Color of Murder (2): Well That Was Fun

It was indeed, lotsa fun. Finished my extra-zippy review for Kirkus, and had the whole day free to mess around.

Didn't expect to play the rest of the entire game, but I did. And that was with reading to Dad for an hour, and fixing him a very nice dinner, too.

Probably wouldn't have finished but for the in-game hint system, which is pretty good. I forgot about it for about half the game, but it works pretty well to just give you hints if you want them without revealing the solution unless you want that too. I only needed one or two actual solutions. Did almost all of it on my own. Yet, the Nyqvists always have some tricky puzzles, and this game was no exception.

Plus, this is the best game yet. Finally they produced a really finished game, without just stopping at some point and telling you the solution to the mystery. This one allows you to figure out the solution, or at least the culprit. Then there's a very nice cutscene to end the game.

That sports club I remembered must have been from East Side Story. The missing kid in this has a membership to a paintball club, but that turns out to be completely derelict (although not quite as bad as the Station Hotel).

Also, I finally found the little stepladder I needed to get to high places, and later to climb over stuff. I remember now--one of the ways the Nyqvists add length to their games is to have almost all necessary inventory items placed in some location other than where they're needed. But it allows us to wander about and see more of Norrköping, which is fine with me. Half the enjoyment of their games is the scenery.

I was pleased to see that there weren't any action sequences in this one, as there was in East Side Story. That kind of thing just doesn't fit with these games.

So I just played all afternoon, opened up new locations and explored, found items and figured stuff out. Finally it all came together nicely. Plus, that hunka-hunka Swedish gardner, Jonas, is back. Serious scenery right there.

I'm continually impressed with the Nyqvists' devotion to these games. This one was planned out extremely well.

Most enjoyable.

Now then, should I read another Kirkus book, or should I play Black Circle tomorrow?

The Color of Murder (1): Starting Over

It's time to get back to my old friend, Carol Reed!

I had started this game months and months ago, but my hard disc crashed and I lost everything I had on the XP side of my Mac. Among the lost stuff were the first three Carol Reed mysteries from my old reviewing days at Four Fat Chicks. One of their folks had reviewed the first two, and sent me all three so I could play them and review the third game: Time Stand Still. After I finished them all, I sent the games back, but kept them loaded on the 'puter.

The crash took care of that. I saved almost all my stuff on the Mac side because it was pretty obvious that something bad was happening inside the 'puter, so I dragged it all to my Time Capsule. But the XP stuff was un-back-up-able.

I had bought a copy of The Color of Murder and had started playing it. Once the 'puter was fixed I tried loading it again from the CD. But alas, somehow I'd scratched it, and despite about a dozen attempts on two different computers, it would never fully load. I'm poor. I can't just start throwing around $$$ to replace copies of stuff.

But I then found out that Big Fish Games had everything for cheap except the second game, Hope Springs Eternal. So I was able to get new downloads of Remedy, Time Stand Still, The Color of Murder, and the new one, Black Circle. Yay!

To the game:

I really like these games. Primitive, absolutely. But gorgeous. I doubt I'll ever have the cash to do it, but I'd like to visit Norrköping (and Polperro, also). I don't care that the actors are amateurs. As I said in my review of Time Stand Still, these people are the Nyqvist's friends. They ought to be amateurs. It actually adds a sweet quality to the game.

So out I go to Carol's allotment. What is an "allotment," anyway? They seem to have them in European countries. Do people buy, or are they assigned, little plots of land for gardens in the outskirts of towns? Seems so, because Carol just has a shed there. Her garden doesn't seem to be doing very well this year. But we have a new case from her allotment neighbor.

Off we go to the first apartment. I note that the clock on the kitchen wall is missing its hands. I find clues. I find a closet that has an item I can't reach.

Now here's something I don't like. Carol can't reach on top of the shelf in the closet, but right there in the kitchen are perfectly good, solid chairs that could be moved to the closet and stood upon. But no, we have to find some obscure inventory item in some other location and cart it back here to get to the shelf. Humph.

Anyway, I go to the kid's workplace and to a theater. There I find a puzzle that I stumped me in my first try at this game. This time I figure it out and get a key. That gets me into another place, where I turn on the lights in another closet. There I find another door which has a puzzle the Nyqvists have used before: a punch pad with discolored numbers. You should be able to tell which numbers have been punched a lot, and work out the code from that. Maybe not, though, because this time I can't work it out. Perhaps there's a code hidden somewhere, but for now, I'm locked out.

