Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,045 
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Post by Jo on Aug 4, 2022 22:31:02 GMT
While the Woods has been going crazy over Blow Fish....er... I mean Big Fish shenanigans and incompetence, I've been happily playing Keepsake. And, for the most part, I'm finding the student area to be easier to navigate and more straight forward. I have a nagging fear that I missed something in the previous part and won't be able to finish because of it.This is a long game. Just when I start to lose interest, something comes up that renews me. I'm ruined by HOPAs. I keep looking at all the shelves and areas full of interesting stuff and I can't steal anything.
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,045
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Post by Jo on Aug 6, 2022 0:11:21 GMT
OMG! What an interesting turn this game has taken! Lydia got some help from a very unlikely source.
Wait, where is everyone?
OMG! I'm alone. They're all gone. Just like the students at the academy!
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 6, 2022 0:30:44 GMT
Well, I'm still stumbling around on transporter pods, but really disheartened and seriously mourning the fact that Zak is not a real dragon. Dang, I wanted that to be the case...I did, I did, I did. |
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,045
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Post by Jo on Aug 6, 2022 1:35:43 GMT
Well, I'm still stumbling around on transporter pods, but really disheartened and seriously mourning the fact that Zak is not Dang, I wanted that to be the case...I did, I did, I did. I am absolutely delighted with the transporter pods. I haven't been lost one time since arriving in the student area. And the map is excellent. I had a lot of dumb luck turning on the transporters. I just blindly fiddled around with the controls for a while and et voila! they all worked. I couldn't believe it. I have had to take several hints because, other than navigating competently, I have no idea what I am supposed to do. But I have enjoyed this level a lot more that the first one.
There have been a lot of hints about Zak's true identity, mostly because he is the worst liar in the history of gaming. But I feel your pain that Zak is {Spoiler}
a mere mortal.
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 6, 2022 2:48:36 GMT
D-U-H - there is a pattern and a logic to the transporter controls. Sheesh, who'da thought!
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moni
Squirrel
[TI0] [TI0]
Posts: 1,061
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Post by moni on Aug 6, 2022 3:06:34 GMT
I'm still in the machine room. Rough Day
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 7, 2022 0:48:42 GMT
I'm finding the Student Area frustrating 'cause everything I encounter is not yet ready to be solved. Hopefully soon I'll do something that changes that. But is anyone, like me, starting to feel guilty that we paid a mere 99 cents for this game, given the incredible amount of artwork, story development, and game development that clearly went into this?! It's beginning to feel like a never-ending story. I must admit, though, that I do wish their art budget had been significantly smaller, 'cause then Lydia would probably do far less running around! Was curious what had become of the developer, but could not find anything. There is another organization called Wicked Studios, but it is a costume company (think Iron Man and Groot) and seems unrelated. I did find the following interviews from Yves Bordeleau, president of the Keepsake-related Wicked Studios and/or game designer Bruno Parenteau, about the game itself: Adventure-Treff: YvesIGN Interview: Yves & Bruno, Part 1IGN Interview: Yves & Bruno, Part 2(From what I could see, looks like Bruno has since designed some RPG & Strategy games, but I didnt see another adventure title). |
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,045
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Post by Jo on Aug 7, 2022 2:30:21 GMT
I'm finding the Student Area frustrating 'cause everything I encounter is not yet ready to be solved. Hopefully soon I'll do something that changes that. But is anyone, like me, starting to feel guilty that we paid a mere 99 cents for this game, given the incredible amount of artwork, story development, and game development that clearly went into this?! It's beginning to feel like a never-ending story. I must admit, though, that I do wish their art budget had been significantly smaller, 'cause then Lydia would probably do far less running around! Was curious what had become of the developer, but could not find anything. There is another organization called Wicked Studios, but it is a costume company (think Iron Man and Groot) and seems unrelated. I did find the following interviews from Yves Bordeleau, president of the Keepsake-related Wicked Studios and/or Bruno Parenteau, about the game itself: Adventure-Treff: YvesIGN Interview: Yves & Bruno, Part 1IGN Interview: Yves & Bruno, Part 2(From what I could see, looks like Bruno has since designed some RPG & Strategy games, but I didnt see another adventure title). I know how much you hate to touch that hint button BUT I wasn't getting anywhere until I started using it. You have to trigger a pretty important event that opens up a lot of options. I can't remember now where I was when I hit hint, but it told me to go somewhere that triggered that event. The event gives you some information that will let you use the things you are not ready to use now. Is that vague enough to avoid spoilers but specific enough to get you going? So just use the damn hint button. I, a committed cheater, won't hold it against you.
