Sunday, May 26, 2019

#70: Game Analysis

FTP: This is a mess. Edit it later for concise.

 05/26


I've played through the weird little .exe file I was given. Jae seems very despondent since Ali vanished. More and more she shuts herself in and doesn't talk about what's going on. I've shown her everything from the strange messages to the executable. She just doesn't seem to be taking it seriously. Honestly, that little aside with the flash drive was highly out of character for her. I tried getting her to help me with the new materials but she just suggested I download a special program without any instructions on how to do so. I'm pretty much on my own here.

So for those who haven't been able to access it, Most Cherished Memory starts with a little text based instruction on how to play the game. It warns against using the S key to cycle through text because it will automatically replay the program. Loading the game from the start menu causes a crash. I'm including an image of the crash screen:


This is clearly an old game because the web address in the image, www.toolkitzone.com, leads to a literal laborer's sale site. I don't know if this is a coincidence or a subtle nod to Ben's career path.

 https://imgur.com/avOyd3i

The intro bit gives us the name of our character, Aaron. Aaron is a name from entry #6, a friend of Mammoth's. I honestly haven't thought of him in ages. Frankie popped up, so he still exists even though Casey and Jake are gone. Perhaps I can still contact Aaron through Richee. I don't know if he has anything to do with this but he was mentioned in an entry and he doesn't want to kill me. It doesn't hurt to try chasing any lead for answers to any of this.

The truth is… I think Ali is gone and nothing can get her back. This is all just a scare tactic to try and break me down into further isolation. The consequence of killing Gwen. Or worse...something will happen in three days when that timer hits zero. We will see…

There are six characters to note. As Aaron proceeds toward them, six monologues play. This is the first transcribed.

"Puzzle pieces. That's all human beings are. Puzzle pieces. No matter ouir shape, our appearance, our dream, we all want only to fit into the sprawling puzzle that makes up the universe. Fitting in, conforming...its all youve ever hated... All you've ever wanted..." 

After it plays you can move north and engage the second invisible trigger for a monologue.

"Acceptance... It's all you've ever wanted, isn't it? But they never accepted you. And they never will. You were ostracized, rejected, by everyone. Mama didn't want you either, did she? Why else would she never be there, not when you needed her most. So you were alone. Those who live in solitude tend to rely on the unreal to satiate their need for companionship. She... was the only one who cared... the only real thing you had..." 

Continue for a third.

"She loves you... you think... She loves you and you've never said it oput loud, but you love her too. You love her a lot. She's the only one you need. She's the only one who has ever truly cared... you think... When you immerse yourself in fantasy, you tend to question your own perceptions of reality." 

After this you progress into a different room northward. There appears to be a potted plant and a table in this area. You can't really interact with them. It is also here that I remembered to try pushing "t" to hear Aaron's thoughts.


Following this is two more invisible triggers for monologues in the room. This is the first.

 https://imgur.com/v8TNkax

"But then, why would she love you? Why would anyone love you?
You coward.
You monster. You won't get off easy. The devil will have his way with you and then you'll truly know what it is to suffer.
Then maybe you won't be such a hypocrite.
All your suffering, all your sacrificial actions, they're all in your head.
Kindness is fraud. Sin is all that's real. You can't hide forever.
Your fantasies will consume you and the nightmares will be more than real."

North of this is a fifth monologue.

"How can you even breathe? How can you even stand the air around you, the sensations smothering you, from every direction, all at once? The sin so carnal, the love so synthetic--why do you walk the earth of that waking world? The air is pure here Only the aroma of ash lingers. Love hate. Hate love. If you live in fantasy, the waking world becomes your nightmare."

There is an entry way of sorts with one final monologue.


"You must be strong. The guilty will not survive the cleansing. Only those sincere in their convictions can resist. You muist fight the immovable force of a tainted perception of life with an equally powerful opposing force--the absolute truth. Everything is real. Nothing is real. Love hate. Hate love. If you live in fantasy, reality will become your nightmare." 

Finally we reach the room.