However, I find another location that gets me to the murder victim's apartment. I have his key, thanks to my intrepid puzzle-solving. And in there I find several things: a color-coded box that I'll just bet has something to do with the title of the game. Don't have the code for that yet. His wall clock is also missing its hands, and he's into clock repair. I find a key in a green vase-like thingy that I'll need a paper clip or magnet so I can fish it out. Alas, there are no refrigerator magnets to use, as in an earlier game (I keep hoping they'll recycle some of their puzzles). I do find a tall refrigerator, however, and I need something to stand on for that, too. So eventually I'll find a folding thingy, portable, that I can use to climb up stuff. So far, nothing.

I find the guy's boat. Find a boat hook on that, which you'd think you could use to fish something down from a tall place, but nope.

Something strange: I remember clearly when I played the game last time, I got to a sports club and found clues threre. Haven't found that yet, although I've progressed further in the game this time than I did then. Must go back to the first apartment and look around a bit more. I did find the kid's membership card, but the game didn't add the location to it's map. Maybe I need to manipulate the card a bit more.

All these locations will have to be scoured a bit better, frankly. I just kinda zoomed along in the game at first, really glad to get back to it! But I figured that was enough for a very busy day.

Tomorrow! Back to the colors!

Lost Souls (18): Endgame

Sigh. I finished. Got both endings too.

I should have been able to play this entire game in about a week, and would have done that but for responsibility, and frankly, fear. I let the game get to me. Normally I would have played my heart out in the evenings, but I really didn't want to play this game unless it was daylight.

Well, also, I did want to drag it out. I love Jonathan's games. I'm really hoping that the next TLC game will be every bit as long as the first (sorry Jonathan!)

Plus, it's true that for over a month I had other things that pulled me away from the game. Dad had some problems. I had my first vacation in two years. Kirkus, thankfully, tripled the number of books they sent me. Also, when you stop for awhile, inertia sets in: hey, I really want to get back to my game--tomorrow, absolutely! Nope.

But, sigh, it's done now.

Actually I did get some playing time in on Tuesday, just for about a half an hour before my sister arrived. I did find an item in Matilda's room, but there was no message from Echo.

So, where to go? I never could figure out how to get into Room 2F, which is boarded up (but not crossed out on the map, so I thought there might be a way). Absent that, though, I figured I was finished with the second floor. Tried to get up to "my" room on the third floor and got killed again.

OK, where else do I have unfinished business? Back out to the fire, and at last I learned that I had acquired the item that the fire wanted (not saying where or when I got it). Also, I acquired the last doll (not saying where I got that either).

Back to the owl's hunting ground, and when I got there, wow! Are the ghosts taking over? That's where I saved, and returned to the game today, after I got my Kirkus book done.

At last, the doll puzzle. Clearly, it was time for the endgame. Really, after all this time thinking about the items and clues I have, it was a cinch. Got the last bit of the ringed thingy, and figured out how to work that. The TV movie helped lots, although the same information is available in the book of symbols.

Got a message from Echo about hiding "here." Looked everywhere in the area, but nope, nothing there. Also, tried the ladies room again, but no, there was nothing different in the script there. Dunno why that scissors stash is there by the fire.

Nowhere else to go but back to the third floor. And indeed, Echo tells me to go there. I figure that the ringed thingy would get me up the stairs, and yup, this was a nice effect. Also, when you first get to the third-floor hallway, I swear it tilted back and forth. Very nice indeed.

Leading me to the final major puzzle. Simple, really, Creepy, absolutely. The real problem was figuring out what the dratted puzzle was. However, there really aren't too many possibilities. All you can do is touch stuff, and listen. Eventually it becomes fairly clear what you have to do. It does take a bit of thinking, but that's a well-designed puzzle.

At last, I faced Room 3F. I've got the key. I enter.

Dunno what other players would think of Room 3F, but I loved it. Especially as I happened to pick the more optimistic ending. I remembered a brief episode from much earlier in the game that referred to the optimistic ending, so it all fit together and made sense. Plus, I got to do one more lock pick puzzle.

Went back to see if the other choice was any different, and it sure was! It's probably the choice the Inspector himself would have made, but then, we've already decided that he's a bit mad. Nicely done ending, also. Really didn't expect this game to have a happy ending.

