In this game, you play as an underclassman at the California Institute of Technology. Today is Ditch Day, where seniors lock their doors with devices and puzzles called "stacks", and underclassmen attempt to solve the stacks.
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 1.0 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.
Note that the exit from the start of the maze into the Behavior Lab is one-way. You can only enter the maze from the steam tunnels.
CAUTION: If you didn't turn off the disorientation machinery, attempts to go anywhere in the maze result in randomized movements, if any at all.
Locations in the maze are named "Lost in the Maze".
There are five dead-ends in the maze.
Walkthrough
Room 3
> x bed. look under bed. x bill.
> x desk. open drawer. x food. take it.
> x basket. x bottle. take basket.
> w.
Alley One (south end)
> x sign.(Find and deposit these four items in the door's slot to solve this stack: The Great Seal of the Omega, Mr Happy Gear, A Million Random Digits, and A DarbCard.)
> n. w.
Computer Room
The undergrads are playing a text adventure where they find a dollar bill by looking under the bed.
> x undergraduates. x computer. z.
> e. s. s. e. e. n.
Dining Room
> x module. x cup. take all from table.
> e.
Kitchen
CAUTION: Don't drink the cola.
> x machine. put cup in machine. push button.
> take cup. x cola.(flat)
> w. s. w. w. w.
Orange Walk (south end)
> x trees. n. n.
Quad
> take flask. x it. x students.
> nw.
Bookstore
If you try to take the battery and leave, you learn that it costs five dollars.
> x battery. x clerk.
> se. n.
B&G
> take paper. read it.(Has three numerical codes.)
> s. ne.
Health Center
> read memo.(It warns that ToxiCola causes drowziness.)
> sw. w. n.
Behavior Lab
The door into the maze is always locked from this side.
> e.
Maze Viewing Room
You learn the maze uses equipment to disorient people's sense of direction.
> w. s. s.
Security Office
> x flashlight. take it.
> x security memo.(All steam tunnel entrances are guarded.)
> n. w. n.
Biology Building
> take notebook. x it.(To reverse the sex of a clone, use Genetic Factor XQ3, Polymerase Blue, and Compound T99 when cloning it.)
> s. s.
Explosive Lab
> x thesis.(Tells you how to make an explosive by putting liquid nitrogen into a plastic bottle then closing the bottle.)
Return to the the courtyard:
> n. e. e. s. s. e. e.
Courtyard
Start exploring the basement:
> d. e. e. n.
Laundry Room
> open machine. x jeans. take key.
> s. w. n. n. e. n.
Storage Room
> x guard. give cup to guard.(+10. He passes out.)
> unlock door with key. open door.
> n.
Steam Tunnel (entrance)
> w. w. s. w.
Steam Tunnel (at control unit)
The scrap of paper tells you which numbers to use here.
> x unit.(This is Station 2; "322: ON")
Turn on the north tunnel lighting:
> type 293. push green button.("293: ON")
Turn off the maze's disorientation machinery:
> type 612. push green button.("612: OFF".)
> w. n.
Steam Tunnel (at top of chute)
> x chute.(goes down, not big enough for you)
At this point, you have no idea where this chute leads or what you might want to put into it. But the short answer is to put everything into the chute, because you need to get stuff into the GUE, and there's a tight squeeze around the corner that prevents you from carrying anything there directly.
> put all in basket. put basket in chute.
> n. e.
Steam Tunnel (south of tight squeeze)
You can't carry anything north from here.
> n. e. s.
Storage Room
> x rope. take it.
> n. n.
Outside Maze
The maze is the only way to get things out from this side of the tight squeeze, but you're not ready to leave yet.
> s. w. w.
Top of Pit
> tie rope to railing. d.
Huge Cavern
> x plaque. se.
Chute Room
> x chute. take all.
> s.
Spaceship Room
> x ship.(has door, socket for warp motivator)
> in.
Spaceship
Just a launch button here.
> out. n. nw. sw.
Insurance Office
Lloyd offers you an insurance policy for only one dollar.
> x Lloyd. x policy.
> give dollar.(You get the policy, but Lloyd is now following you.)
> ne. w.
Machine Shop
> x machine.("DANGER!")
> push red button.(You hurt your thumb, and Lloyd pays you five dollars.)
> e.
