passes.

Evidently the cookies were so dry that they couldn't safely be carried around in your hands. Without warning they fall very thoroughly to pieces. It being impossible to hold onto a loose pile of cookie crumbs, they swiftly sift through your fingers and form a loose mound around your feet.

>take crumbs
Not much point in that, I'm afraid. It's just a pile of cookie crumbs.

We need the cookies whole in order to do anything useful with them. Also, ew, we're not letting raw steak touch our tongue.

Max Peck posted:

Fine, game. If you're going to just give us stock responses, let's just take the climbing toy and pad, see how you like that.

Does the dog react at all if we drop the steak, then leave?

quote:

The Children's Play Area

>take toy
It's far too cumbersome to carry around.

>take pad
Taken.
[Your score has just gone up by one point.]

>x pad
The padding is made of loose-woven cotton or some other soft material. It looks quite thick and cushiony, as if a child who fell on it would be quite well protected against broken bones.

Oh glorious joy, we're finally done with this location for good. As a celebration, I've started to give green borders on the map to several, but not all, locations in the mall that we're absolutely done with. I've dropped a few hints in there, but also a few red herrings (some intentional, and some almost certainly not). And I really, really hope I'm not marking a location I shouldn't be.

quote:

Pet Shop

>nw
The mastiff leaps in front of you, barking furiously, and lunges at you with his teeth. You retreat hastily.

The mastiff snarls at you.

>drop steak
Dropped.

The mastiff glances at the steak and drools a little, but he's more interested in watching you for hostile moves.

>e

South End of the Lower Concourse

>w

Pet Shop

You can see a steak and a brindle-haired mastiff here.

The dog abandons his meal of raw beef in order to trot toward you and snarl.

While it is possible to pick up the steak again, it will not be in pristine condition any more, so I'll be cautious and make that un-happen.

Fresh map:

Click here for the full 3069x1188 image

Stay tuned for a very special update very soon.

Dancer fucked around with this message at 22:51 on Sep 1, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 22:45

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 11

No comments (at least not today). Only claustrophobia, and pain.

quote:

East End of the Upper Promenade

>ne

Octagonal Room

>l

Octagonal Room
Though devoid of furnishings, this room has been carefully maintained. The inlaid wood floor is especially handsome, and the walls, of gray stonework, are freshly scrubbed. Speaking of the walls, there are eight of them, all equal in length, making the room a perfect octagon.

Two of the walls feature doorways, and these are set not opposite nor adjacent to one another but at an oblique angle, with two blank wall segments between them. Above one doorway, a sprig of mistletoe is carved into the stonework; the other features a carved holly wreath. At present, the holly door is open and the mistletoe door is closed.

In the center of the room is an interesting-looking pedestal with some levers protruding from the top.

>x levers
The pedestal is about the height and shape of a lectern, but flat rather than slanted. It stands in the precise center of the room, where the eight floor segments converge. On top of the pedestal are two large levers, one red and one green, and three buttons, one each of the red, green, and blue persuasions.

>pull red lever
Clunk. You pull the lever, but nothing happens.

>pull green lever
Clunk. You pull the lever, but nothing happens.

>x holly
The doorframe of the holly door is of the same gray stonework as the surrounding walls. In the semicircular area above the lintel is carved a holly wreath. The doorway is open.

>x mistletoe
The doorframe of the mistletoe door is of the same gray stonework as the surrounding walls. In the semicircular area above the lintel is carved a sprig of mistletoe. The doorway is blocked by a darker, much-scarred stone wall a foot or two past the sill.

>push blue button
Click! You press the blue button.

>pull green lever
There is a loud rumble -- enormous gears clashing, it sounds like, and a prolonged groaning scrape as if boulders were grinding together behind the walls. The room shudders and vibrates, and you feel quite queasy for a moment, as if you had been flung up into the air, spun around, and then dropped. You clutch the pedestal to steady yourself. After a few moments, however, the sound subsides, and you regain a secure footing.

>go holly
The door is presently impassable.

>go mistletoe
You pass through the mistletoe door.

Abandoned Garden
Winter is hard on any garden, of course, but this forlorn patch of soil could hardly have passed for a paradise even in June. The trees are few and small as well as bare. Many have broken limbs, and a few have fallen entirely, as if borne down by the weight of a great invisible hand. In the center of the garden is a large and grimy stone birdbath, which is tilted a little to one side, making it seem that the ugly little figures carved around its base can no longer hold it upright.

