The Other Side — 2 of 4

Section 1 - Second Floor Region

Your Bedroom is a room with description "Nearly every corner of your bedroom is warmly lit by the morning sun. Your small desk shines and your mirror is crystal clean. Yet, the space around your closet door is unnaturally dark, as if it was leaking shadows.

Your closet is to the east and the upstairs hallway is to the north."

Sunlight is a fixed in place thing in Your Bedroom with description "There is something extraordinarily bright about the weekend's sunlight." Understand "sun/sunlight/light" as the sunlight.

Release along with an interpreter.

Release along with cover art ("A light over water at night.").

Release along with a website.

Release along with the source text.

Sheets are a portable, wearable thing in Your Bedroom with description "Your sheets look the majestic garments of a mythical, royal hero."

Toys are a portable thing in Your Bedroom with description "These blocks and dolls do not seem to capture your attention this morning."

Desk is a supporter in Your Bedroom with description "It's a typical schoolhouse desk." The desk is fixed in place.

Mirror is a fixed in place thing in Your Bedroom with description "[if player is wearing a thing]You smile at the sight of your [random worn thing]. It makes you look so [one of]epic[or]strong[or]heroic[at random]. But a hero does not boast, or so your grandmother says. You must turn your focus to your quest[otherwise]You wince at the sight of your thin wrists and ankles reflected in the mirror. Your oversized Green Bay Packers pajama shirt passed down to you from your brother, Peter, makes you look and feel rather feeble[end if]."

The Closet Door is a door. The Closet Door is west of Your Bedroom and east of The Ominous River. The Closet Door has description "You can hear something [one of]rattling[or]groaning[or]shrieking[or]howling[at random] on the other side. You feel uneasy but ultimately compelled to enter. Perhaps you should prepare yourself before you open your corrupted closet. A hero needs a majestic cape, an impenetrable suit of armor, a tasty potion, an ancient coin, a trusty steed, and a mighty blade, or so your grandmother says."

Upstairs Hallway is north of Your Bedroom. "The hallway is plain in comparison to the other areas of the house. It makes you eager to keep moving.

Your bedroom lies to the south. The doors to your parents’ bedroom and your brother’s bedroom are to the west and north, respectively. The stairs down lead to the ground floor."

Parents' Bedroom is west of Upstairs Hallway. "Everything from the blankets on the bed to the books on the shelf is tucked away meticulously. Yet, a thin coat of dust clings to it all. Your parents’ closet door looks as if it hasn’t been opened in weeks.

The door to the master bath is to the south. The closet is to the north. The hallway is to the east."

Bed is a fixed in place thing in Parents' Bedroom with description "The blankets look cottony, thick, and long untouched. You should probably keep it that way." Understand "blankets" as the bed.

Shelf is a supporter in Parents' Bedroom with description "The books fit so snugly against one another on the shelf that they look impossible to remove." Understand "books" as the shelf.

Dust is a fixed in place thing in Parents' Bedroom with description "It's powdery, gray, and frankly quite disgusting."

Parents' Closet is a room. "Above your parents' hanging clothes, you see the small latch to the attic. You've never been up there.

Your parents' bedroom is back to the south. The attic is up from here."

Parents' Closet Door is a door. Parents' Closet Door is north of Parents' Bedroom and south of Parents' Closet. It has description "Just stepping near it makes it creak."

Parents' clothes are a fixed in place thing in Parents' Closet with description "Their clothes are far too large to be of any use to you."

Latch is a door. Latch is up from Parents' Closet and down from Attic. Latch has description "You could climb up and enter through it with ease."

Attic is a room. "You cannot see the walls or ceiling in here: just cardboard boxes. Yet only one of these boxes looks unsealed.

Your parents' bedroom closet is down from here."

Sealed Boxes are a closed, unopenable, fixed in place container in Attic with description "A resilient tape keeps these boxes shut tightly. Their labels don't suggest anything of interest anyway."

Harriet's Things is an opaque, openable container in the attic with description "A small cardboard box, with 'Harriet' written on it in black sharpie." Harriet's Things is closed.

An Old Dress is a wearable thing in Harriet's Things with description "Some old dress you've never seen before."

Letters is a thing in Harriet's Things with description "Letters that look like they were from Grandpa to Grandma. You feel kind of uncomfortable going through them, so, you don't."

The Storybook is a thing inside Harriet's Things with description "Grandma's storybook. It's been quite a while since you've seen this." Understand "book/tome" as Storybook.

Your Room is a room.

After examining The Storybook for the first time:

say "When Grandpa died a few years ago, and Grandma moved in with you, she started reading to you every night. This was always one of your favorite books.";

move player to Your Room;

say "Your parents just tucked you into bed, but instead of one of them being here to say 'goodnight,' it's your grandma. In her hands she has a book, one that's quite a bit longer than the small picture books you're used to. When you're ready, she starts reading. The story is unlike anything you've ever heard. There are monsters, there are goblins, there is a dragon, but most importantly, there is the knight in shining armor. Covered head to toe in his exquisite silver armor, with a sword, his trusty steed, and anything else he could possibly need to fight the forces of evil. But, just as it is getting to the exciting part, your grandma closes up the book, and gives you a kiss on the forehead, telling you that she'll be back tomorrow. That night, you dream of adventures.";

increase Familymemories by 1;

move player to The Attic;

say "Grandma still reads to you, though not quite as often. Lately, it seems as if she's been feeling too weak more and more. You're not sure how you're going to be able to sleep once she's gone."