Huge Cavern
Now that you have five dollars, drop everything but the bill here, return to the bookstore via the maze, buy the battery, drop it into the chute, and return here.
> drop all but bill.
> u. e. e. n.
Outside Maze / Lost in the Maze
> n. e. n. w. w.
> s. w. s. w.
> n. n. n. e.
> n. w. w.
Start of Maze
> s. s. e. nw.
Bookstore
> take battery. give five to clerk.
> se. s. s. e. e.
Courtyard
> d. e. n. n. e. n.
Storage Room (with guard)
> n. w. w. s. w. w. n.
Steam Tunnel (at top of chute)
> put battery in chute.
> n. e. n. w. d.
Huge Cavern
> take all. se.
Chute Room
> take battery. put it in flashlight.
> nw. w.
Machine Shop
> turn on flashlight. n.
Storage Closet
> x gear. take it.(+5)
> s.
Machine Shop
> turn off flashlight.
> e. e. e.
Hall (east end)
> x creature.(It's male.)
> e. take slime.
> w. s.
Bio Lab
> x funnel. take it.
> x master. take it.
> x bench. x equipment.
> open cabinet.(has six chemicals)
The notebook said to use Genetic Factor XQ3, Polymerase Blue, and Compund T99 at the start to reverse the sex of the clone.
> put GF-XQ3 in master.
> put Poly Blue in master.
> put T99 in master.
> put slime in master.
> n. e.
Hall (east end)
> drop master.
> push button.(A female monster is created, and the two creatures run off together.)
> e.
Bio Office
> x seal. take it.(+5)
> w. w. w. s. s.
Vault Room
> x safe.(has door and slot)
> open bottle. put funnel in bottle.
> put nitrogren in bottle. take funnel.
> close bottle. put bottle in slot.
> z. z. z. z.(The safe door blasts open.)
> x safe. x card. take it.(+5)
You should be hungry by now.
> eat food.
> n. n. n. n.
Subway Station( (western))
> x car. enter car.
> put funnel in hole. put nitrogen in funnel.
> x gauge.(indicates green)
> push button.
The car levitates and enters the east tunnel.
Tunnel, in the rail car
While the car is in motion, stay in the car.
> z. z. z. z.
Subway Station (eastern)
> take funnel. out. s.
Computer Center
> x equipment. x book. take it.(+5)
Head back to Alley One with all your treasures:
> n.
Subway Station (eastern)
> enter car. push button. z. z. z. z.
Subway Station (western)
> out. s. s. u. e. e. n.
Outside Maze / Lost in the Maze
> n. e. n. w. w.
> s. w. s. w.
> n. n. n. e.
> n. w. w.
Start of the Maze
> s. s. e. s. s. e. n.
Alley One (south end)
> put book in slot.(+5)
> put gear in slot.(+5)
> put card in slot.(+5)
> put seal in slot.(+5. The door opens.)
> w.
Room 4
> x note. x warp. take it.(+20)
> d.
Spaceship Room
> put warp in socket.
> in —or— enter ship.
Spaceship
> push button.(+10)
Lloyd leaves before takeoff, and you continue to Deep Space Drifter.
Thanks for participating in Ditch Day!
Extras
Characters
Students are playing a text adventure in the computer room.
Other students wearing radiation suits are in the quad. They're pretending to clean up a toxic spill while reporters look on from a distance.
A clerk in on duty the bookstore, but the only thing she has for sale is a battery.
A security guard blocks your way into the steam tunnels, but it's obvious he's thirsty.
A slime-covered creature blocks your way into the Bio Office. Don't ask how you know he's male.
An exact clone or a female clone of the monstrous creature can be made with a CloneMaster.
Lloyd is a robot in the insurance office. He offers you an excellent deal: an insurance policy for just one dollar. The catch is, he now follows you everywhere.
Mentioned
The weird senior who lives in Room 4 set up the stack that you need to solve.
Endings
You have died
if you're near the closed bottle with liquid nitrogen in it when it explodes.
if you fail to eat something in a reasonable time after you're told you're hungry.
Thanks for participating in Ditch Day!
if you successfully launch the spaceship.
Note also that it's possible to make the game unwinnable. For example:
If you try to operate the rail car without first filling its tank with liquid nitrogen, the rail car's electonic components will overheat and fry, making the rail car unusable permanently.
