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Grimwit
Nov 3, 2012

Those eyes! That hair! You're like a movie star! I must take your picture!
In his moment of hesitation, you see your chance; straining against his choking grip, you slip the amulet's cord around Michael's neck, letting the silver pendant drop to his chest.

Instantly Michael begins convulsing, arching his back and clawing at his chest. His jaws stretch open as if to release a howl of torment, but instead of voice, a thick, ropy stream of ectoplasmic mist pours from his throat. It pools into the center of the room, roils about, then coalesces into a human form -- the vaporous, half-rotted apparition of Croseus Verlac himself!


Now (cracks-knuckles) where were we?

>look

Burial Mound
The cave is lined, floor to ceiling, with mummified human corpses. Shrunken and desiccated, they lie in jumbled heaps inside irregularly carved niches. Carvings cover the rock walls in between the niches -- grotesque, leering faces too horrible even to look upon, their features twitching and smirking in the wavering light that sifts down from above.

The disembodied ghost of Croseus Verlac floats before you, howling its rage.

Your husband is here; weak and battered, but nevertheless your husband again.

The obelisk base stands before you, vast and shadowy in the green, murky light.

At the narrower, northern end of the vaguely egg-shaped cavern sits a massive stone altar, flanked on either side by a pair of strange, vibrating columns.

Michael is doubled over with racking coughs, bringing up a thin trickle of blood.




Mort posted:

I guess we have to lure the ghost onto the altar and use the flute to send him to the hell dimension?

Yorkshire Tea posted:

Shine a light on him Luigi's mansion style to drive him to the altar and then perform flute plan.

Fortunately, we won't need to move the ghost.

Kacie posted:

Gazing in dismay at our overwhelming list o' items in the coat - the Flute is our best bet. Like Mort said- lure ghost to altar and use the flute.

Tasteful Dickpic posted:

Play that funky flute, white girl!

Princey posted:

Also maybe grab hold of your husband and something sturdy so you don't join Croseus in the hell dimension.

gbuchold posted:

[/b]Singspiel die Zauberflöte bitte!

Mozart reference.
Cool.

>take flute
(the strange metal flute)
Taken.

The ghost lets out a chilling, sepulchral laugh. "You useless, puny mortal," it cries. "Did you really think that there was any way on earth you could stop me? I have lived and thrived for over four hundred years -- not even Death can claim me!"

Michael lets out a weak groan.


I won't bother you with remembering which cord to play.
Miranda remembers.

I...

>cover first hole
You place your finger over the first flute hole.

"You sabotaged my dimensional beacon -- I will build another. You drove me from my host body -- I will find another. What next? Will you track down my disciples, one by one, and kill them all? Will you set this whole town to the torch?"

Michael lets out a weak groan.


...have HAD...

>cover seventh hole
You place your finger over the seventh flute hole.

"There will be more towns, woman, and more bodies, and more disciples, and always will I be there. And there is NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO STOP ME!"


Enough!

Michael lets out a weak groan.

...of YOU!

>play flute
(the strange metal flute)
The flute emits an odd mixture of metallic, warbling notes which intertwine and harmonize eerily with each other.

The strange harmony of the flute blends with the atonal ringing of the two columns, and the three sounds suddenly grow stronger, resonating with and reinforcing one another, intertwining like a dissonant, invisible braid. The sound increases in volume, piercing your eardrums and causing the very air to shimmer.

Suddenly the air above the altar begins to ripple as though with extreme heat. The very fabric of space seems to twist and buckle between the two columns; and then, with a sound like a wet sheet being torn slowly down the middle, the fabric splits.

You are immediately swept off your feet by a powerful sucking vacuum, pulling everything within reach toward the portal. Dust and debris; bones and loose rock from the burial niches; everything not nailed down goes flying across the temple and into the all-devouring maw hovering over the altar-stone. Desperately, you wedge your fingers into a crack in the floor; with the other hand you grasp hold of Michael's pants leg and hang on for dear life.



Verlac is caught like a gossamer thread in a tornado. Frantically he claws at the air, but as an insubstantial ghost there is nothing for him to hang on to. Shrieking and cursing, he is dragged inexorably back, closer and closer to the portal, until the suction draws his corpus out into a long, trailing ribbon, like an unraveling cable-knit sweater -- and in the next moment he is gone forever, sucked into whatever alien dimension lies beyond that horrible rift.

For a few agonizing moments you don't think you're going to make it; then, suddenly, the chaos stops, leaving you breathless on the floor.

Painstakingly, you pry your stiff, bleeding fingers out of the crack and roll over. The rift is gone. The air is normal, and the columns are ringing quietly, as if nothing had happened.

