Thursday 24 October 2013

Game 37: Loom - Turn Loose the Swans

Bobbin Threadbare Journal Entry 1: "I must say, this hasn't been the best birthday I've ever had! It began the way every other birthday does, with me climbing the mountain to watch the swan, but everything has gone completely crazy since! A messenger nymph told me to go see the Elders, but when I got there I witnessed something truly awful. They turned Hetchel into a swan, apparently for nothing more than teaching me how to do some basic drafts with a distaff. They seemed to think that I'm a danger to the pattern, at least they did before the swan I'd planned to see from the mountain came crashing through and turned all of them into swans too! One minute everyone in the village is going about their own business, the next they're all swans and flying off into the distance! Hetchel told me before she left that I should learn the ways of weaving, and that my destiny is waiting for me across the water. I can't think of any reason to stay on Loom now, so I guess I'll follow her advice and see where I end up."


It all begins here, on Loom

My journey has begun, and I already know that I am really going to enjoy it! I've played just over an hour of the game, but I will likely only get through half of that in this first gameplay post. The first section is very dialogue heavy (it's basically one long introduction), so I'll try to summarise conversations without diminishing the power of what is one of the game’s most cherished aspects. After much deliberation, I decided to play the game in Standard mode. This had more to do with me wanting to play the way the majority of first time players would, rather than any performance anxiety on my part. Now that I’ve played part of the game, I’d like to think I could give Expert mode a pretty good shot, and perhaps I will another time. The game begins as the audio prologue finished, with Bobbin (that’s me) sleeping atop a small mountain on the island Loom, which he’d climbed with the purpose of seeing the lonely swan that passes by on his birthday every year. His rest was interrupted by a “messenger nymph” (a shining light that moves around and talks), which Bobbin believes must have been woven by one of the Elders down in the village.


The manhunter awoke, happy to find a messenger nymph rather than a giant eyeball staring back at him for once

The messenger nymph had the following message for Bobbin: “Rise, son of Cygna. It is the dawn of your seventeenth year. I am sent by the Elders to summon you. The High Council awaits your presence in the Sanctuary.” With that I had control of Bobbin, and immediately tried to come to grips with the interface. I moved the cursor over the screen and noticed that an image of the single red leaf attached to the tree appeared in the bottom right corner whenever I crossed over it. Clicking on it caused it to drop from the tree and float away, with Bobbin claiming it to be the “Last leaf of the year.” I clicked on the path I could see leading down from the mountain and watched as Bobbin disappeared behind the peak and then reappeared in much smaller form down on the path in the distance. Following it along took me to the village, but it was clear that I was not restricted to that location alone. I could also see a small pier in the bottom left corner of the screen and also appeared to be able to walk towards the trees in the top left. I decided to follow the messenger nymph’s instructions and try to find the Elders in the village. On entering the village proper, I had the option of entering any of a number of tents. I chose the one on the left of screen and was stunned to appear in an interior far larger than the exterior suggested!


I wonder if we'll ever see what a Weaver really looks like!


Clicking on things once shows a close-up of it. Clicking on it again interacts with it.


The colours used are very reminiscent of Monkey Island. Loom came first though I should add!


I'll just see what's inside this tiny little tent. Can't be much...right?

In fact, there was clearly some magic involved here, as the “tent” turned out to be a huge hallway with tapestries and stained glass windows decorating the walls. I wandered along, investigating the tapestries, which I discovered were all sections of “the Long Tapestry”. I was told that the first green section described “the creation of the world and the passage of the Two Shadows.” The second blue section showed “the rise of the Guilds, and the story of the Weaver’s founding.” The last pink section illustrated “the decline of the Guilds, and the gathering of a Third Shadow.” Interestingly, there was a portion of this last tapestry that had been forcibly torn off, so I assumed I would come across it at some point later in the game. The end of the hallway opened up into a large room, where the Elders were congregated (Elder Clothos in green, Elder Atropos in blue, and Elder Lachesis in yellow). The all important Loom was next to them, lit up by impressive waves of colourful light! Rather than waltzing in and interrupting, Bobbin waited at the end of the hallway, and listened to the remainder of their conversation. It quickly became apparent that the three Elders were not at all happy with Dame Hetchel, whom I knew from the prologue as the servant woman that had raised me since Cygna had been turned into a swan. She was given the opportunity to defend her actions, yet she refused. “I have no defense or excuses, Elder Atropos. My actions speak for themselves.”