Inventory
Items are listed in the order acquired (or could be acquired) in this walkthrough.
You have a carrying capacity of 10 items, but the waste basket will let you carry more.
You will get hungry at every 250 turns; eat either the food or the fish protein module when hungry to avoid starvation.
a one dollar bill. Acquire it by looking under your bed in Room 3.
In the insurance office, give the one dollar bill to Lloyd. He gives you an insurance policy in exchange.
some food. It's in your desk drawer in Room 3.
Save it until you get hungry at turn 250, then eat it. This food and the fish protein module are the only edible things in the game.
a waste basket. It's in Room 3.
You can use it as a carry-all. It's handy, but you don't really need it.
a two-liter plastic bottle. It's in your waste basket in Room 3.
In the vault room, open the plastic bottle, put the funnel in the bottle, put some nitrogen in the plastic bottle, take the funnel, close the bottle (to make an explosive: see thesis), then put the bottle into the safe's slot. Now wait a few turns for the explosion to blast the safe open.
a fish protein module. It's on the table in the dining room.
Save it until you get hungry around turn 500, assuming you need that many turns, then eat the module.
After you've eaten both the module and the food, there's nothing else to eat, so if you get hungry a third time, you're in trouble.
a coffee cup. It's on the table in the dining room.
In the kitchen, put the cup into the ToxiCola vending machine's compartment and push the button to fill the cup with ToxiCola. Take the cup back. Don't drink the cola.
In the storage room, give the cup to the guard. He'll drink the cola and pass out. You know that ToxiCola has this effect if you read the health memo.
a flask (containing some liquid nitrogen). It's in the quad.
In the vault room, open the plastic bottle, put the funnel in the bottle, put some nitrogen in the plastic bottle, take the funnel, close the bottle (to make an explosive: see thesis), then put the bottle into the safe's slot. Now wait a few turns for the explosion to blast the safe open.
In the subway station's rail car, put the funnel into the "coolant" hole, and put more nitrogen into the hole. The gauge now indicates green, and the rail car is now safe to use.
a scrap of paper. It's in B&G.
Read it to learn three numerical codes. They're not randomized. You don't need to take the scrap except as a reminder of what it said, so you should take it.
At the control unit in the steam tunnels, type 293, then push the green button to turn the lights on in the north tunnel.
Also at the control unit in the steam tunnels, type 612, then push the green button to turn the behavior lab machinery off. It's now possible to navigate the maze.
a health memo. It's on the desk in the Health Center.
Read it to learn that ToxiCola causes drowziness. You don't need to take the memo, but see coffee cup.
a flashlight. It's in the Security Office, but it's missing a battery.
In the bookstore, give the five dollar bill to the clerk. Now you can take the battery and put it into your flashlight.
You need the flashlight's light to see in the storage closet north of the machine shop. Of course, the flashlight will also let you see in the storage tunnels if, for some reason, you turn the lighting back off there.
a security memo. It's on the desk in the Security Office.
Read it to learn that a guard is now posted at the entrance to the steam tunnels. You don't need to take the memo.
a notebook. It's in the Biology Building.
Read it to learn how to change a clone's sex by using three specific chemicals in a CloneMaster. You don't need to take the notebook except as a reminder of what it said, so you should take it.
a thesis. It's in the Explosive Lab.
Read it to learn that a plastic bottle when closed and filled with liquid nitrogen is a dangerous explosive. You don't need to take the thesis.
a blue jeans. It's in the washing machine in the Laundry Room.
Examine the jeans to find the master key; it falls out.
You don't need to take the jeans, and you can't wear them. They're not your size.
a master key. Find it by examining the blue jeans; the key falls out.
The key unlocks the door in the storage room with the guard in it; the door leads to the steam tunnels.
a rope. It's in the storage room in the northern steam tunnels.
At the top of the pit, tie the rope to the railing. Now you can go down into the pit.
an insurance policy. Acquire it by giving the one dollar bill to Lloyd in the insurance office.
Just hold onto the policy; Lloyd follows you everywhere to see if you ever injure yourself.
Go to the machine shop and push the machine's button. You hurt your thumb, and Lloyd pays you five dollars. (You only get this payout once, though.)
a five dollar bill. In the Machine Shop, while Lloyd is following you (see policy), push the machine's button to injure your thumb and gain this bill from Lloyd.