Keepsake was published by The Adventure Company which was probably the leader at the time, early 2000s, in adventure games. It was a Canadian company. It got bought up by Jo Woods which I think went bankrupt and then was bought several other times by other people. They had quite a few game titles that just became unavailable after the initial offering. The Agatha Christie games, Murder on the Orient Express, And Then There Were None and Evil Under the Sun have never turned up for download although they're available in the box, used with 3rd party seller, at Amazon. A lot of the games are considered to be abandonware. Like with BF games, the publisher might hold most or all of the rights to a game with very few options left for the developers. That's what happened with Scratches by Agustin Cordes. He can't sell his game but he can give it away to people who join his Discord server. That's where the Pond Friends group play bunch went. I can't find any info on what exactly happened to Wicked Studios either. I did find Bruno Parenteau and Yves Bordeleau on LinkedIn. They both work for Rogue Factor in Montreal which made Mordheim: City of the Damned and Necromunda: Underhive Wars. Way different games than Keepsake.
Great interview. Thanks for finding it.
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 7, 2022 23:54:41 GMT
Aaarrggghhhh! I've been working for hours on the Dragon's Lair puzzle....and have NO hope of figuring it out, even though it seems eminently do-able. Suspect this is my equivalent of the machine room for moni. I REFUSE to give up on it...and yet I suspect I have 0 chance of completing it, given how long I have been working with no success. I suck at these types of puzzles and yet they "seem" so simple I cannot give up on them. Grrrr. |
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,045
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Post by Jo on Aug 8, 2022 0:27:02 GMT
Aaarrggghhhh! I've been working for hours on the Dragon's Lair puzzle....and have NO hope of figuring it out, even though it seems eminently do-able. Suspect this is my equivalent of the machine room for moni . I REFUSE to give up on it...and yet I suspect I have 0 chance of completing it, given how long I have been working with no success. I suck at these types of puzzles and yet they "seem" so simple I cannot give up on them. Grrrr. Which puzzle are you talking about? The one where you have to get the Dragon in the cave? That took forever to do because you have to move so many of the tiles out of the way so you can use the tiles you need. It takes like 100 moves.
Want a clue? {Spoiler}
Move the horses to the lower right corner first so they're out of the way. Here's another clue: {Spoiler}
Get one of the blue guys right in front of the cave because if he's not in place, you have no room to maneuver him in. I made that mistake.
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 8, 2022 6:04:44 GMT
JoYou'll be so proud of yourself when you solve this! Ah, you lied to me Jo ! I did eventually solve it, but was not the least bit proud of myself. Used every clue you and the game gave me, and still resorted to a whole slew of random moves. FINALLY, had a burst of insight that allowed me to complete the last couple moves, but by then I was so exhausted from my multiple moves (AND from trying to figure out why in the world any but the 1st 2 hints were of any use to me) that pride of accomplishment had long since left the building! Forgot to save right after completing the puzzle (oh no, I could not have stood it if the game failed & I had to rediscover those steps!!), but happily did do so before anything untoward occurred. Not nearly as frustrating as the rain dance in the Book of Unwritten Tales...though, on the other hand, perhaps a tad more so since at least in the rain dance I could swear at the dexterity required, and here I could only blame my innate dumbness. Oh well, off to the next challenge...tomorrow.  |
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,045
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Post by Jo on Aug 8, 2022 13:44:53 GMT
JoYou'll be so proud of yourself when you solve this! Ah, you lied to me Jo ! I did eventually solve it, but was not the least bit proud of myself. Used every clue you and the game gave me, and still resorted to a whole slew of random moves. FINALLY, had a burst of insight that allowed me to complete the last couple moves, but by then I was so exhausted from my multiple moves (AND from trying to figure out why in the world any but the 1st 2 hints were of any use to me) that pride of accomplishment had long since left the building! Forgot to save right after completing the puzzle (oh no, I could not have stood it if the game failed & I had to rediscover those steps!!), but happily did do so before anything untoward occurred. Not nearly as frustrating as the rain dance in the Book of Unwritten Tales...though, on the other hand, perhaps a tad more so since at least in the rain dance I could swear at the dexterity required, and here I could only blame my innate dumbness. Oh well, off to the next challenge...tomorrow. Well, I'm proud of you. You persevered through unspeakable adversity and came out triumphant.