Holy crap! This tent is like the TARDIS!


Sorry guys! I just got here. Would you mind running through those findings again?

The Elders were stunned with Hetchel’s defiance, and demanded to know why she now broke the Rules of Membership when she had always followed them to the letter. Her response was clear: “The boy must be told the truth about his birth, Elder Clothos. His talent awakens! Soon he will wield the power of Weaving, whether we choose to guide him or not. We dare not desert Bobbin now.” As I’d expected, the Elders were enraged that Dame Hetchel had disobeyed their order that I never be shown the ways of weaving, and I now wondered what would become of her. Elder Atropos answered that question immediately. “It grieves me to see your many years of faithful service end in this disgrace. But the wisdom of the Elders may not be questioned. That is the final Rule of Membership. Another one of your students, Lady Cygna, learned the terrible price of defiance in this very chamber seventeen years ago. Better that you had heeded that lesson. Gaze once more upon the Great Loom if you would know your destiny. For behold! That destiny is upon you.” Just as they had done to Cygna all those years ago, the Elders weaved a draft to turn Dame Hetchel into a swan, and that would banish her from the pattern. Only this time, it didn’t work precisely as they’d planned. The older servant was now inside an egg, sitting on the floor in front of the loom.


Don't take it personally. I have problems with authority in general.


Utinni! (Yes, I stole your thunder Canageek)


Oh! I thought the final rule of Membership was "There is no Membership"! My bad!


I think you're losing your mojo Elder Atropos!

Before the Elders could ponder on this strange turn of events, a cry was heard from outside the Guild. A swan, clearly Cygna, swooped down and crashed through the stained glass window, immediately weaving threads. The threads were represented by four lights on the loom coinciding with four differing audible notes. To the Elders’ great horror, Cygna was weaving the same draft they had, subsequently turning all three of them into swans the way they had her all those years ago. Just prior to the last of the three elders being transformed, Elder Atropos cried out: “Cursed forever be the name of Cygna’s son, the Loom-Child ... Bobbin Threadbare!” I was then witness to all the swans departing the island and flying through some sort of portal, presumably leaving the pattern as they went. I was left alone in the Guild Hall. “Oh, wonderful. Everyone’s flown away! No explanations. No goodbyes. Why do they always leave me behind?” Loom’s extended introduction was nearing it's completion, and I now temporarily had control of Bobbin. The first thing I did was take a look at the egg that likely contained Dame Hetchel in swan form. I was told that the egg was “trying to open!”, which reminded me that there were two prefilled drafts in the Book of Patterns. The first one, which was called Opening, and the last one, which was called Transcendence.


Now that's what I call an entrance!


There were more than four swans leaving the island, which suggested the whole village was transformed


It's tough being the chosen one!

I knew from reading the manual that the exact threads of the drafts changed from game to game (a kind copy protection), but it appeared Opening and Transcendence never changed. “Opening: This fundamental draft is traditionally the first one taught to novice spellweavers. Once mastered, it may be spun into tarpaulins, theatre curtains, or any covering that must be whisked aside on command.” Dame Hetchel had taught Bobbin the Opening draft towards the end of the prologue, so it made sense that it was prefilled in the book, but what about Transcendence? “Transcendence: Few indeed are the Weavers who successfully spun this, the most subtle and mysterious expression of our art. Transcendence dissolves the ties that bind our threads into the Pattern, elevating mind and body to an undefined state of existence. Transcended beings are said to assume the form of birds, constellations, or even sunspots. Because corporal punishment is forbidden in our Guild, Transendence is occasionally used as a means of humane banishment, but only for the most unforgivable infractions of the Rules.” Aha! So the Elders had weaved the Transcendence draft on both Cygna and now Dame Hetchel! I’d seen them do it, so that’s why it was also prefilled in the Book of Patterns! I was very keen to try out the Opening draft on the egg, but there was something I was going to need to make that happen. I walked over to the distaff that Elder Atropos had left behind, and picked it up.