Silence reigns.

There passes some time that your memory cannot account for; a brief period of blackness and oblivion, you and your unconscious husband, together in the subterranean vault. Perhaps you were unconscious as well; you cannot remember. At some point you become conscious again. You lift Michael to his feet, putting his arm around your shoulders, and the two of you stagger up the titan stairs to the surface. The ground begins rumbling just as you are exiting the house, but by that time Michael has recovered some of his senses and can walk a bit faster.

You make it down to the bend in the road overlooking the town just in time to see the town square collapse, the vile obelisk sinking into the earth. Several buildings are dragged down along with it. A gas pipe ruptures in the courthouse, sending a gout of flame high into the air, and soon the entire town is burning.

Behind you, a muffled explosion and a sudden warmth against your back bespeak a similar end to the Verlac family mansion. For a moment you find yourself almost turning back, driven by instinct to rescue your belongings -- but you stop. You turn away. And while Michael rests, you stand at the overlook and watch the sparks rise like fireflies, mingling with the stars in a clear, cloudless sky.








































Home
You are home, and it is a momentous event. Downstairs, Michael is waiting for you to bring him the wondrous news. To the east is the bedroom you both share, and to the north is your bathroom.

A cool wave of uneasiness washes slowly over you; you're not sure why.

You can hear a fly buzzing around, somewhere nearby.

Your score has just gone up by fifteen points.


Michael and Miranda Carter are back in Texas, I imagine.
Where else would they go?

>look at fly
You can't see where the fly is. You're not even sure where the buzzing is coming from.

"Well?" Michael calls excitedly from downstairs. "Have you looked yet?"


Time has passed.
It doesn't matter how long.

>inventory
You are wearing your clothes and your wedding ring.

Michael calls up again, this time sounding slightly worried: "Hon? Everything okay up there?"


What matters is that they aren't in Anrchorhead anymore.

>north
You can barely feel yourself walking; it's almost as if some outer force were moving you of its own accord.

Your Bathroom
Your bathroom; an ordinary place. A normal, safe, familiar place.

On the counter is a home pregnancy test.

A nameless, formless apprehension grips you suddenly, leaving you short of breath. Why are you so frightened, on what should be such a joyous occasion?


What matters is Croseus Verlac is more than dead.

>get test
You pick up the home pregnancy test. It's an ordinary pregnancy test, the kind you can get at any drugstore; the kind with the little window that turns pink if you're going to have a baby.

You can hear a fly buzzing around, hovering over the back of your neck.


He's gone.

>look at test
It's an ordinary pregnancy test, the kind you can get at any drugstore; the kind with the little window that turns pink if you're going to have a baby.

And he can't hurt Miranda's family anymore.

>look at tiny window
You can't see any such thing.

Really, game?
I'm trying to be Dramatic, here!

FINE!

>look at little window
You stare down at the little plastic indicator, and an inexplicable horror seizes you.

The window is pink. The test is positive.

From downstairs, you can hear Michael joyfully talking to himself:

"Oh, I hope it's a little girl," he says. "I've always wanted to have a little girl."



*** You have won... for now ***


In that game you scored 97 out of a possible 100 points; you have banished the evil and saved your husband from a fate most hideous -- but you were unable to solve the entire mystery.

Thank you for playing Anchorhead!


Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, UNDO your last move, give the FULL score for that game, see some suggestions for AMUSING things to do or QUIT?


A quick look before we finish up the game part for good.

> full

In that game you scored 97 out of a possible 100 points; you have banished the evil and saved your husband from a fate most hideous -- but you were unable to solve the entire mystery.

The score was made up as follows:

2 points for finding the house keys
2 points for showing the keys to Michael
1 point for taking a bath
1 point for getting the key from the cellar
1 point for getting the key from the attic
2 points for finding the journal
2 points for finding the diary
1 point for finding the safe
2 points for opening the safe
2 points for opening the puzzle box
2 points for guessing Michael's computer passcode
5 points for receiving the amulet
2 points for giving the bum whiskey
5 points for giving the bum the amulet
5 points for learning the name IALDABAOLOTH
2 points for spying on Michael
2 points for opening the secret door behind the wine racks
2 points for hiding from the monster at the slaughterhouse
1 point for breaking into the church
2 points for escaping from the church
2 points for opening Claudia Benson's desk drawer
2 points for giving the teddy bear to Jeffrey's mother
1 point for getting the long steel key
1 point for shutting off the steam valve
2 points for getting up to the mill laboratory
2 points for escaping the strait jacket
2 points for finding Edward Verlac's last testament
2 points for escaping the asylum
2 points for recovering the amulet
2 points for slaying William Verlac
5 points for sabotaging the ritual
5 points for freeing Jeffrey
5 points for showing the wedding ring to Michael
5 points for putting the amulet on Michael
5 points for banishing Croseus Verlac
10 points for doing it in time to save your husband's life

97 total (out of 100)

Thank you for playing Anchorhead!