Don't make me play Eye of the Tiger!
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smitty189
Squirrel
[TI18] "No great mind ever existed without a touch of madness" Aristotle
Posts: 1,004
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Post by smitty189 on Aug 8, 2022 14:01:54 GMT
Congrats to all for making the student section. I was away grannying but have followed your trials and tribulations with great interest. And yes I would probaby feel guiltay about only spending .99 if I could have finished, still frozen, brrr.
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 8, 2022 17:28:51 GMT
Grrr - my in-game hint is stuck! All it keeps telling me is I need to activate the rune in the forge. Clearly I did not have what that required, but it would not tell me that or give any hints on how to proceed. Finally consulted UHS for some hints & managed to activate the rune. Then, with a LOT of effort, solved the tile problem in the forge, but still do not have what I need to do the 3rd puzzle there. But instead of pointing me towards what I might need to do, my in-game hint just keeps saying "you need to activate the rune in the forge"! Been there, done that! Oh well, hopefully I'll find what I need to do the puzzle in the center of the forge & eventually the in-game hint will "move on". Havent encountered the in-game hint being so useless before - it is clearly developing an "attitude".
BTW, thought I'd remind folks that we are closing in on the next big persistent failure in the game (the ship in the bottle in Nathaniel's office). Personally, after my experience with the 2nd Trial, I plan to just consult a walkthrough & find the solution to this one rather than risk a game-ending problem, since the notes indicate the game does not crash if you do ever step right...ummm, havent managed that yet, so why would I expect a change now?? (Yeah, I'm a wimp).
Also BTW, while checking about the 2nd crash on Steam, noted the following comment from the developer re "what became of Wicked Studios", back from 7/14/18:
Hel lo! Actually we did release another game after keepsake. It was a Nintendo DS game called "Dawn Of Heroes". It was a (in my opinion) really well done strategic turn based RPG. Sadly, our publisher at the time didn't publish it to enough markets to make it a resounding financial success and we decided to stop the company afterwards. The story does have a happy ending though: we're not pretty much all working in gaming or gaming-related fields
I suspect the "not" in the final sentence is a typo and wants to be "now".
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Jo
Skunk
Forest Ranger
Posts: 2,045
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Post by Jo on Aug 8, 2022 18:19:49 GMT
Grrr - my in-game hint is stuck! All it keeps telling me is I need to activate the rune in the forge. Clearly I did not have what that required, but it would not tell me that or give any hints on how to proceed. Finally consulted UHS for some hints & managed to activate the rune. Then, with a LOT of effort, solved the tile problem in the forge, but still do not have what I need to do the 3rd puzzle there. But instead of pointing me towards what I might need to do, my in-game hint just keeps saying "you need to activate the rune in the forge"! Been there, done that! Oh well, hopefully I'll find what I need to do the puzzle in the center of the forge & eventually the in-game hint will "move on". Havent encountered the in-game hint being so useless before - it is clearly developing an "attitude". BTW, thought I'd remind folks that we are closing in on the next big persistent failure in the game (the ship in the bottle in Nathaniel's office). Personally, after my experience with the 2nd Trial, I plan to just consult a walkthrough & find the solution to this one rather than risk a game-ending problem, since the notes indicate the game does not crash if you do ever step right...ummm, havent managed that yet, so why would I expect a change now?? (Yeah, I'm a wimp). Also BTW, while checking about the 2nd crash on Steam, noted the following comment from the developer re "what became of Wicked Studios", back from 7/14/18:
Hel lo! Actually we did release another game after keepsake. It was a Nintendo DS game called "Dawn Of Heroes". It was a (in my opinion) really well done strategic turn based RPG. Sadly, our publisher at the time didn't publish it to enough markets to make it a resounding financial success and we decided to stop the company afterwards. The story does have a happy ending though: we're not pretty much all working in gaming or gaming-related fields
I suspect the "not" in the final sentence is a typo and wants to be "now". Have you done the floating island with the stone thingies puzzle yet? That opens up a new option for activating the forge rune. And you will like it a lot.