The Master Bathroom is south of Parents' Bedroom. "The morning sun pours in and glints off the white porcelain of the sink, shower, and toilet.

Your parents’ bedroom lies to the north."

Sink is a fixed in place, open container in the Master Bathroom with description "Just a few months ago, you couldn’t reach this without a step stool. Clean hands never felt like such an achievement."

Shower is a fixed in place, open container in the Master Bathroom with description "No reason to wash up now. The day has just begun!"

Toilet is a fixed in place, closed, openable container in the Master Bathroom with description "Normally you'd get the urge to use the toilet just by looking at it, but that is not the case today."

Peter's Bedroom is north of Upstairs Hallway. "With his window blinds closed, the clutter of Peter’s Room is barely visible. You kind of wish you couldn’t see it at all, but the collage of wall posters and shelves of trophies capture your attention. Maybe there's something in his walk-in closet to the east, too. If Peter doesn’t wake and catch you, perhaps you could look around. He tosses and turns a lot; as long as he’s facing away, you should go undetected.

Peter’s closet is to the east. The hallway is back to the south."

Blinds are a fixed in place thing in Peter's Bedroom with description "If you touch these and let any sunlight into the room, Peter is sure to wake. The last time you did that before noon, he hissed at you." Understand "curtains/shades" as Blinds.

Clutter is a fixed in place thing in Peter's Bedroom with description "Covering every surface are crumpled notebook papers, microwave burrito wrappers, and long athletic socks. At least you think those are socks. You’d prefer not to be proved wrong." Understand "junk/garbage/trash" as Clutter.

Posters are a fixed in place thing in Peter's Bedroom with description "Popular singers’ contorted faces and famous athletes' contorted bodies seem to leap off the glossy images. It’s actually a bit frightening." Understand "singers/athletes" as Posters.

Trophies are a fixed in place thing in Peter's Bedroom with description "Lined up on the shelves carefully, these cups and statues are the only semblance of organization in Peter’s bedroom." Understand "statues/awards/statuettes/cups" as Trophies.

CDs are a portable thing in Peter's Bedroom with description "The stacks stand nearly as tall as you. They could tumble over at any moment." Understand "discs/disks/CD/disc/disk" as CDs.

Peter's Closet is east of Peter's Bedroom with description "It looks very similar to yours but with less evil shadows and more evil smells.

Peter's bedroom is back to the west."

Football Gear is a portable, wearable thing in Peter's Closet with description "The plastic of the shoulder pads and helmet feel tough and impenetrable to the touch." Understand "pads/armor" as Football Gear.

Grandma's House is a room.

The Record is a thing in Peter's Bedroom with description "It's an LP in a wrinkled sleeve. Naturally, it's a bit out of place among Peter's other nonsense."

[Metal Gear Child Puzzle Rules]

Before going north in Upstairs Hallway:

say "If Peter doesn’t wake and catch you, perhaps you could look around. He tosses and turns a lot; as long as you're not moving when he’s facing away, you should go undetected."

PeterStealth is a truth state that varies.

Every turn:

If player is in Peter's Bedroom:

if a random chance of 1 in 2 succeeds:

now PeterStealth is false;

say "Peter is facing away from you.";

choose random row in Table of MurmursAway;

say "[Text Entry]";

otherwise:

now PeterStealth is true;

say "Peter is facing towards you.";

choose random row in Table of MurmursTowards;

say "[Text Entry]".

Before going east in Peter's Bedroom:

if PeterStealth is true:

say "Peter says 'Hey! Get out of my Room!' You dash out of his room.";

move the player to Upstairs Hallway;

if PeterStealth is false:

say "You sneak past Peter."

Before taking Football Gear:

if player is in Peter's Bedroom:

if PeterStealth is true:

say "Peter says 'Hey! Get out of my Room!' You dash out of his room.";

move the player to Upstairs Hallway;

stop the action;

[if PeterStealth is false:

say "You grabbed the Football Gear. Good."]

Before going west in Peter's Closet:

if PeterStealth is true:

say "Peter says 'Hey! Get out of my Room!' You dash out of his room.";

move the player to Upstairs Hallway;

if PeterStealth is false:

say "You sneak towards Peter."

[Metal Gear Child Puzzle Tables]

Table of MurmursAway

Table of MurmursTowards

After examining the Record for the first time:

say "Peter got the record for his birthday a couple years ago. You were pretty sure it had just been sitting in his closet since then. You wonder for a moment why he's taken it out. It reminds you of a few years ago when your grandma still lived in her own house...";

move player to Grandma's House;

say "You and your brother are visiting your grandparents. Their house is showing its age, and it smells a bit like old people, but you like it anyway. Grandma put on her favorite record and is dancing around the room. You and Peter are a bit embarrassed at first, but your she pulls you over and soon all three of you are dancing. Your grandma reaches down to grab your hands, spinning you around her living room, and everyone starts laughing.";

increase Familymemories by 1;

move player to Peter's Bedroom;

say "You hadn't thought about Grandma's old house in a long time, but there's no time to dwell on the past. There's still a quest to complete!"

Staircase is down from Upstairs Hallway. "The hallway is up the stairs, and the living room is down the stairs."

Second Floor is a region. Your Bedroom, Upstairs Hallway, Parent's Bedroom, Parent's Closet, Master Bathroom, Peter's Bedroom, Peter's Closet, and Attic are in Second Floor.