Enchantment: Remove any three creature cards under your control and put three 6/6 Death Swans of Loom tokens in their place


When it comes to music, the heavier the better!

An image of the distaff appeared at the bottom of the screen, along with a representation of sheet music (please excuse my musical ignorance during these posts). While there were a total of eight separate notes shown, only three of them were “lit up” with colour. I wasn’t completely sure why at this point, but I quickly realised that the notes required for the Opening draft were all amongst them. I positioned myself in front of the egg and selected it so it appeared down the bottom right. I then clicked on E, C, E, and then D. As I did this, the section on the distaff directly above those notes lit up, and the note could be audibly heard. Lights appeared on the loom behind me too, suggesting whatever I was doing was gaining power from the loom itself. Once the draft was complete, blue sparkles enveloped the egg, and then it opened! A small black swan stepped out and began speaking to me! “Thank goodness you’re still here.” It was Dame Hetchel! I asked her what was going on, and why the whole village had flown away, to which she replied: “I’d hoped the swan might come to save you. But I never expected her to weave as much mischief as this!” She then told me that the Elders planned to turn me into a swan too, as they believed my unnatural birth was the cause of chaos spreading “across the Pattern in the Loom”. Now that the Elders themselves had been banished, Hetchel believed that the pattern was failing on its own accord, and that “a third Shadow is nigh”!


Could you string any more weaving related words into your material?

I asked the black swan how we could stop the chaos, but she didn’t think it was possible. “We can embrace it. Or... escape! We must find out where our flock has flown, and join them if we can! As long as the distaff remains in your hands, I’ll know you are safe. If you ever lose it, take heart! I’ll come to help you if I can.” This last comment seemed important, hinting that this wouldn’t be the last time I would see Dame Hetchel in the game. Our conversation concluded with her telling me to “Leave this island, Loom-Child. It’s too small for you now. Your destiny lies beyond the sea!” With that, she took her leave and followed the swans out of the pattern through a portal of sorts. I really was alone now, but excited to set out and explore the rest of the island. Before I left, I took a closer look at the loom, finding that the four threads of the Transcendence draft were “still echoing” there. I already knew them from the Book of Patterns, but it was nice to have my understanding of events so far confirmed (the notes matched those found in the book). I left the tent, and made my way east until I arrived at another one. I entered, and found a pile of gold glistening at the edge of a darkened room. As promising as this find was, clicking on it only resulted in the following message: “People ought to clean up after themselves.”


Mulligrub me, Mulligrub you...

So it didn’t look like money was going to play a role in Loom. I walked into the darkness, and noticed that an image of my eyes appeared in the bottom right corner. I wasn’t able to see anything in the room, but thought I might be able to with the right draft. With nothing else to do, I left the tent and continued east, finding one last tent that I could enter. Now this room seemed to have a lot on offer! There were bits of material around the place, a boiling pot over a fire, and a table containing various bits and pieces. I began to systematically check out each item, starting with the green wool hanging above the stove. “Grassy green. Hate that color.” Well that seemed unfortunate, given most things in the room had the same emerald green tone. I clicked on the boiling pot, and found that it contained dye. Not only that, the notes of a draft (C,D,C,D) were played as the words “It’s bubbling” appeared on the screen. I skimmed through the Book of Patterns, eventually coming across a draft called Dyeing. "This draft was perfected by the dye of the Woonsocket Chapter, who slaved for hours over steaming pits to satisfy the Cleric’s appetite for colourful vestures. Originally woven into all types of fabric, the applicability of the Dyeing draft has diminished over the course of centuries. Now it works only on wool.”