My verdict on the game: A-minus. It would be a straight A except for the moth and "shiny packages" puzzles, which were lame, and a few technical glitches. I though it was a bit too creepy, but that's just my taste. I try not to fault games that don't fit my taste--that's not the game's problem. For folks who want horror games (actually my favorite genre, despite my squeamishness in this game), they won't find a scarier one anywhere.

The graphics were absolutely marvelous. Way too much gore, I thought, but damn, it was well done gore. Just being in that derelict building was enough to keep you on edge, which is the main reason I mostly stuck to my vow to play only in the daylight (although I finished the game well after dark tonight). The mannequins really worked to raise the creepy level. Still don't know why they were there in the hotel, but the effect was splendid. The trash in the hallways, the graffiti on the walls, the excellent eerie sounds (always a major feature in Boakes' games), everything works to grab you right in your reptilian brain, and squeeze.

With the two notable exceptions, the puzzles were really well done and extremely well integrated into the storyline. My favorite episodes, of course, were the flashbacks to 1947 and saving the three Lost Souls (would that we could have saved the rest of 'em!) but actually, those really didn't fit this particular storyline.

I very much wish that I'd just gone ahead and sat down and played the thing in about a week, even if it meant playing at night. I allowed myself to get dragged away, although some of it was unavoidable, but lots of it was just, frankly, because I was scared of this game. Well, that's a tribute to the game.

One of the reasons I started this blog was to give myself another incentive to get back to gaming. There are some long-awaited games coming up soon: Bracken Tor, The Last Crown, Gray Matter. I also want to play the last two Carol Reed games (started one and lost it when my hard disk crashed). I want to get back to playing every day, as I used to do.

I will play Lost Souls again, absolutely! I wound up with a few items in the inventory that were never used, such as the vodka and pills, and a light bulb. Did I miss something? Although I was mad at myself for going to the WT so often--some of that was because I stayed away from playing for such long periods--next time I think I might just print the WT out and follow it. I'll undoubtedly find more stuff, and I really want to get everything that's in there!

Too long, too short? Nope. Quite a nice length for the story it wanted to tell. I'd love to see a prequel to this series. My fave part of both the first and third games were the 1947 bits. It would be great to go back to 1947 and watch the whole saga begin. I'd like to see the old hotel as it was meant to be, and really meet Gloria and Andrew, Matilda, Edith and Betty and all the rest. They're like old friends by this time.

Lost Souls really sets a standard for the horror genre. Let's just see someone try to come up with a game that's creepier and downright more frightening than this one. Go ahead and try.

Lost Souls (17): The Last Time Travel?

Well, I have saved Matilda Fly. My last time travel in the game, I would guess. Actually, Matilda's episode was a lead-pipe cinch. Once I found that I could discern her lines, I was able to get everything right.

Didn't take very long either.

I was responsible. I finished the doorstopper from Kirkus before I allowed myself back into the game. Still have to write the review, but I can knock that out once I finish this blog post.

Won't be able to get to the game tomorrow, as I'm due to get a couple more books from Kirkus (they were scheduled to arrive today, but it's the official celebration of Columbus Day so there were no mail or UPS deliveries). No doubt they'll arrive tomorrow, and I know one has a due date for this coming Sunday, so I'll have to really glom that one.

But tomorrow also is my day out. My sister drives down from L.A. to Dad-sit, and I get to do the shopping. Also, I eat lunch out.

So it may not be until the end of the week before I get back to the game.

I'm determined, though, not to allow days and weeks to pass before I get back to playing my games. By playing hooky yesterday I found that I could relax and have fun and still get my work done in plenty of time. No reason to deprive myself just because I have books to get out.

I intend to finish the game before Friday, unless that new Kirkus book is just impossible.

The fun time is over, though. I most enjoyed the trips back in time to free the hotel guests. Now I have to confront Amy, no doubt. However, I haven't yet found the third doll (maybe it's still in Matilda's room--I haven't left it) so there must still be some things to do before the final battle.

I imagine Echo will contact me as soon as I leave Room 2B.

I will find out before Friday!

Lost Souls (16): Finding Matilda

Just a brief update, 'cause I really do have to finish that Kirkus book before I get back to the game.

