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Date: Sat, 21 Sep 2002 08:45:58 -0400
From: John Colagioia <JColagioia@csi.com>
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Subject: Re: [CONTENT] Puzzle fairness
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Joao Mendes wrote:
> Ahoy, :)
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> I'm gonna move the spoiler space to the top, here...
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> John Colagioia <JColagioia@csi.com> wrote in
> news:3D835632.5020509@csi.com:
>>Joao Mendes wrote:
[...]
>>My life, alas, is rarely as exciting as even the most mundane IF
>>game, so I rarely find myself in situations where I'd have to.  I
>>have walked into untended shops where I was supposed to meet people,
>>however, when nobody was showing up.
> Ah, but it seemed to me that the main character in Anchorhead was precisely
> a person with just that kind of normal life, who was then thrown into an
> extraordinary situation, but this isn't revealed until a bit later.

Actually, the response when you nab Michael's ID suggests that you're
not nearly so mundane as expected...

My point, though, was that, since my life tends toward the mundane,
answers as to "what would I do" are necessarily just guesses, made
without the stress of the actual event.

>>I got yelled at when the clerk eventually wandered in, but that was
>>about the extent of my horrors.
> Off the point, but clerks that yell at a customer because _they_ weren't
> where they were supposed to be aggravate me...

That was my argument.  The clerk backed down.

>>>Does that mean that if I make a game where you play a cop, you're
>>>liable to start shooting random store clerks?
>>If the game doesn't land me at the *real* problem in the game, I
>>might.  I'll expect the game to end, frankly, but at least I'll be
>>doing something other than walking around waiting to trip over the
>>plot...
> The only thing that comes to mind is wow... I mean shooting a random store
> clerk is so incredibly out of character for a cop. I am beginning to
> understand why everyone was so adamant that 'search sofa' should always
> work...

I suppose that, by this time, you might have lost me as a player, so
it's not really relevant what I might do.  However, if the plot won't
come to me, I'll start looking for *some* plot...

>>That's odd.  I felt very guilty about looking through his pants and
>>wallet--moreso, in fact, than I felt for climbing through the open
>>window to get out of the rain.
> Had I thought about it, I would probably have felt guilty as well. I was so
> thrown by the solution to the first puzzle, though, that I really just
> ended up with the card in my hands before I realize how I'd done it...

I actually find that interesting.  I actually spent time agonizing
over whether to check out his pants and the contents of his wallet,
despite having illegally entered the office without giving it a
thought--even with the understanding that this was probably what I
"needed" to do.

> Anyway, the fact that Michael doesn't want me to read what he was reading
> might be considered motivation enough for a snoopy wife... ;)

Actually...yes.

>>Basically, I count the entry (which was as much to get out of the
>>rain as anything else),
> Eh... no, it wasn't. Or rather, I can't think of a more obscure way of
> getting out of the rain than climbing a trash can, especially when there is
> an open pub nearby.

Where they're really not happy to see you?  Maybe it's because I've
been to a couple of towns with that atmosphere, but I'd rather take
my chances with the rain.

>>rummaging through the wallet,
> Like I said, I didn't even realize what I was doing...
>
>>breaking into
>>the church,
> Eh... the whole town is out to kill me by then. Ethics is no longer an
> issue.

But the church has very little to do with your survival.  It'd be
like getting chased through Manhattan, but you stop off to take in a
Broadway show.  Or, rather, you mug some random guy on the street and
take his ticket to the aforementioned show.

I mean, there are entire stretches of town where you never see
anyone, and would typically have pretty good hiding places and escape
routes (the docks come to mind).  That it's a church established to
have been Cult Central seems even more of a reason be someplace else.

>>and--possibly, depending on the town--going through
>>official records.
> Funny, I assumed these were public...

It depends on the town ordinances.  Most places I've been, they'll at
least fine you heavily (and possibly arrest you) if you're in the
records room without either a permit or an escort.  Basically, you
don't want people stealing Social Security Numbers or destroying
records, and you can't trust the average person off the street to be
that nice...

>>Arguably, you also tresspass in the factory and
>>a handful of other places, regardless of how much more motivated you
>>are at that point, and how many keys you've amassed...
> There is one more. Walking around with a buried animal's skull is... well,
> weird...

This is true, as well.  She's got a stronger stomach than I do, I'll
tell you that...

Oh, and it also occurred to me that, given the history of the
Verlacs, it wouldn't be surprising to find out that the PC had some
Verlac blood in here, as well.  It'd certainly dovetail well with the
ambiguous ending.

>>>>a strange town where everyone apparently hates you on sight.  You
>>>'Everyone' here means a bunch of sorry dudes in a lousy pub.
>>also the creepy librarian.
> Those actually exist. ;)

This is true.  I even know some.  However, it doesn't make the town
seem any friendlier.

>>I'd call it "mysterious" that, in the middle of a nasty storm, he's
>>sitting in a quiet room reading a book (that he's offended if I look
>>at), sending me back out if I even try talking to him.
> No mystery there, as these are things that I might actually do. Except the
> being offended part, but that's hardly enough motivation to break into an
> office.
>
>>And, of course, the "we'll do it together" never comes.  It's clear
>>that Michael thinks it's your problem, alone.
> Well, 'wait until night' or 'wait until library closes' would seem like
> suitable alternatives, but alas, 'I onlyl understood as far as you wanting
> to wait'.Yes, it is clear that Michael thinks it's my problem alone, but
> there should be a way to not go along with Michael's attitude. Or at least,
> my wife seems to manage this... :)

Well, look at it this way:  What happens when it's time for the
library to close (plotwise, you now have hours fewer to save the
world, though you don't know this), and Michael asks the librarian to
keep the place open until his research is done?  He, being a Verlac,
and critical to the upcoming event, is granted his request.

Want to hang out until morning?  The next evening?  Wouldn't it be
nice to get some food?  Too bad every restaurant completely ignores
you when you ask for a table...