With this much power, nothing can stop me! Why I can even change this useless heap of wool into something beautiful and precious!

Just next to the stove were two piles of wool that still needed dyeing, so I tried out my new draft. It worked, turning the wool bright green. It still didn’t seem useful, so I moved onto the large bottle sitting on the table. Clicking it caused it to fall over and start dripping green liquid onto the floor. At the same time as this happened though, the notes of another draft appeared (G,E,E,D.). I once again looked through the Book of Patterns, quickly finding a likely one called Emptying. “The contents of almost any filled container may be instantly unravelled with this handy draft. Before its development c. 4200, the streams of Woonsocket ran green with discarded dyes of the chemists. Avoid the temptation to spin Emptying upon lakes or clouds; its range is deliberately limited to prevent catastrophes such as the Double Deluge of 4202 (for which the Guild admits no responsibility).” I looked around the room, but couldn’t find anything that I might want to empty. I therefore checked out the last remaining item in the room, which was a large red book on the table. “This is the Book of Patterns that Hetchel lets me read sometimes. Better take it with me.” I wasn’t sure whether it played a role in the game itself, or whether it was simply there to compliment the one that came in the box (in the real world), but I now had it in both fiction and reality. Well, this post has gone on long enough now, despite not having covered all that much ground. That’s usually the case for these first up gameplay posts though, so no doubt we’ll move at a more rapid pace from here on in. Join me in a couple of days...


Damn!

Session Time: 0 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 0 hours 30 minutes

Note Regarding Spoilers and Companion Assist Points: I've written a set of rules regarding spoilers and companion assist points. Please read it here before making any comments that could be considered a spoiler in any way. The short of it is that no points will be given for hints or spoilers given in advance of me requiring one. Please...try not to spoil any part of the game for me...unless I really obviously need the help...or I specifically request assistance. In this instance, I've not made any requests for assistance. Thanks!

58 comments:

  1. Is that title a My Dying Bride reference? :)

    This looks like it will be an interesting game, maybe I will learn a bit about music notes as I read your posts.

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    1. Yes it was! And it was there for you Pacpix. :)

      I highly doubt you will learn anything about musical notes from my posts though. You might actually know less afterwards.

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  2. Does anyone who has played the game before remembers when gur cynlre yrneaf ur pna erirefr gur qensgf?

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    1. Lbh'er fhccbfrq gb svther vg bhg jura lbh rapbhagre gur gbeanqb. Ohg lbh pna fgvyy erirefr qlr jbby (naq gur terng gncrfgevrf, uru) naq fcva tbyq vagb fgenj orsber gung.

      V abgvprq (sebz gur fperrafubgf) gung gurer ner vafgehpgvbaf gb erirefr qensgf va Byni naq gur Yhgr. V'z jbeevrq gung guvf fcbvyrq Gevpxfgre gb gur fnzr zrpunavp va Ybbz.

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    2. Lrnu gurer'f abguvat va tnzr gung V pbhyq gryy gung yrg lbh xabj gung lbh npghnyyl pbhyq qb guvf. Juvpu yrq gb zl svefg cbvag bs sehfgengvba hcba rapbhagrevat gur gjvfgre hagvy V jnf noyr gb svther bhg gung lbh pbhyq erirefr gurz.

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    3. I seem to remember that Bobbin will definitely learn about it on his journey. Unless the player wasn't paying attention, that is.

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    4. Oboova jvyy jvgarff qensgf orvat fcha sbejneqf naq onpxjneqf obgu jura gur furcureqf nccrne/qvfnccrne, naq jura gur furrc jnxr hc/ znxr fyrrc n furcureq. Ohg gung'f nyernql cnfg gur gjvfgre.

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    5. V qba'g erpnyy jurer V ernq vg, ohg vg zvtug unir orra va gur znahny (cbffvoyl abg). V qb erzrzore tbvat vagb gur tnzr xabjvat gung erirefvat qensgf jnf cbffvoyr (znlor vg jnf zragvbarq va gur nhqvb gncr). Znlor V jnf fcbvyrq nsgre ernqvat gur vagreivrj gubhtu.