The garden is surrounded by a high wall; a doorway leads into the base of the stone tower on the west, and in the northwest corner is a small paved area beneath a balcony.

Lying next to the birdbath is a curious little heap of metal balls attached to a piece of leather. It takes you a moment to realize you're looking at some discarded sleighbells.

[Your score has just gone up by two points.]

>take bells
Taken.

>nw

Beneath the Balcony
You are standing just below a small balcony that juts out from the second floor of the tower. The bare ground has been "improved" here with a pavement of yellow brick, which is uneven and stained by moss. The garden stretches away to the east and southeast.

>e

Abandoned Garden

>w

Octagonal Room

>pull green lever
The sound comes again -- enormous gears rumbling into motion, the creak of tortured beams, and an uneven scraping as if stones are grinding against one another. The room shudders and jerks into motion, nearly throwing you to the floor, and again you have to grasp the pedestal to steady yourself against a moment of dizziness. You notice, this time, that the gray stone surface visible through the holly and mistletoe doors is moving in a lateral, diagonal sort of way. The movement ceases along with the sound.

>go mistletoe
You pass through the mistletoe door.

Cloak Room

>n

Octagonal Room

>go holly
The door is presently impassable.

>pull green lever
Briefly, you hear the clash and groan of enormous gears somewhere in the distance, but the room itself remains unchanged.

>pull red lever
You're beginning to get used to it -- the huge clash of mechanical sounds, the sense that you're being spun around and either dropped or lifted upward (or both). Only the stonework surface beyond the doorways gives any indication of motion.

>go holly
You pass through the holly door.

Empty Storage Room

>nw

Octagonal Room

>go mistletoe
You pass through the mistletoe door.

Behind the Stairs

>e

Octagonal Room

>pull red lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
You pass through the holly door.

East End of the Upper Promenade

>ne

Octagonal Room

>pull red lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
The door is presently impassable.

>go mistletoe
The door is presently impassable.

>pull red lever
Briefly, you hear the distant sound of enormous gears straining, but within the room nothing changes.

>push red button
Click-click! The blue button pops up as the red button snaps down.

>pull red lever
Briefly, you hear the distant sound of enormous gears straining, but within the room nothing changes.

>pull green lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
The door is presently impassable.

>go mistletoe
The door is presently impassable.

>pull red lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
The door is presently impassable.

>go mistletoe
The door is presently impassable.

>push green button
Click-click! The red button pops up as the green button snaps down.

>pull red lever
Briefly, you hear the distant sound of enormous gears straining, but within the room nothing changes.

>go holly
The door is presently impassable.

>go mistletoe
The door is presently impassable.

>pull green lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
You pass through the holly door.

East End of the Upper Promenade

>ne

Octagonal Room

>go mistletoe
The door is presently impassable.

>pull green lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
You pass through the holly door.

Empty Storage Room

>nw

Octagonal Room

>go mistletoe
You pass through the mistletoe door.

Behind the Stairs

>e

Octagonal Room

>pull red lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
You pass through the holly door.

A Tiny Balcony
This balcony is barely wide enough to stand on. There is an unfortunate-looking walled garden directly below the balcony, but there appears to be no way down from here. The railing has pulled free from its supports at one side and leans outward at an unnerving angle. You can reenter the tower through the archway to the southwest.

A crystal goblet is balanced precariously on the wobbly section of railing. Oh, no -- the very vibration of your movement sets the railing trembling, and before you can snatch it up, the goblet tips off the railing and plummets toward the paving-stones. You hear the sound of shattering glass.

>sw

Octagonal Room

>go mistletoe
You pass through the mistletoe door.

A Refuge in the Jungle
It's both hot and humid in this dank, vegetation-infested room. Ferns jostle one another on the shelves. You can force your way down a narrow aisle that opens between the close-pressing greenery to the south, or forge off into uncharted territory to the southeast. Heading in the latter direction might be inadvisable, however, unless you're equipped with some sort of navigational aid, as the vegetation looks quite dense. There is an archway in the northern wall, through which you can see the interior of another room.

>n

Octagonal Room

>pull red lever
The room rumbles, and you steady yourself against the momentary dizziness.

>go holly
The door is presently impassable.

>go mistletoe
The door is presently impassable.

>suicide
That's not a verb I recognise.

>

# ? Sep 1, 2014 23:02

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

...

I can see I'm going to have to step up my spite if I've any hope of out-spiting this game.

If you repeat those steps, except when you're in "Beneath the Balcony" dropping the padding we just picked up, does it stop the goblet from breaking? I'm not in the right frame of mind to get us back down to the garden, mind you, but it's a good first step.

