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Yeah, that slash definitely means Tiana has outside knowledge of the game; note how Ink distracted away from focusing on how that was spelled by asking about the number of contestants. Clever, and fitting with how the puzzles have been organized!
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Mar 20, 2022 16:38
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Something else that I noticed (after thinking about it for an hour or three) is the difference in the number of contestants in each answer:
So yeah, Rae's answer to the question is the most suspicious to me but Tiana being the only one to write Exit/Corners is what really gets my attention.
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Mar 20, 2022 17:27
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Rith answered that one a bit further up. e: Rith posted:It's not mentioned in the game, but the developer, Percon, has actually answered this question: Rae is counting Sean. He's been told that Sean is 'staying behind, permanently' but not about the acid situation, so in his mind Sean is still alive; he's just trapped in Liza's Corner.
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Mar 20, 2022 17:48
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...I wasn't expecting that method to be used literally the update right after I posted it, wow O-O. Also, the sudden bout of insecurity from Ink...is it a bout of delayed grieving/trauma from not being able to save either Beth or Sean? I'm having a little bit of trouble figuring where that came from, otherwise? Good on Lisa to help him through it, though. Referring to Aether's date: Rith posted:
She didn't go by the Gemini "date" in the first place.
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Mar 20, 2022 18:17
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devildragon777 posted:...I wasn't expecting that method to be used literally the update right after I posted it, wow O-O. Maybe Aether is working from a different calendar? Also, she used American formatting for the date (Month/Day/Year) and the other two used everybody else's format (Day/Month/Year)
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Mar 20, 2022 18:41
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devildragon777 posted:...Also, I'm just realizing there's a good way to figure out a mole! Have everyone write Exit/Corners (probably just say it as "the name of the game" or something like that)! I'm betting Tiana's the only one who'll write it correctly... I think you got it, well done. That was a clever misdirection from Ink to hide what the only thing he was looking for among several innocuous questions.
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Mar 20, 2022 20:32
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The date being one day different could have a bunch of innocent explanations - Aether just assumed that we'd been here longer than we are, she's the only one who's checked the date/time on her Gemini recently, something along those lines. Tiana calling it Exit/Corners though is suspicious as hell. She can't have gotten it from her contacts with Rae since he didn't use the slash in his writing, so why would her assumption be that there's a slash between the two words?
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Mar 20, 2022 20:38
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Hey OP, did you plan from the start to schedule this LP such that the update where everyone writes March 20th was posted on March 20th? How could you plan that so carefully over such a long time? Are you Sent? I'm onto you!
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Mar 20, 2022 22:44
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Carbon dioxide posted:How could you plan that so carefully over such a long time? Are you Sent? I'm onto you!  I can't see Sent ever getting squashed by a giant chicken, not even if it'd get erased by spectral trickery!
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Mar 20, 2022 23:18
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God, I love this game. 
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Mar 21, 2022 02:50
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Humbug Scoolbus posted:Maybe Aether is working from a different calendar? Also, she used American formatting for the date (Month/Day/Year) and the other two used everybody else's format (Day/Month/Year) For the latter part, I think DD/MM/YYYY is more common in programming? So maybe it comes more easily than the regular dates to Rae & Tiana. Aether's deal is that in the first update, Aether & Ink are discussing which day it is, and Aether mentions that she thinks the 19th was the day before, i.e the current day is the 20th. I'm guessing everyone moved a day forward because of the amount of time that has passed? Nobody actually has a watch... The only reason Ink and the others thought it was the 19th was because of the Gemini, so I wonder if that changed, or is it still 3/(1|7)9 on it? Who even still has their Gemini at this point?
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Mar 21, 2022 03:07
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Carbon dioxide posted:Hey OP, did you plan from the start to schedule this LP such that the update where everyone writes March 20th was posted on March 20th? 
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Mar 21, 2022 03:45
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Carbon dioxide posted:Hey OP, did you plan from the start to schedule this LP such that the update where everyone writes March 20th was posted on March 20th? ...I genuinely did not notice this at all. Maybe I'm Aether, with her clairvoyance. (Although I suppose in that case I'd have posted it on the 21st.)