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    6. It's hard to say whether I was spoiled by Olav & the Lute or not. I did find the message at the tornado to be quite obvious, as it mentioned that I needed to find a way to UNTWIST it, but perhaps I still wouldn't have thought of it without my prior Olav experience. We'll never know!

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    7. Of course you knew if from that games, don't lie to yourself ;)

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  3. My thoughts on Loom, so spoilers for pretty much all of the game.

    V qvq vaqrrq obgu fgneg naq pbzcyrgr Ybbz ba Fhaqnl. V cynlrq gur tnzr jvgubhg ybbxvat ng gur znahny (orpnhfr V sbetbg gung jnf n guvat V pbhyq qb) naq ba rkcreg. V'z abg cnegvphyneyl zhfvpnyyl vapyvarq, ohg V qba'g oryvrir vg znqr zhpu bs n qvssrerapr pbafvqrevat gur jnl V pbcvrq gur qensgf.

    Bs gur tnzrf Gevpxfgre unf cynlrq fb sne V'q unir gb fnl Ybbz unf gur orfg tencuvpf naq ngzbfcurer, naq nzbat gur zbfg ragregnvavat fgbevrf. Gur xabpxf ntnvafg vg jbhyq or gur fubeg yratgu naq cebonoyl gur rnfl qvssvphygl, nygubhtu V graq abg gb zvaq gung fb zhpu pbafvqrevat fbzr bs gur evqvphybhfarff gur Nqiragher tnzrf graq gb znxr gur cynlre tb guebhtu.

    Nyzbfg nyy bs gur chmmyrf pna or fhffrq bhg ybtvpnyyl naq gur bayl cbvagf jurer V ernyyl tbg fghpx jrer guvatf gung V qvqa'g ernyvmr V pbhyq qb ng svefg. Gur svefg gvzr jnf gur gjvfgre, juvpu V unir gb nffhzr fghzcrq n ybg bs crbcyr vs gurl nyfb unq ab vqrn lbh pbhyq whfg erirefr qensgf. Nsgre svthevat gung bhg, zbfg nal chmmyr pbhyq or fbyirq ol ercrngrqyl gelvat qensgf ba vg vs lbh znlor pbhyqa'g svther vg bhg ybtvpnyyl ng svefg.

    V nyfb tbg fghpx gelvat gb svther bhg ubj gb trg cnfg gur thneqf ng gur gbc bs gur gbjre, ohg gung jnf bayl orpnhfr V unqa'g abgvprq gung gurl jrer pyvpxnoyr ba gur bhgfvqr, juvpu jnf whfg qhzo ba zl cneg. Gur arkg gvzr V tbg fghpx jnf va gur qnex pnirf va gur nern jurer lbh yrnearq ersyrpgvba, naq gung jnf bayl orpnhfr V gubhtug V unq gb qb fbzrguvat fcrpvny gb yrnir, fvapr pyvpxvat nyy nebhaq gur fperra jbhyqa'g yrg zr yrnir. Ohg nccneragyl V whfg qvqa'g svaq gur bar fcbg V arrqrq gb pyvpx gur svefg gvzr guebhtu orpnhfr riraghnyyl V qvq pyvpx gur evtug fcbg naq tbg gur yrnir. Fb gung jnf whfg naablvat.

    Gur erfg bs gur tnzr jnfa'g gbb onq, vg gbbx zr n ovg gb svther fbzr fghss bhg, vapyhqvat gur svany frdhrapr, ohg abguvat gung znqr zr arrq gb ybbx sbe uryc.