EDIT: Oh, except then you should jump off the balcony while wearing the wings to see if it gets us stuck, and if the game recognizes that.

While you're doing that, could you examine...

... in Abandoned Garden, the birdbath, figures, and wall.
... in Beneath the Balcony, the pavement and moss.
... on A Tiny Balcony, the railing and garden.
... in our inventory, the bells.

Max Peck fucked around with this message at 00:00 on Sep 2, 2014

# ? Sep 1, 2014 23:55

inflatablefish: Oct 24, 2010

So we need to put the pad down in the garden to cushion the fall of the crystal goblet. The sleigh bells must have something to do with the elf, so we should show them to him, though I get a sinking sensation that we may have to build a whole cargo-cult Santa and sleigh for him, possibly to lure him into a fatal fall.

# ? Sep 1, 2014 23:55

Astrofig: Oct 26, 2009

Can we give the elf the plate of cookies? That's certainly festive!

.....come to think of it, I wonder if inflateablefish is right and we need to make a sleigh....we could try and use the steak to lure the dog as a reindeer, even!

# ? Sep 2, 2014 00:10

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

Astrofig posted:

Can we give the elf the plate of cookies? That's certainly festive!

Oh. If we put the cookies on the plate, does that stop them from crumbling while we carry them around?

# ? Sep 2, 2014 00:25

Kegluneq: Feb 18, 2011; Mr President, the physical reality of Prime Minister Corbyn is beyond your range of apprehension. If you'll just put on these PINKOVISION glasses...

quote:

>x poster
The poster, which has seen better days, is evidently intended to give youngsters the idea that music is fun. It features a five-line musical staff that winds like a river among fat pie-shaped wedges of color. At one time the colors must have been bright, but the poster has by now faded so badly that it's hard to be sure what they originally were. The pie-slice on the left is a sort of aggressive lemony beige, the one in the center might best be described as rusty pumpkin, and the one on the right is a blotchy mix of pea-soup and turgid aquamarine. On the staff are some dancing notes with little smiles. Above the staff is the admonition "Our little friends love cheerful tunes!", and along the bottom is a line of lyrics: "It's as easy as one, two, three...."

I know this isn't what you were going for now, but are these 'pie slices' the balloons? If so, they could be the yellow (or 'mouldy white') balloon, the orange or red balloon (presumably not the latter if you did send it off to the great beyond), and the green or blue balloon. I'm guessing that the 'little friend' is the elf, and that the balloons are just part of a puzzle solution to cheer him up, along with music of some kind.

# ? Sep 2, 2014 11:08

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 11a

Astrofig posted:

Can we give the elf the plate of cookies? That's certainly festive!

.....come to think of it, I wonder if inflateablefish is right and we need to make a sleigh....we could try and use the steak to lure the dog as a reindeer, even!

Max Peck posted:

Oh. If we put the cookies on the plate, does that stop them from crumbling while we carry them around?

quote:

Snack Bar
>take cookies
Taken.

>put cookies on plate
You put the ginger snaps on the Three Wise Men plate.

[Your score has just gone up by two points.]

If the game gives us points for it, it must be the case. Let's see if the plate also magically protects the snaps from the raccoon's twin brother.

quote:

Patio

>drop plate
Dropped.

quote:

>e

Main Entrance

>w

Patio

You can see a Three Wise Men plate here.

No magical protection. Fortunately, the Arcade counts as being inside. So we can leave the plate there and not worry about it. Attempt to make the elf happy #27:

quote:

>give cookies to elf
(first taking the ginger snaps)
The elf looks at the ginger snaps without much interest.

One of these days...

Kegluneq posted:

I know this isn't what you were going for now, but are these 'pie slices' the balloons? If so, they could be the yellow (or 'mouldy white') balloon, the orange or red balloon (presumably not the latter if you did send it off to the great beyond), and the green or blue balloon. I'm guessing that the 'little friend' is the elf, and that the balloons are just part of a puzzle solution to cheer him up, along with music of some kind.