We're missing 3 points from the following things that, technically, didn't happen this play through...

2 points for getting the book from the librarian
1 point for taking a bath a second time


Wait a second...
(checks)
Miranda DID take a bath the second time.

:shrug:

The next update will fill in some last details and look into the "Amusing" option. It will be the last entry, I think.
Thanks for playing along and being patient with this Let's Player.

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inflatablefish
Oct 24, 2010

Grimwit posted:

For a moment you find yourself almost turning back, driven by instinct to rescue your belongings -- but you stop.

...when you realise that everything you have ever owned is right here in your trenchcoat.

This has been a really interesting game, thanks for the LP! Also, I love that spiralling-into-oblivion picture.

Double Plus Undead
Dec 24, 2010
Really, Miranda couldn't adopt? It's not like she married into a family with some kind of evil bloodline curse or anything! Fun LP though.

Double Plus Undead fucked around with this message at 18:56 on Jun 5, 2016

Seyser Koze
Dec 15, 2013

Mucho Mucho
Nap Ghost
Do the last three points constitute "solving the entire mystery?"

grandalt
Feb 26, 2013

I didn't fight through two wars to rule
I fought for the future of the world

And the right to have hot tea whenever I wanted
Of course they go with maybe you didn't stop the threat, but considering that even that Lovecroft's stories the horrors could be beaten and even permanently, I guess that you won. Just some san damage, don't worry, give it a couple years and you'll be good as new. Well, close enough.


Thanks for the lp.

Grimwit
Nov 3, 2012

Those eyes! That hair! You're like a movie star! I must take your picture!

Seyser Koze posted:

Do the last three points constitute "solving the entire mystery?"

I have never ever got 100 points.
I don't know if it's possible.

Hey, Mike Gentry! If you're out there, what did we miss?


---===What if Miranda gives the real mirror to Mike in the Lighthouse?===---

Michael raises the torch, preparing to thrust it into the pyre at the child's feet. He throws his head back and shrieks directly into the eye of the storm:

"IACH! PIOTH XENOBETHAKLES! ULUTUK FH'TAGHN!! BY THE KEYS OF IOK-SOTOT I NAME THEE!

"!!! IALDABAOLOTH !!! COME FORTH !!!"


>z
You wait, helplessly.

With a triumphant shout, Michael plunges the torch into the kindling piled up around the little boy's feet. You turn away as the child's screams rise over the sound of crackling flames. The ringing sound reaches a crescendo. The sky splits like a rotted shroud, and the squirming, bubbling chaos of Ialdabaoloth pours through. The earth withers under the unspeakable malevolence of Its great, red-rimmed eye, and all of mankind are engulfed and encysted within the necrotic folds of the Womb of Nehilim.

It is a dark time for everyone.


*** Mankind's doom is complete ***


In that game you scored 62 out of a possible 100 points; it is all, however, for naught.






---===What if Miranda leaves the boy behind, then waits to watch him drown?===---

With a final, shivering heave, the island of flesh sinks beneath the waves. The boy screams horribly as the water closes over his head; then the water fills his mouth and chokes off his cry. Soon, nothing is left except the bubbling, turbulent patch of water.

A flurry of dead leaves goes skittering along the ground, swirling past you in the wind.


>sw
The trail turns northwest, following the curve of the lighthouse wall.
At the Foot of the Lighthouse
The sea thrashes against the shore with storm-driven fury.
The great bronze door of the lighthouse stands slightly ajar, revealing a narrow rectangle of blackness within.

>sw
Breakwater
The sea thrashes against the shore with storm-driven fury.

>w
Mill Road
A sizzling bolt of lightning cuts through the night sky, illuminating your surroundings in a sudden sheet of blinding white radiance that leaves eerie, green afterimages scarred onto your retinas.

>w
As you cross the railroad tracks, the air becomes warmer, more dingy, and slightly more difficult to breathe.
Entrance to the Paper Mill
*** ka-WHAM!!! ***
A monstrous clap of thunder rolls across the sky, shaking the whole town to its foundations.

>n
Shanty Town
You hear a soft rattle behind you, like an empty tin can rolling across the uneven ground. When you turn, there is no one there.
Flakes of ash drift gently down from the sky like gray snow, coating everything with a thin layer of soot, which is quickly washed away by the rain.