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Mar 21, 2022 03:52
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Nissin Cup Nudist posted:Do you think Sent verbalizes the slash in Exit/Corners, or is it just a text thing hey look this is actually important
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Mar 23, 2022 08:22
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26.3: Answers (Music: Last Stand)  What about you, huh? Did you figure it out? I had gotten so wrapped up in what was going on that it took me a moment to realize that Ink had directed that last question at me. I know you’re there. Humor me, will you? Do you know what I was referring to? What element stands out as suspicious?    You insisted that they spell it out in full, after all. In fact, I think I see what you were getting at.Good observation. I'm going to credit devildragon777 with getting this one; they suggested this as a potential method for rooting out moles just before it showed up in the game itself!   First of all, thanks for cooperating. I don’t like having to boss people around. Oh, that’s irrelevant. As some of you may have already guessed, the answer isn’t what’s important here. Most of what I had you write served as a distraction. The music stops. But I don’t care that you’ve gotten something wrong. What bothers me is what you’ve gotten right. So tell me, Tiana: how did you know there was a slash in Exit/Corners?(Music: Battle of Wits, 0.75 speed)  We’ve only ever said “Exit Corners” amongst ourselves, not “Exit or Corners” or “Exit Slash Corners”. The only way you’d have known there was a slash in the name is if you’d seen it written. Ink flashed his Gemini in Tiana’s direction. A little bird told me. Did you kill Beth? ... So you are part of this.  I’m not lettin’ you get away with this! Everyone, get ready to grab her. We’ll need to tie her up with something. Not sure what, but let’s get her pinned. Oh, Ink...The music speeds up.  The screen shakes, and Tiana vanishes. With a burst of energy that surprised even him, Ink leapt at Tiana, arms outstretched in front of him. Fast though he was, Tiana was faster still, and she was off in full sprint before Ink even got close. Between the bar’s fixtures and the other Contestants, she was relatively boxed in. Rather than outmaneuver the others, she opted to charge at full speed...   As she pirouetted around Aether’s lunge, she fished for something that had been tucked into her corset. The screen fades to black. Wait, Tiana’s not just avoiding her, she’s— No! It was over before it began. The screen shakes, and the music stops.  (Music: Ad Nauseam (Tendrils), 0.75 speed)  Tiana gripped the shard of glass so tightly that it was slicing her own hand. She seemed unfazed by it. drat it! She must have pocketed that from the scene of the crime! Let her go! Or—The screen shakes.    I-Ink! Hang on, Aether! We’ll think of something!   What are your demands? That’s what we—    Of course he’s watching. He’s always watching.   Of course. So he takes orders from you, huh? E-Everyone... Please escape while you still can!The screen shakes.    As you wish.The screen fades to black. We hear the click of a lock, and the music stops.   Throughout the game, the ‘End Chapter’ screen has been accompanied by the electronic chirp that heralds Sent’s appearance. This chapter instead ends on the sound of a door slamming. 
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Mar 23, 2022 08:29
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Mar 23, 2022 08:39
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Mar 23, 2022 08:44
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Mar 23, 2022 08:53
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Well, at least Aether's trust level is literally through the roof?
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Mar 23, 2022 09:05
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What. What? WHAT. ...So, uh, there's no way Ink's leaving Aether, but can we (Meaning Rae +- Liza) get reinforcements? Because Tiana seems like she's final boss level, right now. Also, uh, "Let's look at that head of yours" is very not reassurring about Aether's survival chances (although it's a VR, so who knows what death actually counts for here)...Was Aether the actual target of this thing, then? Are they after her clairvoyance?
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Mar 23, 2022 09:19
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devildragon777 posted:Also, uh, "Let's look at that head of yours" is very not reassurring about Aether's survival chances (although it's a VR, so who knows what death actually counts for here)...Was Aether the actual target of this thing, then? Are they after her clairvoyance? Turn the DS upside down!
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Mar 23, 2022 09:37
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Tiana. Terrible person. Etc. She's been in on this plan from the outset and she's still treated Rey like poo poo after seeing him with his arm chopped off. Heck, you could probably surmise that she devised his Corner.