So, I'm not sure what the right thing to do is now. I could shoot down theories like this which are not in the same ballpark as the right solutions, or I could let you guys go on a wild goose chase. This time around I will go ahead and say that we've already used the pies clue. Back in the early game, that sequence of colours (yellow red green), combined with the sequence of numbers in the slogan "It's as easy as one, two, three...." is what we used to bring the monitors to the set-up:

quote:

S M M M
O O S S
M M O M
M M M M

which was one button press away (easily deducible if you mapped out the buttons) from the solution of the monitors puzzle.
Also, I offer my apologies. I completely forgot about the "little friend" clue, which is totally a thing we can still use in the game, so I shouldn't have said we're done with the location. It may or may not refer to the elf.

inflatablefish posted:

So we need to put the pad down in the garden to cushion the fall of the crystal goblet. The sleigh bells must have something to do with the elf, so we should show them to him, though I get a sinking sensation that we may have to build a whole cargo-cult Santa and sleigh for him, possibly to lure him into a fatal fall.

Something *really weird* happened when I did this.

quote:

>give bells to elf
(first taking the elf's clothing)
The elf's clothing wouldn't fit you.

I couldn't follow this up with anything. We haven't actually picked up the elf's clothing. We can't ask him about the bells, we can't examine the clothing. Maybe we will get the clothing if y'all psychopaths manage to kill him (which may or may not be possible).
I can't put off the Octagonal Room bit any longer. So here we go. For the purposes of not spoiling the puzzle (I'm pretty sure I dropped enough clues in update 11 to allow you guys to figure it out without an insane amount of effort), I'm just going to be warping around. At some point, if y'all don't want to bother, I'll explain how it works.

Max Peck posted:

...

I can see I'm going to have to step up my spite if I've any hope of out-spiting this game.

If you repeat those steps, except when you're in "Beneath the Balcony" dropping the padding we just picked up, does it stop the goblet from breaking? I'm not in the right frame of mind to get us back down to the garden, mind you, but it's a good first step.

EDIT: Oh, except then you should jump off the balcony while wearing the wings to see if it gets us stuck, and if the game recognizes that.

While you're doing that, could you examine...

... in Abandoned Garden, the birdbath, figures, and wall.
... in Beneath the Balcony, the pavement and moss.
... on A Tiny Balcony, the railing and garden.
... in our inventory, the bells.

quote:

Abandoned Garden

>x wall
You can't see any such thing.

>x birdbath
The birdbath is made of rough concrete, and its lumpy, misshapen outline suggests that it may have been cast by an apprentice while the master craftsman was on vacation. It's tilted to one side, so that the dollop of ice in the middle, about as big around as a generous lumberjack-sized griddle cake, is off center. Around the base are cast four ... well, it's hard to be sure just what they are. Leprechauns? Gargoyles? No, they're monkeys. Surprisingly ugly monkeys. Their aesthetic qualities are not enhanced by the fact that some of their more prominent features have been chipped off.

You're distracted by a sudden flurry of motion high overhead, and crane your neck peering upward. What an odd thing! For just a moment, you seem to see a full-grown reindeer soaring overhead, complete with antlers. But the cloud cover is low, and whatever it is (a bird, surely, no more than that ... but an awfully BIG bird, wouldn't you say?) swiftly vanishes in the swirling gray. Too bad you don't have a camera with you.

>x figures
The monkeys are crudely cast, missing the odd nose or ear, and quite grime-encrusted. They're arranged in a sort of pyramid, with one monkey on top and three below him in a line from left to right.

As you're examining them, one of the monkeys winks at you.

>x bells
The sleighbells are spherical, about an inch in diameter, and somewhat rusty. They're attached to a worn leather strap, apparently to allow them to be draped around the neck of a draught animal.

I also dropped the pad at Beneath the Balcony.

quote:

A Tiny Balcony
This balcony is barely wide enough to stand on. There is an unfortunate-looking walled garden directly below the balcony, but there appears to be no way down from here. The railing has pulled free from its supports at one side and leans outward at an unnerving angle. You can reenter the tower through the archway to the southwest.

A crystal goblet is balanced precariously on the wobbly section of railing. Oh, no -- the very vibration of your movement sets the railing trembling, and before you can snatch it up, the goblet tips off the railing and plummets toward the paving-stones.

>x railing
The railing wobbles and sways when you touch it.

>x garden
Gazing down from the balcony, you see the abandoned garden and the birdbath. Directly below you are some soft padding and a crystal goblet.

>d
You'd break both your legs.

Any other attempts at flying will also fail to work.

quote:

Beneath the Balcony
There is a crystal goblet here.

You can also see a thick pad here.

>take goblet
Taken.

[Your score has just gone up by six points.]

>x goblet
Waterford crystal, from the look of it. The beveled facets catch the light in a pleasant way.

Out of the corner of your eye, you seem to catch a glimpse of something small and furry with wet gleaming eyes, but when you turn to look, it's gone.