In the bookstore, give the five dollars to the clerk. Now you can take the battery from the store.
a battery. It's in the bookstore.
First, give the five dollar bill to the clerk, so you can take the battery from the bookstore. Put the battery into the flashlight.
Mr. Happy Gear. It's in the storage closet; you'll need the flashlight (and battery) to see in there.
In Alley One (south), put the gear into the slot. When all four required items have been deposited, the door to Room 4 unlocks itself.
a glob of slime. Acquire it by trying to go east past the creature in the GUE hall.
Following the directions in the notebook, put the slime, some GF-XQ3, some Poly Blue, and some Compound T99 into the CloneMaster. Take the CloneMaster to the creature's location and push the clone button there. You'll clone a female creature and the two monsters will run away together.
Whenever you make a clone, the slime is used up. If you made a clone that ran off on its own, you'll need to get another slime sample and try again.
a funnel. It's on the lab bench in the Bio Lab.
Open the plastic bottle, then put the funnel in the bottle. Now you can put liquid nitrogen into the bottle. Take the funnel back out afterwards.
In the subway station's rail car, put the funnel in the coolant hole. Now you can put liquid nitrogen into the hole.
a CloneMaster. It's in the Bio Lab.
Following the directions in the notebook, put the slime, some GF-XQ3, some Poly Blue, and some Compound T99 into the CloneMaster. Take the CloneMaster to the creature's location and push the clone button there. You'll clone a female creature and the two monsters will run away together.
Note that you'll only get a female clone if those four things are in the CloneMaster and nothing else. If there's a fifth item in there, you'll get a male clone as usual.
some GF-XQ3, some GF-XQ9, some Poly Red, some Poly Blue, some Compound T99, and some Compound T30. All six chemicals are in the cabinet in the Bio Lab.
Read the notebook to learn which three chemicals change a clone's sex. It's not randomized. You always need GF-XQ3, Poly Blue, and Compound T99. Ignore the other three.
Put the slime, GF-XQ3, Poly Blue, and Compound T99 into the CloneMaster. Take the CloneMaster to the creature's location and push the clone button there. You'll clone a female creature and the two monsters will run away together.
The chemicals are not used up by the cloning process and stay in the CloneMaster. If you made a clone that ran off on its own, get another slime sample and try again.
a Great Seal of the Omega. It's on the desk in the Bio Office.
In Alley One (south), put the seal into the slot. When all four required items have been deposited, the door to Room 4 unlocks itself.
a DarbCard. It's in the locked safe in the Vault Room.
To open the safe, you need an explosive: see thesis. Open the plastic bottle, put the funnel in the bottle, put some nitrogen in the plastic bottle, take the funnel, close the bottle, then put the bottle into the safe's slot. Now wait a few turns for the explosion to blast the safe open.
In Alley One (south), put the card into the slot. When all four required items have been deposited, the door to Room 4 unlocks itself.
a book. It's in the computer center, south of the eastern subway station.
In Alley One (south), put the book into the slot. When all four required items have been deposited, the door to Room 4 unlocks itself.
a note. It's in Room 4.
Read the note. It congratulates you on solving the stack and tells you to take the warp motivator.
a warp motivator. It's in Room 4.
In the spaceship room, put the warp motivator into the socket. Now you can enter the ship, push the launch button, and win the game.
Score
The response to SCORE is:
In a total of many turns, you have achieved a score of your-score points out of a possible 80, which gives you a rank of your-rank.
Points are awarded as follows:
10 points for giving ToxiCola to the guard.
5 points for acquiring a DarbCard.
5 points for acquiring a Great Seal of the Omega.
5 points for acquiring Mr. Happy Gear.
5 points for acquiring a book.
5 points for inserting the DarbCard into the door slot.
5 points for inserting the Great Seal of the Omega into the door slot.
5 points for inserting Mr. Happy Gear into the door slot.
5 points for inserting the book into the door slot.
the support of Robin Johnson, Ville Lavonius, Andrew Schultz, Kenneth Hon, Carl Muckenhoupt, Mark Musante, Phil Tatro, Mitch, Vivienne Dunstan, and Peter Berman;
the generous support of Janice M Eisen and Matthew Foxley;
