Flashback: Chapter 4
Well, after my last gameplay post, I was politely informed in encoded comments that I had dead-ended myself. Thanks to Voltgloss (and some confirmation from Alex Romanov) I was informed that I'd missed something important in Chapter 4. So I reloaded back to that chapter and tried to find what I'd missed.
First I tried other dialogue items with the ticket seller and barman and see if there was anything I could do with Alberto the Rayon salesman, but had no luck.
Then I furiously looked at every section of every item outside, and I found that the TRUCK and TRUCK DOOR were two separate items – it's a good time to note that this game has no mouseover tooltips or any way to differentiate which parts of items are separate without actually LOOKing at all parts.
Now that I knew the truck had a door, I opened the door, but there was nothing inside. Fortunately I was paying particular attention as I knew I'd missed something, and I noticed a white pixel that was somewhat out of place.
That while pixel below my feet wasn't there until I moved (opened) the truck door. |
Anyway, that's it for our flashback. Let's get on with the next Chapter.
Chapter 6
I take some extremely spicy cayenne peppers from a cart, and look at the small trader's stall. There looks to be lots of potentially useful items here.
I almost KNOW I'll be needing this item at least. |
A lot of people are in the bar, but most of them won't talk to me. The cook will, and is helpful.
But she speaks English with a very American accent which doesn't seem right for the location. |
Got it – so I need to pretend I'm a god! |
I decide to spice up El Loco's next meal with my cayenne peppers, and am told that he'll notice them unless I hide them in the food. Looking around more carefully I notice a knife on the bar. I wait until the cook turns her back, then take her knife. I combine the knife and peppers in my inventory, wait for her to turn her back again and put the chopped peppers in his meal. After the boy picks up the newly spiced meal, I go outside and watch him give it to El Loco.
El Loco does not like his chicken spicy! |
Inside the hotel I find a payphone, a rattrap, a rat hole and a rat that occasionally runs down the stairs to his hole. I take the trap and check out the hole.
Well, hopefully I won't be needing an index finger for the rest of the game. |
Some of the patrons that were there before have left, and one of them hadn't finished his cheese enchilada, so I take it.
Gee, twenty years in jail for stealing somebody's leftover food that would have been thrown out anyway – seems a bit harsh. |
Is 300 pesos a lot? I'm going to assume that's a lot. |
After spending twenty years in jail for stealing garbage I'd hate to see what I got for actually stealing money! |
The phone rang a few times, but nobody answered. Then I had the vague recollection of having to let it ring a certain number of times. Checking my old screenshots confirmed that Allen told me I'd have to call a number and let it ring three times. I did that, then hung up and went back to the cantina. After a few seconds, a woman arrived.
Shouldn't you have said 'Hasta La Vista, Baby'. |
I failed her test the first time. |
Blue... no, yellooooooooooooooooooow |
I can get in a canoe and leave, that's what I can do. |
- a paddle, for 25 pesos
- poison roots for 45 pesos
- a fishing net for 40 pesos
- a machete for 70 pesos
- some ammo for 100 pesos
So, during the entire canoe and walking trip you never told me your name. Must have been a pleasant journey. |
So, you were just pretending to be asleep while all your friends died around you. Brave work, Allen. Brave indeed. |
But before I left the tent, I put on my much brighter blue jeans. |
Seems mighty heroic of you, Allen. Why do I get the feeling you'll die as soon as the rest of us are safe? |
Chapter 7
Seems I don't have time to look around. |
Allen alternately shoots, then ducks behind the corrugated iron! |
Side note: Corrugated iron is such an important part of Australian history that it had a major part in Sydney's Olympic Opening Ceremony in 2000.
Another Side note: Olympic opening ceremonies are weird! |
At least it's nice of the death scene to tell me what I should have bought a chapter ago. |
This is like a much less funny version of the babel fish puzzle from Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy. |
Move the iron, move the log, give the ammo. Now, so I don't fall, I have the clever idea of using my fishing net to stabilize the bridge. I just have to find the right spot.
Um... game... I'm standing on the bridge. How close do I have to be? |
I'm at least a third of the way across – HOW CLOSE DO YOU WANT ME? |
Eventually, I determine that I needed an item I didn't have. I know I have everything from before Chapter 6, because the hints I got at the end of the last post mentioned an item in Chapter 4. So I went back to earlier in Chapter 6 and looked around more carefully for something that might help me cross a bridge.
How did I not notice this ladder earlier? |
Anyway, assuming the ladder might help me with the bridge, I continued through the very long section of Allen describing his adventures, got back to the bridge, moved the iron, moved the log, got the vine, died, realised I forgot to give Allen the ammo, reloaded, moved the iron, moved the log, gave Allen the ammo, got the vine, died many times trying to use a ladder, vine or net on the bridge or the break...
Then I noticed something. I had been very unobservant! At the top left of the screen in the bridge section was a small picture of Jason, and there was a small picture of Maya at the top right. I clicked on the picture of Maya and could now control her instead.