>x moss
That's not something you need to refer to in the course of this game.

>x pavement
Owing to the action of underground water over the years, the brickwork is decidedly uneven.

Hey, the raccoon can get to this location as well. How interesting.

# ? Sep 2, 2014 16:26

Max Peck: Oct 12, 2013; You know you're having a bad day when a Cylon ambush would improve it.

Hum.

quote:

>x birdbath
The birdbath is made of rough concrete, and its lumpy, misshapen outline suggests that it may have been cast by an apprentice while the master craftsman was on vacation. It's tilted to one side, so that the dollop of ice in the middle, about as big around as a generous lumberjack-sized griddle cake, is off center. Around the base are cast four ... well, it's hard to be sure just what they are. Leprechauns? Gargoyles? No, they're monkeys. Surprisingly ugly monkeys. Their aesthetic qualities are not enhanced by the fact that some of their more prominent features have been chipped off.

You're distracted by a sudden flurry of motion high overhead, and crane your neck peering upward. What an odd thing! For just a moment, you seem to see a full-grown reindeer soaring overhead, complete with antlers. But the cloud cover is low, and whatever it is (a bird, surely, no more than that ... but an awfully BIG bird, wouldn't you say?) swiftly vanishes in the swirling gray. Too bad you don't have a camera with you.

>x figures
The monkeys are crudely cast, missing the odd nose or ear, and quite grime-encrusted. They're arranged in a sort of pyramid, with one monkey on top and three below him in a line from left to right.

As you're examining them, one of the monkeys winks at you.

quote:

>read scrap
"Ray -- if you need electricity after hours for any reason, the authorization code works out to 10612. I'm sure you remember how to manage the code entry. Also, in case you need to ask those damned monkeys anything -- for instance, if you're planning to take a trip -- I should tell you: I've been able to work it out that at least one of them always tells the truth. Trouble is, I'm not sure which of them it is. Also, another of them must always tell a mix containing some truth and some falsehoods. The other two could be consistent truth-tellers, consistent liars, consistent mixer-uppers, or any two of the possibilities in any combination. Good luck sorting it all out!"

Can we ask the monkeys about a trip? Or the Monkey Palace?

Can we examine the ice? Can we ring the sleighbells? Or wear them ourselves?

# ? Sep 2, 2014 17:06

inflatablefish: Oct 24, 2010

Can we examine the monkeys more closely? If there are four of them, missing a few body parts, then I'd guess that they're See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil, and, uh...

Dancer posted:

missing the odd nose

...Smell No Evil?

Max Peck posted:

>read scrap
"Ray -- if you need electricity after hours for any reason, the authorization code works out to 10612. I'm sure you remember how to manage the code entry. Also, in case you need to ask those damned monkeys anything -- for instance, if you're planning to take a trip -- I should tell you: I've been able to work it out that at least one of them always tells the truth. Trouble is, I'm not sure which of them it is. Also, another of them must always tell a mix containing some truth and some falsehoods. The other two could be consistent truth-tellers, consistent liars, consistent mixer-uppers, or any two of the possibilities in any combination. Good luck sorting it all out!"

I don't know if this will be implemented in this game, but the general way to beat these puzzles with only one question is to ask "What would you say if I asked you..." at which point a liar lies about his own lies, thus double-negativeing them back to truth. I suspect we may end up playing Twenty Questions instead though.

# ? Sep 2, 2014 17:17

Striking Yak: Dec 31, 2012

I think the trip alluded to in the note relates to this:

quote:

>read national
Flipping idly through the magazine, you pause at a story called "The Monkey Palace." This proves to be a description penned by famed explorer Sir Ralph Warburton of an extraordinary structure he stumbled upon deep in the jungle of ... well, he's a little vague about that. Borneo, the Congo, or Laos, take your pick. The structure, which is inhabited solely by monkeys, is built entirely of bamboo. Warburton manages to give the impression that the monkeys may have built the palace themselves. Absurd, of course, but evidently he was a romantic. "I'm told by the natives," he asserts, "that within the Palace the monkeys venerate an artifact of some sort -- perhaps something built by humans and dropped in the jungle by a careless wayfarer, or perhaps something more exotic. I myself was unable to reach the center the structure, but as I moved about within it I could not escape the odd, uncanny feeling that the animals around me were not only aware of my presence but actively attempting to guide me toward my goal." Warburton, you conclude, must have been more than a bit balmy. "I penetrated far enough," he goes on, "to catch glimpses through the bamboo of the spectacular and unceasing ritual that takes place at its epicenter.