    Fvapr V qvqa'g hfr n znahny naq cynlrq ba rkcreg V raqrq hc jevgvat qbja nyy gur qensgf va n abgrobbx. V qvqa'g hfr zhfvp abgrf, ohg hfrq pbybef nf ercerfragrq ba gur qvfgnss vafgrnq. Sbe rknzcyr, fvapr V qvqa'g xabj gur Bcra qensg gb fgneg bss V unq gb yrnea vg sebz gur thyyf. Ohg fvapr V qvqa'g xabj jung vg qvq ng svefg V whfg jebgr: lryybj - erq - lryybj - cvax - thyyf. Gura nsgre gelvat vg bhg ba gur pynz naq trggvat vg gb bcra, V abgrq gung gur qensg jnf Bcra vafgrnq. Fb vg jrag sbe gur erfg bs gur tnzr.

    Birenyy V guvax Ybbz unf n punapr gb gnxr gur gbc birenyy fcbg qrfcvgr vgf yratgu, ohg V qvqa'g jnag gb gel gb tvir vg n fcrpvsvp fpber ba zl bja. V thrff jr'yy whfg unir gb frr ubj vg tbrf jvgu Gevpxfgre naq ubj ur fpberf vg.

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    1. V nyfb nterr gur fubeg yratgu naq eryngvir rnfr bs gur tnzr ner fubegpbzvatf. V jvfu gurer jrer zber vafgnaprf jurer hfvat n qensg ng yrnfg tnir n vagrerfgvat vagrenpgvba. Gur tnzr jbeyq ba n jubyr frrzf fznyy, rfcrpvnyyl jura rneyl nernf ner phg bss pbzcyrgryl.

      Nalbar ryfr svyy gur qvnzbaq tboyrg jvgu jvar?

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    2. Yes. Optional actions are nice additions to the game. Lbh pna nyfb svaq n fcurer ybfg ol gur qentba va gur haqretebhaq ynxr.

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  4. Does anybody else think these EGA graphics are gorgeous? This was the first LucasArts game where the artists used dithering to create the illusion of more colours. (Mark Ferrari tells an entertaining story about it here - no spoilers as far as I can see.)

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    1. Absolutely. I didn't notice so much as I was playing because I was busy reading the text but seeing them here as still images makes it clear how much effort and talent the artists used.

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    2. I was amazed and enchanted when it first came out.

      IMHO, it has THE best EGA graphics of all times.

      And sound. God, the sound. This game is basically an audio-visual orgasmic fest.

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    3. Yes. I think it will do very well in the Sound and Graphics category. It's beautiful!

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  5. I am slightly further than you are here, but only just (up on the blog for all to see). Hoping to have a good run at the game at the weekend.

    The VGA version lacks most of those close-ups, which is a shame. The voice acting is decent enough, but I think I would have preferred them to have focussed on more sound/music rather than voices, to give the game a bit more atmosphere when you are wandering around.

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  6. I didn't use the Book of Patterns, so I didn't know the Open spell from there. I think I learned it from the Egg itself. I think if I double-clicked on the egg it said "It's trying to open" and played the draft. As such I think I had another layer of difficulty where I thought some drafts did something different to what they actually did.

    It's kind of amazing how much emotion the artists got out of just showing eyes and a robe in EGA graphics. Those closeups of the weavers really give them extra personality.

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    1. Not sure whether it occurs only in a FM-Towns version but you can ignore the egg and try to exit the scene. Then, the black duck hatches itself so the Player does not miss anything. Except the Opening draft if one did not write it down before. I don’t remember whether it can be observed/heard further in-game.

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  7. As a fellow blogger I've got to say I love hour dedication to your 'cause'!

    Regarding Loom, I commented on the previous article, I've never actually played it so it's all new to me. Love the more mature nature of the tale, it just feels a lot more serious, I think that the visuals might have something to do with it though.

    Keep it up!

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  8. In the version I bought from Steam, I was unable to pick up the Book of Patterns. I took my own notes on drafts and did not find any record of them in-game.

    Trickster: I made a couple of bets back in a comment to your introductory LOOM post.

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    1. The in-game Book of Patterns in the EGA version doesn't do anything and is absolutely useless. It's just a reference to the physical one. Making Bobbing not pick it up was one of the few actually good changes in the talkie version IMO, as it was confusing before.

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    2. Yeah, the physical Book of Patterns is where I got the draft images from. The ingame one is useless.