>knock on door 11
The door opens a crack and the woman peers fearfully out; but when she sees it is you, she smiles and beckons you inside.

#11 Mill Town Road
A dirty, ramshackle home, scraped together out of the bits and ends of working-class poverty. The floor is warped and broken wood, bare dirt showing through the cracks between boards. Rags hang across the window in lieu of curtains. Over in the far corner is a rickety old stove; in the opposite corner a threadbare cot; it hits you suddenly that a family of three once lived, slept and ate all in this single room, which is slightly smaller than your bedroom back at the house.

The woman watches you expectantly.

On the threadbare cot is a teddy bear.

A set of grime-smeared overalls hangs on a hook next to the front door to the west.


>tell woman about boy
"It came in the night," the woman tells you, her voice barely above a whisper, "just like when it took all the other children over the years. It came through the window and took him away while we slept." The woman's voice breaks, and she shakes her head, trying not to weep. "Without my Jeffrey, I don't know if I can go on." Her look implores you. "If you do find him, please tell me. Please bring my boy back to me!"

Uh...






---===What if we wait until Croseus kills Michael Carter before opening the portal to hell?===---

There passes some time that your memory cannot account for; a brief period of blackness and oblivion, you and the body of your husband, together in the subterranean vault. Were you weeping? Laughing? Were you even conscious? You cannot remember. At some point you must have tenderly gathered Michael to your breast and carried him to the surface. By what route you came you will never be sure, for your next memory is that of standing at the bend in the road overlooking the town, watching Anchorhead burn. The town square is caving in on itself, the vile obelisk sinking into the earth. And above you on the hilltop, a bright orange glow and a growing heat upon your back mark the end of the Verlac family forever.

Another blank time. Somehow you must have found a ride, because your next memory is in nearby Arkham. There is a hospital, and doctors asking you questions, and someone wheels Michael into another room, shutting the lights off behind them.

Then there are some difficult phone calls.

You talk to Michael's family, and your family talks to you, and soon you are flying back to Texas -- you in coach class, Michael in freight. So that he can be buried near his home, near his family.

His true family. And his true home.

But no longer yours.


*** You have won, but at what price? ***


In that game you scored 87 out of a possible 100 points; you are in sight of daylight with the foul breath of hell at your back.








The following are lists presented at the end of the game, assuming you've saved Mike and taken the pregnancy test.

---===Neat Ways to Die===---

I think I've done all of these during the LP, but just in case...

Of course, you have already surmised that there are many creative ways in which you can die in this game. Whether or not you find that particularly amusing... well, that's between you and your conscience. I, for one, found them amusing to code; perhaps you will find them amusing to experience.

Do not attempt the following at home:

- standing on the train tracks until the train comes.
- standing on the altar while you blow the flute.
- wandering around the Narrow Aisles adjacent to the Mill Floor for too long.
- not giving Michael the mirror when he asks for it.
- letting Michael die before you destroy Croseus.
- reading the big black book in the abandoned church -- in its entirety.
- EXAMINING William Verlac.
- ATTACKING Michael with the meat hook.
- allowing the summoning ritual to proceed to its conclusion without sabotaging the beacon first.






---===Easter Eggs===---

Again, I tried to do all of these, but I may have missed some details.
There are a LOT of details in this game.

Did you try just typing LISTEN while Michael is in the shower on the morning of Day 2? Type it several times.

Did you take a good look at the paintings in the gallery? One scene in particular will catch your eye. EXAMINE the scene. Leave the room and come back later, and EXAMINE the paintings again.

In Claudia Benson's last letter, she mentions that she did some research at the Miskatonic library. Did you try looking her name up on the circulation register? You might find some interesting reading material.

You may have noticed that your appearance changes as the game progresses and you get more and more filthy. Did you try EXAMINING yourself while wearing the strait jacket? How about talking to yourself?

Also, did you EXAMINE yourself during the epilogue?

Did you try SCREAMING or CRYING? Did you try it while handcuffed to the island at the end of Chapter Four?

If you wait around for a while at the Twisting Lane or the Rocky Spur, you might catch something interesting. You might have to wait a long time, though.

Did you try typing XYZZY? No? Good.






---===Alternative Ways to Solve Puzzles===---

Several puzzles in Anchorhead admit more than one solution; some even boast more than two. Many of these alternate solutions are actually "second chances" that pop up elsewhere in the story, should you happen to miss the narrow window of oppourtunity provided to solve the puzzle the first time. Although my caveat about saving in "About This Game" still holds, there are actually few mistakes in Anchorhead that are truly irreversible (other than the immediately fatal ones, of course).