Still, I wanted to get to Matilda! First, I went places I hadn't been able to solve previously, because now I have lockpicks. One never knows where a coin might lurk. I tried the lockpicks on the metal toolbox by the fire outside the ladies room and found only another scissors stash. That means, I'm sure, that eventually I'll be killing the Throbbing Thing in the ladies room (as these are simply enormous moth pupae, does that mean that Amy will turn into a giant moth? Doubt that).

But still no coins. Alas, the Station Master's chair turned out not to be a coin-dispensing chair after all.

Reluctantly, I went to the WT. Yes, I was right about what the item was and where to get it, but the WT said, "use the two coins you took from Mr. Bones."

Huh?

By that I knew I'd missed something. However, I've never actually encountered Mr. Bones personally. I only met him through his game in the buffet, and during the TV interview. Nowhere else.

Pondering upon the problem, I realized that I must have missed something in Amy's latest cache, out in the owl hunting grounds. The timing made sense. It's about the right time to find those coins. I figured that the skeletion must be Mr. Bones himself, in person. Amy must have bumped him off. Went there, examined the place more thoroughly, found Mr. Bone's ID card (apparently I had that earlier, but didn't examine it--thought it was Amy's latest party invitation, which I'd read and acted upon), and finally, found the two coins. There. That's a good use of a WT. It didn't give me the actual answer, but jogged my thinking so that I could figure it out.

At last, I got the elusive item, placed everything, and have had my initial conversation with Matilda. I'm now outside her door with the proper glowing symbol, and am ready to enter.

I saved there. Now I have a good incentive to finish that damned book before I reward myself with my Matilda Adventure.

But alas, I note that this was pretty near the bottom of the walkthrough. I gather then, that Matilda is the last ghost I'll be dealing with, besides Amy. Must mean that I'm approaching the endgame.

Will there be no episodes with dear Edith, Betty and George? No saving poor little Timmy or even Tom? Guess not. Damn.

Anyway, must hit the book.

Lost Souls (15): On the Hunt!

I had a fantastic, fun time today with our game! Whoosh! I only had to go to the WT one time, and that was because I was stupid.

So, after games with Amy, I found my way into Andrew Verney's 1947 room. Now this was an excellent puzzle. It was so good that it just about made up for the moth room and the "shiny packages," et al.

Also, I like Andrew. He was a sweet guy even in the first game. It's nice to help him out of Hell.

Had fun looking around his room and found abundant clues, but couldn't find an actual puzzle. After quite enough frustration I hit the WT and learned that I needed to get a photograph. There was a perfectly good clue for that, but I didn't tumble. Once I had that, I was able to proceed very nicely.

I really enjoyed going out into the hall in 1947, and seeing how the hotel was supposed to look during its lifetime. It was a nice little hotel run by nice people, and it didn't deserve what happened to it. Poor hotel.

Found Andrew's next object easily, and clues in his desk told me that I'd be getting into the safe this time. Goody. I couldn't understand why I was unable to open that safe earlier. Had the clue to the "numbers" on it, but not the combination. Clearly, I would get the combination in this episode.

However, I couldn't do much at all, so I went back to the awful "present." Decided I had to explore some more. Bingo! Found my way into another room, this time during the war. An odd thing happened. There's the baby's crib, there's the sound of the baby crying, and I was able to find three items to put in the crib. It wanted a fourth, but I was blasted back into the present before I found it. Still, the next object I needed for Andrew was in the crib. Was it a glitch, or was the game just forgiving? No matter. I got what I needed.

Plus, almost had the game crash while I was putting together the latest torn up letter. Again, the game froze when my cursor was pulled to the left. Fortunately after lots of trying, I got free and all was well after that. Jonathan really does need to get a patch for these jigsaw puzzles.

Found my way into the present-day awful bathroom, and pretty clearly Andrew's items are to be placed in there. Frankly, I don't know why we have to kill these Throbbing Things. I suppose it adds yet another gruesome element to the game, but the atmosphere is creepy enough without that stuff, I think. That's my own taste, of course. If it were more difficult to kill the things--but it's easy. Oh well. A task that has to be done.

Got all three items placed and had a nice conversation with dear Andrew. This time the items are placed during the episode, not at the end. Fine. Andrew gives me the code I've been looking for. I know what it is instantly, and off I go to get the telescope, I think. And I do find it, I think.

But it still wouldn't fit on Andrew's tripod in 1947. Hmmm.