"I would never have been able to reach the Monkey Palace in the first place, had I not been able to avail myself of some modern form of transportation, as the structure is entirely surrounded by dense jungle. I found the Colossal Jaunto (which was available to me as a prototype) to be quite reliable, and I programmed it with the destination codes needed to reach the Palace. The codes are based on the latitude and longitude of the location -- but in order to prevent the site from being overrun by tourists, I took the precaution of scrambling the digits. Once I had finished my researches, of course, the Jaunto made it as easy as flipping a coin to turn around and come home."

The three sets of coordinates Warburton gives for the undisclosed location of the Monkey Palace are as follows:

1 N, 114 28' E
19 8' N, 103 E
2 47' N, 23 9' E

So we may be using the monkeys to figure out this puzzle, then we can go to Colossal Adventure and visit the Palace.

Edit: I am currently making pages and pages of notes on the octagonal room puzzle. I'm gonna crack it, guys! :shepicide:

Edit 2: oh god I just noticed I made an error early on and have included it in everything I did for the past hour

Striking Yak fucked around with this message at 19:52 on Sep 2, 2014

# ? Sep 2, 2014 18:14

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Apr 24, 2024 19:57

Dancer: May 23, 2011

Update 11b

Max Peck posted:

Hum.

Can we ask the monkeys about a trip? Or the Monkey Palace?

Can we examine the ice? Can we ring the sleighbells? Or wear them ourselves?

quote:

Abandoned Garden

A large raccoon trots toward you, stands up on his hind legs for a moment and wrinkles his nose, then drops down and scurries off.

>ask monkeys about trip
The right monkey says, "To reach our ancestral home in the Jaunto, you need to subtract one from each digit that Warburton gives for the latitude and longitude."

The top monkey says, "That's true, but you should have added that our home is in Laos."

The center monkey says, "Actually, you don't subtract one from each digit, you add one to each digit."

The left monkey says, "The correct code isn't derived from any single set of coordinates."

The top monkey says, "You can easily figure it out in your head, without consulting a map."

The center monkey says, "I remember now -- take the first two digits of each set of coordinates, considering the countries in alphabetical order."

The right monkey says, "Alphabetical order? What do monkeys know about that? You combine the two-digit numbers in each set of coordinates. Whether they're degrees or minutes doesn't matter."

The left monkey says, "Even if that were true, Warburton gives four two-digit numbers, and the correct code is only six digits long."

The center monkey says, "Our home is in the Congo, and to get there you reverse the order of the digits."

The top monkey says, "That's true, and you should have added that the digits for the latitude and longitude must be reversed separately."

The left monkey says, "One of the methods that has been mentioned is correct, but also misleading."

The right monkey says, "You're lying again."

>x ice
The ice cake is more than a foot across, and judging by the curvature of the bowl it may be several inches thick at the center. There seems to be something small and angular frozen in the ice, but the ice is too grimy and fractured for you to get a clear idea what it might be.

>ring bells
Jingle, jingle, jingle!

>wear bells
You can't wear those!

I'm going to be nice and say that it's impossible to properly use the monkeys' statements at this point. You need one or more extra clues.

inflatablefish posted:

Can we examine the monkeys more closely? If there are four of them, missing a few body parts, then I'd guess that they're See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil, and, uh...

...Smell No Evil?

I don't know if this will be implemented in this game, but the general way to beat these puzzles with only one question is to ask "What would you say if I asked you..." at which point a liar lies about his own lies, thus double-negativeing them back to truth. I suspect we may end up playing Twenty Questions instead though.

quote:

>x monkeys
The monkeys are crudely cast, missing the odd nose or ear, and quite grime-encrusted. They're arranged in a sort of pyramid, with one monkey on top and three below him in a line from left to right.

Think if you were a game designer and you wanted to make this puzzle as un-frustrating as possible. What would you do? (not to mention that what you're referring to would be hard to code)

Striking Yak posted:

Edit: I am currently making pages and pages of notes on the octagonal room puzzle. I'm gonna crack it, guys!
Edit 2: oh god I just noticed I made an error early on and have included it in everything I did for the past hour

The same hint applies to you. Assume the Octagonal Room is "simple" (I get that this is vague, but I think it might push you in the right direction).

# ? Sep 2, 2014 20:30

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Video Games > Let's Play! > Daytrip through the shopping mall from Hell- Not Just an Ordinary Ballerina

«‹›7 »