Yes. I'm an idiot. And yes, I checked the manual afterwards and the icons for controlling Jason/Maya were mentioned there. But, a tip for any game makers - try not to have the first instance of a new interface feature also be a rushed timed sequence - give the player a chance to get used to it in a previous relaxed screen first.
Anyway, I easily walked Maya onto the bridge because she's lighter than Jason, and used the vine on the break to fix it. Now it should be stable enough for the men to cross.
Then Allen interjects and tells me to go first. I follow Maya across and Allen starts to follow as Sanchez' men catch up...
You've got red on you. |
I think it's even funnier if you just look at Jason the whole time as he waits for his cue to say his line.
With Allen dead, Jason wonders for a moment if he should now just give up and go home, but quickly determines that he needs to continue so Allen's sacrifice isn't in vain. Jason's next location is marked on Allen's map – the name of Hans Stroheim has been noted next to the village of Tefe.
I'm now standing in front of a boat, The Amazon Queen, looking at its captain and first mate. I talk to the captain, and after going through some dialogue options, offer him some cigarettes as payment for my passage to Tefe.
What else? Are you serious? I already reloaded to Chapter 4 to get the cigarettes! |
Hey, didn't you used to be one of the Village People? |
Let her speak for herself, Jason. If I can't think of anything to do, you'll be standing right here forever so maybe you should look at all options. |
Oh, you have got to be kidding me! |
So, I'm stuck. I don't know what Captain South America wants. Or at least, I don't have what he wants.
I thought perhaps I'd spent too much money on trading shack items and could buy less and still have some cash, but on reloading realised I had cash when I left town but it disappeared some time before I arrived at the Bridge of Frustration. I took 300 pesos from the rathole and only spent 280 at the store so should have still had 20 pesos. Maybe Jason ate the money to keep himself awake during Allen's boringly told story – at least Jason only had to listen to it once – I had to put up with it four times.
Perhaps there was something I should have done to rescue the boy from El Loco's misplaced wrath. I tried talking to them or giving them things, but it didn't seem to work.
I also tried every single combination of dialogue options (there were 16) with the Captain and didn't find one that worked.
And so here I am, requesting assistance. As always, hints should be encoded in ROT13, starting with very vague hints, then getting gradually more detailed. Much like Voltgloss' hints in the last play post.
Thanks in advance. I'm looking forward to getting out of this seemingly endless Chapter!
Session time: 4 hours
Total time: 7 hours 20 minutes
Inventory: Compass, Map, Jerrycan, Cigarettes, Peppers, Machete, Poison root, Paddle, Fishing net, Cheese, Knife, Lighter, Ladder, Small pole, Jason's Car Keys (NOTE: I can also use the knife with the peppers to create chopped peppers)
Items picked up after reloading old saved games: 6 - Cigarettes, Ladder, Peppers, Cheese (enchilada), Lighter, Small pole.
Amount of times the word 'bridge' appears in this post: 24
Amount of times the word 'bridge' appears in this post: 24
Alex Romanov here,
ReplyDeleteYour hints, number 5 is the solution:
1) Jung lbh ner zvffvat vf va puncgre fvk
2) Fbzrbar arrqf lbhe uryc.
3) Gung ynqqre gung nccrnerq bhg bs guva nve znl or hfrshy
4) Gur cbyr vf nyfb cneg bs guvf chmmyr
5) Hfr gur ynqqre ba gur ubgry jnyy, hfr gur cbyr gb xabpx bhg gur fvta
Thank you, Alex. I'm now finally in chapter 8 after reading your second hint.
DeleteI really should have thought of that - I think my frustration made me lazy as I stopped trying to help the boy after a few attempts.
To be fair, I love this game, but for nostalgia reasons probably.
DeleteReading your articles, especially this one, I can see that it has too many dead ends, death situations, unfortunate time sequences, well, enjoy chapter 8, it's my favorite in the whole game
Wow. I never played this game at the time, and can tell that I would have given up much earlier than you and just resorted to a walkthru to get something out of the game. Much like a soldier, thank you for your sacrifice in playing this rather poorly-designed game for us.
ReplyDeleteOh. I'm the same. If I was just playing this game for fun I would have looked online for hints at some point before realising I could have switched to Maya to get across the bridge.
DeleteI've been enjoying the game in general, but Chapter 7 frustrated me from start to finish.
Well, the concept is certainly appealing, and it wants to take itself "tongue-in-cheek", but the execution seems to have missed the mark. Different writers or a better publisher, perhaps this would be a different story.
Delete"How did I not notice this ladder earlier?"
ReplyDeleteWell, since you can put it in your back pocket, it must be a small ladder and therefore easy to miss.
Maybe it's a single-rung ladder.
DeleteHehe. I think when you become an adventure game protagonist you're given some infinitely big pockets - unless you're in an Infocom game, then you have to find a place you can easily get back to to drop all your stuff.
DeleteOr Brandon, in Kyrandia, who has to leave a lot of valuable jewels around that somehow never get stolen...
DeleteI think some games make fun of this just right — LSL2 and Monkey Island come to mind. (“Larry, just where do you think you’re going to fit that big gulp drink?”)