There's his case sitting on the bed, but I need a key. How will I find the key?

Idiot. I have lock picks.

So that worked. After that the puzzle is a cinch. Got all six constellations (similar to Andrew's telescope puzzle in the first game--I like that). Andrew is free! And what's this? Look! If I can manipulate time, so can Andrew! His story gets a happy ending after all.

Good. Andrew deserves it.

So the whole Andrew Verney episode is a really great puzzle. Plenty of layers, some good clues, a little bit of exploration and you can find your way home. Nicely done.

However, Amy really is a little skank, isn't she? Yes, I found my way to the "owl's hunting ground" and used my lock picks again. I found her little stash and her three little boxes. Probably coffins, knowing Amy. I have two dolls now. A third is coming soon, no doubt. Amy is one ghost I'd rather not free. She's quite happy right where she is, and she deserves to be there.

Maybe I'll get to stab her with scissors.

Gad, but the Inspector is an idiot. Or nuts.

However, the order of the symbols in the TV movie is correct, as I suspected. It matches the order in the book. I now have five rings, and at least I know how to line them up when the time comes to do it.

And, I'm off to find Matilda Fly! Easy to get into her room, easy to find two of the objects she wants. I note that we did the object placing at the end of Gloria's episode, in the middle of Andrew's, and now we're placing objects at the beginning of Matilda's. OK.

I know what the third object is. There have been huge clues to that. I know where to get it too, but I need a coin. So I stopped there. Dunno where to find the coin, but if I get playing time tomorrow (might not--more Kirkus books are coming) I'm going to check the place I where found the first coin. Maybe there's another one. Or maybe Echo will give me another clue.

What fun it was just to grab several hours and spend them playing an absorbing adventure game. Dad was watching his Nascar race, so I had the time free. Yes, I should have finished that damned book, but I can whiz through most of that tonight.

So, I'm on the hunt and making sense of things at last!

Lost Souls (14): Being Irresponsible

Today I threw responsibility out the window and went back to my game!

First, we had The Week from Hell, with Dad in the emergency room twice, and then doctors' visits, with our transportation abandoning us at one point. Humph. And then I got a load of books from Kirkus to get done ASAP.

Well, I'm working on a 400-pager that I don't much like, and I'm halfway through, and Dad was sleeping, so I grabbed some time and I played Lost Souls! Completely irresponsible behavior. Hah.

So I was still trapped in the second TV room. I took some good notes on the TV movie regarding the ordering of symbols (if that's even the clue at all), found another missive from Amy regarding angels, and got outta the room. Found lots more eyes. Figured out a cryptic message from Echo that took me back to old haunts. Did have to go to the WT at one point just to get going in the right direction, but after that I was fine.

And at last I have saved a Lost Soul! Got the key to Room 1E, Gloria Grable. At last I went back in time! And woo hoo, now here's a revelation: I had always thought that Matilda Fly was the Sly Fox, in cahoots with Gloria.

It was nostalgic listening to Gloria--my old friend Nanny Noah from Lost Crown. She was my favorite character. Love this actress--she does a nicely subtle job and is completely convincing.

Anyway, I had a good old time sorting through Gloria's stuff, and opening her puzzle box (which was easy peasy--sometimes I do get lucky). Also I killed a Throbbing Thing, just like the one in the ladies room sink, so I know what to do with that when it comes up again.

I did encounter one game glitch. We need three items to help Gloria get released. I got two of them, but suddenly, at one point a bloody bank note just appeared--and I hadn't picked one up. The game seemed to want one more item, so I went back and found Gloria's journal again, and this time I was able to pick up the bank note. After that the game ran fine.

But the stuff in this room is just fun, old-fashioned adventure find-the-item, puzzley stuff, which I like. Gloria has been released, and she gave me lock-picking tools and a clue about bad Amy.

So after that I had to go find a lock to pick. I think I'm finished with all the first floor rooms, so it made sense to go upstairs another flight. And there was a nice padlock. Took me awhile to figure out the sound clues (good thing I played Lost Crown) and I opened it. Ta-Da!

However, by that time it was night, so I just saved. I'll go exploring down the second-floor hallway when I'm feeling irresponsible again. But now that I'm into saving souls, which is the heart of the game, I think, I should be more motivated. Going back in time is not as scary as wandering these decrepit halls.

So today, I had fun! Yay!