      I noticed your bets Corey, but I'm obviously unable to read them until I finish. Note that you can only bet 10 CAPs at a time, but there's nothing stopping you from putting in multiple bets. I'm intrigued to know what part of the game you think I'll need help with. I guess I'll know when I get there!

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  9. ... One minute everyone in the village is going about their own business, the next (their) all swans and flying off into the distance...

    I'd not realised that Mr. Threadbare was using spellchecker when he wrote his journal. doubtlessly ruining his usage of the word 'they're'. Tut tut tut. :)

    The game really does make the absolute maximum use of the EGA colour scheme, much as Monkey Island will do later on this pseudo-year. Looking at those screenshots makes me want to play it again (though I've not a copy handy, and am doubtful to find the time!) Despite the mysterious potential ailment that I'll not spoil on Mr. Trick, the game really is wonderful at drawing you in. Probably what Lucasarts really did better than anyone else, methinks.

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    1. Yeah, my brother noticed the typo too :-P

      Apparently Trickster will play the VGA floppy version of Monkey Island, which kind of disappoints me because the original EGA has gorgeous graphics too. It would be nice to show that less-known version here, especially as it has some interesting differences (different-looking portraits and a sunset when you first enter the town dock.)

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    2. Bobbin read over his last journal entry and decided to use the Correction draft to resolve a particularly annoying error. There...all better! :)

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  10. Did I detect another Star Wars reference???????? And a Doctor Who reference?????????????????
    I'm a bit past where you are as of this post. Really enjoying this one. Hope to play some more through the week next week.

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    1. And was that a Magic the Gathering one under Transcendence? That's really the on CCG I know.

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    2. On a quick google, there was also something on Mulligrubs. I vaguely remembered the name, and.. yeah, some old Ten kiddies program. He was clearly trying to trap you into reference hunting there, Draconius.

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    3. And I had to hunt very hard for the first two as well as skillfully hidden as they were

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    4. There were a few references to Loom in there as well. Did you catch those?

      Actually, I wondered if anyone would look up Mulligrubs. I'm haunted by that show to this day, and I don't scare easily.

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    5. Was Mulligrubs that show with the diesmbodied face. Actually wasn't it a disemfaced face with just the eyes mouth and nose over the grey background and high pitched really annoying voice. I hated that shoe. I'd come home from school and that would be what they'd replaced Wombat with. It was slightly disturbing to say the least.
      Actually I missed the reference to Loom. Isn't that some old adventure game we're all in the middle of playing at the moment or something like that. Hang on, I'll jump onto Wikipedia and see what I can find out from such a reputable environmental source.

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    6. Obviously I hated that show. However if the shoe fits......

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    7. That whole horrible show is coming back to me now. I have the same wretched line from the theme song going over and over in my head. PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  11. Oh. First gameplay post.. well then.. I'd best start Loom right now.

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  12. I wasn't going to replay Loom, having replayed it just last year, but seeing these screenshots makes it impossible to resist. I was feeling pretty shaky about my bet of 70, but this posts makes me think I might be close. In the end I think the only thing REALLY wrong with this game is that there isn't more.

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  13. OK guys. What do you think of this idea when it comes to adventure games that don't make the cut each year?

    I've re-added Circuit's Edge, The Oregon Trail and It Came from the Desert to the game list, yet marked them as Rejected. I downloaded each of them to find what date they were released and found that Circuit's Edge the 28th of March, The Oregon Trail was the 15th of October, and It Came from the Desert was actually well into 1991. With that information I was able to put them in the position they would have filled had they been accepted.

    I thought we could make it so that the readers can put their hand up to play and blog through a game that has been rejected, right up until the moment I start the game that was released after it. If someone does put their hand up, they can then send me posts and images over the next weeks (months if necessary) and I will post them as part of The Adventure Gamer (while clearly marking them as having been produced by the reader).

    Thoughts?

