The Physiognomist's Office is a Z-machine interactive fiction game written with Inform 7 and is © 2015 by Christina Nordlander. It was an entry in La Petite Mort division of Ectocomp 2015 where it took 8th place.
In this very short game, you play as someone in the corridor of a medical clinic. Something bad will happen if you go back. You must escape.
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.
Corridor
> w.
Surgery
> x cabinets. open cabinets. (locked)
> x books. x journals. x skulls.
> x bench. open drawer. (locked)
> x boxes. open boxes. x window.
> x chair. x straps. (at least five of them)
> look under bench. (find a hole and glint)
> look in hole. take key. x key. (for window)
> unlock window with key.
> open window. w.
Street
*** You have escaped ***
There aren't any other characters, apart from the sound of footsteps you sometimes hear coming from the corridor while you're in the surgery. I expect someone to walk in at any moment, but it just doesn't happen.
The game doesn't explain what a "physiognomist" is either. Wikipedia says that physiognomy is "the practice of assessing a person's character or personality from their outer appearance—especially the face" which sounds about as scary as a palm reading. I don't see why a "physiognomist" would need a surgery or a padded chair with heavy straps, so I'm rather puzzled who or what exactly we're escaping from.
This walkthrough is provided free of charge since the work it's based on has less than fifteen locations. Please consider it a thank you for your support!
I create larger walkthroughs too! Please visit my Patreon account if you're interested in helping me create more interactive fiction walkthroughs. I appreciate all the help I can get! Thanks again.
Ko-Fi is a way to send me small one-time donations. Every little bit helps, and thank you!