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Post by good2bqueen on Aug 8, 2022 21:33:21 GMT
I'm still here! Sorry I've been MIA but am back at it. Right now I'm trying to activate the seed I've planted in the garden plot. Don't know if I'll finish before Friday but will give it my best. My grandson went to day camp at the YMCA and was sent home with a note saying he was in contact with someone with covid. Daughter had him tested and he was positive. He was so sick. Then of course she and her husband tested positive also. It was the new strain and they had a heck of a time with all the flu type symptoms and would test negative and in a few days test positive again. So I had to do my Grammy thing. (Mostly pep talks and fretting) They are well now and back at work and camp. SO I CAN PLAY.
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 9, 2022 20:20:04 GMT
Grrr, again. Worked f-o-r-e-v-e-r on the center puzzle at the forge (light up the right symbols on the 3x3 matrix). FINALLY got the right ones displayed....and nothing happened. So, since I was positive this was the "right" answer, I spaced through Hint till I could choose "show me the solution"...and what it displayed was EXACTLY what I had! No fair!! I have no idea why my correct solution did not trigger the resultant action. And here I was SOOOOO proud of myself for finally getting the answer right after working on it a long, long time (I'm terrible at these types of puzzles and absolutely hate them). Looking at UHS, though, turns out the goal was NOT to get the right runes displayed, though that is kinda what the in-game hint led me to believe...AND what I finally achieved after a massive effort. Aaaarrrgghhhh. All that work for nothing!
Meanwhile, my overall Hint remains stuck on "activate the rune at the forge"....which I think I've already done. This game is really hating me as it winds down towards the conclusion.
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 10, 2022 19:42:20 GMT
Awful quiet in here. Anyone still working on Keepsake??  Only 1 more full day till our next group play starts. Gulp...I've still got The Book of Unwritten Tales to finish. Would hate to have 2 games backed up when starting the next! Since there comes a point in this second half when we can choose to have Zak as any of his 3 animal personas, has anyone reverted him from his dragon image? I've got him as his wolf self at the moment, but think I'll change him back into the cat, at least till all the steps are satisfied for him to be human again (human, I must admit, I find the least interesting of his 4 possible manifestations, based on images from the visions). BTW, finally found out why my Hint was "stuck" on insisting I activate the rune at the forge. Turns out what I THOUGHT was the rune at the forge was not it. Had pixel-hunted at least twice to see if I'd missed any hot spots...without detecting it, and even after UHS told me exactly where to look, it still took me a couple tries to find the rune. Oh well, never claimed to be the brightest bulb in the pack! ??? duh! |
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moni
Squirrel
[TI0] [TI0]
Posts: 1,061
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Post by moni on Aug 10, 2022 21:18:23 GMT
I'm playing. You guys got advanced in the game so far ahead, that I couldn't readily jump in the conversation. I'm very slow with adventure games. With the ones I like. Keepsake is a looonnng game, lots of content for the the dollar. It still remains my all time favorite Adventure game, and I may will skip the next group play to savor every minute of this one. Yes!
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Post by lurkercat on Aug 11, 2022 0:02:03 GMT
moni , If you solved the Observatory puzzle in Keepsake without the assistance of a walkthrough (even using every single in-game hint), then you are a frigging GENIUS!! I bow in utter awe!
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