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    1. Sounds like not a bad idea. I don't think I'll inflict my illiterary skills on anyone, but I will enjoy reading any posts. Another idea could be to do remakes in a similar way. As you play QFG 2 for example, someone could post concurrently on AGD's remake. That would save you replaying a game later. Unless of course that is something you want to do yourself when they roll around again.

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    2. Good idea! Although I suspect many of the rejected ones will be rejected for very good reasons and we might find it difficult to find folks to play them (although with CAPs available...)

      There hasn't been a rejection that I'd be willing to do yet, but I'm sure there might be something in the years to come (1992 perhaps...)

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    3. Sounds great! Now I'll just hope there's someone willing to write about the rejects. Of these three, I might pick up the Oregon Trail, just because it is a sort of legend, even if not really an adventure game, but I haven't still committed to it, so if someone else wants to take it, feel free.

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    4. I'd allow until the end of the year, since that makes it easier to keep track of, and easier for people trying to play along. But that is just me.

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    5. I like it. For one thing it will increase the number of posts on this blog which gives me more interesting reading material.

      Another advantage is that we'd probably get to the classics quicker. I'd expect that knowing that readers could pick up the slack, less games will be moved from Disregarded/borderline for Trickster to play, giving him more time to play the genuine classics while someone else plays the more obscure games. Best of both worlds!

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    6. I'm totally illiterate and couldn't type a full paragraph without my usual cussing.

      Usually, people couldn't hear it from my muffled screams but I think my hood has zero effect on my writing.

      So, though I can't write a family-friendly blog post, I totally vote for Circuit's Edge because it's bitchin' wicked.

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  14. Loom finished!

    Gur fgbel trgf n ybg orggre nobhg unys jnl guebhtu, gura noehcgyl fgbcf ng gur raq jvgu n znffvir pyvssunatre. Abg pbby! Yrg'f ubcr gung gur sna-znqr frdhry vf tbbq.

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  15. So, this is apparently official: http://sarien.net/

    *Sits back and watches you all get addicted, then robes all of your houses while you stare at monitors blankly*

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    1. Actually official now eh? For a long while they had very little concern for legality.

      Still not something I'm interested in though. Not sure quite what the appeal of it is really, especially since these are all interesting single-player experiences which are cheaply and readily available from GOG/Steam/etc..

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  16. And I'm done. Such a short easy game. The TurboGrafx-CD version has a lot of load times. I hope it isn't that bad for you Trickster. I had a recording going for screenshots later, but unfortunately it cut out in the middle for about 30 minutes. Ah well, I'll manage.

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  17. I finally managed to add both Obduction and Bolt Riley to the Kickstarter list. Seems Blogger have fixed a couple of bugs.

    Next gameplay post should be up today.

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    1. It had better be a WON post, Trix. You're way behind time for such an easy game. XD

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  18. So, maybe someone can help me with something. I'm trying to play Loom through ScummVM, but the emulator has some kind of function that smoothen all the pixels. I don't like that. I want my pixels! anyone know how to turn this off?

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    1. You can set the filter options in the launch menu (Options-> Graphics). Set Graphics mode to 1X, 2X or 3X.

      http://wiki.scummvm.org/index.php/User_Manual/Appendix:_Graphic_filters#Select_the_Graphic_Filter

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    2. Speaking of which, you can toggle graphics smoothing in the Steam version with Alt+S.

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  19. Thanks a bunch!
    And the scummvm-wiki. I guess thats the place to look BEFORE asking for hints. Sorry and thanks!

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  20. Fun fact: "Cygna" comes from "Cygnus," the Ancient Greek word for "swan" (and the name of a constellation). So I guess there's some fate involved here.

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  21. Seems like the Book of Patterns reduces the experience. Finding out the real meaning of drafts is half the fun.

    Tip: Pressing ALT+F5 key combination opens the original load/save menu in ScummVM version. Game manual mentions F5 only but actually it opens the interpreter-like menu which is anticlimactic, especially for this game. Please bear in mind that you cannot enable original menu via ScummVM option (last verified on 1.8.1).

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    1. Looks like I'm not the only one who dislikes the ScummVM menu!

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