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Mar 23, 2022 11:05
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hey Tiana if your players derail the game after you trap them in a location and you personally intervene you might not be as good at deathgame planning as you thought Edit: serious thought, we've seen Tiana throw up blood as well right? I wonder if one of the Contestants can trigger that again and break Aether free while it's happening...
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Mar 23, 2022 11:44
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Motherf-
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Mar 23, 2022 12:17
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My favourite bit of foreshadowing in the entire game:Rith posted:
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Mar 23, 2022 12:52
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’Course it does! You’re an English student, right? I’m sure you’ve read your fair share of detective novels.
And I’m sure your spelling and grammar are impeccable!
Absolutely!
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 Does that slash count as syntax, or does it count as spelling? (Or is it both?) Ink definitely used grammar incredibly effectively with his gambit with Liza and the speeches in the elevators.Also, given that Tiana is definitely involved in this game I think that also gives her a motive for killing Beth - I bet that she explicitly wanted Rae to die in his corner, and is pissed that Beth gave him an out that wasn't suicide.
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Mar 23, 2022 13:46
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dervival posted:Also, given that Tiana is definitely involved in this game I think that also gives her a motive for killing Beth - I bet that she explicitly wanted Rae to die in his corner, and is pissed that Beth gave him an out that wasn't suicide. I don't think that's good enough. First of all, I know that typical death game rules are "dead is dead", even if it's happening in VR, but Tiana really seems unhappy that the intended game got derailed. She seems like a cold calculating type. She wouldn't have killed Beth just for spite. Secondly, she's in league with Sent to control the game, and could easily have killed Rae or arranged another way for Rae to be killed for sure. No, there's an obvious reason why Beth had to die. She figured out that this wasn't real and was going to reveal it, which would have definitely derailed the game. That's why she needed to be silenced. It was to try and keep the game going longer.
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Mar 23, 2022 15:21
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So is Sean involved too? If so is that why he volunteered?
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Mar 23, 2022 19:13
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I'm actually going to double back on my previous position on Sean - I don't think he's involved, but was added to the game as well to make Tiana seem less suspicious. It seems incredibly risky to send two new actors in, and I can't see why one would duck out at this very moment.
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Mar 23, 2022 19:53
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Humbug Scoolbus posted:So is Sean involved too? If so is that why he volunteered? Has to be. If Tiana had a knife the entire time, she wouldn't need a painting to kill Beth. In fact I'm going to register this prediction: The only reason Sean got back in touch with Ink after high school was specifically for this game. I bet him, Tiana, and whoever else organised this each picked one person. And became their Contact. So Sean picked Ink, Tiana picked Rae, Liza's dad picked her, and Beth's son picked her. Those are our four masterminds. They've been in the open the entire time. SUPER WILDCARD BONUS GUESS: And Sent picked Aether. MarquiseMindfang fucked around with this message at 20:56 on Mar 23, 2022 |
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Mar 23, 2022 20:44
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MarquiseMindfang posted:Has to be. If Tiana had a knife the entire time, she wouldn't need a painting to kill Beth. She's holding a glass shard from the broken painting, actually.
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Mar 23, 2022 20:56
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Blueberry Pancakes posted:She's holding a glass shard from the broken painting, actually. Dammit. I thought it was one of those weird goth girl knives. But I still don't trust Sean.
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Mar 23, 2022 20:57
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Who was Liza's dad? edit: By that I mean, what is he? Business dude or something? I'm trying to figure out what ties all the players and people like Sean and Tiana together. Humbug Scoolbus fucked around with this message at 21:36 on Mar 23, 2022 |
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Mar 23, 2022 21:34
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Humbug Scoolbus posted:Who was Liza's dad? Liza's dad is a Business Dude and also on the school board for the university Sean, Tiana, Ink, Rae and Aether all went/go to. IIRC Rae thinks he's a POS.
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Mar 23, 2022 22:12
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mycelia posted:Liza's dad is a Business Dude and also on the school board for the university Sean, Tiana, Ink, Rae and Aether all went/go to. IIRC Rae thinks he's a POS.
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Mar 23, 2022 23:48
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Stabbey_the_Clown posted:I don't think that's good enough. First of all, I know that typical death game rules are "dead is dead", even if it's happening in VR, but Tiana really seems unhappy that the intended game got derailed. She seems like a cold calculating type. She wouldn't have killed Beth just for spite. Secondly, she's in league with Sent to control the game, and could easily have killed Rae or arranged another way for Rae to be killed for sure.
