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Key & Compass presents:
404 - Life not found
by Evan Derby

404 - Life not found is a Z-machine interactive fiction game written with Inform 7 and is © 2011 by Evan Derby (as "SomekidwithHTML").

In this very incomplete game, you're meant to be fighting zombies in a school and trying to escape, but so far, there's just one locked-up zombie and a large, sprawling campus with very little implemented in it. There's no way to win, so feel free to casually explore the place, kill that one zombie, and consider that a win.

This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 1 of the game.

SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of an interactive fiction game. Please make an honest effort to play the game before reading this walkthrough.


Map

Main Gym SupplyRoom UndergroundLaboratoryEntrance Foyer NorthAlley OutsideGym East Sideof Gym 🧟 Mainten-anceCloset NorthHallway AnchientWorldHistory NorthBasketballCourt MusicPortable AmericanHistoryRoom AmericanHistoryHallway Huffle-puff BasketballCourt Deck GermanPortable English IIRoom EnglishHallway Frenchroom SouthBasketballCourt MathPortable MiddleAlley (shed) MainHallwayEntrance OfficeEntrance MainEntrance Grass Field SouthMainHallway Office 🔑 BiologyHallway BiologyRoom 🔫 PicnicTables ParkingLot Study HallRoom StudyHallway Gravel ScienceHallway SouthAlley SouthHallway SouthEntrance Sidewalk Library GriffindorTech Lab Road Minefield (blockedby car) (to minefield) (to road) (to boyslocker) 🔒 🔒 🔒 🔒 🔒 d u (to girlslocker)

Walkthrough

Hufflepuff

This game is incomplete. The best I can do is give you a walking tour of the campus, kill off the zombie, then quit.

> x me. i. x watch.

> x computer. x text file.

> take all from desk.

> x desk. x pencil. x clip. (all normal)

> unlock east door with clip. e.

Basketball Court

> n.

North Basketball Court

> w. (Anchient World History Outside Door is locked.)

> n.

East Side of the Gym

We'll visit the gym later. This is the northeast corner of the campus road. The plan is to go southward (more or less), visiting all the locations outside the main building's east side. We'll re-enter the building by its south entrance and head northward (more or less), visiting all the side rooms. Then we'll visit the gym (north of the main building) and the alley (west of the main building). Finally, we'll confront the zombie, kill it, and finish at the underground lab entrance.

Forgive me if this all seems a bit dull, but most background details aren't implemented, so I won't bother trying to examine them.

> s. s. e.

Deck

> n.

Music Portable

> s. e.

German Portable

> w. s.

Math Portable

> take handout. read it. ("x-4y=3x"; "1337")

> n. w. s.

South Basketball Court

> s.

Main Entrance

The opener isn't functional.

> x opener. e.

Grass

> e.

Field

> sw.

Parking Lot

> w.

Picnic Tables

> take case. open it. x match. (it's a handgun)

> s.

Gravel

> s.

South Entrance

> e.

Sidewalk

> s.

Road

CAUTION: Going south into the minefield from here kills you.

Oh, let's do it anyway.

> s.

Minefield

*** You have died. ***

> undo

Road

> n. w. w.

South Hallway

> s.

Library

> e.

Gryffindor Tech Lab

> w. n. n.

Science Hallway

> n.

Study Hallway

> w.

Study Hall Room

> x whiteboard. ("4/30/2020 .. ALL DAY")

> e. n.

Biology Hallway

> open locker. (can't without the combo)

Unfortunately, there's no way to open the locker, but you can cheat and get the items in it, if you know what's in there:

> purloin book. x book.

> purloin portal case. x it. open it. x disk. x manual.

> e.

Biology Room

> w. n.

South Main Hallway

> e.

Office

> take keychain. x it. (unlocks all standard doors)

> n.

Office Entrance

There's no cafeteria to the north.

> w.

Main Hallway Entrance

Oddly, you can't refer to the water fountain as "fountain".

> x water. n.

English Hallway

> w.

English II Room

> e. e.

French room

> w. n.

American History Hallway

This is the other side of locked west door from Hufflepuff. Let's unlock it, just because we can.

> unlock west door with keychain.

> w.

American History Room

> e. n.

North Hallway

The closet you were warned about is here, but skip it for now.

> e.

Anchient World History

Again, unlocking a door just because we can.

> unlock door with keychain.

> w. n.

Outside the Gym

> n.

Foyer

You can't visit either locker room.

> n.

Main Gym

> e. (The Supply Door is locked.)

> unlock door with keychain. e.

Supply Room

Let's assume something good was meant to be here. Would you like a machine gun? Cheat and get one:

> purloin gun. x gun.

> purloin sheet. x sheet.

> w. s. s. w.

North Alley

> s.

Middle Alley

Alas, the shed isn't implemented.

> s.

South Alley

> s. (can't go that way)

Huh. A dead end with no explanation why. Head back to the closet:

> n. n. e. s.

North Hallway

> unlock closet door with keychain. w.

Maintenance Closet

> x zombie.

> kill zombie. g. g. (When it dies, it vanishes.)

> open trapdoor. d.

Underground Laboratory Entrance

And here our adventure ends. I assume this is where we make our triumphant escape, or maybe find the Slytherin Lab where the zombie outbreak began.

See you in the next adventure?

> quit.


Extras

Characters

And that's the only NPC. Even mentions of other people are quite sparse:


Endings

This seems to be the only implemented ending. The zombie doesn't even try to attack you until it's dead. There's no escape route. You may not shoot yourself.


Inventory

Several items can't be acquired in any legitimate way, but if you feel like cheating, you can PURLOIN them.


Thank You to my Patreon supporters

This walkthrough is provided free of charge even though the work it's based on has fifteen or more locations. Please consider it a thank you for your support!

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