You might find it interesting to go back and see if you can find other ways to:

- discover the name "Verlac".
- clear away the spiderweb in the cellar.
- get the brass key from the attic cell.
- obtain Michael's faculty card.
- open the puzzle box.
- reach the bottom riser from the church basement.
- spy on Michael on the morning of the third day.
- turn the steam-release wheel.
- get up to the mill catwalk.
- open the real estate agent's desk drawer.
- safely witness the old bum's murder.
- get rid of the madman in Danvers Asylum.






---===Significant Dates===---

Yes, June 28th is our real anniversary. Thanks for all the cards.





---===Most Bizzar Bug Report Contest===---

These quotes are taken from actual bug reports from the first version of Anchorhead. Names have been obscured to embarrass the guilty.

2nd PRIZE:

"Obscure fact: Edward writes that he pricked the inside of his cheek to draw blood for his ink. The inside of the cheek isn't a good choice for an inkwell, since it's mighty difficult to get it to bleed. Have you bitten your cheek while chewing food? It hurts, but it doesn't bleed. Have you seen body manipulators pierce their cheeks with a metal skewer? They choose the cheek precisely because it won't bleed. You can try this at home yourself with a needle or a large safety pin. Sterilize it, psyche yourself up, and pierce the cheek from the inside to the outside. It's *very* disconcerting, but it's not painful, and if there's any blood at all, it will bleed from the *outside* of the cheek, not the inside."

1st PRIZE:

"This is horrible, but I got really confused at the epilogue, because I thought I hadn't taken the pregnancy test yet. (It's amazing how difficult it is to express taking a pregnancy test in IF commands.)"


Mr. Gentry... I still can't leave the bedroom with Mike's Wallet.





---===Some things Never Change===---

It is STILL possible to win the game and earn all the points without EVER using the key to the sewers. I never could figure out how the hell to fix that.





---===Used for this LP===---

Windows Frotz 1.18
Anchorhead Release 5 / Serial number 990206 / Inform v6.15 Library 6/7
GIMP2.8.14
Link to all images used in this LP




Solumin
Jan 11, 2013
Thanks for the awesome LP, Grimwit! I really enjoyed your style and presentation, especially all the illustrations.

Do you have plans for doing another LP any time soon?

Kacie
Nov 11, 2010

Imagining a Brave New World
Ramrod XTreme
Ah, yes - the good ending, where you make sure the bloodline dies out. Of course that doesn't get you the most points.

Thank you for LPing and illustrating this game! I am so bad at IF, I never dared try this game, and while I'd absolutely get stuck I love what it does.

rabiddeity
Jun 2, 2011
Thanks for the LP, Grimwit! It's always great to read LPs of games I would probably have never finished on my own. And the artwork was superb. Well done.

Grimwit
Nov 3, 2012

Those eyes! That hair! You're like a movie star! I must take your picture!

Solumin posted:

Do you have plans for doing another LP any time soon?

I'm doing Dark Souls Let's Play #284B1 right now.
God... God, I don't know why.

I'll probably do another Non-Video LP, tho.
Anchorhead was fun.

bad boyfriend worse lay
Feb 18, 2011

And when they went,
I heard the noise of their wings,
like the noise of great waters.
Thanks for the great LP and especially the illustrations! I've started Anchorhead several times but never finished it, so it was nice to see what actually happens past the first day.

Thesaya
May 17, 2011

I am a Plant.
Thank you for this! It was a lot of fun. I would love to see you tackle another text adventure in the future.

Grimwit
Nov 3, 2012

Those eyes! That hair! You're like a movie star! I must take your picture!
Heeeeey!
It's Mike Gentry, author of award winning interactive fiction Anchorhead!
Link to his only scene in a documentary.




Thesaya posted:

Thank you for this! It was a lot of fun. I would love to see you tackle another text adventure in the future.

We'll see.
There's, perhaps, two other IF's that have struck a cord with me.

sotrain515
Oct 21, 2010

Grimwit posted:

I was wondering who picked up my hint. Or maybe you're just clever.

Hey I'm way late and actually was following along in the lparchive, but I wanted to note that you seemingly left out an update in your master list. It's one that comes in between Updates 16 and 17 (I quoted it above so you have a link).

Great work, though. Loving the illustrations.

ETA:

Grimwit posted:

We can mess around with the bottles.

Also missing this update! Goes in between 23 and 24.

sotrain515 fucked around with this message at 19:59 on Aug 11, 2016

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Sjs00
Jun 29, 2013

Yeah Baby Yeah !
Beautiful art! Bookmarking to enjoy later.

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