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Mar 23, 2022 23:50
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It's not only that, but Rae wrote some crazy advanced search algorithm that Tiana stole and Liza's dad was on the board that cleared it, I would not be surprised if it ends up that Rae's code is what ended up creating AI for the first time, which makes his particular corner even weirder, since they essentially tortured him into fixing/writing? some part of the larger code that they maybe couldn't figure out on their own??? Loving the LP, thanks for putting this together
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Mar 24, 2022 00:52
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I've mostly been staying out of this for a while since I went and played it because of this LP, but I just wanna add that this "puzzle" is where I felt like a super genius (as the game likely intends, of course) when I saw the questions and realized what was happening.
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Mar 24, 2022 02:30
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27.1: Gauntlet  The clock is ticking. (Music: All Is Dust)    That’s... what it sounds like, yeah.The Contestants should have been relieved – the Exit had been opened, their lives spared – but an aura of defeat permeated the already gloomy room.   I know. That sucks, Rae.In an act that surprised all three of them, Liza put her hand on Rae’s shoulder. She was so much shorter than he was that it looked a little silly, but he seemed to appreciate the gesture.   She’s clairvoyant. That’s why. Clairvoyant? Like a fortune teller? Sort of? I don’t think she can tell the future, but she knows things without having learned them. That’s what her “hunch” was, back there. She knew that Tiana and Sean split up for a short while, but didn’t have any physical proof.The screen shakes. drat it all! I should have listened to her from the start. I don’t know, but I’ve seen enough that I’m convinced it’s real. Hmph. Guess I ain’t gonna question it at this point. How do you know all this, anyway? Aether told me in confidence. She said that her powers were acting up more than usual today. Something bigger is afoot here. Something just out of our reach.Ink looked to the monitor in the corner of the room. Do either of you know how much time we have left before The Four Elements collapses? I see.Liza and Rae fade off the screen. The camera pans slightly to the right. (Music: Harrow)   You fuckin’ serious? Are you really that surprised, Rae? I saw that coming a mile away, and I’m blind. And leave Aether to die, or worse? I’d never forgive myself. Liza and I won’t be around to help you. You’ll be dead before you even get to her. About that, Rae...  Why? Seriously – why not just leave?   I will find success – on my own drat terms!  Wholeheartedly. I don’t know what to say, Liza. Thank you.  I wouldn’t expect you to. You’ve got to get yourself to a hospital. Here’s hoping I’ll find one before I pass out. Or worse. You’ll be okay, Rae. Rae fades off the screen, and we hear a door slam.  It’s not too late. You don’t have to come with me. If Exit/Corners is one big puzzle, you and I are the pieces. I want to figure out how I fit into everything, just like you. You and me both, Liza. Well, whatever your reasons: thank you. I appreciate it more than you can imagine. That being said, I’m not sure how exactly we’re supposed to get to Aether and get out in one piece. I’m not sure what we’re going to do about Tiana, but... the puzzles are still operative, I think. Wait, really? Sent didn’t shut them off?Ink motioned to the room’s only monitor. Doesn’t look like it. See? The one on the screen over there seems to be up and running. Glad to see you’re still as peppy as ever. Let’s get to it!The pair strode over to the puzzle and got to work immediately. The screen fades to black, and the music stops. Hang in there, Aether. 
Rith fucked around with this message at 09:47 on Mar 26, 2022 |
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Mar 26, 2022 09:43
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Rith posted:
 drat right, Liza!It's way too early for me to try and tease out the full solution for this one by only visualizing it, but I'm fairly certain the blue edge pieces are going to be our biggest limiters here. I also have a sneaking suspicion that they're going to be two pairs of isolated islands, if that makes any sense; I'm not seeing a good way to match all five of them together. If we label them 1-12 going left-to-right and up-to-down, tiles 6 and 10 must be in that position relative to one another - the question is, does 7 or 11 get placed to the right of 6? The other of those two needs to be adjacent and to the right of wherever 9 ends up.
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Mar 26, 2022 14:05
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