Each of the six figurines is missing a key piece. The Faithful Lover is missing an arm that you can replace with a machete. When you do it says:

"The machete slides in with no trouble.
The eerie aura of the dull, rusted blade seems to offset the gentle statue."

https://imgur.com/1w1grl8

The Embittered Philosopher is the first one you must activate. Go to it with the marble and affix it where his eye is missing. It says this:

"The marble slides in and the eyelid tightens around it. The fact that the astatue seems so lifelike sends shivers down your spine..." 

 https://imgur.com/z33T0v9

The Stoic Protagonist appears to be an armored soldier. It is missing a leg though the sprite does not reflect this. Inserting a broomstick leads to this message:

"The broom handle slides into the slot and adjusts perfectly. The handle rather looks like a peg leg, contrasting the heroic figure." 

 https://imgur.com/bkEW9oD

Next to him, so close you sometimes activate this program when you activate the Stoic Protagonist's program, is the Lost Child. This figure is missing something in its chest. This is an obvious reference to the heart. On the other side are a couple of odd looking figures. One is The Gutless Sinner and the other is The Hateful Recluse. The Sinner is missing their nose, replaced by a sea shell.

"The shell fits into place and a rush of air flows through the statue... You'd swear it just took a deep breath. How could that even be possible?" 

 https://imgur.com/adxSBDe

The Recluse is missing their entire jaw, replaced, oddly, by a literal fake jaw.

"The jaw clicks into place perfectly. The figure has a grim, half-human quality to it with the exposed jaw..." 

https://imgur.com/fcK59Hp

The last figure you put anything in is the STRANGE OBJECT into the chest of the child. It's not a heart, clearly. It's just a strange object that is described as pulsing and it horrifies me; I don't know why.

 https://imgur.com/t1Kdf6I

 But that triggers the final cutscene which I have recorded as well.


"Philosopher: Enhanced intellect is wasted on humans. They spend too much time dreaming and no time living.

Child: Abstract thought is just a prelude to pain... you immerse yourself in fantasy to forget the pain... right?

Lover: Love is as fraudulent as safety, pain as powerful as hate... You'll never have her, and you'll start to think you never did...

Sinner: You know it's all fake. You're nothing but a monster, a coward, and your deluded fantasies can't shield you from your fate...

Recluse: Consider it a mercy, the dream world. Abandon what is real and let the falsities consume you. Any other route brings misery...

Hero: The path you follow matters not. Embrace lies or face truth. Just make sure your devotion to the truth you perceive is absolute."


So I believe the six figures each spoke one of the monologues. I also think each of the six figures might relate to one of Chameleon's victims... I don't know why but Aaron was teleported to the space previously occupied by the Hateful Recluse. All the same, I'm not sure if Aaron is supposed to be me or Ben or what…

I've wasted the last day or so on this shitfest of a mystery fucking Rob threw at me to keep me distracted for nothing. I'm just hollow inside. Don't really know what to write anymore. Maybe j ought to hang it up and try ending it aNONONO WHATAREYOU DOINGTOME IALMOSTHAVEHIMAAAA

Assuming the demon is Chameleon at the end, I can say that Aaron ends up...assimilated in some manner. He becomes trapped in the statue, just like Darek is trapped in me. Is Aaron Darek? Am I the Recluse? I haven't been reclusive much online since she went missing… it's the world that hides from me…

The Faithful Lover is Jake. I can tell that without even squinting. Casey was involved in all of this a lot longer than Jake was. Jake playing the role of the disenchanted romantic just... fits. Also, Ben was once referred to as "the wise observer" so perhaps he is the Embittered Philosopher? It ties into the eyeball being the missing piece of the Philosopher. As for the Stoic Hero and the Lost Child, well, the Hero could be Rob and the Child could be Casey. If Rob coded this as I am led to assume, then maybe he sees himself as the noble protagonist of this story in some twisted sense.But by that logic, it may also be possible that Aaron is Rob and this is some crazy story about him. Maybe this is all pointless. Ugh. I need to breathe.

 The game is up, the pieces are whatever they are. I don't think I am any closer to saving Ali. Thanks anyway though.
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)